Leo Kretzner: News

I went to the 2007 Lark Music Camp outside of Mendocino, CA the week of July 28 - Aug 4, and as in previous years it was a great experience. The camp features an incredible variety of musical styles from around the world. I decided to focus on swing guitar and was able to take four hours per day of instruction in various aspects of playing swing and early jazz. The highlight was playing in a 12-piece swing orchestra that played for a Friday night dance, with people going wild on the dance floor as we cranked out classics like In the Mood, Moten Swing, and Sing, Sing, Sing. If you're not aware of Lark Camp, check out the web site: www.larkcamp.com

Ever expanding my horizons, I've started playing with a group that is mostly focused on the songs of The Indigo Girls - ie, Amy Ray and Emilie Saliers. I love those great female vocal leads and harmonies!

I've joined a group called 'Closer to Fine' (the name of a great IG song) and is fronted by Heidi Bird and Mary Jo Wiedey. These two met while both majoring in vocal music, and they really know how to sing a song! They more than do justice to Amy and Emilie's fine songs and harmonies. They are also open to adding various other songs to their repertoire, including a couple of my own songs.

Other members of Closer to Fine are: Jeff Bird, Heidi's husband, on drums; myself on guitar and dulcimer; and Ken Morris, guitar, currently filling in for Jim Cope - yes, the same Jim Cope as in the Old Gray Cats - who is a true Renaissance Man and doing summer stock theater in Colorado until September.

Check out the group's page: go to www.myspace.com and search for Closer to Fine.

This is Heidi's baby (in addition to her own two at home) and I'm enjoying being on someone else's ride and focusing on my accompaniment playing. Heidi aims to take this group out to the clubs and I've no doubt we can do that. I like the idea of getting into some new venues with 'folk' music that has enough 'rock' in it to be readily listened to. Of course this says a lot about the larger culture's preconceived notions of what it does and doesn't like, but we're all for the idea of potentially broadening that range of tastes in at least some people.

I've been playing Celtic music (mostly) with three other guys for over the past year, and our regular get-togethers are typically the highlight of my week. The lineup is: Alan Davis, fiddle, mandolin, & uke; Jim Cope, fiddle & mandolin & other things; Roy Durnal, bodhran (Irish drum), bass & uke; and myself on dulcimer and guitar. It's reels, jigs, hornpipes and the occassional song, all night long.

So what's with the uke's? We usually start each evening with 30 or 45 minutes of "uke tunes" - ie, what I prefer to think of as 'swing and standards' as I'm playing along on guitar. This is the non-Celtic part of our repertoire, and there's no logic to it - just something we enjoy doing. Jim has been known to pick up one of Alan's or Roy's ukes and play along as well.

We've had a few gigs (see my schedule), where we pretty much stick to the Celtic music. But one of these days we will also unleash our ukelele-driven swing tunes on some unsuspecting audience. Perhaps you will be there?

"Kretzner re-enters music world" might be catchier, but I never left the music world - just haven't been travelling as much the past couple of years. However I am re-activating myself in terms of 'playing out' - ie, performing - more, including travelling, I hope.

I went through an extremely rough patch when my wife of 22 years left me, but that was a couple years ago already. The silver lining to the cloud has been increased time and freedom to pursue music, which I have been actively doing.

Read on for more details!