Jig Blog

David Ford, Go To Hell

A stunning video from David Ford, a hugely engaging singer-songwriter. I loved this when I first heard it. It's being looped and recorded (and quite possibly mixed as well) live, in real time.

15 tips for the worried bride (part 1)

So here are some thoughts on wedding worries. You'll have to balance the fact that I've been helping wedding clients with their entertainment for 12 years with the fact that I'm still only a bloke, and will never fully understand the deeply disturbing psychosis of the female mind :-)

1. Develop a sense of perspective.

This is easier said than done. But the truth is that you've probably been planning for this day for a very long time, perhaps even before you met your spouse-to-be. Some women start planning the details at the age of 3 or 4. That's a freight-train of expectation which is going to be hard to stop. Learn to put the brakes on your expectations, and find ways to cross-reference them with this thing the rest of us call reality.

2. Move your expectations to marriage, not the wedding day.

Marriage is for life, not just for weddings. The wedding magazines don't tell you that, because they don't make their money out of your marriage. One way to get a rein on your expectations is to shift them to marriage, rather than your wedding.  Marriage can be so much more rewarding, and give you so many more great experiences and memories than your wedding day ever can. Speak to the person who is marrying you both. If it's a minister, he might offer marriage classes. These are surprisingly valuable, and can help contextualise the cultural and spiritual importance of marriage itself, rather than just the wedding ceremony.

3. Forget yourself.

The bride is the only one who gets to dress in a big amazing white dress. Don't be fooled into thinking that makes you a princess by default, though. The wedding day is as much about the guests and family as it is about the bride and groom. Remember that guests have made an effort to get dressed up to come along, and that's something to be grateful for. The entertainment and food are secondary to recognising the fact that you guests are people too. They have emotional needs, and nothing will make a wedding gathering more enjoyable than guests who feel appreciated. But before you think I'm saying you should go about apologising to everyone, and worrying about them...

4. Remember yourself.

Maybe you've got an awful lot of friends and extended family, and enough money to feed and entertain them all. If that's the case, then be aware that you are not planning a small informal social gathering, and as a result you just cannot get around all your guests. The speeches are a perfect time to communicate to everyone how grateful you are for them making the effort, but let them know that if you can't see them much today, you're really looking forward to hearing from them as you start your married life. Make firm offers of dinners and get-togethers for after the wedding...And not just so you can talk about the wedding: so you can find out about what's happening in their lives.

People do want to see you enjoying yourself, not getting flustered. Let them be gracious to you as you are gracious to them.

5.Think about the symbolism.

A wedding day is heavy with symbolic meaning. It is not just a party, it's a celebration. Think about what you are celebrating; what you are marking. Your lifelong commitment to your spouse. It symbolises The importance of friends and family and community. Remember not to place more value on the symbol than the thing it symbolises.

So that's the first five ideas for starters.  I'd be grateful for any responses to this. Just click on the comments box below this post and add your thoughts!

Stay tuned for part 2...

Michael Jackson: King of Controversy

I was called this morning to do a live interview on a radio show, talking about Michael Jackson's death and his legacy. That's right. They called...me. I'm assuming people really want to hear about the opinion of some guy from a ceilidh band in Glasgow about Michael Jackson.

 Or maybe he's such an easy subject to have an opinion on, I guess you could call anyone...It was a breakfast show. They called me and got waffle.

People are attracted to dramatic conflict. Maybe the most influential celebrities are the ones who learn how to polarise public opinion over matters which don't really affect the public. Actors. Musicians. Sportsmen. You can have an opinion on them without worrying about the consequences. It's not a political or religious opinion, after all. It's not an opinion about something that directly affects you...It's not important.

If you want to know my opinion of Michael Jackson (as far as it goes) I mentioned him a couple of months back here. Other than that, I'm sure you're quite bored of people spouting opinions on something they don't really care about. Sham...off.

Toto's "Africa", performed by a choir

Last night I attended a free concert at Wellington Church on University Avenue (as part of the West End Festival) to hear various works including Vivaldi's Gloria (not Gloria's "Vivaldi".) We heard an organ piece which attempted to emulate a thunderstorm as it interrupts a typical church service. It was a brave attempt (the thunder was more convincing than the lightning, it has to be said).

Coincidentally in my email this morning is a link from the Innocent Smoothies newsletter of Perpetuum Jazzile Choir.

It's hard to get traditional choirs to do this kind of thing well, because the disciplines are so different for pop music than they are for classical, particularly with respect to groove/feel.

But I think these guys do it very well indeed.

Looking forward to the JS Bach Mass in B Minor tomorrow performed by the Dunedin Consort in the same venue.  Tickets are still available for this work, sometimes described as the humanity's most eloquent argument for the existence of God...

Tickets are £10 on the door (contrary to what the festival website says), or £5 for students. 7.30 start.