Are you Wolgemut? a.k.a. Micha's Blog.

New Wolgemut Video

Micha_von_Wolgemut — Mon, 26 Jan 2009 16:07:36 GMT

Finally! We had some time in Maryland to get down to business and video some of our new instruments, the result being... Wolgemut has a new Medieval Music Video which features one of our favorite tunes, Cantiga #1. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hhqcse1V7O4 Be sure to check it out and let us know what you think. Cheers /Micha www.wolgemut.net

On the road again...

Micha_von_Wolgemut — Sun, 11 Feb 2007 18:18:04 GMT

Like the title says, I'm on the road which means little time for blog updates. Be sure to check out the official website for the current performance schedule of Wolgemut and I'll post more to this blog when I get the chance. Thanks for looking and remember... "Sei Wolgemut Servus /Micha www.wolgemut.net

Seasons Greetings

Micha_von_Wolgemut — Fri, 22 Dec 2006 00:46:10 GMT

Hello everyone in Wolgemutland... It's been a very busy year with lot's of traveling and music making and the Holiday season is a signal to me to stop, pause and remember. Many thanks to all who have been supportive over the past years in my endeavors to bring "wolgemutlichkeit" to the world and I hope to continue into the new year with music and fun for all. I'm currently on holiday in California, visiting friends and family, and hope to have some time to add some more entries to my blog here on tribe. I wish you all the very best for the season and hope that it will be a happy one. Cheers /Micha

Play your food!

Micha_von_Wolgemut — Thu, 16 Nov 2006 16:00:51 GMT

How many times were you told "Don't play with your food" when you were growing up? Fortunately some people didn't pay attention to such talk, or perhaps I should say paid close attention to all of the possibilities of playing with food. That's right, you should play your food! Dr. Cranius Lunch (aka Jonathan Crocker) has a new website dedicted to the art of playing music on various types of food, also known as "Veggie Music". Friends of Wolgemut might recognize the unusual sounds of the carrot flute and "brocolliphone" from the secret track placed at the end of the "danza" CD. One thing is for certain, once you've heard "Veggie Music" you'll never look at your meal the same way! To learn more (and to see/hear the slide potato in action) visit Dr. Lunch at: http://www.playyourfood.com/ Bon appetito! Micha

First day of snow!

Micha_von_Wolgemut — Wed, 01 Nov 2006 07:42:58 GMT

Can you believe it? I woke this morning, snug as a bug only to find that the weather outside was downright freezing. It's November 1st and the first snow of winter was dumped on Gothenburg overnight. No more shorts and t-shirts. :-) The first snow still gives me a fun feeling (which usually disipates somewhere after December) so I decided to grab my camera and take a quick shot of the courtyard. Servus!

The Long Road to Austria...

Micha_von_Wolgemut — Fri, 27 Oct 2006 03:20:44 GMT

After several days in Scotland it was time to leave for Austria. Now, for those of you who may be fuzzy on geography, Austria is no where near Scotland, but in my case it actually made sense to fly to Scotland first. You see, if you are flying from Gothenburg your choices of airlines is limited. One of those airlines is called Ryanair (also known as the cheapest airline) and they fly to only three locations from Gothenburg, one of them being Prestwick, Scotland. And so I flew to Scotland, and from Scotland to London and from London to Graz, Austria. Not the fastest trip, but amazingly cheap and relatively painless. Austria was (as always) beautiful and we had arrived a few days ahead of the event which meant that I had time to explore the area. We were staying in a lovely "Schloss" (usually translated as palace, but this was something in between a palace and a castle) which had been converted into a youth hostel. They're very common in southern Germany, but this was the first that I had visited in Austria. The Schloss is located near the village of Schwanberg, south of Graz. For two days, I hiked around the surrounding countryside and visited the village (see photo) which had a lovely monastery. I had such a great time exploring that I almost forgot why we were there! We spent the weekend playing lots of music for a very appreciative crowd and I met lots of great people. I am particularly indebted to our host, Markus, who made sure that we were taken care of, and I do hope to see them all again.

