Event Report Dublin 2014
Posted: Wed Aug 13, 2014 8:12 pm
I have some time left, still some wine in the bottle, friend at the after-concert-meeting, „craic“ (see below). I´ll try to give you my personal impression of the wonderful Dublin event, isolated splitters for those who could not attend and are not already comprehensively informed by facebook.
Two observations before I start:
Song Covers. As in Dublin we came to listen to a lot of cover songs, heard many Hallelujahs and sang many Mariannes, I took the chance to make up my opinion on covers. For me there are two justifications for covers:
First, it´s a congenial cover, very close to the original, in sight of its quality. This motivation may mainly be valid if the original is not available or at least not live, if the author does not perform anymore or very rarely or is no more among us.
Second, the cover adds something new to the song – but without changing and distorting it. The cover offers a new attitude to it, opens another view of the song.
This second motivation was true for some – say: many – of the covers we heard in Dublin. A few were real gems. One or two gave me a new understanding of the song.
This said, nothing against further covers of Hallelujah, why not, if they qualify to one of the two reasons given above.
The other observation (not for the first time, I have already posted something of the like in the forum):
When you are in a Leonard Cohen concert – in a mass, concentrated, listening, meditating – and your seat neighbour takes a photo or plays facebook, then you could have stayed at home all the same – code broken, crucifix uncrossed. Easier: get the flow, lose the flow.
Same counts for clapping during the song, singing along, rearranging your belongings or shouting “No, No, No” etc.
Ok then, start.
Thursday
We arrived in the afternoon, hotel conveniently located 200 m from the site of the event, advantage (see below). Walked to the Lansdowne Hotel on the outskirts of the city, pre-event get-together there. Nicely set up in the open on a sunny Dublin summer evening. See old friends and many new faces. BBQ, goody bag (hardly anything I will make use of).
The ambassador of Canada to Ireland is to officially launch the event. Someone Loyola something, a lady obviously. The ambassador takes the mic, tall, good-looking woman – and was not the ambassador. Was Paula, our organizer, announcing the ambassador, a distinguished man, no lady at all.
Good food, had two beers though I usually don´t like beer, then a whisky to come over the beer. Amazing how warm the straw benches were.
Non-smokers complained about the smoke from the turf-fires. Non-smokers are very sensitive, they can´t stand many emissions (a problem of bad health?).
Home with taxi, both.
Friday morning
Coffee at eleven can be heaven. A hundred of us invited to the Mansion House. The Lord Mayor is an affable person, friendly, sings better than he speaks, sang a Dublin song together with Paula. We all sang Marianne, led by the second mayor, if I got that right. Friend ate most of the sweets, blame her if you didn´t get any.
Above the Mansion House, in Latin: “The obedience of the citizens is the fortune of the city.” The liberal opposed (see below).
Noon brake
Afterwards beer with C., instantly put online. If you need the detailed data of C. and friend and me having a beer, you´ll find it in the global village, today, tomorrow, forever. If someone was interested, that is – could not imagine why one should. Argument about that. The information available to billions in the world and no one cares, what a waste of resources. Amazingly enough we got “likes” for having a beer together.
Dublin
Raining. Weather in Dublin was, well, changing – as people familiar with geography and meteorology would expect, not cold, but always be prepared for rain.
A city where´s a genius in every bedroom and writer in every pub (L Cohen). Add, there´s music all over the town, live groups in most of the pubs. Add the friendly people.
Afternoon
On to the Spoken Word, Liberty Hall, home of our event. Spoken Word is delivered by prudent members of the Irish cultural scene, interesting at least in times, not easy to follow for not native speakers.
Evening
Short rest, a quick carve against starvation (non-beer-drinkers in Ireland might think of cider) and on to our first concert, Liberty Hall.
