‘The spiritual and mystical in Jungian analysis’

     
The C.G. Jung Foundation and the C.G. Jung Institute in New York City announced their advanced seminars for the fall and next spring. From the publicity:

Fall 2015 Seminar

Mind, Body, and Spirit in Jungian Theory

and Contemporary Analysis

Wednesdays from 7 to 8:30 p.m.

September 2 to December 16

(excluding September 23 and November 25)

Instructor: Mark Seides, Ph.D., LP

This course will explore the role of the image, and the development of a symbolic attitude, in Jungian analytic theory and therapy. Jung primarily investigated the image from a Spirit perspective, amplifying their inherited, historical roots, and demonstrating the universal, objective meanings they provide to our one sided awareness. In this course, we will attend to the other, less investigated aspect of the image: its energetic charge and inherent potential to liberate and redirect the individual’s complex psychic energies, moving us towards feelings, behaviors, and values that correspond to the meanings of the Spirit aspect of the archetypal image.

Jung noted that a symbolic attitude is necessary to effectively contain, understand, and express both the new, unfolding meanings and corresponding energetic patterns of behaviors embedded in the archetypal image. We will learn about the basic structure of an effective symbolic attitude though the study of its Mind, Body and Spirit characteristics. By revisiting Jung’s writings on the Transcendent Function, Ego-Self axis, and the lost and feared “numinous” quality of the image from this perspective, participants will learn how the psyche/somatic split that is characteristic of modern men and women can be addressed by exploring how our fluid and unique mind/body states resonate with the objective meanings of the archetypal image.

The concept of symbolic body work, and its relationship to a symbolic attitude will be introduced, and persons interested in the body’s role in analytic psychotherapy are encouraged to attend.

Spring 2016 Seminar

The Mystical Experience in Jungian Psychoanalysis

Wednesdays from 7 to 8:30 p.m.

February 3 to May 11

(excluding March 23)

Instructor: Leslie Stein, LLM

All mystical experience confounds rational understanding. When it occurs, it is overwhelming, inexplicable, and daunting. These experiences take many forms: a vision, a flash of clarity as to the existence of a divine force, a powerful dream of archetypal figures, a feeling of unity of all things, a beneficent experience of peace. Jung calls these “numinous” experiences, preferring not to use the word mystical. For most, these numinous experiences are mere oddities, perhaps frightening, outside the reach of conventional religion and, as they are fleeting, we return to the comfort of our ego structure, no longer interested. Yet, they have a profound role in psychoanalysis. Jung writes “The approach to the numinous is the real therapy and inasmuch as you attain to the numinous experiences you are released from the curse of pathology.”

Some commentators have said that he could not have meant that numinous experiences are a substitute for the hard work of psychoanalysis. Yet, the vision of some other force, outside the ego, that can fill our hearts with peace and hope, may indeed be the goal of analysis.

The purpose of this Advanced Seminar is to explore the role of mystical experiences in our lives and in psychoanalysis. There is no single expert on all matters mystical, so the Seminar is to be a collaboration, where participants put away easy answers and open to the mystery of what lies outside what we know.

The course will draw on readings from Jung, William James, Sri Aurobindo, Erich Neumann, Donald Kalsched, and others who have recognized the importance of mystical experience. The objectives of the course are to gain some understanding of the nature of mystical experiences, to explore their function in the individuation process, to examine why some are open and some are not, and to seek to establish some place for these experiences in analysis.
     

‘The Habit of Happiness’

     
New York University’s Global Spiritual Life will host a group of Buddhist teachers next month for an evening of interactive learning and meditation exercises. From the publicity:

The Habit of Happiness:

An Evening on Mindfulness

with the Blue Cliff Monastery

Thursday, September 10

7 to 9 p.m.

Kimmel Center for University Life

Eisner and Lubin Auditorium

60 Washington Square South

Manhattan

If you haven’t lived the best day of your life yet, says Zen Master Thich Nhat Hanh, chances are that you never will. We wait for happiness to come to us from external events, things, and people. We hope it will find us when we meet the right person or get the right job, but when it proves fleeting, we are often left with anxiety, depression, and despair.

