These three photos were taken by BS, my friend and ace photographer on the MENC staff here. She and her family attended July 4th celebration in Manassas, VA. yesterday. Her photos are really good. I asked for some tips on shooting photos of fireworks.Hello All,
I don't know about you, but having a holiday on a Wednesday is a bit odd. Now, don't get me wrong. It was nice getting a day off in the middle of the week, but since I am back to work today, when I woke up this morning, it was a bit disorienting. For a moment I thought it was Saturday. Uh, no.
Did you have a nice holiday? We got some rain here in Reston, not to mention a funnel cloud a bit south and west of here. I had planned a small neighborhood gathering, a small potluck dinner that we ended up having inside. The food and conversati0n were tasty, but the only fireworks displays we saw were on television: the fireworks at the end of A Capitol Fourth at the U.S. Capitol near the National Mall. It was broadcast on PBS. The Boston Pops program was on CBS. Both featured people in red, white and blue, star-studded hats, little kids waving flags.
According to The Associated Press The Boston event "ended with a crescendo of cannons and church bells and fireworks exploding over the Charles River as the Boston Pops strike up Tchaikovsky's "1812 Overture" -- a rousing tribute to the Russian defeat of Napoleon's army in 1812 that was adopted by Boston Pops organizers in 1973 to give the event more "oomph." It looked quite grand on the telly.
In Washington, as SR noted below, Little Richard rocked the crowd (his Wikipedia entry already mentions it), the National Symphony sounded great as usual, and I loved Bebe Newirth , too. She is a favorite of mine, both from her days on Cheers and her musical work on the Broadway stage. She sangs songs from Cabaret and Chicago.
Now I am sure that you have a very nice July 4 fireworks display where you live. Have you ever been in Washington DC for July 4 festivities? Everyone should do it at least once. When I first moved to Washington in the mid 1980's my husband and I went to the Capitol every year for the fireworks and the Symphony. In those days, people actually (OK, let's be clear hear, frat boys really) hauled sofas to the mall so they would have a good seat and if you wanted good place to sit on the West Lawn of the U.S. Capitol lawn you got downtown about noon and camped out on the grass all afternoon with a picnic and a Monopoly game.
Was it worth sitting around for seven hours in the heat for concert? In addition to the always stellar NSO, superstar performers for A Capitol Fourth’s over the years have included Stevie Wonder, Dolly Parton, Gloria Estefan, Tony Bennett, Faith Hill, Aretha Franklin, Ray Charles, the Bee Gees, Kenny G, Aaron Neville and Kenny Rogers. Yeah, it was worth it.
And then, around 9 pm, you got to see fireworks in colorful display around the Washington Monument while you listened to one of the worlds' greatest orchestras play "America the Beautiful" and "Stars and Stripes Forever." Yes, it was worth it. It was even worth a long, crowded subway ride home.
These days, in a post 9/11 world, seeing the fireworks in DC is a bit more complicated. It would be just about impossible to get a couch through the security checkpoint :-) Not complaining, just stating a fact. The gates for the Capitol lawn don't even open until 5 pm, so don't expect to get in a Monopoly game while you wait for NSO. If you are ever in town for the 4th, though. I highly recommend it. Kind of like New York's Times Square on New Year's Eve. Like I say, everyone should see Washington fireworks on July 4 at least once. The events are free, as are the goosebumps.
Well back to work. I am putting together the August online news (look for that later this month) and then it is on to September Music Educators Journal. Remember my time warp? It's time for Back to School!
See you next Thursday.
RF
