| mattwesselmusic.com |
| matt's journal july 24, 2006 |
| We had our second annual concert at Bethel Lutheran Church in Gurnee this past Friday (I say that because there's talk about doing a show next year, which would definitely warrant using the label "annual"). And what a great show it was. It was a free concert for the Bethel community, but we did ask for some free-will donations to benefit the American Cancer Society. We brought in just under $1,300 that night! I continue to be amazed at the generosity of the Gurnee community. They donated just under $24,000 last spring at the 6th Annual Concert For Life and just this past weekend they came together to raise over $207,000 at Gurnee's Relay For Life (just writing that number makes my mouth drop). And no single-event total is too big or too small. Every little big helps. The total money we've raised since we started doing concerts for the American Cancer Society is now over $104,000. We had a nice crowd of very appreciative listeners. I could tell they really enjoyed the show and our ministry. I was joined on stage by four wonderful female voices (my sisters, Amy and Beth; their friend, Amanda; and a good friend of mine from college, Emily). Added to the full band we had (flute, violin, drums, guitar, bass and, of course, piano), we were able produce a pretty full sound. Some of the songs gave me goosebumps as we did them (including a new version of "Live, Jesus, Live" which can be downloaded in the Matt Wessel Music Jukebox on the homepage). I think the band really got into a groove for the final two songs of the program (Live, Jesus, Live and You Are The Voice). Everyone seemed comfortbale with their instruements/voices and simply had a good time. We had some laughs on stage, especially when Dan (guitar) was caught singing along to "The Baseball Song". We were even persuaded to do our first REAL encore. When our second set was over, everyone stood and clapped and then a few people started yelling "encore!". Carole, the concert organizer, even pulled out a lighter. That was hilarious. Unsure of what to do, I kind of looked around at everyone on stage. I mean, we didn't have an encore in our back pocket (like most bands do). So we finally decided to do "Glory" for a second time (we also did it as the second song of the show). I think people enjoyed hearing it again. Another great part of the concert was that the fine people at Bethel were able to secure a gorgeous grand piano from the Alden Piano Company (they delivered it the day of the show!). It's so much nicer to play a concert on a real grand piano versus an upright or a keyboard. I always get especially psyched up for an all-liturgical show. The Bethel community asked us to play mostly religious pieces last year, and the same was true this time. Many of my shows offer a mix of secular, religious and instrumental pieces. Friday's show featured nine religious songs. Of course, we did some favorites like "The Baseball Song", "Falling" and "Alive In You". We also did "See Them" and "God's Chosen One" in honor of our ACS efforts. I even threw in "Falling In Love" from my new album and asked my friend, Paddy, to come to the show and wail on the electric guitar. He played the song just as you hear it on the recording and really did a great job. It was definitely the closest I've ever come to feeling like a true rock and roll star. But I was exhausted afterwards. There's no way I could do that for an entire show. All in all, it was a fantastic evening. I think we made some new fans and we got to see some familiar ones. Next up: August 17 at St. Francis de Sales in Lake Geneva, WI. I'll be posting an information sheet on the homepage this week. I'm going to New York City for an NBA PR Convention later this week, but will have some time this weekend. Stay tuned! And be sure to listen to the live audio from Friday's show!! |