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I should probably post my recollections of FilKONtario before it recedes into the mists. An excellent con, as always. FKO is, of course, a convention I'm predisposed to find favorable, for a number of reasons. It's the unofficial beginning of my convention season, as I don't currently have the funds to swing GAFilk or Conflikt -- as such, it's a welcome time of decompression and reacquainting with folks I haven't seen for at least six months. And historically, FKO was my first filk con (2000) and the first one where filk took for me, as something that I could see myself participating in (2003 -- wrote my first one, "The Beagle" at that one, though I didn't sing it until Worldcon that year). Though it'd be a fine con even if I weren't predisposed to like it, I'd say.
Scattered highlights:
* My first time seeing/hearing Alexander James Adams live! Either AJA or Heather, for that matter -- and serendipitously, I happen to be in the middle of S.M. Stirling's novels of the Change, which quotes a number of HA/AJA songs. (Heh, and each book's acknowledgements seem to thank one more filker than the one before, as lyrics from Three Weird Sisters and Heather Dale have made their way into the books.) Blown away by his musicianship, as I expected.
* Many other excellent concerts -- Kathy Mar's GOH concert came complete with lyric sheets for everyone to join in, and with a focus on women's songwriting voices (the most powerful one to me: Meg Davis' "Seamus and Ivy" -- whoa, that's one of those songs that punches you in the heart); Paul Estin's set was a hoot, of course; Heather and Ben are always outstanding. I made it to parts of the Saturday concerts between Paul and Kathy, though I've found that on Saturday afternoons at cons I have a hard time sitting in one place throughout -- after a Friday spent sitting in the car and then sitting in open filk. But what I heard of the featured Canadians and the Interfilk guests was outstanding, as well. (I was fortunate enough to share a filkroom for a time Saturday night with Morva and Alan.)
* I was in relatively decent voice during the open filks and consequently confident enough to do probably more than I usually do. (I'm not timid these days; I tend to hang back because of limited repertoire, though I'm working to change that.) I got to witness Kathy's sharp eye and ear for who's been waiting to sing, who's been silent too long, and so forth. My rendition of Bob Franke's "Acid Polka" went over better than it did at OVFF, the first time I tried it (I've got to spring it out at Confluence, if only to torment Pete Grubbs). Had a couple nice moments in which a song I did prompted followers that I really enjoyed hearing: Kathy Sloan followed my "The Beagle" with Blind Lemming Chiffon's "Charles" (at times when Lem and I have been in circles, I've done my song deliberately to prompt his), and Morva and Alan followed my rendition of my favorite Vixy song ("No Hurry") with theirs of my second favorite Vixy song ("Perspephone"). Loved hearing Jodi and Allison trade off the lyrics on music from Dr. Horrible. And the Kira-Randy harmonies just get better and better all the time. And someone -- I forget who, maybe Elliott -- did a medic-themed reimagining of "March of Cambreadth," with the refrain "How many of them can we make live?" I'd love to know whose that was and if the lyrics are available.
* The songwriting contest theme wasn't doing it for me, and the Penguin Contest even less so -- so big kudos to the three who entered that one; a contest entry is successful if it stands alone as a good song outside of the parameters of the contest, and I told Randy Hoffman that his song about an unsinkable iceberg and its tuxedoed waterfowl inhabitants that met its doom at the hands of a liner needs to go on a disc sometime soon. (So should Bill Roper's similar-but-entirely-different Titanic song.) I didn't do the one-shots either; I haven't written anything for a while, and the song I've started inspired by Robert Sawyer's WWW books wasn't coming together over the weekend. May be ready by Concertino or Confluence, though.
* One of these cons where I share a filkroom with Kathy, I'm finally going to join the All-Nighter Sleep-Denier club, but it wasn't happening this time around. (As such I missed Kathy delivering Jefferson Airplane's "White Rabbit" at full volume Saturday night aided by Kira's karaoke track -- but fortunately they replicated it right after the Hall of Fame concert Sunday.) Clearly I'm not getting enough caffeine in my diet. (Er, that was a joke.)