Courtesy Blue Cliff Monastery

The good news is that if we can truly awaken to each moment of our daily life we can experience happiness right here and now, no matter our situation. With mindfulness, we train the mind to cultivate happiness within ourselves and we learn that our happiness and suffering are deeply connected. Embracing our suffering with the energy of mindfulness can transform the necessary “mud” of our lives into lotus flowers of happiness, at any moment.

Fifteen Dharma teachers from Thich Nhat Hanh’s monastic community, in partnership with Global Spiritual Life’s MindfulNYU, will offer an interactive evening of practice and teaching through sitting and walking meditations, a talk, and time for Q&A. This special event is part of their Miracle of Mindfulness 2015 U.S. Tour. Should you have any questions, please write here.

RSVP here.

Tour information here.

Monastery information here.


This tour includes many stops in California, Mississippi, and New York, so do click this link to see if events are near you. On Friday, September 11, the group will visit St. Mark’s Church in the Bowery for “The Music of Mindfulness: An Eclectic Concert in Celebration of Zen Master Thich Nhat Hanh.”
     

‘Freemasonry’s latest landmark’

     

Magpie file photo

The George Washington Masonic National Memorial. I shot this at dusk after the close of the International Conference on the History of Freemasonry in May 2011.

The National Park Service announced today it has conferred national historic landmark status on the George Washington Masonic National Memorial in Alexandria, Virginia. The famous site has been a favorite destination for tourists—Freemasons or not—for its museum collections and singular architecture for generations.

The Memorial was opened in 1932, one of countless celebrations in America of the bicentenary of George Washington’s birth. It is home to several Masonic lodges, including Alexandria-Washington Lodge No. 22—an earlier incarnation of which Washington had been a member—and various exhibits commemorating the Masonic fraternity. (I do not know if the timing of this announcement has anything to do with this, but Washington was made a Master Mason on this date in 1753.)

The NPS press release quoted in the Washington Post this afternoon says the site is “among the most architecturally significant projects to honor George Washington and one of the boldest private efforts to memorialize him,” and that the designation was approved “to connect people with the history in their own backyard.”

Magpie file photo

In recent years, the George Washington Masonic National Memorial (Didn’t they drop the National part a few years ago?) has been transforming from its longstanding role as a passive museum destination to a leadership force that champions Masonic learning. It provides digitalization services to grand lodges for the preservation of official records; hosts major conferences and other significant educational events; and lends its resources to other cultural happenings in Freemasonry in the United States. The Memorial is funded by nearly all Freemasons in the country through modest contributions collected through the grand lodges’ annual assessments. A movement is underway to increase the individual Mason’s annual donation to the GWMNM, which I hope every grand lodge will adopt in short order. It’s literally the least we can do to bequeath to posterity—Freemasons or not—this national treasure.
     

‘Can Light Be Golden?’

     
I’ve been awake all night (long story) and had the chance to read. I selected Owen Barfield’s novella Night Operation, a science fiction story published in 1975 that, among other things, comments presciently on cultural collapses we are experiencing today. It is a kind of allegory of the cave—clearly it acknowledges Plato’s lesson—as subterranean humans venture toward the light of day to experience what life might be like above ground. It’s a good story, and short enough to read in one sitting, if you’re so inclined. And reclined. Actually, reading Night Operation as dawn approaches enhances the tale’s ambience. Furthermore, to read it during the opening hours of August causes the mind to wander and ponder.

August of the zodiac sign Leo: Leo’s ruling planet is the sun; its element is fire; its color gold. (A slain lion named Cecil so prevalent in the world’s news this week.)

Can light be golden?

