Come join us!

A small selection of DisSonatas joined members of the SCA and a local young people's recorder group for a demonstration today at the Casco Library. Though rain threatened to cancel the fighting, it held off and the fighters were able to demonstrate their skills to a crowd of respectable size. Also on display were period arts and sciences, a small selection of refreshments (lemonade, wheat bread, honey butter and handmade mustard), and of course, music.

An enthusiastic young lady named Keziah even coerced some friends into doing a little dancing, and we were able to perform the dreaded Maltese Bransle Contest, in which the music gets just a little faster every time through the dance until the dancers or the musicians fall apart.

Andrea AskenDunn did a marvelous job, coordinating the refreshments, co-managing the event and performing with the musicians as well. Mike Mowlesworth brought his beautiful Celtic Harp, and Andrea's mom Beatrice performed beautifully on the viola da gamba. Also assisting us were Keziah, her sister Mariah, and Andrea's daughter Sorrel. The Bridgton News had a reporter/photographer in attendance, and I expect you'll see some of these faces on its pages in the near future.

If you're in the Harrison/Raymond area of Maine (loosely speaking) and want to play early music, I encourage you to get in touch with Andrea, who is trying to get more medieval and Renaissance music going near her hometown. She's at askendunn at gmail dot com.

If you're in the Portland area or York County, you'll probably find it easier to come to our regular practices, which are the second and third Monday of every month at Trinity Episcopal Church in Saco at 7 p.m. The fourth Monday of the month at 7 (and the fifth, if there happen to be five Mondays in a month) is Dance Night, where you can learn to do Renaissance dances -- no partner needed! -- and/or play dance music for dancers. If you play a recorder or other period instrument (or if you own a tambourine or small hand drum and can keep a beat), we'd love to have you! E-mail Lee for more information.