A nice Christmas outing

On Friday night, I went with friends Pete & Carol to Eau Claire to see a concert by George Winston.  We ate at a restaurant in downtown Eau Claire before the event.  Houligans has a pub atmosphere and the food was really delicious.  They have their own candied garlic sauce and on beef, that was out of this world.  The show was really enjoyable.  George Winston plays most of his own compositions, so for my friends Pete and Carol, who had never heard of him before, it was enjoyable, but for me it was great.  I have most of his CDs and love his folk style piano playing.  His hands just fly on the keys.  He included a couple of songs on the guitar and also one on the harmonic.  He has a quiet, informal style of performing.  Once his fingers are on the keys, the theater is filled with the most beautiful music.

Our drive home was a little snowy, but I rode with my friends so only had to manage the 10 miles home from our meeting spot.  It was a little slick, but I made it safely.

It was a nice Christmas evening and George Winston did play a couple of familiar tunes in his performance.

I was reading his bio after I got home.  I loved that it said that George Winston plays Steinway pianos.

I could not really get much done today after both cats piled on my lap.

On a related note, I met with my piano teacher this week to make a plan for my lessons.  I've been feeling a little stuck and not very motivated.  After a good chat, I decided to set my goals on learning more songs that I can play for others and to slow down on the theory learning.  By focusing on playing for pleasure, I think it will increase my desire to practice.  I'll continue to work on learning new theory, but it isn't going to be job one each week.