As I mentioned in yesterday's Life Well Lived post, I had the pleasure of spending a very lovely Thursday evening on the square in my hometown of Denton, Texas last week for Twilight Tunes. I had plans to meet up with Rachel and Brittany and some other friends, but I got there a bit early. I wasn't the only one who wanted to enjoy a beautiful, mild evening with some great music provided by the Andrew Tinker band....
As I sat by myself up near the band (if you look closely, you can see me in the above photo...black shirt, jeans, army green hat...), I started thinking about how lucky I am to live in such a great little city, full of so many artistic outlets and talented people.
All around me, people of all ages were sitting in camping chairs or on blankets or just on the grassy lawn of the courthouse square, grooving and nodding to the incredible music. Children were running around, hoping to get as close as possible to the band before an observant parent came up and grabbed them. People brought picnic dinners, bottles of wine and plastic cups, or take-out boxes from the locally owned restaurants within walking distance.
This was my first experience hearing Andrew Tinker and his band and oh. my. goodness. I've since purchased their album, "It Takes the World," but even as much as I enjoy the CD and have listened to it almost nonstop for the past few days, it's nothing compared to experiencing these musicians LIVE.
I was genuinely impressed. When you live in an artistically thriving area such as the Dallas/Ft. Worth metroplex and in a small town with a nationally-renowned music program, everyone and their mother plays an instrument...is in a band...has a gig...you get the idea. It can be easy to get a bit jaded and wary when someone says "Oh you should come check out my band." But every once in a while, I find myself truly blown away by the talent that I'm surrounded with on a daily basis in this area.
The Andrew Tinker band did just that. Once my friends arrived, obviously my attention was turned to catching up, chatting, and enjoying the music as ambient sound...but for those 30 minutes or so that I was alone, I was able to focus completely on the music being performed in front of me.
It was just a wonderful evening with amazing friends and some kick-ass music. It was refreshing. Lately, I've felt an ache in my heart for the bustling cities of Boston and New York, and I've been feeling very homesick for the northeast.
But that night, I was reminded just how lucky and blessed I am to live in a city like Denton, Texas. At the risk of sounding cheesy and dramatic...it was just a magical evening. I went to bed so very happy and fulfilled that night.
Denton? I heart you. So very much.
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