Craic
After the concert “craic”, something like chat, music and fun. First a cigarette outside, meet the people you always meet there. The holy union of smokers. The craic is upstairs, you can have a whisky there and watch the sign ´no drinks beyond this point´, and that´s one staircase from the main door ´no cigs inside this line´. You have your choice. That´s not Dublin, that´s worldwide nowadays. Regulations for the better of the society on the cost of the individual. Tough times not only for smokers, tough times for liberals. Read Aldous Huxley. Had my whisky, made my choice, back to the hotel. I don´t care for no society if there´s no freedom for the individual.
Craic -2
Me, I came to Dublin mainly to meet the dear friends we made through the concert tours of the last six years (to future organizers: as great as the program of Paula and her team was, not essential to me, meeting around some scarce activities would do me fine).
Time to talk is mostly at the craic after the concert, at night. Haven´t been there much. At night I try to sleep. I live in the daylight. (I do drink, in solemn nights also late, then better alone, it´s one o´ clock, I´ve got a quarter of a bottle of wine to go.) About the craic, you´d better ask others, e.g. friend, who talked excitedly about the bonfire-atmosphere.
Saturday
Attempted lunch with friends. B. occupied, D. not in form. Passed the tour group. Decided to walk alone, rightfully. Pleasant stroll around Dublin with friend. Temple Bar, medieval cathedral. Old walls stand a long time, before old walls I can stand a long time. The Brazen Head is Dublin´s oldest pub, beer and stew. Then espresso in the sun on the Liffey, Dublin river.
On Saturday it rained only in the afternoon. In the afternoon we were inside Liberty Hall. Open Mic. Members of the forum performing songs and poems of Mr. Cohen on stage for an audience of more than a hundred. Compliments to all! Of course one has one´s favourites. Said something about covers at the beginning.
Private talk about the performers, privater (don´t teach me grammar) rest, late back to the Liberty Hall, later concert. ´Van Diemens´ may have been quite a shock for Cohenites. Very different, present, energetic, loud. Some hated it. I let me be drawn into it, loved it, admired it, I who have no taste for that kind of music.
After the concert. Craic for the others, hotel for me, each as he pleases. I´m fine, there´s some wine left in the bottle.
I chose the room with care, no problem for friend to come home on her own ... Gypsy not coming, getting worried … finish the wine … friend came … all smooth
Sunday
The Screen Cinema. The last concert of the 2013 tour in Auckland. An audience of 200 cursing their cowardice not to have gone to NZ, not to have sold their house or mother or youngest daughter.
My seat: opposite Hattie, you could have guessed it.
There is a crack not in everything, but in the film DVD, it needed our chief himself to fix it, the chief hurried up into the operator´s box, the chief fixed it.
Past cinema the sky cried. Which is of no significance, there seems to be a lot to weep for the sky in Ireland.
After a L Cohen concert some people are able to at once resume their lives, chat and have fun, others are not. Post-cinema meeting in the bar next door. No reports my side.
Sunday Evening
Introduction to the 2016 events in Edmonton and Amsterdam.
Short film of a sound-check, not that great – if that´s allowed to say.
More concert. Ali and the Thieves made it a psychological play, compelling.
Last craic. Me included, this time. Making up? for what? Whisky up, cig down, you know the procedures. See you …
Fare Thee Well
It´s a seamen´s saying. There is no need for sailors to say goodbye to each other as long as they stay on the sea. The sea will swallow them in and spit them out and always lead them to meet again. I hope that counts for Cohenites as well, so just: Fare Thee well!
Monday
Day off. Hiking around Howth peninsula, prawns above the fishing port, last evening, tomorrow home.
Cancel the last – not part of the event.
Cato maior wrote: forgive me for not taking the effort to make it shorter. I´d like to add: and forgive me for not putting it into proper style and form.
In school we learnt to put the most important at the end of your text. (In school we also learnt not to refer to sections following below (see above).)
I will not write last but not least.
