I can't go to Clifftop

We can't make it to Clifftop this year--maybe next year. Here we are heading into the dog days of August and it is plenty hot in Tallahassee. Since we can't go to West Virginia, Donna Germano suggested I put together some imixes for itunes.
Here is one called "Southern summer porches." I mixed some of my old time banjo tunes with some other good picking--the type of music you might hear on a summer night rolling off the back porches in the deep south--old time banjo, blues, folk rock--definitely good sounds. :)
If you use itunes--go take a listen and see what you think. :)
Here's the link:
http://phobos.apple.com/WebObjects/MZStore.woa/wa/viewIMix?id=174509643

Banjo duet/July 2006

Hello,
Here's a couple shots of Lo Gordon and I recording a banjo duet when we visited Brevard in July. We recorded on two Cedar Mountain banjos and hope to have the tune on our next CD.
:)
We are wearing the new Cedar Mountain T-shirts which are awesome and I bet Lo will have them for sale at Clifftop. :)

Here is a link to Lo's banjo site
http://www.cedarmtnbanjos.com/
I have a beautiful A2 with the rosewood rim and tone ring and the mountain ginseng on the peg head. While in North Carolina, I got to play a friend's Cedar Mountain A scale. He had it tuned regular and capoed up to D--so I took the capo off and tuned it right up into double D--and boy did that banjo punch up there with no capo. It was awesome!

More banjo news and photos soon

Whoa--its already been a year since the Gabriella arrived. See the hydrangas in the background? They are blooming again--but not this particular batch. They belonged to a neighbor and the house sold last winter and the new owner has not cared for them the way the young couple did who lived there before.

Happy Birthday Natalie

Natalie will also be 25 on July 8th.
Here is a recent pix with her boyfriend, Blair.
Happy Birthday Natalie.

Happy Birthday Gordon Cox

Here's a new pix--just in-- of Gordy on the eve of his 25th birthday. (July 8th) I'm guessing that he may have a CD out before the year is over to celebrate this quarter century landmark. :)
You may hear a few tracks of his "in progress" music at:
http://www.myspace.com/gordoncox

Florida Banjo Society

Here's the first photo of the charter members of the new Florida Banjo Society at the 2006 Florida Folk Festival.

hidden banjoists in Victor Nunez's, "Coastlines"

Hello,
We just saw Victor Nunez's movie, "Coastlines" that was filmed in the Panhandle four years ago. Bob and I were extras in it and if you watch the first bar scene (the one with Cajun music and dancers) very carefully and squint your eyes to look behind the main actor and actress in the scene--you will see Bob and I dancing behind them (for about 5 seconds) Bob is wearing a light blue Hawaiian Shirt and I wear a black flowered dress .
Now where are the banjos? Well, they are most certainly at home--but there are several banjoists hidden in this film.
First of all, the band playing in this scene is Balfa Toujours (spel?) and although he is not playing banjo--Dirk Powell is playing in the band .
Then, the man who does the sound score for the movie is
Charlie Engstrom--who is also a clawhammer banjo picker.
And I've never met Victor Nunez--but Charley Cox tells me they went to high school together and that Victor made a banjo in shop and loaned it to Charley.

Anyway--we drove over to Carabelle five years ago to be Cajun dancing extras in "Coastlines" because they promised that Balfa Toujours would be there all evening and we would get to dance to them regardless of whether or not we would be background in the movie. (They shot hours of film of that one bar scene and only used a few seconds--so it is just chance that we are even in it at all. )
Also--we are big fans of Victor Nunez movies--and thought it was worth the chance to be included in even a background minor way.

Anyway--it is a pretty good movie--I liked Ulee's Gold better--but all in all a good story and it has the feel of North Florida five years ago. By the way--the bar is no longer there--it was blown away by a hurricane.
Best wishes,
Mary Z. Cox

Another banjo slide show

Florida Teak banjo/ Marty Spencer

Hello,
Here are some pix of Marty Spencer's teak banjo. Click on the title to visit his web page to see more of Marty's Florida banjos. :) Marty--they sure are pretty! :)

Experimental banjo slideshow

Banjo workshop/Florida Folk Festival 2006

Two Deering banjos

Trading banjos/Florida Folk festival

Here's a photo sent by Sister Sandy. The banjo I'm holding is David's Tree of Life and he is trying out the new White Shell Laydie. :)

Florida Folk Festival 2006

Here are a few photos taken at the Old Marble Stage on Sunday.
And here is a link to Dwight Hine's version of the the festival on the Global Ear.
http://www.globalear.com/index.cfm?sector=news&page=read&newsid=793
Thanks Dwight, thanks for listening so closely. Your words take our breath away to realize that at least one person heard and understood. :)
Here's a little of Dwights voice.
"... the only way you can make amends is to rip out that terrible elevator music that is playing on the video in the water cooled Foster museum there, rip it out and put in some Mullet Run, some authentic Mary Z. Cox's "Banjo Dreamin Suwannee Nights", a bit of Murat's legacy due to old Bonaparte, and some Peruvian red Tamlin, with Z's husky throat singing like Ledbelly loved, deep and bare. "
Bob even chuckled at "Peruvian red Tamlin." Now we're glad we took a minute to show everyone the Goncala Alves (Peruvian redwood) of my Kurt Simmerman dulcimer. We think Kurt put a little magic in his dulcimers back when he was building regularly. :)

Folk Music in St. Petersburg, Florida

Just returned from a week long workshop on Florida Folklife hosted by the Florida Humanities Council. The Laotian community entertained us with stories, dance, and a live band. The bamboo instrument is a type of mouth harp, and it and the drum provided a solid beat for the angel dancers.
If you'd enjoy seeing more photos of the week, go to www.yahoogroups.com and take a look at the photos for a group called
floridafolklife

Banjo Physics

David Politzer sent me these photos of banjos he's built from kits. (Musicmakers and Hughes Dulcimer) He said he had to make quite a few adjustments to make them turn out this nice--but aren't they lovely? I really love the one with the internal resonator and maple lamination (the rest and body are cherry) that goes the thickness of the neck . David writes that "somewhere in that sandwich they claim there's some steel, which should keep it straight in perpetuity."

Lo Gordon has been modifying the Saga kits and turning out some really wonderful sounding banjos with a metal internal resonator. He said he also has to make quite a few modifications to have them turn out so well. :)

More David Holt and Mary Z. photos

Florida Folk Festival Banjo Workshop

David Holt dropped by my old time banjo workshop as a special guest. I'm a big fan of his and I was totally in awe to see and hear him up close. Here we are trading banjos so I can try out his Deering Tree of Life and he can try my new Deering White Shell Laydie. What fun!

My space

The twins got me on MYSpace and guess what?
There are a lot of banjo pickers there. Even some of my favorite ones!
The page is a wreck--it does not have an easy set up and I have trouble editing it--but it is alot of fun.
For the young at heart.
Check it out if you dare!
http://www.myspace.com/maryzcox

Malibu RV campground

Very pretty campground--best dog walk we saw in Southern California. The only one with poop scoop gloves big enough for Jezebel. :)