Vienna

Autumn in Vienna

I’m adding to a wonderful list of treasured memories… all under the Vienna heading. The leaves are starting to turn a little bit red and brown, but there’s still lots of green. Our hotel is right in the heart of classical Vienna… elegant, stately structures that housed museums, government offices, and lots of private businesses. Just outside of the hotel is a broad boulevard around 300 feet across. It’s lined with trees, and features beautiful modern streetcar trains, silently gliding by. It’s sunny and beautiful to make you sing as we head to a suburb called Gerasdorf, where we will play at the opening of an enormous new mall called G3. It’s so new, that you could almost smell the fresh paint and you look for handprints in the cement. We could hear the band in some distant area playing sound check. And we head in their direction. This is one of those dates that you heard me smilingly describe as loose and free and informal. This is not a concert hall, but an open, spacious atrium with a glassed dome ceiling where somebody decided, “Hey let’s do some music right here in the middle of the stores and shops and food bars.” And so here we are 3:30pm in the afternoon with the sun streaming in almost like being outside. Mark and Brian, our sound guys, will use all of their skills and secrets to keep the sound from bouncing around. Somehow they’ve already gotten it under control, and the band is playing and singing like it’s an afternoon party in the park. Lots of shoppers stroll by and stop to listen and even applaud our little sound check.

When Chris sings to a group like this that doesn’t know him and has never heard about him, it is so fun to watch their faces and jaws droppin’ and eyes open real wide. Before we can catch our breath, there I am right alongside Chris, dueting on, “A Random Act Of Love.” What a song. Thank you Siedah.

John played great all day and night. His solos screamed, then he sat down with the acoustic and lullabied on, “Heart’s Horizon.” Nice surprise for this audience in a shopping mall. Real delicate music. Light and bright and airy. You could see everyone the whole time. Not just the first 5 rows. But the rest of the venue being basically in the dark. When I first walked in the room for sound check, I walked up to the stage and said, “I love this place.”

I really think a unique energy surrounded the music. Even at sound check. That lasted the whole day and night. We met the mayor of Gerasdorf who was really thrilled and excited about our coming to play their opening. For them this was big stuff. Well it was for us too. Thank you G3. Call me anytime.

Love, Al