Craigmiller Castle

Micha_von_Wolgemut — Fri, 27 Oct 2006 03:07:27 GMT

Before leaving for Austria, we had a chance to visit "the other castle in Edinburgh", Craigmiller. It is an amazing place just outside of the city limits and was mostly empty of tourist. Chris and Cait suggested that we bring some instruments to play in the great hall. The sound was amazing and the few visitors who stopped into listen got a real treat. As usual, I only remembered that I had my camera as we were leaving the hall, so I snapped a picture of one of the stairways leading to the hall.

Edinburgh!

Micha_von_Wolgemut — Wed, 11 Oct 2006 14:20:28 GMT

Once again, here I am on the road, this time on a short trip to visit some friends in Edinburgh before traveling to Graz, Austria to play music. My host (and musical guest) are Chris and Cait who together form the group known as Gaita. For more info about Gaita, please visit their website: http://www.gaita.co.uk/ We've spent the last few days playing through lots of different music. In the off time I had a chance to tromp around Edinburgh, visit a castle (or two) and take a few pictures. The weather has been very pleasant and suprisingly clear (as you can see form the picture) and so all and all it has been a very nice stay. Stay tuned for more...

Make my day!

Micha_von_Wolgemut — Sat, 30 Sep 2006 17:15:38 GMT

I received a photo of a drawing from my friend Emma, who is the daughter of a very old friend. I liked it so much and it made my day that much more "wolgemut" so I decided to post it. Thank you again for the picture Emma and thanks to your mom and dad for helping you! Servus! :-)

From the Wolgemut Inbox!

Micha_von_Wolgemut — Wed, 27 Sep 2006 14:31:50 GMT

Many know that Wolgemut has been a regular feature at the Visby Medieval Week on Gotland, Sweden for several years now. This year it just wasn't meant to be, and I received this email from a fan who was a little upset that we weren't there. Thanks for the message and I hope to see you in Visby next year Nanna! ------------------------------------------------------------- Hej Micha! We had great time in Visby and we also had a small demonstration... In the picture: That´s me on the right (in my stupid Saudi-arabian oil-sheikh look. I never remember to take my sunglasses of :) On the back is my friend Päivi and beside me are our little friends, who really wanted to join us in our demonstration ;) Hope to see you there next year :) Nanna

Do you You Tube?

Micha_von_Wolgemut — Wed, 13 Sep 2006 19:44:55 GMT

The internet never ceases to amaze me. I just dicovered YouTube, a website for uploading your own video clips. Sure enough, people have already posted Wolgemut video clips. How cool is that! So now there is a Wolgemut YouTube group. Feel free to check it out and please feel free to add your Wolgemut clips to the group. http://www.youtube.com/group/wolgemut Servus, Micha www.wolgemut.net

Pennsic XXXV Review (Part IX)

Micha_von_Wolgemut — Tue, 12 Sep 2006 17:47:08 GMT

A day of departures and many "thank you's" We left late Friday evening and drove through the night back to Washington DC. The only worthwhile note is that I was able to inflict a breakfast at the Waffle House on Erik and Anna (I suppose I am a glutton for punishment) but Erik seems to have enjoyed it; he gave the coffee a thumbs up. And so ends my Pennsic Review for 2006. There is always a huge amount of work, time and energy that goes into attending Pennsic and much help that simply makes our attendance possible. First, my thanks go out to Erik and Anna who blindly agreed to join me on this years Pennsic romp. They endured many hours of work just to prepare for the event and went above and beyond the call of duty. Their contribution and skills are greatly appreciated. Thank you to the Kingdom of Calontir and the many members who helped provide housing and support throughout Pennsic. It is much appreciated. In particular my thanks go out to Olga and Siegfried for organizing our stay. You rock!!! Thanks also to Conna, Constantia and Valdemar as well as the many other wonderful people who were camped in our neck of the woods. I appreciate your kindness and patience (particularly during the times when were tuning or practicing) and constant support throughout the week. I was very happy to spend time talking with you this year and the chance to get to know you all better. Many thanks to Dan of Argent Fox Music for providing the harp, for Judith for her work with the dances and for the organizers of the Performing Arts Pavillion. You help to make our work that much better! Thank you Ida (and Conna and Constatia) for helping with the dreaded CD cart, which makes our attendance possible. To all of you who bought CDs, thank you and I hope you have many years of pleasure to come... stay Wolgemut! And last (but in no way least) thank you to everyone who invited us to perform for them and supported us with kind words and generous donations. It is always a pleasure to perform for such an enthusiastic and very "wolgemut" crowd and I hope you all enjoyed this year as much as I did. What do you say, shall we do it again next year? :-)

Pennsic XXXV Review (Part VIII) Last Day!

