The Desert Southwest - A Mecca for Early Music Lovers?

What images come to mind when you picture the Desert Southwest?  Multicolored sunsets, cacti, square dancing, cowboys, tumbling tumbleweeds? How about groups playing early music on recorders?  

Early music comes to us from the past, principally the Renaissance (1450-1600) and Baroque (1600-1750) periods of history.  The Renaissance has always held a special fascination for me, the music in particular.  Who would have thought that I could enroll in a beginning recorder class in my home town of El Paso, Texas?

That very opportunity presented itself to me this summer as I perused the catalog of class offerings from the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute (OLLI), located on the campus of the University of Texas of El Paso.  OLLI offers a variety of courses to adults 50 + in a relaxed setting.  I signed up for a six weeks course, ordered a recorder and music book from amazon.com, and showed up for the first class session, still struggling with assembling my recorder. (I am careful to explain that my recorder is an Alto Baroque Recorder, a little bit of ego so that people won't think I am playing the recorder they played back in third grade!)

My new alto recorder and music book

Six weeks later, and I am hooked on playing early music.  Our instructor Ricky Vilardell, a local musician, introduced the class not only to the basics of fingering the recorder and reading music, but also to the history of recorders and their significance in ancient societies. One of Ricky's principal points was that early music was not written down in as much detail as modern music; therefore players can improvise, much as they do when playing modern jazz.  To quote Ricky, "...music before the end of the Baroque era allows for so much more creativity among performers."

Recorders are woodwind instruments.  They are generally available in the same ranges of those of the human voice, soprano, alto, tenor, and bass.  The bass recorder must be a treat to play!

Girl playing alto recorder

The sound of the recorder is described as being clear and sweet.  I'll be the first to admit that I have a long way to go to be able to produce a sound of that description.  I'm just trying to avoid making squeaking sounds, which occur when you don't have the finger holes covered or you are not breathing gently enough.  Here is a classic engraving of what playing the recorder correctly should look like.

Playing the recorder

My plan is to practice daily so that I can eventually join the local Rio Grande Chapter of the American Recorder Society.  

Meanwhile, I can watch videos of recorder music and dream of someday making beautiful music.

Fantasia No. 7 for Recorder.

 

It's not Walmart; it's El Super!

Do you get weary of doing the marketing at the same old American chain stores?  Yes, it is comforting to know where the french fried onion rings are located, but do you find yourself plodding down the same old aisles and making the same old food choices week after week?

A trip to an ethnic grocery store may be just the inspiration to spice life up a bit.  In El Paso, Texas, my home town, we have several Hispanic grocery stores.  "El Super" is my favorite.  On a recent Saturday morning, my husband, Wayne and I were craving a coffee and Mexican sweet bread. We headed to "El Super" to have breakfast and buy a few specialty items. 

"El Super" grocery store

Upon entering the store, the sights, sounds, colors and aromas are a vivid reminder that you are in a new environment.  Large colorful murals adorn the walls.  Don't the fruits and fresh juices make your mouth water?

Mural at "El Super"

Our first stop was the bakery for sweet bread and coffee.  My favorite bread is the "concha " which has the shape of a big, round shell.

Bakery at "El Super"

I resisted the urge to buy "francesitos,"  the iconic Mexican rolls, crusty on the outside and soft on the inside.

"Francesitos"

We sat at a long picnic table to enjoy our food and drink while examining the very alluring produce department.

Produce department of "El Super"

Fruits and vegetables are attractively displayed in large, overflowing bins that remind me of cornucopias of abundance and plenty.

Chiles poblanos

One of the items on our shopping list for "El Super" was jamaica, dried hibiscus flowers used to make a cooling summer drink.

Jamaica, packaged or loose

To make Jamaica Flower Water, I use a recipe in Diana Kennedy's  The Essential Cuisines of Mexico.

Put 2/3 cup of  jamaica flowers in 3 cups of water and bring to a boil.  Continue to boil for 5 minutes over brisk heat.  Remove from stove and add one more cup of water, 1/3 cup sugar (or other sweetener) and set aside for at least four hours or even overnight.  (Overnight produces a full rich flavor!)  Strain the liquid into a jug, check the sweetness, and serve well chilled. I serve the drink over ice.   

Some people prefer more sweetener, others like a little lime added for tartness, and still others prefer a lighter drink by combining it with club soda.  The deep red color of  jamaica flower water and the rich taste will help you dream of a tropical vacation.

Our last buy was an impulse purchase.

Water jug

Water jugs were on sale at "El Super" for under $10.00!  We bought two for gifts and one for the house.  Mexican clay water jugs have a reputation for keeping water cool. If this jug can perform that miracle in the triple digit El Paso summer heat, I will be pleasantly surprised.  If not, I will still enjoy looking at the jug  on an equipale table in our front hall.

A trip to "El Super" was a lot more fun than Walmart!