Yesterday was our fancy day! We had two fun events to attend: a wedding reception and an orchestra concert. So I put on my ‘Best Man’ dress from Bret’s wedding, Charlie put on a vest, and Joe put on his three-piece suit, complete with pocket square and pocket watch.

The wedding was for Shireen, Joe’s cousin, and it was a beautiful reception. We were sad to leave early, but a couple months ago, we got a super deal for tickets to that night’s orchestra concert. We heard Las Cuatro Estaciones Porteñas. It was composed by Astor Piazzolla, as his own version of The Four Seasons, but set instead in Buenos Aires. So it has a great tango aspect to it. Here’s what the Spring sector sounds like.

The star violinist was Nadja Salerno-Sonnenberg, and she came out onstage with this sparkly black slinky top and bright red velvet pants, which instantly set her apart from the backdrop of the all-black clad orchestra. Diva! And rightfully so. She was amazing.

After intermission, was Aaron Copland’s Third Symphony. The music wasn’t as experimental and interesting as the Piazzolla, but I did enjoy it more. Copland is so distinctive, and I absolutely love his music for his Billy the Kid ballet, which Joe has introduced me to. This symphony was no exception.

My favorite part was the Fanfare for the Common Man

The Minneapolis Orchestra Hall is so cool! Every other place I’ve seen an orchestra, the visual focus has definitely been on the players. Which is fair; they are the stars, after all. But here, the focus is definitely on the architecture. All of these cubes are three-D, including the ones on the backdrop. It’s not a painted set.

I think I maybe watched the players for a total of 8 minutes. The rest of the time, I was just staring absently into the ceiling, able to focus solely on the music. It was an amazing aural experience.

Post-show, Joe and I walked down Nicollet Mall in search of a place to enjoy a drink and un-wind. We passed by this wall, which we both thought looked really cool. The photo doesn’t do justice.

We ended up turning around and heading towards the Hotel Ivy’s bar, Porter & Frye. Oysters were only $5, so we got some of those in addition to our drinks. My sazerac was simply delightful.

We were able to do all of this because Katy Novak is just the sweetest! She took care of Charlie for the evening.

We got a text from her saying that he bawled through his bath, but went into his crib giggling! What a sweet way to end the day.