Micha_von_Wolgemut — Tue, 12 Sep 2006 17:22:02 GMT

Friday the 18th and the final day. We started the day with a fine breakfast courtesy of the fine people of the Kingdom of Ansteorra (who I'd like to add, hosted a wonderful chilli dinner as well.... mmmm, chilli!) and then once more off to the market. By this time our routine was set and we arrived ready to go. I was happy to see that others were willing to share the pitch with us and we had a chance to play a few songs for some dancers as well as jam a bit with Stephanie from the music group Instapitta. Knowing this to be out final day at Pennsic, we had a lot of fun in the market, but it had to end at some point. Friday night has become the night for another tradition and one that helps close the entire event for us. A performance at Camp Darkmoon. This amazing group of people have set an incredible standard for "wolgemut-ness" and their rendition of the Polarbear dance is beyond description. Let me simply point out that it requires shield wall protection to allow us to perform unharmed! :-) We were also pleased to invite Conna and Constantia to join us for some of the loud numbers, and I was very pleased to see that the rough and rugged warriors of Darkmoon appreciated some of the softer and gentler side to Wolgemut (to which we were treated to some amazing dancing by some of the lovely ladies.). It was a great way to finish of the week and a tradition that I'd be happy to continue. My only regret is that we were quite knackered and I was fighting a headache and a slight fever. Due to this and the fact that Erik and Anna had early flights the next day, we decided to forgoe our last party for the evening and instead pack to go. My apologies to The Rogue's Camp for not appearing, but I am told that the party was a great success and I hope we can visit next year. EDIT: I've recently received some lovely photos from Erzabet of Darkmoon, who danced to our music during the Darkmoon party. She was very inspired by the music and needless to say we were inspired by her dancing. Cheers Erzabet.

Pennsic XXXV Review (Part VII)

Micha_von_Wolgemut — Tue, 12 Sep 2006 17:08:32 GMT

Thursday the 17th Amazingly we awoke relatively early and prepared for our traditional march to the battle. I suppose if you visit Pennsic long enough, traditions have a way of growing, and the traditional marching of the troops of Calontir to the Open Field Battle is one that I enjoy very much. This year was particularly nice since we had the pleasure of inviting two aspiring Rauschpfeife players to join us, Mistress Conna and soon to be Mistress Constantia. It was a real treat to have them play and the sound was impressive to say the least. Once on the feild we played a few songs to rouse the troops and then made our hasty exit before the "dogs of war" were unleashed. From the battle field, we made our way to the Market for another day of fun and music. After the previous days activities we were noticeably sluggish, but the day turned out fine. We had a slight run in with some of the local urchins who peddle the Pennsic news, but all ended well when I gave them the stage for five minutes and a quick lesson in "reaching the audience". :-) The big event of the day happened that evening. We had been invited to provide music for Constantia's Laureling ceremony. For those of you unfamiliar with the SCA, being elevated to the Order of the Laurel is an honour bestowed on those who have acheived a level of mastery in an art or science. It was a very different evening for us and one that we enjoyed greatly. I should also like to point out that another person was made a Laurel for his brewing skills and so we were amply provided with beer for the evening! Note: No pictures :-( I would very much like to see some from the laureling ceremony and the march to the field.