Owen Barfield, Anthroposophist extraordinaire, has three characters in Night Operation: Jon, based on himself; Jak, based on his dear friend C.S. Lewis; and Peet, inspired by another close friend and fellow Anthroposophy leader Cecil Harwood. The three young men protagonists endure a hellish existence, but their spiritual longings prompt them to undertake their Night Operation—a determined search for a place of enlightenment in a totally unknown atmosphere above ground. They behold dawn for the first time.

Anyway, the story triggered a memory of this Barfield poem, which I share with you:

CAN LIGHT BE GOLDEN?

Can light be golden? That can never be,

The well-informed assure us, because light

Is what we see by, never what we see.

But are the well-informed, I wonder, right?

Those painters of the old Italian school

Seem almost to condense it into sight.

I doubt if Cimabue was a fool,

Or faked the background, or the aureole.

Perhaps they worked to some more secret rule

That light observes—not light through Newton’s hole

(The force we see by when we are not blind),

But light inbreathed by man’s adoring soul.

Can light be golden? Now recall to mind

That seeding whereof Perseus was the flower:

How sad Acrisius’ daughter was confined

In Argos long ago—the brazen tower—

Then Zeus, the Light of Day, with godlike stride

Descending on it in a Golden Shower,

Breaching its walls to glorify the bride.

Can light be golden? Now the truth comes clear:

It is, when wonder meets it open-eyed—

As I am to the light that streams from her,

When she at last is near, and these old walls

Invading, overwhelms their prisoner:

The light that, condescending, disenthralls!

For now the pagan myth’s inverted: she

(Look up, and see how smilingly it falls!)

The Shower of Gold; I, wondering Danäe.

If you registered for the MRF symposium in Philly, I’ll see you in three weeks. Otherwise, I hope you’re enjoying this incredibly kind summer weather. I will be the guest speaker at Inspiratus Masonic Lodge No. 357 in New Jersey on September 28—presenting again “Come to Your Senses!”—so maybe I’ll see you there.
     

‘Journal 28 in the mail’

     

Issue No. 28 of The Journal of the Masonic Society is arriving in members’ mailboxes now. Some of the highlights include:

Editor Michael Halleran considers the importance of candidate proficiency examinations. “It seems clear that suitable proficiency means comprehension—not just a rote recitation—of the experience of the degree, enriched with appreciation of the implements of Masonry and some understanding of the symbolism of the fraternity, as specified by the grand lodge,” he rightly writes. “Sadly, we have all witnessed perfunctory examinations, but these do no one any favors.”

It’s very simple to me: Since Freemasonry uses the building arts metaphorically, we’d view the prospective member as raw material. When your basic building blocks show no understanding of the fundamentals of Masonic thought, you’ll have a fraternity that serves no vital purpose. Just shallow sociability, perfunctory charity—oh, wait.

Bro. Richard Bunn, in his article, draws comparisons between architectural cornerstones installed ceremonially and elements of the Hiramic drama. “If the Freemasons had been farmers, they would have seized upon the metaphor of the seed—as utilized by ancient agrarian societies in their mystery dramas, the most famous example being the Peresphone myth, which elucidates on the esoteric phenomenon of sowing, i.e., the seed, after being buried in the earthen furrow, rises again in the new stalk—but as the Gentlemen Masons were Symbolic builders, they chose the stone, like the medieval alchemists before them, to teach the same lesson of regeneration, or immortality of the soul,” he says in one breath. “Regrettably, with the ceremony of the laying/dedication no longer being in high demand, twenty-first century Freemasons are rarely, if ever, exposed to the profound symbolism attached to one of the fraternity’s most ancient and important observances. The symbolism of the ceremony of the laying of a cornerstone and the Degree of Master Mason are so interconnected that it is my contention that if the mystery drama of the latter did not directly arise from the former, then, the two ceremonies, one public and exoteric, the other private and esoteric, evolved contemporaneously.”

