Lem Genovese
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8/18/2008 3:08:02 PM
The Cornstalk Festival - Dunnell, MN @ Scott Farm
Saturday August 3rd, 2008
Heidi & Homer Scott have sponsored the Cornstalk Peace Fest for the past few years on their family farm near Dunnell, MN in SW Minnesota. It features a plethora of different musical acts from genres as diverse as Bluegrass, Caribbean and all points in between. Other than a technical glitch with the pre-amp battery on my Taylor maple Kottke Model 12 string, the tunes were well received by the crowd of approximately 60.
After being a trifle apprehensive about how my military experience songs would
be received, the audience reaction was respectful. In particular, my post 9/11 song - "Endangered" seemed to reach a different level of understanding of what the
true cost of military service for the cause of peace really means compared to the other acts. The 12 string instrumental "Elegy For The Fallen" written for the Gold Star Families throughout our Nation's past, present and future sounded fine through the PA system.
Hopefully, the Scotts will appreciate this different perspective and ask for a return
date at next year's fest.
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Lem Genovese
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8/15/2008 2:48:16 PM
Lake Harriet Bandshell - Minneapolis, MN / Wednesday, August 13th 2008
The Minneapolis Parks & Recreation Board's "Concerts In The Park" summer series is a volunteer musicians program worth checking out. The Lake Harriet bandshell in particular has a wonderful in-house sound system and benches for a concert like environment.
My performance there was memorable for a number of reasons. The over all sound quality was unmatched, the ambience of the lake behind the bandshell and playing while watching a brilliant sunset made it a highlight of my summer tour.
My Desert Storm service buddy Kurt & his brother Cory showed up as well as
old Onalaska, WI friends of my wife who had recently moved to the Twin Cities.
To add to this night, a pregnant mother of three came up afterwards and bought a copy of my 1st CD - "The LAST Audition" for her husband who is currently in Iraq with the US Army. Having her tell me that some of my songs resonated deeply to her and that she knew her husband would appreciate them was quite a honor and
reminded me of why I write songs that deal with the military experience.
Special thanks to my wife for getting the digital video camera and recording most of the entire concert for future use on the yankeemedicrecords.com website as well as YouTube.com / Reverbnation and myspace.com.
The next leg of the autumn campaign is the Ames, Ankeny & Des Moines dates October 2nd, 3rd & 4th. Which will be CD release events for my brand spanking new "Six Lazzeri Lane" which was done by Oasis Recording as a high speed glass mastered audiophile quality product. STAY TUNED !
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