Pennsic XXXV Review (Part VI, continued)

Micha_von_Wolgemut — Tue, 12 Sep 2006 16:54:45 GMT

One would think that after performing in the Market, presenting a concert and playing for the masses during Midnight Madness would be enough, but no! We had one final bit of busisness before out shift was over. It has been a "tradition" of ours to perform for dancing in the barn over the last few years, which I like to call the "Barn Brawl Fest". Many are unaware of the fact that I am a big fan of dancing, and especially renaissance dancing. I am fascinated by the simple "social" dances which are still danced in many parts of modern day france, one of them a decendant of the period "branle" (pronounced "brawl" in English). It has always been great fun to perform music for these dances and this year we decided to kick them off in style. Our partner in crime was Judith (soon to be Mistress Judith) who has been a long time enthusiast for period dancing. We decided to do things slightly diferent this year. After our performances in the Market, we made our way to the Dance Tent where Judith and her friends were finishing up an evenings worth of dancing. We set off from the tent (with 40+ dancers in toe) and danced our way through the marketplace. What a sight. It was our way of celebrating dance and helping the merchants to close the night of Madness! We arrived (with only a slight delay due to some playful banter with a Calontir friend) at the barn just after midnight, processing in with a flourish. Their was slight amount of confussion at our entrance (apparently it was unknown that we would be arriving) but we soon had the place in full swing! Mistress Judith worked tirelessly to arrange the dancers and I was very happy to welcome several musicians to the stage to help pump up the sound (for the barn is notoriously "dead" for sound). What a treat to play with several shawms, bagpipes and two percussionist! The evening finally ended and we (Wolgemut, that is) crawled off to our beds... it would prove to be quite a challenge to get up the next day. :-) Note: Sorry, once again no photo. It is an odd thing, but it is very difficult for me to take a photo of myself while playing. If you happen to have a picture of the "dance through the market" or the Barn Brawl Fest", please let me know. Cheers

Pennsic XXXV Review (Part VI, continued)

Micha_von_Wolgemut — Tue, 12 Sep 2006 16:31:29 GMT

No time for rest because it was time for Midnight Madness! Pennsic is unique in many ways, but not least of all is the staggering amount of merchants that travel from everywhere to sell their wares. Fortunately for us, one of those merchants was Dan Speer of Argent Fox Music. Dan is a builder of harps and was kind enough to offer us the use of one of his harps for the duration of Pennsic. This was an amazing gesture on hios part and made our journey much easier. To learn more about Dan please visit him at: http://www.argentfox.com As a thank you to him, we spent the evening in front of his booth performing short sets that featured his lovely harp. The best part for me was the way the night seems to make the music more intimate, and how many people stopped to share the moment with us. A very special feeling. I was also happy to see other musicians join in and make music. Unfortunately I didn't get a chance to introduce myself properly so their names escape me (it seems to happen a lot at Pennsic.) Once again, I have no pictures of these sets so any copies would be greatly appreciated. It's not over yet, the Madness deepens...

Pennsic XXXV Review (Part VI, continued)

Micha_von_Wolgemut — Tue, 12 Sep 2006 16:21:20 GMT

After the Market performances, we took a small break to prepare for our evening concert in the Performing Arts Pavillion. This year, due to odd schedules (and a big goof by myself) our performance was held at 6pm on Wednesday... the same day as Midnight Madness. Was I crazy? I was a little concerned that we might not get a big crowd, but as usual, I'm wrong. The audience was amazing and once again overflowing to capacity. We started with a few loud songs but quickly went into an extended soft set of tunes. How often do I get the chance to play with a harp at Pennsic? Not very often, so I was happy to let Erik take center stage and he did some fantastic work. Anna was incredible as she switched pack and forth between instruments (moraharpa, bagpipe and percussion) and overall it was one of the most relaxed concerts I have ever performed in at Pennsic. After the soft sets (which concluded with a very nice segue from soft to loud on the "Tourdion") we had some fun with the Polarbear dance. A lovely young fan assisted us in teaching the audience the finer points of the Polarbear dance, and I'm very appreciative for her help. All and all a great performance. Thank you all for joining and again, kudos to the Performing Arts Pavillion organizers for providing a great space to play in. EDIT: Thank you Emory for the photos! Next, the Madness sets in...

