http://www.sueanddwight.com Official Web Site » sueanddwight.com Tue, 06 Jul 2010 20:18:57 +0000 http://backend.userland.com/rss092 en Hello!   Just a quick note to let you know what's happening this Summer.   We did our last Cameron House Matinee of the season on June 26th. Thanks so much to those of you who braved the G20 mayhem to join us! Had some fun busking at outdoor Farmer's Markets around town last ... http://www.sueanddwight.com/blog/sue-and-dwight-july-2010-news/ Hi   It is June and already feels like the middle of Summer! I'll keep this short so you can get out and enjoy the day. Quick Recap of May... - Songs from 'Little Child Big World' continued to get radio airplay (Yay!) on some great folk shows including 'Folk Fury' (TX), 'Friends & ... http://www.sueanddwight.com/blog/sue-and-dwight-june-2010-news/ It's a bit dreary outside this morning but because yesterday was such an amazing day/night at The Cameron House, I'm basking in an amazing glow of wonderful music and friendship. What a great time we had. Our matinee was packed right from the start...albeit most folks were there to secure their ... http://www.sueanddwight.com/blog/a-magical-day-at-the-cameron-house-our-first-sro-matinee-and-farewell-to-cindy/ Hiya April came and went in a blink and it's May! Here's where you can find us this month if you want to catch a show... 3:30-5:30pm EVERY SATURDAY IN MAY at The Cameron House, 408 Queen Street West (Toronto) We play two sets in the Front Room. It's laid back and hanging out ... http://www.sueanddwight.com/blog/sue-and-dwight-may-2010-news/ Hi Everyone   Spring is definitely in the air!   So here's the GIG NEWS for April if you happen to be in the Toronto area... Every Saturday - Matinee at The Cameron House - 3:30-5:30pm - 408 Queen Street West We want lots of bums in the seats this month...well, not bums in the hobo ... http://www.sueanddwight.com/blog/sue-and-dwight-april-news/ Hi Everyone All of a sudden March is here and the days are getting longer. Thank goodness, because I never seem to be able to cram everything into a day that I need to ;) February was a fun music month between our Cameron House and Winterfolk shows, our busking profile on ... http://www.sueanddwight.com/blog/sue-and-dwight-march-2010-news/ Please have a look around the site. There are some interesting stories in the Blog and pictures in the Stuff section! http://www.sueanddwight.com/blog/check-out-our-blog/ Our NEW CD 'Little Child Big World' is available to order right here in the Music section of this website www.sueanddwight.com/music. Or, if you are into digital downloads you can download individual songs or the whole CD at CDBaby www.cdbaby.com/Artist/SueAndDwight and at iTunes http://itunes.apple.com/us/album/little-child-big-world/id343150860.   There’s a cool profile of us busking on blogTO www.blogto.com/music/2010/02/ttc_busker_profile_sue_and_dwight/ and a ... http://www.sueanddwight.com/blog/welcome/ ~ We played more than 60 shows this year including The Cameron House, Mambo Lounge and Black Swan as part of Winterfolk, The Spill in Peterborough, Chapters, McNally Robinson's in Toronto, Winnipeg and Saskatoon, Lady of The Lake in Brandon, Michelle's Brasserie and others. ~ We continued our residency at The ... http://www.sueanddwight.com/blog/2009-music-highlights/ I had an interesting experience while busking today at Queen Station. I was singing 'Time With You' and a young man was listening intently. When I finished, he came up and asked if I could repeat the chorus into his cellphone after he dialed his girlfriend in India. Aww...so romantic! P.S. ... http://www.sueanddwight.com/blog/romance-in-subway/ There's been so much going on lately I haven't had a chance to update you on our standing in the TTC Subway Musicians Program this year. We auditioned in August and then had to wait til almost the end of September for the results. We felt like the audition went ... http://www.sueanddwight.com/blog/we-are-busking-in-the-subway-again-this-year/ It had all the trappings of a wedding...on a shoestring budget. Venue booked, invitations sent out, replies received, food, drink, lots of hugging and kissing, a room full of friends wishing you well! And, just like at our real wedding, we were having so much fun, the evening flew by. Although ... http://www.sueanddwight.com/blog/my-our-big-fat-cd-release-party/ I added pictures to the posts this evening! Just scroll down through the posts. http://www.sueanddwight.com/blog/africa-2009-pictures-added/ Remember what I said about our connections being good at the various airports? Well, all the connections were great but thanks to a severe thunderstorm in Toronto we couldn't land there and had to go on to Hamilton. At first the plan was for us to go thru Customs here ... http://www.sueanddwight.com/blog/august-9th10th-lilongwe-to-nairobi-to-amsterdam-to-hamilton/ Well this is it, our last day in Malawi...our last day in Africa. When we woke up this morning it was cloudy and the wind was really whipping around. It sure looked like rain but it isn't rainy season so the clouds just went away and the sun came out within ... http://www.sueanddwight.com/blog/august-8-2009-farewell-malawi/ Today was amazing. First, let me give you some background as briefly as I can... When we were here in March 2007 we met a woman by the name of Judith who, along with some other women in the community, had started feeding breakfast to orphans. Many people in the area ... http://www.sueanddwight.com/blog/august-7-2009-biggers-has-a-big-wide-smile/ I must say, my favourite times on this trip are when we visit projects. Today was great. Even though we were still tired from yesterday's big drive, the day was invigorating. First, an update on the view at Nkhatabay...yes, it was beautiful.   (Above) The view at Nkhatabay The guys picked us up and we went directly ... http://www.sueanddwight.com/blog/august-6-2009-i-know-im-blessed-so-then-why-arent-the-rest/ What a day! Things started out pretty good...breakfast in the courtyard was nice, we were able to access the Internet. Allabi was there promptly at 9am to pick us up, but unfortunately we weren't quite ready to go yet...after days without email access, Dwight had to do some work correspondence ... http://www.sueanddwight.com/blog/august-5-2009-hectic-travel-day/ Darn, woke up with my first mosquito bite...odd, because the nets here are really good ones and I don't remember being bitten earlier while in the lounge area. I'm taking anti-malarial pills so it should be okay, although I (of course) read all the accompanying prescription information and know that ... http://www.sueanddwight.com/blog/august-4-2009-another-day-in-the-field-in-malawi/ I had forgotten how nice breakfast is in this hotel. It's served in a lovely courtyard and you get a big bowl of fresh fruit salad with your eggs and toast. I think we have had eggs everyday on this trip. I was getting a bit egged out at first ... http://www.sueanddwight.com/blog/august-3-2009-first-project-visit-in-malawi/ Somehow all that lay-over time (12 hours) in Nairobi ended up passing by. We each got about two hours of sleep at the airport and maybe another hour each on the plane to Malawi. Thank goodness they had free wireless connection so we could while away the time on the ... http://www.sueanddwight.com/blog/august-2-2009-hello-from-malawi/ I think this will be a short post today. Not sure how much I can write about waiting around airports, that's of interest anyway! We left Karatu at noon for the trip to the Kilimanjaro Airport. Well, it was actually about 12:20 cause Dwight had to stop and get a couple ... http://www.sueanddwight.com/blog/august-1-2009-kwaheri-tanzania/ Today Dwight and I decided to start the day with some shopping in Karatu before heading to the office. First we took a stroll through the town and came across a market...mostly food. It was really interesting...dark, narrow aisles and tons of stalls. I was thinking today that I would ... http://www.sueanddwight.com/blog/july-31-2009-our-last-full-day-in-tanzania/ Today was another great day. It started out at breakfast where we chatted with a couple of the women (nurses) from Ottawa that I mentioned in my first post from Tanzania. They had an incredible day yesterday. A nurse from the area, whom they met when they arrived here, had ... http://www.sueanddwight.com/blog/july-30-2009-plant-the-seeds-and-wait-for-rain/ Today was very tiring but it was really interesting. We went to visit a few more rainwater harvesting projects. There are donors back in Canada who've contributed to these projects and Dwight wants to make sure they can see the great results of their support, so he is taking lots ... http://www.sueanddwight.com/blog/july-29-2009-bumpy-roads-again-today/ What a great day today was. We started out with breakfast at our hotel then took a walk into Karatu. We thought we'd check out some of the wraps for sale in a variety of places along the highway. At the first one we stopped at, we were quoted the ... http://www.sueanddwight.com/blog/july-28-2009-visiting-projects-in-tanzania/ At 5am we were awakened by an Islamic morning call to prayer, broadcast over a loudspeaker in the area. It was bit early for us, so fortunately we were able to fall back asleep afterward. Had breakfast at our hotel just before 9am...fresh fruit (watermelon, mango, and banana), omelette, toast!!, passion ... http://www.sueanddwight.com/blog/july-27-2009-brrr-its-winter-here/ Today was a travel day. We began with a really nice breakfast at our hotel in Kampala with Patrick, the Executive Director of CPAR Uganda. He then drove us from the hotel to the airport. Our first flight was from Kampala to Nairobi (approx. 1 hr). Then after a 2 hour layover there we ... http://www.sueanddwight.com/blog/july-26-2009-ancient-ice-caps-melting-a-prophecy-of-whats-in-store/ We got an early start today. As I mentioned yesterday, our hotel doesn't have food service yet so we had to go to another hotel of the same owner to eat breakfast. They had a toaster so I toasted my bread this morning! A highlight of the trip so far has ... http://www.sueanddwight.com/blog/july-25-2009-our-last-full-day-in-uganda/ I don't know if I've mentioned yet how much I look forward to the milk coffee we've been enjoying with breakfast every morning. There is a big thermos of very hot milk and you poor that into a cup where you have put a spoonful of 'Star' coffee. Yummmmm. We ... http://www.sueanddwight.com/blog/july-24-2009pader-to-lira/ Today was the most tiring day so far. It began with a visit to the Health Centre in Mucwini near Kitgum where CPAR is providing midwives, vaccinations, and (today actually) installation of solar panels for the maternity ward.   (Above) Mat Ward Delivery Room    (Above) Mat Ward Recovery Room (Above) Mat Ward Stats While walking through the facility, ... http://www.sueanddwight.com/blog/july-23-2009-pader-a-town-with-no-electricitybut-not-for-long-2/ Day 2 in the field and the reality is setting in..."The world is tough for some little children, where did it go wrong." It is hard to believe we live in the same world as the people we are visiting, because our lives are so completely different. It's purely luck ... http://www.sueanddwight.com/blog/july-22-2009-the-world-is-tough-for-some-little-children-where-did-it-go-wrong/ What an interesting day. First, a little background. For over 25 years the northern region of Uganda was terrorized by a rebel army. The rebels would attack small villages and towns during the night, killing adults and abducting children. Millions were forced to flee their homes and live in camps. ... http://www.sueanddwight.com/blog/july-21-2009-north-beyond-the-river-upon-acholi-ground/ Well, the first leg of the journey is well underway. I am writing this from a hotel room in Gulu, Uganda. I don't have Internet access here but might tomorrow morning so I could possibly upload then. So far we have spent a lot of time sitting in transit. Our flights ... http://www.sueanddwight.com/blog/july-20-2009-hello-from-africa/ We just returned home from a mini tour out west, combining music with some visitng. It was a great two weeks. We love living in Toronto but it's always nice to revisit other places we've lived and the friends and family there. We had hoped to blog from the trip ... http://www.sueanddwight.com/blog/sue-and-dwight-mini-western-tour-june-2009/ Yesterday we played our first House Concert. If you aren't familiar with the concept here's a brief description...House Concerts are usually held at someone's home or other small private venue. The Host invites people to attend and asks them for a donation in order to pay the artist. Yesterday's concert was ... http://www.sueanddwight.com/blog/our-first-house-concert/ Someone asked me, the other day, when I planned to blog some more about busking in the subway because they enjoy reading about "life down under". So I thought today was as good a day as any.  I went out looking for a spot after 11 this morning and was lucky ... http://www.sueanddwight.com/blog/busking-at-dundas/ Two very strange things happened this week that I thought I'd share with you. I'll start with the most recent while the memory is fresh. Gorgeous Saturday weather here in Toronto yesterday and things started out a bit slow at our weekly matinee. But there were some great folks listening intently, ... http://www.sueanddwight.com/blog/playing-music-in-the-twilight-zone/ I thought I'd share some memories from this past wonderful weekend of music. It started early with the Winterfolk Launch Party on Thursday night. It was great to mingle with other artists and volunteers and you could feel the excitment building for the festival. This year I've gotten a bit ... http://www.sueanddwight.com/blog/winterfolk-weekend/ Well, I'm not off to the greatest start with my New Years Resolution to blog more frequently...it's the middle of January already.  For those of you from other parts of the country and world, it's important to know, before reading any further, that we are experiencing a colder than normal January ... http://www.sueanddwight.com/blog/winter-busking-in-the-subway/ One year ago, almost to the day, I posted the blog 'Happy Subway Musicians'. Today, not so much. I just went down to get the mail and found our letter from the TTC had arrived. Another big dip on that rollercoaster ride...we went from #7 this past year to not ... http://www.sueanddwight.com/blog/subway-musicians-freefall/ Inspired! That’s how I came away from seeing Sylvia Tyson perform on Thursday night. I wasn’t sure what to expect and even waffled til the last day on whether to reserve tickets or not. If I had known how wonderful it would be, I would have booked ages in advance ... http://www.sueanddwight.com/blog/sylvia-tyson-at-hughs-room/ We just finished a four day stretch of scheduled afternoons at Bloor Station. Even at off-peak hours it's still one of the busiest stations to play at. And one of the most popular stations among TTC buskers. There so much going on there, I thought just for fun I'd share ... http://www.sueanddwight.com/blog/busking-at-bloor-random-observations/ On Friday, June 27th we will be part of the Toronto City Roots Festival opener at Hugh's Room. The show celebrates the famed Yorkville coffee house called The Riverboat, which was a Mecca for musicians on the folk scene in the 1960's and 70's. On this