It's For The Kids: Recap of the CAoNC Showcase of Hope

Nothing makes me feel old like doing a benefit show designed for kids. Regardless, I wanted the chance to test out some new equipment that will make my gigs that much more interesting, so here we are, at Center For The Arts in Grass Valley for the Child Advocates of Nevada County Showcase of Hope.

Last year, I had a blast working with some pretty radical individuals to create an amazing show in support of CAoNC. This year, I was the only "kid" with a high school diploma. It makes for a different dynamic as far as my place in the program, but I was optimistic.

This was my first time performing with my new toy: the TC-Helicon VoiceLive 3 Extreme. This machine is capable of vocal and guitar effects, as well as looping and backing track capability. With the extra bonus of syncing effect changes to a backing track, this will allow my one man show to have that extra layer of depth I've been looking for. To make this first test easy, I will be performing the old Spider-man theme song.

Like last year, there were 2 shows, one at 2 pm and another at 6:30 pm. This year, this show featured everything from string quartets to cloggers. I was in the first act, so I was in the green room first. I wasn't able to sound check beforehand, with the exception of an informal run-through with a friend at my church. Consequently, the first show was a little out of balance in the mix. Despite that, it went smooth. There was a little kid in the second row with a Spider-man hoodie on, so that helped me through the awkward mix. At intermission, the kid's grandfather came up to me and said he really enjoyed it.

During intermission, I decided to dabble in the silent auction, which I guess is a perk of being the only adult performer. It ended up working out, because I won tickets to both The River Cats and Worldfest. So no complaints there. My girlfriend will be very happy about that.

After intermission, I continued to relax in the green room. I did feel a little awkward, being the for sure oldest performer, but I have always been pretty chill about keeping to myself. I actually just started writing this post while in the green room, while continuing to practice every so often.

After the show was over, the techs called me back to the stage to work out the kinks. After 10 minutes of playing with levels, we had what we thought was the right balance. On a side note, I have always enjoyed the professionalism and patience of the Center's tech crew. I've done multiple shows there, and I am always certain that I am in good hands.

I had one of the croissant sandwiches provided for the performers. Nothing special, just enough to tide me over until the next show. I decided to take a walk around downtown Grass Valley, the city that raised me. The history of this town gave me my love of history, and the appreciation of the arts here helped motivate me to continue on my musical path. Every shop and street made me who I am today.

After my nostalgic walk, I returned to the Center to wait for the next show. As usual, I kept to myself while the kids messed around. I like kids, but there is something about gathering a bunch of creative type kids together that promotes chaos. I did, however, have some nice music talk with the string quartet, Ascending Strings, and their teacher. We had some good talks about music theory and 20th century music, primarily Bela Bartok.

My girlfriend, Sara, and her parents came to the evening show, which is a good thing, because it went so much better than the first show. with the balance all figured out, I had a great show and
I am very pleased with the response. I left at intermission so I could have dinner with Sara's parents. Nothing caps off a great performance quite like Mel's.

I am now too old to perform in this event, but after recent talks with the event coordinator, I look forward to working with them again.

For Information On Events @ Center For The Arts, click HERE
For Information On CAoNC, click HERE
To Learn More About the TC-Helicon VL3X and other TC-Helicon products, click HERE