After a long night of jamming and socializing, it was a tired but committed board of directors which gathered on Friday morning at 8AM for their annual meeting. While much is done via long distance throughout the year, the convention represents the only chance the board has to meet and conduct ALL FRETS business in person. Knowing board members were also committed elsewhere, the meeting’ s business was addressed in record time allowing those affected to join the enthusiastic group boarding the buses for either the Shuffle Off to Buffalo tour or the ladies luncheon. If the Buffalo area has a second favorite tourist attraction to Niagara Falls, it would have to be the Anchor Bar( birthplace of Buffalo style chicken wings). With this in mind, the first stop of the tour was that famous bar and eatery where chicken wings were gobbled up by the dozens as ALL FRETS musicians set the mood for the meal. If there is a shortage of patronage in the restaurant business, it is not being experienced at the Anchor Bar … in addition to our group, the establishment was full to capacity – with a line waiting just to get in – at 11AM! After lunch it was off to the Buffalo Transportation and Pierce- Arrow Museum where the FLASHMOB was scheduled to perform. The music of the jazz age is a perfect match to both the elaborate 1920s era automobiles that are part of the museum’ s collection as well as the 1927 Frank Lloyd Wright designed filling station which was constructed inside of the massive facility. Aptly named, this tour gave participants a real sense of the history and pride that locals take in their heritage. On a similar note, the annual ladies luncheon enjoyed a unique piece of Buffalo history being given the chance to dine in the opulent setting of the 20 th Century Club, considered to be one of the oldest and most historic private women’ s clubs in the United States.
Meanwhile, back at the ranch, workshops, jamming and rehearsals were taking place as all geared up for another fantastic evening concert. After a fun opening provided by the Gulf Coast Banjo Society, the program – aptly kept moving along by emcee Mel Collie – displayed the variety of instruments and playing styles which make us truly an“ all frets” organization. It was great to welcome Tom Stuip from the Netherlands as well as newcomer, Robbert Van Renesse to the ALL FRETS concert stage. A fun standout was the Sunset Bluegrass Band( with convention host, Keith Konopa, as part of the aggregation). Solo artists Mike Kuehn, Lance Dieckow and Paul Erickson were a perfect compliment to groups such as Glenn Peisker’ s Banjo Busters and Sweet and Simple( Linda Lehmann and Margie Baumann). A very bittersweet moment came at the opening of the second half of the program as the STL Bandjos performed. After providing a brief outline about the history of the band, co-leader Don Dempsey announced that this would be the group’ s final performance. As many in the audience had watched the members of the band make the transition from children to young adults on the ALL FRETS stage, the moment held an emotion similar to a high-school graduation – with the elders proudly wishing the young people well … Ginny Luetjie would have been very proud.
ALL FRETS is very fortunate to have such a wealth of talent within its ranks who perform without compensation at our convention. In addition to featured concert performers, our gratitude also goes out to the supporting musicians who add so much to each concert. We must remember that people like Bob Alexius, Larry Rutan and Ernie Mee( all of whom were a constant presence during this year’ s convention concerts and jam sessions) came exclusively to help make our music better. To them – and all the sidemen who supported soloists and participated in jam sessions – we offer our sincere gratitude.
Although it was the last day of the convention, momentum kept everyone energized as Saturday brought both planned activities and well as a few surprises. From the“ taking care of business” department, 9AM saw a large contingent taking part in the annual general membership meeting. Although ALL FRETS is a small organization which faces many of the same challenges which similar groups and clubs around the nation are facing, the enjoyment and commitment associated with being part of our special musical community is obvious among our existing membership. After taking in an exceptional jam session( featuring a young newcomer named Grant Flick) and attending afternoon workshops which were filled to capacity, it was time to prepare for the closing evening festivities.
14 ALL FRETS JULY / AUGUST 2018