I love events in Aarnimetsä
Though, to be fair, this one was rather special, being advertised as a "music bootcamp". Firday night the first singing workshop started fairly promptly after I was on site, borrowed sheets onto my bed and into costume. The singing continued till just before I went to bed around 01:30 or 02:00. We sang SCA songs, period songs, traditional Finnish call and response songs, and more (those were the themes of some of the workshops that evening).
Saturday morning it was lightly snowing, so after breakfast and before the first workshop of the day I went for a short walk in the forest. I can report that my Thorsbjerg trousers, with their attached sheepskin bottomed feet, do fit fine inside my "näbbskor" (Swedish folk boots with a pointy "beak" like toe), if I take out the thick nålbinded liners I have for them. However, doing so means that the boots aren't so comfortable around the ankles without the padding from the liners. Therefore I did only a short loop walk. I need to decide what to do about that. Perhaps it is time to make new liners for the boots and then cut away the old bottoms of this pair so that I can have the uppers in the boots at the same time as the trouser feet?
Saturday's workshops included many more singing workshops (all of which I attended), some instrument playing workshops (which conflicted with singing, so I didn't get to attend), and some theory classes--mostly in Finnish this time, so I used the time to sew, since I couldn't follow the lecture. However, I should have been sitting over by K. and the one other visitor from Sweden--apparently she kept up a running translation for him.
There was a short Baronial court during dinner, where, much to my surprise, the Baroness conducted the business herself without the help of a herald. I sat next to her at feast, so got to ask her about it. She admits that it is never done that way, but she wanted to try it one time, and a small event with only three pieces of business (tokens of welcome to newcomers, thanks to the autocrats, and one baronial award) seemed like a good opportunity.
It wasn't quite all singing--I got to dance some, too. Some of the Finnish ballads are sung while dancing a basic double bransle, and late in the evening a couple of violin players played some Swedish folk music, so I couldn't resist dancing with a couple of new friends
Saturday morning it was lightly snowing, so after breakfast and before the first workshop of the day I went for a short walk in the forest. I can report that my Thorsbjerg trousers, with their attached sheepskin bottomed feet, do fit fine inside my "näbbskor" (Swedish folk boots with a pointy "beak" like toe), if I take out the thick nålbinded liners I have for them. However, doing so means that the boots aren't so comfortable around the ankles without the padding from the liners. Therefore I did only a short loop walk. I need to decide what to do about that. Perhaps it is time to make new liners for the boots and then cut away the old bottoms of this pair so that I can have the uppers in the boots at the same time as the trouser feet?
Saturday's workshops included many more singing workshops (all of which I attended), some instrument playing workshops (which conflicted with singing, so I didn't get to attend), and some theory classes--mostly in Finnish this time, so I used the time to sew, since I couldn't follow the lecture. However, I should have been sitting over by K. and the one other visitor from Sweden--apparently she kept up a running translation for him.
There was a short Baronial court during dinner, where, much to my surprise, the Baroness conducted the business herself without the help of a herald. I sat next to her at feast, so got to ask her about it. She admits that it is never done that way, but she wanted to try it one time, and a small event with only three pieces of business (tokens of welcome to newcomers, thanks to the autocrats, and one baronial award) seemed like a good opportunity.
It wasn't quite all singing--I got to dance some, too. Some of the Finnish ballads are sung while dancing a basic double bransle, and late in the evening a couple of violin players played some Swedish folk music, so I couldn't resist dancing with a couple of new friends