Rendezvous in the Park, Moscow, Idaho

If you've skimmed through this blog a bit you've noticed that one of the recurring themes here is music.

Live performance especially.

I've been thinking about all the reasons why we've been drawn to live performance more and more as Barry and I get older.

At the core, what draws us to attend is sense of a community, the sharing of an experience with friends.

That's another key word, attend. Attend as an intransitive verb, "to listen or watch carefully, to pay close attention to somebody". In so doing our appreciation of a particular artist's craft and ingenuity is heightened -- that in turn is carried forward, increasing our enjoyment of recorded work with layers of memories.

Interestingly, attend comes to us from the Latin attendere "reach toward"; a fitting segue to one of our most admired artists, Sonny Landreth, and his new work From the Reach.

Landreth headlined Moscow Idaho's "Rendezvous in the Park" July 19 performance. Talk about my idea of a perfect summer Saturday: a gorgeous drive up through the mountains of Idaho, a wonderful visit at the Appaloosa Horse Museum, then end the day in a cool green shady park listening to the often ethereal, even ecstatic, but always ebullient slide guitar of Mr. Landreth.

Beyond those soaring, chiming notes attend to the Louisiana artist's lyrics:

"... I got the blues
I got the blue tarp blues

No it wasn't the weather that sank me and you
It was a bad mix of
Politics greed and fools
That levee of lies couldn't
Hold back the truth
We are in deep but not out of reach
Throw me somethin' mister..."

Blue Tarp Blues, Sonny Landreth, 2008


Landreth's work fascinates me; any given song stands on its own, yet each is an essential thread in the woven tapestry of an evolving song cycle. Qualities to aspire to in the visual arts as well.

~ Lynn

Field Trip Fun, Moscow, Idaho

A visit to The Appaloosa Horse Museum,
July 19 - 20, 2008.



The lovely lady in the background is 22 year old Appaloosa mare, Sweetie. With her is "E Arrow Paha" the yearling gelding who is the Appaloosa Horse Club's 2008 fund raising raffle horse. He could be yours!

They both had lovely patterns. For more info about current research on appaloosa color genetics, visit the Appaloosa Project.

The Appaloosa Museum is nestled in the rolling hills of the Palouse region some 300 miles north of Boise. Though technically located in Moscow, Idaho, the museum is within yards of the Washington state line.
















Moscow has developed a bit since my last visit in 1996. There is now a new hotel directly behind the Appaloosa Museum. This was the view from our hotel window, lovely horses in the museum's pasture!


An aside; I was rather taken by this juxtaposition of the 19th and 21st centuries' all terrain vehicles!

Museum visitors may linger over interesting historic artifacts from the Nez Perce and early white settlers, as well as photos of foundation horses in the registry. In addition, I was able to have a peek into the museum's library and chat a bit with the curator, Sarah Bellian.

The museum's website has a great slideshow which makes for a fun virtual visit if you can't get to Moscow any time soon!

Back in Moscow's charming downtown there is an art gallery that is always worth visiting, the Prichard Art Gallery. The current exhibit is a fascinating exploration of the natural and built environment of the Palouse region.

In all, Moscow, Idaho, is well worth a visit -- especially during the city's Rendezvous in the Park music series, but more about that later! ~ Lynn