Just returned home (San Francisco Bay Area, CA) from my cross Country trip to Central Florida which included visiting Walt DisneyWorld, and of course , attending the much anticipated Synthzone keyboard jam in Lady Lake, FL. B4 leaving for Florida, I thought I had finally got over the bronchitis & resulting laryingitis that had curtailed my vocal performance schedule a month earlier, but after landing in Orlando, my ear canals closed up (resulting from the sudden changes in jet cabin pressure) & my sinus' alternately became stuffed & runny (allergies to pollen in the air?) of which brought back a hoarse voice (again) . Even so, I had a great time taking in the Disney Magic for a few days before driving up to Lady Lake for the SZ Jam on Saturday. Highlights included thrill rides: Test Track & Mission Space, Space & Splash mountain, & the terrific International World Showcase at Epcot:




My favorite (not to be missed) 3D show presentation at the Magic Kingdom: Mickey's Philhar-Magic! : http://goflorida.about.com/library/bls/bl_wdw_mk_mickeys-philharmagic.htm
To top this off, the nightly fireworks were incredible. After Disney, I had a chance to stop in for a drink at Jimmy Buffet's place at Universal's Citywalk:



Regretably, Jim Eshleman (SZ member: the Pro) had to cancel attending the Florida Jam because of a last minute gig booking on the weekend of the event, but because he & his wife Sheila were able to drive down (from Hilton Head, SC) to Orlando during the week before, we got together for breakfast at DisneyWorld and had a great time sharing entertainer-musician stories & our views on the future of arranger keyboards. I can vouch that Jim is a terrific guy, of which totally belies the negative impression some people may have formed following some of his sometimes rather blunt comments made on the General Arranger forum. It's obvious to me that words alone written in posts can perhaps be misleading to the true nature of an individual and may be worth the extra opportunity to get to meet people in person to discover who they are. I was really glad to finally meet Jim (Esh) in person.

Here's a pic taken of us together :



Realizing that he and I were the only Yamaha players signed up for the FL Jam, I felt a little trepidation about showing up at the FL Jam now. Thankfully, aside from a few Ty jokes , the Technics folks welcomed me with open arms. Afterall, as a former KN5000 fan & owner myself, I was really looking forward to the opportunity to finally meeting (in person) Technics friends I'd gotten to know on the forum & by email & phone alone (for such a long time: some up to 6 years, as far back as the Technics Canada Forum). As with all the wonderful SZ members I've met at the first West Coast SZ jam event and/or privately , everyone was very friendly & I had a lot of fun making music with the terrificTechnics players. Afterall, it's NOT really about the keyboard you play, but how you express yourself musically, right?

The MOST FUN for me of the get together were the keyboard jam sessions with some terrific Synthzone member musicians. Highlights include: Harry Babcock's:

GaryV, HarryB, and his lovely wife:


impressive keyboard skill utilizing his 88 note hammer action Roland KF-90 with his Technics KN7000. I especially envy his ability to play 10ths & his stride piano chops. Bill Norrie's:



impressive 'orchestration skills' performed live on the KN7000. Mark's:



great use of his left hand voice with rhythmic comping, and playing melody & fills with your right hand. This (as we discussed) is (to me) a critical element in arranger keyboard playing which provides a more convincingly live performance. GaryV & Sue Riffle: Really enjoyed your tastefully played selection of song arrangements. Heather: I congratulate you on your playing. It takes a lot of courage to get up and play and I look forward to hearing you play again.

Roger Mepstead:
[img]http://members.tripod.com/scottyee/images/FLSZJAM/Roger.jpg[/img]

Thanks for rounding out the music program with your History of Pop music tunes (from the 60's thru the 90's). Very nice arrangements. I only wish you would go the next step, remove the sheet music, let your hair down & just let the music pour out from your heart, because I'm confident you actually "do know" your songs by heart. Just memorize the chord progressions (changes) in your head and the melody (fingers) with follow. Trust me. A real special treat (for me) was meeting Bob Hendershot:

[img]http://members.tripod.com/scottyee/images/FLSZJAM/Bob.jpg[/img]

I've exchanged emails & conversed with him by phone (for over 6 years) back when we both owned KN5000's, and it's nice to re-kindle a new relationship as co-MusicPad Pro owners now, sharing and exchanging MusicPad tips & files. A GREAT BIG thanks to Bob for bringing his MusicPad unit to the get together, demonstrating it, and letting me use it as well, allowing me to only bring to the event a tiny USB Pen drive which includes hundred's of song sheets/lyrics. A great big thanks also goes out to Dan & Carolyn Hanson:

[img]http://members.tripod.com/scottyee/images/FLSZJAM/Dan&Carolyn.jpg[/img]

for going to all the work of bringing his Yamaha Tyros to the Jam to let me play on it. Dan, I only hope that this encourages you to play your Tyros now. Thanks to Bernie Ackerman for supplying the extensions cords, and his beautiful harmony chords on the kb [img]http://www.synthzone.com/ubbs/wink.gif[/img] too.