special night performers who ... http://www.sueanddwight.com/blog/ian-and-sylvia-revisited/ We are back home in Toronto after our first official tour of the Prairies. I want to tell you all about it, but where to start? I'll try to keep it brief. Here goes... After hearing horror stories of what can happen to instruments on a plane trip, we decided to ... http://www.sueanddwight.com/blog/our-first-prairie-tour/ I just recently finished my first collaboration on a song with a friend. A few months ago, singer-songwriter Kim Cole sent an email asking if I’d like to co-write a song with her. She had just read an article by Craig and Marc Kielburger in the Toronto Star about the ... http://www.sueanddwight.com/blog/collaboration/ This afternoon we were busking at the Queen subway station. It was pretty cold...especially in the latter part of the 80 minutes we were there. At that busking spot, a cold wind seems to whip through every now and again. And there doesn't appear to be any one event that's ... http://www.sueanddwight.com/blog/busking-at-queenpay-it-forward/ Who needs a theme park when you can get all the thrills and chills you can handle just by embarking on a music career. No question mark, cause it is a rhetorical question. Sometimes I feel like we're on a huge rollercoaster that goes something like this... There is a good ... http://www.sueanddwight.com/blog/rollercoaster-ride/ There’s a sign hanging behind the bar at The Cameron House that says 'This Is Paradise'. I don't know what the story is behind the sign...who put it there and when...but I do know, for many (us included) the words ring true. All kinds of people…artists, techies, retirees, tradespeople, suits…become ... http://www.sueanddwight.com/blog/the-cameron-house-this-is-paradise/ Yesterday we were busking at Spadina, as scheduled. We love playing at that station. The busking spot is in the centre of a long hallway so commuters have a fairly long time to hear the music. The acoustics are great. The only downside I can think of is when people ... http://www.sueanddwight.com/blog/busking-at-spadina/ Ever since our trip to Africa I have been writing songs...lots of songs. Four of them have made it into our regular sets and two more are on deck for their debut in the coming weeks. Last week someone introduced me as a Songwriter to someone else and I said ... http://www.sueanddwight.com/blog/am-i-a-songwriter/ Yesterday I went to pick up the mail and there was THE letter from the TTC (Toronto Transit Commission) Subway Musicians Program. THE letter that we had been waiting for, with nervous anticipation, since our audition almost a month ago. Nervous anticipation, because from year to year it's a bit ... http://www.sueanddwight.com/blog/happy-subway-musicians/ Ever had so much to write about that you end up not writing anything at all? That's what happened with us over the past few months. But that is going to change in September so check back often! http://www.sueanddwight.com/blog/writers-block/ Yesterday we played at our first official festival...City Roots at The Distillery District!  I wanted to write about it in our Blog because it seems when I don't have either pictures or a written record of an event, it fades from my memory way too quickly.  I'm not usually overly nervous ... http://www.sueanddwight.com/blog/our-first-official-festival/ After nine months on the inside, of course they don’t want to spend their time sleeping. They’ve got lots to catch up on after a seemingly interminable time spent in solitary confinement. Finally freed from their incarceration, they just want to party…all night. Unfortunately their stressed out parents would rather ... http://www.sueanddwight.com/blog/%e2%80%9cmusic-has-charms-to-soothe-a-savage-breast%e2%80%9d/ At the risk of evoking an "Enough about your trip to Africa, already" response, I promise this will be my last posting on the subject. Thought I would share some random observations... People work really hard in the countries we visited. Whether it's building roads, collecting sticks to sell as firewood, or ... http://www.sueanddwight.com/blog/our-trip-to-africalast-posting-on-the-subject/ We’ve had some requests to add photos to the Blog… This photo shows a typical “road” off the main road to a project…very bumpy. This one was in Ethiopia but they were much the same everywhere we visited. Sometimes it felt like all my internal organs were bouncing around inside and ... http://www.sueanddwight.com/blog/our-trip-to-africacontinued-photos/ As I mentioned in my previous post, Uganda is recovering from a 20 year civil war. We spent one night in the town of Pader in a remote district (Pader District) of northern Uganda. This area was right in the centre of the conflict and the people there suffered greatly. ... http://www.sueanddwight.com/blog/our-trip-to-africacontinued/ In case you aren't lucky enough (ha ha) to get together with us in person so we can tell you ALL about our trip to Africa, complete with a few hundred slides, I thought I'd write a little about it in our blog! As some of you may know, I ... http://www.sueanddwight.com/blog/our-trip-to-africa/