A new feature, “Retrospective,” invokes lessons from the past we ought to take to heart today. This time, a concept from 1864: “The extraordinary and ruinously rapid growth which Freemasonry has experienced during the past few years has only become possible in consequence of a neglect properly to exercise the privilege of the ballot. Hundreds, nay, thousands of improper persons have been permitted to receive the degrees, who, under a proper exercise of the ballot, would never have been allowed to cross the threshold of our institution.”

Yes, that’s from 1864, not 1964.

Speaking of changes, Bro. John Bizzack returns to The Journal with “Paradigms and Periods of Transition in Freemasonry,” in which he explains what a paradigm is and how it works, and how Masons can attain a keener understanding of their fraternity’s need for constancy in Masonry’s reason for being. “The idea has never been for men to change Masonry, but for Masonry to change men. Its core values and lessons can be challenging to incorporate into one’s life,” he writes. “It takes discipline of the mind. It takes effort. But the fraternity offers true camaraderie for those who choose this difficult psychological and philosophical journey. Incredible, life-altering changes occur as a man develops and uses a value-driven moral compass.”

He continues: “The landscape has changed. Freemasonry is indeed in a paradigm shift, one that was readily identified by leaders in the fraternity in the mid 1960s and that set the course for the natural turbulence that follows any time a paradigm begins to shift. That very shift gives us the signature of the fraternity today: dwindling numbers and a sense of baffling urgency to find answers, to stop the revolving door of men in and out after only a couple of years of membership.”

Bro. Mark Tabbert, Director of the Museum and Library Collections at the George Washington Masonic National Memorial in Virginia, spends a lot of time these days researching and writing what I am confident will be the definitive Masonic biography of George Washington—a comprehensive study of all Washington’s Masonic words and deeds that will serve for generations. His article in The Journal this time is “George Washington Meets a Past Grand Master of England.” How did our future first president’s interactions with the Fourth Earl of Loudoun during the French and Indian War impact England’s military strategy in that conflict? You’ll want to read this one.

In his always engaging regular feature “Masonic Collectibles,” Bro. Yasha Beresiner shares an item that actually cannot be gathered into a collection: a singular ephemeral tract of anti-masonic propaganda from 1698(!). From the pamphlet: “Knowing how that God observeth privilly them that in Darkness they shall be smitten and the Secrets of their Hearts layed bare. Mingle not among this corrupt People lest you be found so at the World’s Conflagration.”

There’s no pleasing some people.

And getting back to cornerstones, Bro. Stephen Ponzillo, a Past Grand Master of Maryland, hits the books to provide some biographical knowledge of the men whose names are inscribed on the silver plaque set into the cornerstone laid in the U.S. Capitol on September 18, 1793. Reflections on brother Masons who ought not be forgotten.

Plus, there are the regular attractions. President Jim Dillman tells us about the upcoming Quarry Project in Indianapolis. In “Book Reviews,” we have six titles of Masonic and related importance, including Frances Timbers’ Magic and Masculinity: Ritual Magic and Gender in the Early Modern Era, and Roscoe Pound’s Lectures on the Philosophy of Freemasonry. “News of the Society” informs us of the many successes enjoyed by various members of The Masonic Society as they pursue their labors in various employments throughout the fraternity, plus some other oddities you may not have heard yet. And, under “Conference, Speeches, Symposia & Gatherings,” is a list of educational and cultural events around the nation upcoming in the next few months.

‘Masonic Treasures’ is the regular feature on the back cover of The Journal. This issue treats us to the tracing board artwork of Bro. Jorge Soria of Grapevine Lodge No. 288 in Texas. Such low tech devices were common in the 18th and 19th centuries as aids to imparting lessons in Masonic symbolism and thought, but were replaced by electronic media as generations passed. However, thanks to artists like Soria, lucky lodges again are able to employ graphic crafts to instruct their candidates through the degrees.

And finally, if you wish to advertise your books, regalia, wares, organized events, or other Masonic-friendly goods and services, please contact yours truly here. Our rate card is here.
     

‘Born on this date: Jung and Huxley’

     
First published in 2014, this has become one of the most visited posts in Magpie history, so here it is again.