My only personal frustration was not being able to sing because of my struggle with laryingitis: sounding no better than Donald Duck, so had to just keep my mouth shut. [img]http://www.synthzone.com/ubbs/eek.gif[/img] As a singer, not an easy feat for me. [img]http://www.synthzone.com/ubbs/biggrin.gif[/img] Interestingly enough, arriving back home in California, my singing voice has for whatever reason miracoulously come back, so I'm convinced there was something in the air Florida that triggered an allergy (the alligators?) [img]http://www.synthzone.com/ubbs/eek.gif[/img] My only other disappoint was missing the opportunity to meet John C (Bruno123) and his presentation. I did see his hand out sheets though. Good stuff.

On another note, I won a Technics 'keyboard dust cover' door prize (courtesy of Walt Tenay Music) and alas, it fits perfectly on my Tyros. A special thanks goes to Walt Tenay for all his generous door prize donation gifts.

Lastly, and most importantly, a BIG thanks to Fran, Marge, Heather & Cindy, and Dan & Carolyn for all their hard work organizing, scheduling, providing the food (meals), and making this event the big success it was. Ok, in addition to the above, here are the other pictures I took with my camera of the SZ East Coast Jam attendees:

Fran In Florida:
[img]http://members.tripod.com/scottyee/images/FLSZJAM/Fran.jpg[/img]

Marge In Florida 2:
[img]http://members.tripod.com/scottyee/images/FLSZJAM/Marge.jpg[/img]


Sue Riffle (Disney Cast Member):
[img]http://members.tripod.com/scottyee/images/FLSZJAM/SueRiffle.jpg[/img]

Bob Riffle (Disney Cast Member):
[img]http://members.tripod.com/scottyee/images/FLSZJAM/BobRiffle.jpg[/img]

My buddies: Bernie & Anneliese Ackerman
[img]http://members.tripod.com/scottyee/images/FLSZJAM/Bernie&Anneliese.jpg[/img]

Bruce Womack:
[img]http://members.tripod.com/scottyee/images/FLSZJAM/BruceWomack.jpg[/img]

Cindy & Heather:
[img]http://members.tripod.com/scottyee/images/FLSZJAM/Cindy&Heather.jpg[/img]

Bud Whipple:
[img]http://members.tripod.com/scottyee/images/FLSZJAM/BudWhipple.jpg[/img]

Ok, hope this gave everyone here a taste of my memorable East Coast (FLA) SZ Jam experience.

Scott [img]http://www.synthzone.com/ubbs/smile.gif[/img]


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http://scottyee.com

[This message has been edited by Scottyee (edited 04-21-2005).]

That's quite a big deal for a get-together like that. Kudos to you all. And thanks for those pictures and comments, that takes work, Scott.

Great Report and pics, Scott. Thanks for sharing...and hope your voice comes back to full strength soon. It may be some of that Florida Pollen. I'm having some troubles myself.

Eddie

Scott,

I really enjoyed your story and the pictures that went with it.

Thanks for taking the time to put it together for us.

Ed

Hi Scott,
Thank you for your great report. You have helped make this forum feel more like a family once again. I am glad that you were able to fit the E.C. Jam into your busy schedule, especially right on the heels of your recent illness, and even more glad that you are feeling much more back to your old self. (No age jab intended ) And welcome back home again also.
BTW, those are wonderful pics. Kudos to all the East Coast Jammers!
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The old Newb

[This message has been edited by OldNewb (edited 04-21-2005).]

Welcome back Scott and thanks for posting the photos. Sounds like you had a great time, (other than the illness) and I wish I could have found time to be there.

Gary

Scott ... Many thanks for bringing the Florida jam to us ... ...
t.

Scott...

Thanks for posting such a comprehensive report. The pics look great. Being in the market for my first digital camera, the SD500 has shot up to the top of my watch list. With so many digital cameras on the market, and new models coming out every week, it's not an easy choice. Correct me if I'm wrong, but I assume you're very satisfied with your new camera.

Having spent 5 weeks in the Cocoa Beach and Orlando area up till April 3rd, I was very disappointed not to be able to join up, but there was no way... hopefuly next time.

Glad to hear that your voice is back. Funny thing, my daughter who has been in the Bay area for 3 years now, had throat problems for the first 1 1/2 year. I think y'all have different air out there.

Thanks again for the great post.

Glenn

Scotty...Great indepth report....excellant
photos....a lot of work putting it all together....glad you all had a great time....
Fun's over, now back to work....hehehe
Tony

Great work, pictures and report, Scottyee!
It seemed to be a great event...I'm sorry for to have missed it. But the flight tickets are really expensive now...

Thank you for posting in here!

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Greetings from Frankfurt (Germany),
Sheriff ;-)