I write, here at the end of this post: First and foremost I want to bid my very well deserved thanks:
to the organizers of this marvellous event, I can´t even imagine the time they spent and the efforts they undertook to make this happen
to Jarkko who stands behind it all
to all performers, their courage and engagement
to the friends I had the great pleasure to meet again, and to the friends to be I was privileged enough to encounter
to every reader of this post for patience and indulgence (whatever mistakes you find in this report of a non-native-speaker, you may keep them)
to Leonard Cohen
Harald
Two observations before I start:
Song Covers. As in Dublin we came to listen to a lot of cover songs, heard many Hallelujahs and sang many Mariannes, I took the chance to make up my opinion on covers. For me there are two justifications for covers:
First, it´s a congenial cover, very close to the original, in sight of its quality. This motivation may mainly be valid if the original is not available or at least not live, if the author does not perform anymore or very rarely or is no more among us.
Second, the cover adds something new to the song – but without changing and distorting it. The cover offers a new attitude to it, opens another view of the song.
This second motivation was true for some – say: many – of the covers we heard in Dublin. A few were real gems. One or two gave me a new understanding of the song.
This said, nothing against further covers of Hallelujah, why not, if they qualify to one of the two reasons given above.
The other observation (not for the first time, I have already posted something of the like in the forum):
When you are in a Leonard Cohen concert – in a mass, concentrated, listening, meditating – and your seat neighbour takes a photo or plays facebook, then you could have stayed at home all the same – code broken, crucifix uncrossed. Easier: get the flow, lose the flow.
Same counts for clapping during the song, singing along, rearranging your belongings or shouting “No, No, No” etc.
Ok then, start.
Thursday
We arrived in the afternoon, hotel conveniently located 200 m from the site of the event, advantage (see below). Walked to the Lansdowne Hotel on the outskirts of the city, pre-event get-together there. Nicely set up in the open on a sunny Dublin summer evening. See old friends and many new faces. BBQ, goody bag (hardly anything I will make use of).
The ambassador of Canada to Ireland is to officially launch the event. Someone Loyola something, a lady obviously. The ambassador takes the mic, tall, good-looking woman – and was not the ambassador. Was Paula, our organizer, announcing the ambassador, a distinguished man, no lady at all.
Good food, had two beers though I usually don´t like beer, then a whisky to come over the beer. Amazing how warm the straw benches were.
Non-smokers complained about the smoke from the turf-fires. Non-smokers are very sensitive, they can´t stand many emissions (a problem of bad health?).
Home with taxi, both.
Friday morning
Coffee at eleven can be heaven. A hundred of us invited to the Mansion House. The Lord Mayor is an affable person, friendly, sings better than he speaks, sang a Dublin song together with Paula. We all sang Marianne, led by the second mayor, if I got that right. Friend ate most of the sweets, blame her if you didn´t get any.
Above the Mansion House, in Latin: “The obedience of the citizens is the fortune of the city.” The liberal opposed (see below).
Noon brake
Afterwards beer with C., instantly put online. If you need the detailed data of C. and friend and me having a beer, you´ll find it in the global village, today, tomorrow, forever. If someone was interested, that is – could not imagine why one should. Argument about that. The information available to billions in the world and no one cares, what a waste of resources. Amazingly enough we got “likes” for having a beer together.
Dublin
Raining. Weather in Dublin was, well, changing – as people familiar with geography and meteorology would expect, not cold, but always be prepared for rain.
A city where´s a genius in every bedroom and writer in every pub (L Cohen). Add, there´s music all over the town, live groups in most of the pubs. Add the friendly people.
Afternoon
On to the Spoken Word, Liberty Hall, home of our event. Spoken Word is delivered by prudent members of the Irish cultural scene, interesting at least in times, not easy to follow for not native speakers.
Evening
Short rest, a quick carve against starvation (non-beer-drinkers in Ireland might think of cider) and on to our first concert, Liberty Hall.
Craic
After the concert “craic”, something like chat, music and fun. First a cigarette outside, meet the people you always meet there. The holy union of smokers. The craic is upstairs, you can have a whisky there and watch the sign ´no drinks beyond this point´, and that´s one staircase from the main door ´no cigs inside this line´. You have your choice. That´s not Dublin, that´s worldwide nowadays. Regulations for the better of the society on the cost of the individual. Tough times not only for smokers, tough times for liberals. Read Aldous Huxley. Had my whisky, made my choice, back to the hotel. I don´t care for no society if there´s no freedom for the individual.
