Friendship and Memory

We had dinner last night with several couples we have been friends with for many years, and I have to reflect on the warm feelings it brought up in me. You go through so many things with friends over the years - happy times and sad. Remembering those things when we're together is so enjoyable and life-affirming. It helps me remember why I’m here and what I want in life. We really are social creatures who need each other. We live individual lives where we can express ourselves and choose our path, but meanwhile we bond along the way in enriching interactions that teach us more about ourselves. It’s pretty cool and pretty special. Here’s to friendship and memory!

What have I been up to?

PDubs a couple Fridays ago was a lot of fun. I had some good friends come out for a really neat night. Thanks, everybody!

What’s up this week?

Sunday at 7:00 I’m doing another of my first-Friday Online Living Room Concerts. I’m really enjoying these concerts. I'm getting to interact with friends from all over the country in an intimate and meaningful way, and isn’t that what life’s all about? I’d love to have you in my audience as well. Just tune in to concertwindow.com/tommunch on whatever device you have in front of you and watch. If you want to log in to the site you can make comments and join in on the conversation. If you don’t want to log in you can always email or message me with a comment. It’s fun and free. I haven’t decided if I’ll have a theme this month, but it’ll be interesting either way. See you there!

More on the “Perfect Place” to play

I’ve had some really good feedback from folks about cool places to play and listen to music. I’m checking out a couple places locally, and I’ll be contacting some folks farther afield as well. Please give me more ideas as you have them. 

What’s happening up the road?

I just booked an outdoor event in Littleton, Colorado, December 10, from 5-8:30, playing outdoors for their official annual Christmas event. It sounds like a lot of fun, but I don’t have all the details yet. If you’ll be in Denver on December 10 I hope you can stop by. I’ll post more as I hear. I’m booking this with my old friend Chuck Pyle's agent, Terri Stewart, and I’m thrilled to be working with her. More to come!

That’s it for this week. Take care of yourself, and don’t eat too much candy or get too scared on Halloween. 

Best always,

Tom

Details this week:

Who:  Tom Munch

What:  playing and singing

Where:  online at https://www.concertwindow.com/

When:  Sunday, November 5, 7-8ish pm MDT

Perfect Place to Play

I've been thinking about something practical that also speaks to something larger - places to play and listen to music. I’ve played in a lot of different places over the years, and I’ve listened in several places as well. Some were spiritually uplifting, and some were a painful chore. Lots of factors contributed to the experience - from the people, to the room, to the sound system, to the food, to the atmosphere, to the hum of the evening, to you-name-it. Like every situation in life, every factor has something to do with the overall feeling. There are some places that are downright magical - like Red Rocks or a beautiful old theater. You can feel the vibrations of millions of musical notes and shared emotions. Other venues are not so inspiring, but the people and the music overcome the limitations. My practical bent in this paragraph is that I’m looking for a few venues to play in the future. Magpies is scaling back, and I’d like some nice rooms to play for people who want to listen and make some magical evenings. Think of places where you love to be and where my music might add something special to the evening. It doesn’t have to be a music venue. In fact, some of my favorite places haven’t been. Just a place where the vibe is good and folks like to gather and share life. That’s what I’m looking for. Any suggestions in southern Colorado and beyond?

What have I been up to?

Friday a couple weeks ago was great fun playing for good friends in La Veta. It was a beautiful evening in a very nice outside patio with a wood stove and old friends who sang along and made good memories.

The following Saturday was the Chuck Pyle Tribute Concert at Swallow Hill in Denver, and I can’t say enough good things about the night. I was among musicians I’ve looked up to and admired all my adult life, and we all came together to perform and share memories in tribute to someone we all admired - Chuck Pyle. There were some wonderful videos of the night posted on Facebook that are worth seeing if you’re interested. I post all my Facebook posts as public, so they should be visible to everyone.

What’s up this week?

Friday I’m back at PDubs for another fun night of good beer and food with fine friends. I always enjoy the vibe at PDubs. Please come out if you can.

What’s on the horizon?

As I said in my update above, I haven’t been able to schedule Magpies for any dates this fall. Hopefully we can still work out some dates after the first of the year, but I am on the hunt for another comfortable place in Pueblo that folks enjoy and would be interested in my music. I’d like to do the same in other communities around Pueblo, and if I was a little more driven I’d already be there. So if you know of a nice place, I’m open for it.

But I do have some interesting gigs like my annual show for the Council of State Governments, my first-Sunday online concerts, my third-Friday PDubs gigs, some great private parties, playing for the tree lighting at the Pueblo Zoo November 22, concerts at the Bell Tower Cultural Center in Florence January 20 and March 17, and many more I’m working on.

I have even been toying with the idea of scaling back my performances at so many nursing facilities and writing and recording more - even if the recordings are simpler and mainly posted online. At this point in my career I feel like maybe I have something to say that needs to be out in the ether. Maybe I won’t, but it’s a thought worth pursuing.

That’s it for this week. Thank you for your continued friendship and support!

See you down the road,

Tom

Details this week:

Who: Tom Munch
What: singing and playing
Where: PDub Brewing Company Taproom, 181 S Purcell Blvd, Pueblo West, 719-647-8864
When: Friday, October 20, 6-9 pm

Those Who Shape Us

I’m playing at a a tribute concert for one of my old friends and someone who influenced my life - Chuck Pyle - on Friday, and it has me thinking about those who shape us during our lives.  We all have people throughout our lives who come in and out and point us in different directions or show us different ways of thinking and doing what we do.  Sometimes it’s a teacher early on - I have several I could say this about.  Sometimes it’s a family friend or person we chance to meet.  Sometimes it’s a well-known figure who writes or speak so eloquently that we are compelled to listen and learn.  I find myself fascinated by the inter-workings of our relationships and how even little things can have profound effects on our direction.  I guess what I’m saying is that we each are part of a rich tapestry that is woven by many threads that pull us this way and that, and the joy of knowing this makes my life better.  Oh, and Chuck, his playing inspired me to change my music and fingerstyle complexity, and his writing helped me enjoy the beautiful vistas of the West in even more depth.  Thanks, Chuck!  And thank you to all who cross our paths and shape us.

What have I been up to?

Friday was a very enjoyable show playing for the Good Sam’s RV Rally in Pueblo.  It was a great group of folks, and it may have Jen and me looking to do the RV thing someday while I play my music in some beautiful places.

Saturday was a blast playing in Guffey for a packed house at the Bull Moose.  I got to do a really eclectic show for old and new friends.

Sunday was another interesting night of tunes for my online living room concert.  Thanks to all who came out and made it so much fun.  I always seem to go down an interesting rabbit hole of themes and songs.

What’s new this week?

Friday I’m playing for a private party in the mountains that should be great fun.  I so enjoy playing for music-loving folks in their homes.

Saturday I’m playing for the Chuck Pyle tribute I mentioned above at Swallow Hill in Denver with a bunch of other stellar players.  I’d love to have you there if you’d like and if tickets are still available.  You can find the details here - http://connect.swallowhillmusic.org/EventTicket/EventDetail/2689/id0/an-evening-of-the-music-of-chuck-pyle-denver-2017

That’s it for this week.  Take care, and I hope to see you soon!

Best always,

Tom

Details this week:

Who:  Tom Munch and a host of great players
What:  playing a tribute concert to Chuck Pyle
Where:  Swallow Hill, 71 E. Yale Ave., Denver, CO
When:  Saturday, October 7, 7:00 pm