It’s a notable pairing. Born on this date were C.G. Jung in 1875, and Aldous Huxley in 1894. Both accomplished so much for which the world is indebted. As a pioneer in psychoanalysis, Jung advanced our understanding of the mind and human behavior by defining the characteristics of introversion and extroversion; by providing us the concept of the collective unconscious; and by postulating how the identity of the individual is shaped by archetypal symbols. He examined man through a microscope. Aldous Huxley saw man through a telescope, predicting social dysfunction with eerie prescience. His Brave New World (1931) has been warning one feckless generation after another of the perils of surrendering one’s humanity for the promise of a better society. His book predates the rise of Hitler and the bloodiest years of Stalin, to name a few, thus lacking the hindsight that benefitted Orwell, and yet that foresight is what makes Huxley’s story even more scary. It also doesn’t help that emerging technologies seem to vindicate his predictions; in a television interview with Mike Wallace decades after the publication of Brave New World, Huxley said there never could be a drug like Soma. Today we know otherwise.

Carl Jung was the spiritual scientist among the psychoanalysts. Freud dismissed Jung’s explorations of mysticism, which partially caused the break between the two. His research into symbolism, particularly as regards alchemy, garners him devotees around the world to this day. There are those of us who enjoy the study of various esoteric streams who see Jung’s research as essential to balancing the headiness of the highly speculative and undefinable intuitive.

The C.G. Jung Foundation and the C.G. Jung Institute of New York will present an advanced seminar on Wednesdays, from January 28 through May 13, 2015, titled “The Alchemical Opus: Demystifying What It Means for the Client to Work in Psychotherapy.” The course description:

The alchemists used the term “opus,” or “the work,” to refer to their process of changing base metals into gold. This implies not a magical transformation of material, but one of labor and persistence. Descriptions of alchemists and their processes show us that transformation requires our active engagement—dedicated work, in fact—to achieve the psychological growth that we hope for. Psychotherapy serves as the modern version of alchemy in its efforts to forge and create a personality that is, like gold, malleable but incorruptible. But in an era of re-parenting and corrective emotional experience, clients are often not aware of what work they need to do to make their time in psychotherapy effective in bringing about change.

This course will utilize contemporary research, timeless stories, and ancient images to explore the clinical dimensions of the clients’ role in psychotherapy. Both therapists and clients are invited to attend.

Learning Objectives:

• Summarize basic alchemical concepts and apply them to clinical work.
• Identify archetypal patterns underlying clinical work.
• Identify and apply effective clinical practices based on research.
• Recognize differences between clients’ resistance and lack of information about how to use therapy.
• List 8 of possible 10 tools that their clients will be able to utilize to make their work in therapy more effective.
• Identify which tools clients may be avoiding or unaware of, and identify strategies to help them use these tools.
• Use techniques to help patients effectively and productively channel their emotions.
• Help patients to utilize the therapeutic relationship more effectively.
• Encourage patients to assume appropriate responsibility for their actions without self-attack.
• Instruct patients to utilize stories, literature, and basic schemas to achieve their goals.
• Help clients to recognize and challenge cognitive assumptions that prohibit progress.
• Identify clients’ opportunities to utilize challenging issues for growth.
• Identify appropriate tasks for clients to use in pursuing their psychological growth outside of sessions.

Instructor: Gary Trosclair, LCSW, DMA


Those who pursue the spiritual alchemy found in Rosicrucianism and other disciplines recognize an obvious kindred thinking in this science. There is no reason why the two approaches cannot complement each other.

Aldous Huxley too was concerned with the soul of man. In addition to his social theorizing, he was a magpie himself, studying the world’s religions and producing the book The Perennial Philosophy. Before anyone had heard of Joseph Campbell, Huxley’s study of comparative religion finds there is a “Natural Theology” common to all the religious teachings he examined that offers “an absolute standard of faith by which we can judge both our moral depravity as individuals and the insane and often criminal behavior of the national societies we have created.” People everywhere endeavor to find communion with God, and if they cannot be saintly themselves, they can follow the examples of those who were.

