Thursday, November 01, 2007
Rugby, renovations and the sound of music
I couldn’t start my first blog in months without mentioning just how great it is to be a South African rugby fan at the moment. I felt it in my heart during the whole tournament, that this was the team to be able to do it for us, and damn, it’s so good to be right!There has been such an energy pulsating on the streets of Cape Town, and you can feel the proud glow of everyone around you. I took my boys to Newlands on Monday to see the team, along with some 40 000 other people, and it was a real ‘frog-in-the-throat’ emotional high! Its good for this country.
The Peak girls have been very patient with me while I’ve been renovating the bathroom, as the Nice Toilet that was parked in our driveway for 6 weeks, has been collected. Being a male its quite fun to stand in a shady spot in the garden, closely inspecting the resident insect population going about their day-to-day business while ‘watering’ their tree; but I just couldn’t get the girls enthused to my level of bunny-hugging status… We closed up our home for three weeks and camped in the garden, because when you start a little DIY in the home, more and more projects jump up to bite you, so our kitchen got a face-lift and the rest of the house new flooring; while we were at it.
It was fun. It was messy. It was very educational. But that’s it for me. The finger-nails have been manicure, the grout and plaster-paint has been washed out from under my cuticles, and the music has rid me of that incessant drill-induced ringing in my ears (right - more about Chris Chameleon's concert coming!). I’m also finding welcome relief in the costumes of our entertainers, as opposed to Mr. B’s builder’s crack that smiled at me daily during the whole project!So here’s to summer, to music and laughter, and getting back to some real hard work again!
Labels: peak performances, rugby, summer
Thursday, April 12, 2007
i am in awe
OK - I am excited! I have been mentioning that we are in the process of imploding our present look, and that there should be a huge explosion when we hit the road running with our new corporate image, around the end of the month, beginning of the next. And of course, it also means that I am also going to get the blog a magnificent new set of clothes!Iaminawe are incredible (Gregg & Angella...love you guys). I wanted a warm African design; one that spoke of the powerful emotions that this continent evokes, warm deep colours, full of the silhouettes of people, performers, & African design.
I wanted it to show some of the spirit of South Africa, and I think we're damn well getting there! More to come.
Labels: iaminawe, peak performances
Monday, January 29, 2007
Rodrigo and Gabriella - Mexican Acoustic Guitar
Last week our designers – I would love to actually be able to say our designers, but unfortunately we don’t have enough money for that – so I’ll rather say the designers from iaminawe, Angella (Kuch Coppen) & Gregg (Coppen - Mr. Coppen!) came by, for what eventually amounted to an 8-hour meeting!They are in charge of designing new logo’s and a new-look website for Peak Performances, as well as a funky new image for Peak People, my own personal little ranting & raving space!
Having worked very closely with iaminawe in the past on our own projects; and having seen much of the exciting work they have done for other companies (including designing the stage for the 10th Design Indaba) we are always very excited when their emails start arriving, giving us loads of choices by playing with different themes that they just know are up our alley!
So exciting times are ahead – after all, Peak is in its 11th year now, so it deserves a bit of spoiling!
Today I would like to introduce something a little different, but very much in the World Music genre. I found a video of an unbelievable Mexican acoustic guitar duo, Rodrigo (Sanchez) & Gabriella (Quintero), while searching for acoustic music. I was spellbound. And so its seems are many others, as they are doing pretty well on the general charts of Ireland, where they are based.Having met as teenagers in Mexico City, Gabriella joined Rodrigo’s band Terra Acida (Acid Earth) that played at some of the roughest clubs in the city, with them having to survive off day-jobs to make ends meet. They did record one album at the time, but there were issues with the record label, and so the couple decided to head for the greener pastures of Europe in 1999.
This exotic couple immediately made an impact in Dublin, getting gigs at private parties, weddings and art exhibitions, and then headed for Denmark during the winter time to busk – being from Mexico I am sure nothing could have prepared them for busking the streets in 3 degree’s! From Copenhagen, they went to Barcelona, Manchester and then back to Dublin where they were asked to open for a busking friend at the new Sugar Club. In 2003 they released “Re-Foc” and a year later, “Live Manchester and Dublin”.
So now you know who they are – but what do they do?They are both heavily influenced by their love for Metal, and it comes out especially in Led Zeppelin’s “Stairway to Heaven”, but there is no one name for the style that they play. They describe it as ‘straddling both World & Rock’, but there is lots of classical acoustic, along with their Hispanic roots.
Let this little clip stream, and then watch Rodrigo’s amazing finger-picking style; he is able to get your heart to beat at full pace with the speed of his fingers, while Gabriela builds a rhythm that makes you feel like you got ants in your pants – Mexican ants full of Tequila!
So enjoy this lil bit of Southern Hemisphere solidarity and respect I have for these World music artists – they are creating sounds that are influenced by their lives and surroundings, no matter where they are, or how far from home, the result is pure music!
I am in awe.
Labels: acoustic guitar, iaminawe, peak performances, rodrigo and gabriella, web design
Saturday, August 05, 2006
The Dixie Swingers foot-tapping jazz
Ed Backhouse, leader of the Dixie Swingers Jazz band, has been a good friend of Peak Performances for a long time. We have used him at so many events large and small over the years, not only as a reliable choice, but because we know that he and his group are always a great success.
One of our favourite events was when we were working closely with the Cape Town City Improvement District, in bringing lunch-time entertainment and music to the city during the week. It was a really awesome gig, and though we had to really rag the artists for reduced prices, we all had loads of fun entertaining Cape town, and seeing the difference it made to people's lunch time's.
I know as a street performer, that most lunch-timers are in such a rush to get from point A to Point B, that they often miss what is going on around them; side-stepping the beggars and street vensdors, talking on their cellphones, walking briskly to get where ever they are going as quickly as possible. And that's where a good street entertainer is at his most valuable - being able to slow down the whole process, and catching that fast-paced attention for a few moments. Making them notice for awhile, by breaking the rhythm, and bringing laughter, a smile, or just a little bit of awe.And although Ed and the Dixies are no professional street performers, but rather swanky jazz musicians with long CV's under each of their belts, they always managed to draw an appreciative crowd enjoying the foot-tapping, happy-go-lucky styles of Dixieland and traditional jazz.
Ed and the Dixie Swingers will be appearing on behalf of the Jasper's Starfish class, at the Blouberg International Academy Food Fair next Saturday as abit of a surprise.
Ed is like that - he likes to take part in community events, often offers his services for free at charity events - knowing, that what goes around, comes around. Thanks Ed!
Labels: Dixie Swingers, jazz, peak performances
