Jazz, ETC - Local Barn Burners Play "Barns of Rose Hill" in Berryville, Virginia

On Saturday, February 11, I braved the cold weather to see an unusual concert at "Barns of Rose Hill" in Berryville, Virginia.  This venue was renovated from a couple of old barns in 2010.  This is how it looked in April of 2010:

 

Barns of Rose Hill, Pre-Renovation, April 2010, by Reed A. George

Leica M8, iso320, f11, 1/125 sec

 

It is now renovated, transformed into an excellent location for enjoying local music, with a combination of original materials and some modern finishes.  It has an excellent sound system, and professional stage lighting (more on that later).

 

The concert on Saturday night was an uncommon matching of sultry vocalist Jennifer Kirkland and guitarist Burt Carlson, who work together regularly, with local musicians Robert Gordon (on bass) and Danny Knicely, mandolinist.  

 

I had heard Burt play once in the past, on the celebration of jazz guitarist Django Reinhardt's 100th birthday.   I have heard Danny play many times, mostly as part of Furnace Mountain, which is one of my favorite local bluegrass and old time music bands.  

 

"Jazz ETC" at Barns of Rose Hill, Berryville, VA,  

February 11, 2012, by Reed A. George

Panasonic Lumix DMC-G3, Pana-Leica Summilux 25mm f1.4

iso3200, f2, 1/160 sec

 

 As I mentioned above, the stage lights here are particularly challenging.  They are LEDs, and really make for some strange mixes of color, even though I kept my white balance fixed for tungsten.  I can only imagine what would have happened with auto white balance.  Some of the images came out so blue or purple that they were saturated in that channel, with essentially no light registering in other channels.  I had exactly the same phenomenon when I shot at a previous show here earlier in the year.

 

The music was what you may call an "eclectic mix," including everything from Leonard Cohen's "Dance Me to the End of Love," which was recently covered by Madeleine Peyroux, a tune by Louis Armstrong, another by the Carter Family, and "Can't Find My Way Home" by Blind Faith.  That pretty much covers some musical ground, doesn't it?

 

Jennifer Kirkland, Vocalist, by Reed A. George

Panasonic Lumix DMC-G3, Lumix 100-300mm f4-5.6

iso6400, f4.7, 1/100 sec

 

Danny Knicely, by Reed A. George

Panasonic Lumix DMC-G3, Lumix 100-300mm f4-5.6

iso6400, f4, 1/160 sec

  

 

 Danny Knicely, by Reed A. George

Panasonic Lumix DMC-G3, Lumix 100-300mm f4-5.6

iso6400, f4, 1/125 sec

Robert Gordon, by Reed A. George

Panasonic Lumix DMC-G3, Lumix 100-300mm f4-5.6

iso6400, f4, 1/100 sec 

Burt Carlson, by Reed A. George

Panasonic Lumix DMC-G3, Lumix 100-300mm f4-5.6

iso6400, f4, 1/100 sec

 Danny Knicely and Bert Carlson, by Reed A. George

Panasonic Lumix DMC-G3, Lumix 100-300mm f4-5.6

iso6400, f4, 1/100 sec

This show had a little something for nearly every musical taste.  I thoroughly enjoyed the show, and don't think anyone left before the end, even though it was a cold night, and a winter storm was blowing through when we left.  I met several nice people, including a family from nearby Millwood, Virginia, and some locals from Berryville.  This venue really brings people together.  I am happy to be within an hour's drive, if not actually being a "local."

 Barns at Rose Hill Today, by Reed A. George

Panasonic Lumix DMC-G3, Pana-Leica Summilux 25mm f1.4

iso3200, f2, 1/160 sec

On my long drive home after the show, I couldn't help having "Can't Find My Way Home" playing in my head even though I had a different CD playing; the snow and wind were amazing.  Here's what it looked like through my windshield:

(Click Here) for the video

This was a very fun evening.  It is always nice when the band is approachable, and I got to talk with the members and thank them for a great show before taking off. This kind of music is one benefit of living in Northern Virginia.

I continue to marvel at the capability of the DMC-G3 at these very high iso settings.  Of course, there is some noise, but a modest amount of post-processing really brings it under control, especially when I shoot raw files.  I am quite pleased, other than the strange color balance, which I have not yet figured out how to improve.  That is the fault of the LED lights, not the camera.

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