Speaking of birthdays, I’m going to be late for a friend’s party if I don’t sign off. Have a good night. Please enjoy these videos:

     

‘MRF Symposium 2015’

     
The Masonic Restoration Foundation’s Sixth Annual Symposium in Philadelphia is only a month away, but the deadline to register is July 31.

I am happy to report most of the presenters this year are brethren of The Masonic Society. Yours truly will be among them, and I hardly can contain my excitement to be working with these Freemasons.

All the copy that follows is taken directly from the MRF’s website, but here are the essential links:

Symposium registration here. Hotel accommodations here. Full program here.

Click to enlarge.

The Masonic Restoration Foundation Symposium is the largest gathering of Masons in the United States who are expressly committed to observing the highest standards of excellence in the Craft. This year we are honored and privileged to be holding this great event at what is arguably the most beautiful Masonic temple on the continent: the Grand Lodge of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia.

The Symposium will take place from August 21-23, with meetings conducted in Corinthian, Ionic, and Norman Halls. The event will begin with an authentic English-styled Festive Board held in the Grand Banquet Hall on Friday evening, conducted by the brethren of Fiat Lux Lodge No. 1717, an English Emulation Lodge chartered under the Grand Lodge of the District of Columbia, and featuring comments from our Keynote Speaker, Robert Herd. Along with our usual lineup of interesting speakers, brothers will have the opportunity to see an Entered Apprentice degree using the unique Pennsylvania ritual, conferred by Fritz Lodge No. 308, the host lodge for the Symposium. Registration for the Symposium is $110.00.

This event is not to be missed, and we have secured excellent rates for accommodation at the Courtyard directly across from the Temple. All the information you need to participate is found here on this web site. We look forward to seeing you at the Symposium!

Brian Skoff
Master, Fritz Lodge No. 308
Organizer, MRF Symposium 2015

What is the MRF Symposium?

The MRF Symposium is a meeting place for Masons who are seeking the highest form of Masonic experience they can attain within their lodges, while strictly conforming to the laws, resolutions, and edicts of their respective grand lodges. It is a gathering for those who pursue quality in the Craft to share ideas and discuss their work. The Symposium begins on Friday evening at 7 PM, with a Festive Board in the Grand Banquet Hall, and concludes at noon on Sunday. We are fortunate to have an excellent program of speakers and presenters this year.

Who May Attend the Symposium?

Any Mason in good standing may register for the Symposium, provided he is a member of a Grand Lodge which is a member of, or is recognized by any of the Grand Lodges which are members of, the Conference of Grand Masters of North America. Registration for the Symposium is $110.00.

Topics and Panels

• Freemasonry’s “Near Death” Experience
• Constituting a New Observant Lodge
• Restoring an Existing Lodge
• The Initiatory Experience and Human Nature
• Incorporating the Fine Arts into the Lodge
• The Role of the Masonic Restoration Foundation
• Restoration Through the Centuries
• Come to Your Senses
• Admit Him if Properly Clothed
• Can We Transform a Brotherhood of Change?

Oscar Alleyne will give the Symposium's
Closing Address on Sunday morning.

Andrew Hammer, President of the Masonic Restoration

Foundation, will present the Opening Address.

Robert Herd will deliver the keynote address
at the Festive Board on Friday evening.

Dress Code for the Symposium: The Festive Board Friday evening will be formal (tuxedo is preferred, but black suit and black tie will be acceptable).

Saturday all attendees are required to wear dark suit and tie. No jeans or sneakers are permitted in the Temple.

Sunday will be business casual.

Note on Parking: A 20 percent discount will be provided only at the parking garage located at 1201 Filbert St, Philadelphia (if you exit the 13th Street side of the garage, the rear of the hotel is across 13th Street).
     

