Session sketches, Wendy Cope interview

I took my sketchbook to the Tranzac last night. I've been doing this for the past couple of sessions. I was way self-conscious about it at first, but people don't seem to mind and I try my best to be unobtrusive.

Sat beside a fiddle player named Sophie last night who normally goes to McCarthy's Irish Pub on Monday nights. My whistle teacher has suggested that I go to other Irish music sessions sometimes, at least just to listen, so I've been investigating the other Toronto sessions. Here are the ones I've found so far, mostly through Toronto Celtic Music Pages and SiegelProductions.ca:



Tranzac: The one I already attend.

McCarthy's Irish Pub: 1801 Gerrard St. Sophie mentioned Monday nights, but online schedules seem to list Wednesday nights. I'm hoping Sophie's right, else these sessions could conflict with the ones at the Tranzac.

The Victory Cafe, 581 Markham, south of Bloor (just Southwest of the Bathurst Subway station. This list says the sessions are on Thursday nights, but that they sometimes don't start until 10 pm. (!!)

Dora Keogh's, 141 Danforth, east of Broadview, Sunday, 4 p.m. as well as Thursday nights starting around 9:30 p.m. "This is apparently the red hot Irish session to attend if you can keep up. Usually hosted by flute player Pat O'Gorman and fiddler Jim McGee."

The Foggy Dew, corner of King and Niagara, 2- 6 p.m. Sunday. "At this point, the pace is middling to almost fast, but beginners are definitely welcome. Singing is also encouraged."

If you're in Toronto and know of others, please do let me know.

It's good practice for me, drawing from life, and it's also a challenge since the players are all constantly moving and changing positions. It's a good challenge, and forces me to push myself to learn some new skills. I also have a tendency to stick to head shots (shoulders and up)...I need to practise doing full body shots, though this is hard with a live subject unless they're very patient and posing on purpose.

I'm starting to purposely choose angles that are difficult to draw, like the one below, which I digitally coloured after scanning. Frances is actually playing a flute held horizontally, but it looks like she's playing a penny whistle here; I think I needed to make her right hand bigger. I still need to work on my perspective skills. I'm reading books on the subject but I'm realizing that the most important thing I need is PRACTICE. So I try to do some drawing every day.



From music to poetry....

About three years ago, I Blathered about a stranger in a bookstore introducing me to Wendy Cope's poetry.

Well, I loved her Serious Concerns (one of my all-time favourite poetry collections) and decided to see if she'd be willing to be interviewed for PoetryFAQ.com. I wrote to her rep at Faber, half-expecting never to get a response. Within a 24 hour time period, he had sent me her e-mail address, Wendy and I had exchanged several e-mails, and I had posted her interview on PoetryFAQ.com.

I love the Internet. Wendy was a wonderful interviewee.

Wish I could find that bookstore stranger again somehow, to thank him.

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