Craic -2
Me, I came to Dublin mainly to meet the dear friends we made through the concert tours of the last six years (to future organizers: as great as the program of Paula and her team was, not essential to me, meeting around some scarce activities would do me fine).
Time to talk is mostly at the craic after the concert, at night. Haven´t been there much. At night I try to sleep. I live in the daylight. (I do drink, in solemn nights also late, then better alone, it´s one o´ clock, I´ve got a quarter of a bottle of wine to go.) About the craic, you´d better ask others, e.g. friend, who talked excitedly about the bonfire-atmosphere.
Saturday
Attempted lunch with friends. B. occupied, D. not in form. Passed the tour group. Decided to walk alone, rightfully. Pleasant stroll around Dublin with friend. Temple Bar, medieval cathedral. Old walls stand a long time, before old walls I can stand a long time. The Brazen Head is Dublin´s oldest pub, beer and stew. Then espresso in the sun on the Liffey, Dublin river.
On Saturday it rained only in the afternoon. In the afternoon we were inside Liberty Hall. Open Mic. Members of the forum performing songs and poems of Mr. Cohen on stage for an audience of more than a hundred. Compliments to all! Of course one has one´s favourites. Said something about covers at the beginning.
Private talk about the performers, privater (don´t teach me grammar) rest, late back to the Liberty Hall, later concert. ´Van Diemens´ may have been quite a shock for Cohenites. Very different, present, energetic, loud. Some hated it. I let me be drawn into it, loved it, admired it, I who have no taste for that kind of music.
After the concert. Craic for the others, hotel for me, each as he pleases. I´m fine, there´s some wine left in the bottle.
I chose the room with care, no problem for friend to come home on her own ... Gypsy not coming, getting worried … finish the wine … friend came … all smooth
Sunday
The Screen Cinema. The last concert of the 2013 tour in Auckland. An audience of 200 cursing their cowardice not to have gone to NZ, not to have sold their house or mother or youngest daughter.
My seat: opposite Hattie, you could have guessed it.
There is a crack not in everything, but in the film DVD, it needed our chief himself to fix it, the chief hurried up into the operator´s box, the chief fixed it.
Past cinema the sky cried. Which is of no significance, there seems to be a lot to weep for the sky in Ireland.
After a L Cohen concert some people are able to at once resume their lives, chat and have fun, others are not. Post-cinema meeting in the bar next door. No reports my side.
Sunday Evening
Introduction to the 2016 events in Edmonton and Amsterdam.
Short film of a sound-check, not that great – if that´s allowed to say.
More concert. Ali and the Thieves made it a psychological play, compelling.
Last craic. Me included, this time. Making up? for what? Whisky up, cig down, you know the procedures. See you …
Fare Thee Well
It´s a seamen´s saying. There is no need for sailors to say goodbye to each other as long as they stay on the sea. The sea will swallow them in and spit them out and always lead them to meet again. I hope that counts for Cohenites as well, so just: Fare Thee well!
Monday
Day off. Hiking around Howth peninsula, prawns above the fishing port, last evening, tomorrow home.
Cancel the last – not part of the event.
Cato maior wrote: forgive me for not taking the effort to make it shorter. I´d like to add: and forgive me for not putting it into proper style and form.
In school we learnt to put the most important at the end of your text. (In school we also learnt not to refer to sections following below (see above).)
I will not write last but not least.
I write, here at the end of this post: First and foremost I want to bid my very well deserved thanks:
to the organizers of this marvellous event, I can´t even imagine the time they spent and the efforts they undertook to make this happen
to Jarkko who stands behind it all
to all performers, their courage and engagement
to the friends I had the great pleasure to meet again, and to the friends to be I was privileged enough to encounter
to every reader of this post for patience and indulgence (whatever mistakes you find in this report of a non-native-speaker, you may keep them)
to Leonard Cohen
Harald