mimblr.com

Crowds packed downtown Calistoga late Sunday morning as thousands of spectators gathered on Lincoln Avenue for the annual Cinco de Mayo parade and festival. The celebration marks a battle hard-won by Mexicans against the French in 1862; in the U.S. the May 5th event has become a popular celebration of Mexican culture.
Two fire engines — sirens blaring and lights flashing — announced the beginning of the parade procession just after noon. Behind the engines, young girls carried the American and Mexican flags side by side, making way for sombrero-clad men atop white horses.
Traditional Mexican music set the tone, along with dancers clad in flamboyant, colorful costumes. Some wore red boas and black feather headdresses; others wore metallic, ruffled skirts or modest traditional dress. Classic marching bands — including the St. Helena Community Band and the Calistoga High School band — helped to lend a bicultural flavor to the celebration.
A float featuring a towering female skeleton figure drew stares from the crowd. Clad in a multi-colored skirt and blouse, her sizable silver hoop earrings gittered below a substantial brown hat.
“Cinco de Mayo is … part of our history and our heritage,” said Jose Reyes, who traveled from Sacramento with his wife, Angelita Reyes, to watch the parade.
The event was a family affair for the couple, who brought three of their grandchildren, Angwin residents Ahmed Burdette, 6, Rahim Burdette, 8, and Maya Burdette, 14. Devin Fears, a family friend, also joined them.
Sunday did not mark the end of celebration for Maya, who will perform with a traditional Mexican folk dancing troupe today at Howell Mountain Elementary School. She said she will wear a costume that was handmade by her grandmother — and worn by Maya’s mother decades ago.
“It’s going down from one generation to another,” said Angelita Reyes. “I learned long ago that if I didn’t get my daughters involved in the traditional dancing, they’d never know enough about their (culture). … It taught them to be proud of their heritage.”

napavalleyregister.com

NECHES RIVER FESTIVAL ART EXHIBITION, featuring work by local artists relating to nature and the Neches River, opens April 19 and will be on view through May 2 in the Brown and Scurlock Gallery at the Beaumont Art League, 2675 Gulf St., in Fair Park. The exhibition features paintings, drawings, graphics, photography and sculpture. Awards will be announced at the reception, 2-4 p.m. April 20. Hours: 10 a.m.-4 p.m. Tuesday-Friday; 10 a.m.-2 p.m. Saturday. Free. (409) 833- 4179.
“FRANK X. TOLBERT 2: MEDITATIONS ON MORTALITY,” an exhibition of 16 life-sized portraits by the Houston artist of his friends and family and one self-portrait, opens April 19 and will be on view through July 13 at the Art Museum of Southeast Texas, 500 Main St. Reception 6-8 p.m. May 16. Hours: noon-5 p.m. Sunday; 9 a.m.-5 p.m. Monday-Friday; 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Saturday. Free. Suggested donation $2. (409) 832-3432.
TASIMJAE (THE ART STUDIO INC., MEMBER JURORED ART EXHIBITION continues through April 26 at the Art Studio Inc., 720 Franklin St. Hours: 2-5 p.m. Tuesday-Friday; 11 a.m.-5 p.m. Saturday. Free. (409) 838-5393.
“DEFINING MOMENTS: AN EXHIBITION OF WORKS BY brYAN COLLIER,” 47 original works in watercolor and collage by the award-wining children’s book illustrator, continues through April 27 at the Art Museum of Southeast Texas, 500 Main St. The exhibition focuses on people, such as Martin Luther King Jr., who have greatly affected American culture. Hours: noon-5 p.m. Sunday; 9 a.m.-5 p.m. Monday- Friday; 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Saturday. Free. (409) 832-3432 or www.amset.org.
“FROM RUSSIA WITH LOVE,” continues through April in the Main Gallery at the Texas Artists Museum, 3501 Cultural Center Drive in Port Arthur. The exhibition includes works by Slava Protopopov of Kazakhstan and Russian artists Alena Azernaya, Alexey Zoob and Sasha Protopopova. Shirley Peel is featured artist in the Foyer through April. Hours: noon-4 p.m. Tuesday-Saturday. Free. (409) 983-4881.

beaumontjournal.com

Wikipedia tells us that show tunes are "frequently written for actors with limited vocal abilities," but Randy tells us tonight’s songs are all very difficult. Simon says the Andrew Lloyd Webber songs will challenge the "American Idol" singers to seem contemporary.
That’s probably the real challenge for listeners as well. This is a style of music that never really left the 1940s, despite the addition of electric guitar. I mentioned to a friend that Andrew Lloyd Webber would appear on the show tonight, and she said "he’s still alive?" Yes, and he’s Younger Than McCain.
To be honest, the only music that I find more irritating than showtunes is the undergrad a capella that seems to accompany it on otherwise decent college radio stations. But this evening isn’t about my dislike for showtunes. It’s about my disdain for the talents of "American Idol" contestants.
Let’s get started with Syesha’s rendition of "One Rock & Roll Too Many." She does it as a neo-soul cabaret kind of thing, and if it weren’t for the insipid lyrics I’d actually like to hear it again. I can only assume this means she’s getting voted off tomorrow.
The dreadlocks were a bit of a shock for our poor old coach, but that doesn’t stop "Memory" from being an adequate torch song in Jason Castro’s hands. Randy says it’s a "train wreck," but Paula thinks that’s just because a lot of people expect it to be sung by a woman with enormous pipes. Simon hates the choice and thinks it’s awful.
Brooke White, in the coaching session, has a hard time understanding the song, but as we’ve already reported, she comes through and becomes ALW’s favorite. She’s singing "You Must Love Me," which has a key advantage as a song selection: Because it was written for the "Evita" movie, rather than for a stage musical, it’s got the structure of a pop song. But she stumbles over the words at the beginning, and starts the song over. Then, during the first few phrases, her voice is weak and wavery. Once she gets going it’s OK, but the start was really subpar. Simon is moved to kindness, saying only that he thinks Brooke will be very disappointed when she sees the tape, but that she more or less did the right thing. It’s a real bummer: She’s a better singer than this.

blog.meevee.com

Around here, the Irish Minstrels are known for foot-stomping Irish sing-alongs, sea shanties, fiddle tunes and romantic ballads. Yet, during a trip to Ireland last fall, the Spring Valley-based band was heralded for its American roots.
In October, the group traveled to Dublin, where members recorded a new CD at Walton’s Music, then toured the country performing at pubs along the way. In the small, historic town of Ardmore, the band was introduced as “The American Experience.”
Yet, the band was also honored by Walton’s Music, a name synonymous with Irish traditional music and Dublin’s vibrant music culture, for its song writing.
The Irish Minstrels won first place in the 2005 Walton’s Music Irish Song Writing competition for a song called “The Fool’s Hornpipe,” written by minstrel Melissa Schmidt. The prize was a chance to perform on the main stage at the 2005 Milwaukee Irish Fest and a trip to Dublin for a two-day recording session at Walton’s Music Studio.
For its new CD, the band recorded a selection of favorite Irish music written in the late 1600s by the beloved blind harp player O’Carolan, classic Irish, Scottish and Welch traditional melodies, and a few new Irish Minstrels’ originals.
“Although we always take delight in the lively pub tunes, this new CD will give our listeners a style of music that most probably, outside of weddings, they have never heard the Minstrels perform,” Schmidt said.
Fans also will get a chance to hear the Irish sounds of Matt Stier on the fiddle, Brenda Stier on the bodhran and whistle, Melissa Schmidt on the mandolin and whistle, and Larry Schmidt on the guitar, with a concert at the Paramount Theatre in Austin on the most American of Irish holidays.

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