Pennsic XXXV Review (Part VI)

Micha_von_Wolgemut — Tue, 12 Sep 2006 16:15:12 GMT

Wednesday, the 16th (The long haul day!) The day started in the Market and immediately I met two friends, one new and one old. Tonis van Driele of the Whiskey Bards stopped by to say hello. I'd seen them perform before but had never had a chance to talk. The Whiskey Bards are a wonderful quartet who perform excellent arrangements of vocal music, very nice work, and am happy to have made his aquaintance. You can visit the Whiskey Bards at: http://www.whiskeybards.com/index.html Not much later, I was suprised to see Owain Phyfe grinning from the audience. What a treat. Owain is one of my favorite musicians and it is always a special occasion when we get to play together. He gladly sat in and we had a very magical and musical set that I think few (myself included) will soon forget. Thank you my friend. To learn more about Owain, visit his webite. http://www.owainphyfe.com/ Next up, the day (and the night) gets longer...

Pennsic XXXV Review (Part V)

Micha_von_Wolgemut — Tue, 12 Sep 2006 15:37:53 GMT

Time to work. Tuesday (the 15th) dawned beautifully, the sky was clear and the temperature was very mild (for the most part). This Pennsic saw a lot of first for Wolgemut. The first time for Erik and Anna (despite my trying to convince them for the last several years), the first time with a harp, the first time with a definate plan for performances ( we had decided that due to the size and fragility of the harp we would not be moving a round a lot and instead "establish a base of operations") and the first time without a dedicated percussionist. The majority of our days were spent in the Marketplace and I was quite happy to see that the idea of establishing a base worked well. I think some other performers were confused by the concept, but once we explained that we were simply doing short sets and were happy to share the space things seemed to have worked out well. I know that Erik and Anna were happy not to have to move all the time and the shade was a blessing for the instruments. In the evening we had the pleasure of performing for the Barony of Lochmere.

Pennsic XXXV Review (Part VI)

Micha_von_Wolgemut — Tue, 12 Sep 2006 15:31:03 GMT

Monday the 14th and the arrival of Erik and Anna. At this point I was very appreciative of the nice weather. This may sound odd, but I ended up driving from Pennsic back to Washington DC (Dulles Airport) to pick up Erik and Anna. Long story as to why but the up side is that it gave me a chance to do a little sight seeing and avoid the storm that was brewing in the distance. I picked them up in the afternoon and we started towards Pennsic in a leisurly fashion (which means I became lost). Next thing I know we ended up in front of this big, old montrosity of neo-classical architecture, so we decided to stop and take advantage of the photo-op. Back in the car and many hours of driving through the rain (and breaks for coffee) later we arrived on site in the dead of night. We had avoided the deluge (the tent weathered it wonderfully) and needless to say we all went straight to bed. The next day was going to be business as usual...

Pennsic XXXV Review (Part III)

Micha_von_Wolgemut — Tue, 12 Sep 2006 15:23:48 GMT

Sunday the 13th and I was left to my own devices. I spent much of the day talking with my host (Calontir) and playing some music. At one point I did wander to the Battle Field and witness some fighting. For those who are not familiar with the SCA and Pennsic (or any of the other things that I am talking about) suffice it to say that the unique form of combat developed in the SCA over the past 40 years is... unique. :) And Pennsic must be one of the best places to participate in the fighting. I was very happy to see my friend Marygold of the Clan Tynker (above photo) out on the field and kicking butt!

Pennsic XXXV Review (Part II)

Micha_von_Wolgemut — Tue, 12 Sep 2006 15:19:13 GMT

I finally arrived on site during Saturday (the12th) afternoon. It felt good to be there and find that my home away from home was already waiting for me. Our host for the past five years have been the wonderful Kingdom of Calontir. Really great people. There was no rest for the weary. I changed and went of to my first gig, a private banquet for a new group called Helios Furion. What a fantastic group. Very enthusiastic and delightful to entertain. The banquet was a great success and I'm delighted that they invited me to perform (solo too!) Afterwards, I spent some time wandering around taking in the sights and sounds. It has been a while since I've had the chance to simply "enjoy" Pennsic for what it is. The rest of the group would not be arriving until Monday, so at that point I was on my own! Note: Sorry, no pictures yet, but if someone at Helios Furion happened to take one, I'd enjoy seeing it. Cheers

