Last night we went to a concert at the house of our wonderful dentist. She is a vibrant very attractive woman who responds to life with every fiber of her body. She and her husband live in a neighborhood called La Pitaya which is on the old road between Xalapa and Coatepec. It tumbles down towards a small river, its houses tucked under a tangle of greenery. All kinds of houses sit in La Pitaya from the grandest to the poorest, from upscale California suburban to tiny shack and they sit on everything from manicured lawn to farm.
Marcela's house was designed by her husband, an architect. Marcela is the one who furnished and decorated the inside. It is small and simple and lovely, a seamless blend of Mexican and Japanese, set back on what seems to have been part of the property of a much bigger house. The main living area is broken into alcoves with nothing more than posts and levels distinguishing them, if I remember correctly, so that it feels intimate, though in fact it is roomy enough for about thirty five people to sit on chairs to listen to very fine music. Which is what we did.
Marcela and some of the residents of La Pitaya have organized to collect money to buy a piece of land along the river in order to keep it forested and to I think try to work on cleaning up the water. This concert was thus a benefit for the group. The musicians also live in La Pitaya and donated their talents. The harpsichordist is named Patricia Castillo. She played La Egipiciana de J. Ph. Rameau; fantasía en d de Mozart and Tres Sonatas de Scarlatti. I should have but didn't get the name of the guitarist, her partner in life as in the concert, but he was just as wonderful a musician as she. He played pieces by Antonio Lauro and Manuel de Falla. Afterwards they played three pieces together, seamlessly.
Here in our area people don't give standing ovations as easily as they do in the U.S., but the couple received as big an ovation as thirty five people could give.
After a bit of wine and some fresh-picked blackberries and bread and some local cheese, we gathered our friend and made our way through the cool damp evening to the car and then home.
Marcela's house was designed by her husband, an architect. Marcela is the one who furnished and decorated the inside. It is small and simple and lovely, a seamless blend of Mexican and Japanese, set back on what seems to have been part of the property of a much bigger house. The main living area is broken into alcoves with nothing more than posts and levels distinguishing them, if I remember correctly, so that it feels intimate, though in fact it is roomy enough for about thirty five people to sit on chairs to listen to very fine music. Which is what we did.
Marcela and some of the residents of La Pitaya have organized to collect money to buy a piece of land along the river in order to keep it forested and to I think try to work on cleaning up the water. This concert was thus a benefit for the group. The musicians also live in La Pitaya and donated their talents. The harpsichordist is named Patricia Castillo. She played La Egipiciana de J. Ph. Rameau; fantasía en d de Mozart and Tres Sonatas de Scarlatti. I should have but didn't get the name of the guitarist, her partner in life as in the concert, but he was just as wonderful a musician as she. He played pieces by Antonio Lauro and Manuel de Falla. Afterwards they played three pieces together, seamlessly.
Here in our area people don't give standing ovations as easily as they do in the U.S., but the couple received as big an ovation as thirty five people could give.
After a bit of wine and some fresh-picked blackberries and bread and some local cheese, we gathered our friend and made our way through the cool damp evening to the car and then home.