I thought I’d take a few minutes to share my reflections on the Sojourn - that way facebook will have another thing to remind me about for the rest of my life 
I have told my friends that we saw a lot of really good music, some great music, and one transcendent performance that I will never forget.
The Igreja de Carmo is one of those old Iberian churches that are literally awe inspiring with plenty of gold, gilded carvings along either side, and paintings on the ceiling. It was long, narrow, with stone walls and high ceilings. It had been designed, I’m sure, with acoustics in mind to make the priest at the alter sound like the voice of god. (Do I have priest and alter right? I’m not Catholic or even Christian so excuse me if I got that wrong.) The performance there started with the a cappella group Sopa de Pedra (literally Stone Soup). They are a 10 woman group (although we saw the pocket version with only 5) who sing traditional Portuguese folk music. They started their performance singing as they walked up the side of the church. While they were only five women, they sounded like 500. The sound literally vibrated through my body. The hairs on the back of my neck stood up and tears welled up in my eyes. Maybe being Jewish, I just haven’t heard enough music in old churches because other folks did not seem to have the powerful experience that I did. But for me, that sound, in that place, is something that I will never forget.
The sojourn opened with a local band Retimbrar. They were upbeat, engaging, and got the whole group to get up and participate in several dances. There is a power in group circle dances that brings people together and creates community which really set the tone for the whole week. Reminds me of my Dances of Universal Peace days. Their first song also stood out as they did a percussion piece using traditional Portuguese along with more contemporary percussion instruments. Brought a real smile to this play along percussionists face.
As most of you know, Holly Bowling is one of our favorite musicians. And, while I love her solo performances, I did not fall in love with her because of the Tahoe Tweezer or Better Left Unsung. I really fell in love with her playing when watching a youtube video of a duet performance that she did with Tom Hamilton on a Jam Cruise. I really love hearing her interact with other players. In Porto, she joined Fado guitarist Bernardo Cuoto for the final couple of songs of his set. He is considered one of the most virtuosic contemporary fado guitarists and listening to Holly find places to engage and enhance his music was a real treat.
Mimi Naja of Fruition is an artist that I had never really heard before the sojourn. There was an embarrassing moment on a zoom call before the last event in Kauai where she and her bandmate Kellen Asebroeck introduced themselves as members of Fruition and I clearly didn’t know who they were. I will tell you that is much to my own loss as I loved everything that Mimi did starting with her harmonizing with Nicki Bluhm, continuing with her ability to play so many instruments (mandolin, guitar, bass, and piano), and her singing and songs. It seems like every time she was on stage, I was thinking to myself “man this is good.” One song, in particular, stood out. She opened the second Bom Dia Musica covering Blind Faith’s “Can’t Find My Way Home” (one of two times the song was covered during the sojourn). Maybe it was the early hour or the lack of coffee, but she gave it a world weariness that just touched my soul. She was the biggest positive surprise for me and I will be looking for more opportunities to hear her.
Matt Butler did an amazing job cultivating local artists for the sojourn. I’ve already mentioned Sopa de Pedra, Bernardo Cuoto, and Retimbrar, but the artist I was most looking forward to was O Gajo (literally “The Dude”). He plays the Viola CampaniƧa, a traditional Portuguese string instrument, with a completely modern world music sound. The man behind the name, JoĆ£o Morais, is a long time punk musician and this persona is something of a found voice (much like Rodrigo y Gabriela who started in heavy metal) inspired by an Anoushka Shankar concert. I had a chance to talk to him a bit. He seemed like a nice guy but he said he was definitely intimidated by jamming with Tim Carbone and Steve Berlin on stage. The standout song was “Tarantula” which was a wonderfully lively number. (Makes you dance like you were bitten by a tarantula!)
Speaking of Tim Carbone, he was another pleasant discovery during the sojourn. Railroad Earth is another band I have never really listened to. It’s not that I don’t like bluegrass, I do. For about 20 minutes. After that, I want to hear something, anything else. So I am very lat to the whole jamgrass thing. Sure, I had a bootleg of a Leftover Salmon many years ago but that was because they were playing the song “Alfalfa’s” (IYKYK). Otherwise, I can’t even listen to David Bromberg doing bluegrass for more than 20 minutes. So I just never picked up on the whole jamgrass thing. Nothing against Railroad Earth, but they were just one of many bands that I wasn’t listening to. Guess I missed out. I enjoyed Tim Carbone’s playing on everything that I heard him do from his set of Railroad Earth songs with band mate Todd Schaefer, to his contribution to the Ship of Fools Dead set on the Douro, to his numerous sit-ins.
(I would be remiss if I didn’t also mention Todd Schaefer’s song Lady Liberty which really struck a chord. It’s a “political” song about immigration that’s really about what it is that causes people to pick up, leave home, leave extended family, and seek out a better life for themselves and their children. I wish everyone would hear this song in their bones.)
I also enjoyed the Ship of Fools set on the riverboat even if I was feeling a bit seasick through it all because, well, boat. I am, as many of you know, conflicted about the role the Dead and their songbook play in our scene. I mean, I loved the Dead and I am always happy to see musicians get paid (and wish they’d get paid more), but it seems a shame that playing the Dead is a better payday than playing new music. (Joe Russo and Jeff Mattson have both been pretty up front on this score.) So it seems there is always gonna be a Dead set (or sets) when we get together en masse. So, I might was well sit back and enjoy it, which I did. The standout jam for me was Trucking -> Lovelight.
Matt Butler is not only the organizer of the sojourn, he is also the conductor of Everyone Orchestra - a musical project that Matt has been running for over 20 years where he gathers different musicians from different bands together to create improvised music under his (light-handed) direction. We got two EO performances including the final performance of the final night. That one had an amazing number of musicians on stage including not only sojourn players but also many of the local musicians. The first song was built around a chorus from a Sopa de Pedra song (and there were seven members of the collective present). Listening to the other musicians improvise around the power of the women’s voices was just great. It was a fitting end to the week of unforgettable music.
(A final couple of notes just because they didn’t really fit anywhere else. I am always amazed by the power of Jennifer Hartswick’s vocals. She is not just a trumpet player who sings, she is also a singer who plays trumpet.
Also enjoyed Jay Cobb Anderson and Anders Becks banter in addition to their songs and playing.
Scott Law is an amazingly versatile guitarist fitting in on everything from country, folk, bluegrass, dead, and jazz.
I really wish we’d gotten to hear Ross James on the guitar more instead of just the bass. I recall really enjoying his guitar playing in Kauai.
Shoutout to Aaron Feder, my friend from Kauai who played, apparently, pedal steel, in a krautrock band without actually knowing krautrock music. His couple of turns in the spotlight in Porta were great.
Also a shout out to Denver’s own Megan Letts who as part of the staff also ended up playing as many sets as anyone not named Ross James and more than held her own.
I really have to find a way to start hearing lyrics in music more. I’m sure that i would appreciate bands like Greensky Bluegrass, Fruition, and Railroad Earth if I actually understood any of their lyrics.)