‘Summer studies at Anthroposophy NYC’

     
First, you should know the Rudolf Steiner Bookstore will be open seven days a week(!) through July and August. Monday through Thursday, from 1 to 5 p.m. Friday through Sunday, from 11 a.m. to five o’clock.

As always, the Anthroposophical Society of New York City is located at 138 West 15th Street in Manhattan.

While the regular Anthroposophy NYC groups and programs have the summer off, there will be summertime studies on Mondays and Wednesdays beginning next week. From the publicity:


A New Summer Study Group will be happening!

The regular meetings are Mondays and Wednesdays, 11 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.

We will be reading Occult Science as our main text, but first will be reading the fourth chapter, called “The Path to Knowledge,” of the book Theosophy for the June 29 meeting.

Contact is Joshua Kelberman.

All are welcome!
     

‘l’Hermione aux U.S.A., Part II’

     
Last night was the highly anticipated lecture at Masonic Hall by Bro. Alain de Keghel of France, who spoke on the friendship and camaraderie between two eminent Freemasons of centuries past: Lafayette and Washington. Bro. Alain is one of the organizers of the visit of the Hermione replica to the United States and Canada underway now. The ship will arrive in New York City in about ten days.

Alain de Keghel, Martin Kanter, and Misha at Alain’s lecture last night, in conjunction with the arrival July 1 of the replica ship Hermione to New York City, of which Alain is one of the organizers.

It was an eagerly received talk, and it was great to see friendly faces in the audience. It all came about last month, when Bro. Marty Kanter attended the World Conference on Fraternalism, Freemasonry, and History in Paris, and met Bro. Alain, one of the presenters. The event last night concluded and we exited the Ionic Room at about 7:30, at which time I took a short walk to 12th Street to catch a movie. A French movie titled In the Name of My Daughter. Long story short: It is a drama based on real people and events concerning a shady business deal and the apparent murder of an heiress on the French Riviera. In one scene, the sketchy lawyer who would become the murder suspect is asked how he knows the local mafia boss. “He is a Freemason,” he says, “from a different lodge.”

It’s important to network.

Much of the audience at the lecture last night.

The Summer Solstice is here! Saint John’s Day is near. Have a great one.
     

‘Bluegrass photos’

     
Amid several long days of rain, we got very lucky Sunday with a beautiful, sunny respite that made the 2015 Traveling Man Bluegrass Festival a perfect afternoon. The event supports the German Masonic Charitable Foundation. The foundation comprises the Masonic lodges of the Ninth Manhattan District in New York, many of which have their roots in German immigration to the United States in the last century and earlier. The charities funded by this music festival include the Shriner transportation unit—the group of volunteers who ferry needy kids to and from the Shriner hospitals in Boston and Philadelphia—and several other children’s causes.

An enthusiast of mountain music myself for many years, I was very pleased with the talent that performed all day at German Masonic Park in Tappan. Well, one band had a drum kit and electric bass, and played rock songs—I don’t know what the hell that was all about—but they were okay too. The other acts, hailing from distant rural locales like Philadelphia, Long Island, and Brooklyn, were excellent. In addition, there was plenty of beer (it is German Masonic Park, after all) and food. I can’t wait for the fifth annual festival next year.

Some photos:

Jersey Corn Pickers

Dubl Handi

Dubl Handi chose its name for the famous washboard brand. Click here.

Buddy Merriam and Back Roads

Buddy Merriam launched his bluegrass career 35 years ago. Actually, Saturday was the anniversary. He knew and performed with Bill Monroe, and he hosts the program Blue Grass Time on WUSB Wednesdays.

A brilliant mando picker as well.

McMule

McMule is the band with the drums and bass guitar. Nothing wrong with that, but it isn't what one expects in bluegrass bands. I had a mental block about it, so I shot only the dobro and mandolin players.

Cricket Tell the Weather

I suppose if I had to pick a favorite from among the line-up Sunday,
it would be Cricket Tell the Weather.