* Much more I could probably say, but that's enough. It's looking about 93-96 percent likely that I can make it to Concertino this year, big yay ... as it moves from "likely" to "definite," I'll scout around for people to beseech for roomshare. I'm quiet and unobtrusive for a Big Burly Guy.
Words: Just finished Stirling's The Scourge of God. On to The Sword of the Lady.
Sounds & Images: In my head, "Dangerous Heroes" by Michael Longcor
State O'Mind: Content
Scattered highlights:
* My first time seeing/hearing Alexander James Adams live! Either AJA or Heather, for that matter -- and serendipitously, I happen to be in the middle of S.M. Stirling's novels of the Change, which quotes a number of HA/AJA songs. (Heh, and each book's acknowledgements seem to thank one more filker than the one before, as lyrics from Three Weird Sisters and Heather Dale have made their way into the books.) Blown away by his musicianship, as I expected.
* Many other excellent concerts -- Kathy Mar's GOH concert came complete with lyric sheets for everyone to join in, and with a focus on women's songwriting voices (the most powerful one to me: Meg Davis' "Seamus and Ivy" -- whoa, that's one of those songs that punches you in the heart); Paul Estin's set was a hoot, of course; Heather and Ben are always outstanding. I made it to parts of the Saturday concerts between Paul and Kathy, though I've found that on Saturday afternoons at cons I have a hard time sitting in one place throughout -- after a Friday spent sitting in the car and then sitting in open filk. But what I heard of the featured Canadians and the Interfilk guests was outstanding, as well. (I was fortunate enough to share a filkroom for a time Saturday night with Morva and Alan.)
* I was in relatively decent voice during the open filks and consequently confident enough to do probably more than I usually do. (I'm not timid these days; I tend to hang back because of limited repertoire, though I'm working to change that.) I got to witness Kathy's sharp eye and ear for who's been waiting to sing, who's been silent too long, and so forth. My rendition of Bob Franke's "Acid Polka" went over better than it did at OVFF, the first time I tried it (I've got to spring it out at Confluence, if only to torment Pete Grubbs). Had a couple nice moments in which a song I did prompted followers that I really enjoyed hearing: Kathy Sloan followed my "The Beagle" with Blind Lemming Chiffon's "Charles" (at times when Lem and I have been in circles, I've done my song deliberately to prompt his), and Morva and Alan followed my rendition of my favorite Vixy song ("No Hurry") with theirs of my second favorite Vixy song ("Perspephone"). Loved hearing Jodi and Allison trade off the lyrics on music from Dr. Horrible. And the Kira-Randy harmonies just get better and better all the time. And someone -- I forget who, maybe Elliott -- did a medic-themed reimagining of "March of Cambreadth," with the refrain "How many of them can we make live?" I'd love to know whose that was and if the lyrics are available.
* The songwriting contest theme wasn't doing it for me, and the Penguin Contest even less so -- so big kudos to the three who entered that one; a contest entry is successful if it stands alone as a good song outside of the parameters of the contest, and I told Randy Hoffman that his song about an unsinkable iceberg and its tuxedoed waterfowl inhabitants that met its doom at the hands of a liner needs to go on a disc sometime soon. (So should Bill Roper's similar-but-entirely-different Titanic song.) I didn't do the one-shots either; I haven't written anything for a while, and the song I've started inspired by Robert Sawyer's WWW books wasn't coming together over the weekend. May be ready by Concertino or Confluence, though.
* One of these cons where I share a filkroom with Kathy, I'm finally going to join the All-Nighter Sleep-Denier club, but it wasn't happening this time around. (As such I missed Kathy delivering Jefferson Airplane's "White Rabbit" at full volume Saturday night aided by Kira's karaoke track -- but fortunately they replicated it right after the Hall of Fame concert Sunday.) Clearly I'm not getting enough caffeine in my diet. (Er, that was a joke.)
* Much more I could probably say, but that's enough. It's looking about 93-96 percent likely that I can make it to Concertino this year, big yay ... as it moves from "likely" to "definite," I'll scout around for people to beseech for roomshare. I'm quiet and unobtrusive for a Big Burly Guy.
Words: Just finished Stirling's The Scourge of God. On to The Sword of the Lady.
Sounds & Images: In my head, "Dangerous Heroes" by Michael Longcor
State O'Mind: Content
