CMN 2011 International Conference

AMAZING … INSPIRING … NOT TO BE FORGOTTEN

What a way to greet the fall!   Many of us who love singing with children found our way to Cape Cod on September 16-18, 2011 and enjoyed friendly faces, sunshine, amazing food, and songs pretty much non-stop. 

It’s hard to beat a CMN gathering for laughter, new ideas, seeing old friends and meeting new ones, jamming, dancing, crying, learning, and of course, singing our hearts out.  The songs were plentiful, including many rounds and lively partner songs by Joanne Hammil, a longtime CMN leader who received our 2011 Magic Penny Award.    There were the lovely slow songs such as Carol Johnson’s “Circle of Peace,” performance masterpieces such as Jay Mankita double-teaming with Purly Gates on a single guitar, improv instrumentation from Oren Rosenthal on fiddle to Ingrid Noyes on accordion to Wiley Rankin on flute, and jazzy numbers such as Susan Salidor’s “Peace in My Fingers.” Of course, for falling on the floor laughing, few can forget Joanie Calem’s donkey song – starring the ever-radiant Liz Hannan in a one-woman enactment of the story.  Our Round Robin (CMN’s open mike) began Friday night and became a marathon on Saturday – thanks to all who shared, though the hour became late!

We had a marvelous time with the kids who joined us – Isaiah who helped us groove with his drum solo, Sophia on her fabulous duet with Dad Philip Alexander, little Willow singing the fire-truck song, and many others!

Our workshop leaders gave us food for thought, whether it was Sarah Pirtle’s inspiring presentation on helping kids use music to overcome bullying, Jackson Gillman’s songs and stories, even more stories and music from Sally Rogers, Ellen Allard on teaching through music in early childhood, Peter Apel and Copper Tom on Internet marketing or Judy Pancoast on booking through showcases, to name a few.  Sol Weber brought on a new round of rounds and many other surprises.  And thanks to keynoter Barry Louis Polisar, who offered a generous dose of his unique humor and many reflections on songwriting and life.

We loved being on the Cape!  A huge thanks to our chairs Sammie Haynes and Fran Friedman who found the Hyannis Conference Center.  We especially enjoyed our outdoor lunch on Saturday, after which we held our lively annual meeting, complete with even more songs and some speed-dating-style chatting about how to make CMN work even better.

Mostly we loved the chance to see each other, share our music, hug friends old and new, recharge our batteries and think again about ways to make a true difference for the next generation through music.

– Liz Buchanan

2011 Conference photographs, Diane Lansing