Pennsic XXXV Review

Micha_von_Wolgemut — Tue, 12 Sep 2006 14:21:51 GMT

I'm finally back home and boy am I beat. Pennsic was great (although my effort to somehow record my experiences on the road was not) and I'd like to share some of the highlights here in my... Pennsic XXXV Review! As always, I seem to come away with many memories and only a few pictures. Do you ever find that many of the pictures that you took seem to have nothing to do with anything? Take this first picture for instance. I arrived in Baltimore (after a long, much delayed trip from LA) late at night and from there I drove to Pennsic. The trip is quite nice traveling along the top of Maryland. Early in the morning (after a few stops and naps) I pulled off in Cumberland, Maryland for some coffee. For some reason (most likely lack of sleep) I was in a silly mood and started snapping pictures. 15 of them!, about one-fourth of the total I took throughout the week. So here you see my "homage to Cumberland". And yes, the coffee was good! Next stop, Pennsic.!

Celebrities?

Micha_von_Wolgemut — Fri, 11 Aug 2006 12:33:09 GMT

I was visiting the Third Street Promenade yesterday (where I met Jojo, see my previous entry) in downtown Santa Monica (west of Hollywood) and this is the place that a lot of people come to shop, including "celebrities". I was there to enjoy the sun and take in a few workshops at the really cool Apple store which is located on the promenade. In between the workshops I had a bite to eat next door at the Sunset Bar and Grill, a local hagout for the somewhat rich and formerly famous. I was sitting on the front patio when I heard someone whisper Bruce Willis, at which I looked up in the direction of the voice. A few tables away, I saw a family of "obvious" tourist (I think you know the type) and they suddenly looked away from me when I looked up (so I naturally looked the other way thinking that I might have embarresed them) and looked around to find who they were talking about. A few minutes later, one of them walked over to my table and started to say something which I couldn't really hear (there was a guitar playing busker playing in front of the patio), so I said "Hello". She smiled and placed a pen and a piece of paper on my table. I looked at her with a blank look and said, "May I help you?". She smiled some more and said that she wanted my autograph? It took me about five seconds of thought crunching before I realized what she was asking. So I smiled back and said "Who do you think I am?" She nervously looked at me again and said, Aren't you Bruce Willis?" "Naw", I replied"... I'm his brother Bob" :) So Bruce (I mean Mr. Willis), if you do happen to read this, I apologize for having a bit of "wolgemut-like" fun at your expense. However, if you do happen to pop into the Sunset Bar and Grill, tell them "Bob sent me"! ;) Servus P.S. Sorry for the lack of photo, I had a hard time getting "Bob" to stand still for one!

First stop... City of the Angels!

Micha_von_Wolgemut — Thu, 10 Aug 2006 19:04:29 GMT

First stop on my summer trip is Los Angeles. "Wait a minute, Los Angeles is no where near Pennsylvania" is what you are probably thinking, "why would Michael stop there?" In a weird form of logic, it is actually easier to travel to L.A. from Sweden and then catch a domestic flight from L.A. to the East Coast then to try to negotiate the odd set of transfers needed to travel from Sweden to Pittsburgh. Enough of the patter, the cool thing is I have one day to enjoy in the sun with some of my family and check out the strange and eclectic world that is Santa Monica's Third Street Promenade. Not five minutes after arriving at the Promenade, I heard a very distinctive sound which sounded like an entire ensemble playing just out of view. What I saw (as I rounded the corner) was Jojo Alves playing his uniques style of music on what he calls the Eclectic Guitar, a dual necked guitar with a stereo output allowing for the two instruments to be played simultaneous. His technique was impressive and just plain cool to listen to. If you'd like to learn more about Jojo and his eclectic (and fascinating) musical style, then take a look at his website: http://www.jojoalves.com/index.html Thank you Jojo for making it a "wolgemut" kind of way to start the day. Servus.