Fall Tour 2009

The Field Band was on the road for 40 days this Fall, touring all the way from New Mexcio back to Maryland. I left with the dead-head detail on October 8th and took a sweet road trip all the way out to Albuquerque. The remainder of the band and chorus met us five days later and we began our odyssey,  returning to Fort Meade on November 21st. 

This tour was very eventful for me personally, as I was featured as a soloist with the band, an absolute dream come true. Equally as memorable, I returned to North Texas for the first time since I left for Basic Training. I was able to re-unite with Dr. Bowman, my teacher, and so many wonderful friends. My solo was The Yellow Rose of Texas Variations and this first picture is of me tossing a rose into the audience, (it was hidden up my sleeve during the piece). Photo by Rob McIver. 

This picture sums up what I've been doing for the last month and a half. We played thirty-six concerts across nine states in three different time zones. Below, I'll share pictures of my favorite memories. 

Albuquerque was so lovely. I was able to do a short hike in the Sandia Mountains one morning and also rode the Sandia Tramway, up to 10,000 feet! I can't get enough of the mountains.

Here I am doing some pushups when the drivers found the key to the government van that I dropped outside the hotel! :)

 

This tour was full of great food. I was able to hit all my favorite spots in Dallas, but this little place in the middle-of-nowhere, NM was definitely a highlight. Amazing green chiles! 

As we drove East through the Texas Panhandle and Oklahoma, the view began to look something like this picture. The landscape is barren, but it has a sparse sort of beauty, to me. 

One concert I will never forget was in Snyder, TX. The band performed in a giant coliseum and, as we began to play, dozens of bats swooped in and circled us for the entire evening. I think bats are kind of cute, but most people in the band did not share my opinion of the little concert-goers. 

Performing at the University of North Texas was surreal and very special. After the show, Dr. Bowman and his wife threw a reception for Chris and me. It was fabulous to catch up and reminisce with friends. 

Many of my friends chose to re-enlist while we were on this tour. This is a picture before one of the ceremonies where a large group took the oath and signed up for more Army time. I say Hooah! 

When you are near Dallas, Babes Chicken is a must. Two of my very best friends from UNT and  a great group of my Field Band buds enjoyed this legendary eatery one fine evening.  

This year for Halloween I went as Xena: Warrior Princess. Here I am posing with Levi, our Transportation Supervisor. This costume is extra eerie because he actually was a Drill Sergeant, and it gave many of us some unpleasant flashbacks :) 

I'll wrap it up with a group picture from the Field Band Halloween party. This tour was long, but full of great experiences. Now we are gearing up for Holiday concerts. As far as blogging goes, I tried to go without bringing my own internet card on this tour, and I found the hotel connection situation to be very frustrating. I plan on going back to using my aircard for the next big trip and will hopefully have more timely updates for future tours. Thanks for reading! 

Late Summer

This lovely, busy Summer is winding down, and I'm eagerly anticipating a fantastic Fall! Here are some highlights from late August through September:

After being in the Field Band for a full year, it's nice to no longer be considered a "newbie." Here I am posing with one of our brand new members, Jeannie Wiesman, at her first TUSAFB concert. This gig was our rain-plagued Alumni Concert, that turned out great, despite the weather refusing to cooperate.

Chris and I are seen here performing the Fantastic Fast-Fingered Fandango at the same concert.

 

One reason I love Fall so much is NFL season! I love football- but I really only watch pro, I can't get into college. Of course I love the Houston Texans, and have recently adopted the Baltimore Ravens as my new home-town team. I did live near Dallas for six years, so I cautiously support the Dallas Cowboys, although it isn't a great idea to admit it around these parts!

 

I really enjoyed going to a Ravens pre-season game at M&T Bank Stadium. Nice to see that famous defense in person!

I decided to challenge myself to run a 1/2 marathon in September. I didn't do a great job of sticking to a training regimen, but I still wanted to go and do what I could. It was my first big race event and it was a blast. I ran with some other Army friends, in particular, my buddy CPL Dan Ord who teaches euphonium at the Armed Forces School of Music. Here we are hamming it up after the race. 

It took me 2 hours and 45 minutes to run 13.1 miles. That's not very fast running, but it was more about finishing the race and doing something I never imagined I was capable of. 

I've been trying to attend more music events outside of work. This M&M joined me in viewing a live broadcast of the Barber of Seville at Nationals Stadium. It was an amazing free event. I had never experienced a full opera before, and enjoyed it immensely. 

Here is a picture of the fabulous New York Voices with the Airmen of Note, the jazz component of the US Air Force Band. On September 11th they put on a stunning performance that I was so lucky to attend. 

This final shot is from the Field Band's Hispanic Heritage Recital in a beautiful Benedictine church in Baltimore. I played a piece with some incredibly talented percussionists, Todd Harrison and Jeff Lopez from the Jazz Ambassadors, and the fabulous Mr. Gene Cedras. 

Summer Tour Part II

The Field Band's second tour this Summer was very special to me because it marked my first time to be playing as a professional in my home state of Texas! I've collected some of my favorite pictures to chronicle events.... 

This lovely green monstrosity of a government van was my life for four days and 1,360 miles prior to our tour. I volunteered for a duty lovingly known as "dead-head" where a group of band members and our professional truck drivers convoy with the band's equipment to the site of our first concert. Our destination was Dallas, TX. By the time the rest of the band hopped on their flight out to the Lone Star State, I had mastered the art of the CB radio, been through a 4 lb tub of twizzlers, and listened to every small town radio station in the South. 

 

During our very first concert in Waco, I was in for a real treat when some of my family attended! This is Aunt Wanda, who is my Grandfather's sister, and her daughter, Vicky. They own a Mexican restaurant called "La Fiesta." I highly recommend you try it if you ever find yourself in Waco, TX. We went there for dinner and drinks after the concert and it was amazing. You can't get Mexican food like that up North! 

I might be a little biased, but Texas audiences really are the best! We were greeted by many packed houses, such as this one. I loved the enthusiasm for the Army and our show that was present every night! 

Our performance in San Antonio at the Texas Bandmasters Association Convention was very surreal for me. Only a few years ago I sat on the same stage as a college student, and prior to that, a high school kid at All-state. To be back and playing for many of my teachers and mentors was a dream come true. Check out this monster audience! How could you not love to play for that?

This is John Ware, my private lesson teacher all through middle and high school. He is one of my heros and definitely a big reason I am playing the euphonium for a living today. 

Another huge influence on me as a young musician was Wendy Marquart, or "Ms. M," my high school band director. She is an incredible teacher and did so much for me. I am very lucky to have somebody like her in my life! 

My favorite concert of this tour had to be when I got the chance to return to my home turf and play for my family. Our concert in The Woodlands is very near to where I grew up. So many friends family members made the trip to see me play. It was truly overwhelming! My parents hadn't seen me play in a band since high school. Being able to come back to Texas and perform with the Field Band was the culmination of so much hard work and support from my parents in helping me achieve my goals as a musician. 

Of course, the Veronie's take any chance they can get to flock together for fun and to support one of their own. Here I am with my sister Roxanne, Sister-in-law Leatha, and niece Emma. 

I was so appreciative of my brother Tommy making it out for the show. He had open-heart surgery just a week and a half before! Can you believe it? Doesn't look like it! He has those good Veronie genes :) 

My dear friends from High School, Jonathan Martenson and Leslie Daniel, were also in attendance. We had a great time hanging out and catching up after the concert. 

The remainder of the tour went by quickly. Here is Chris staring in horror at the green slime that accumulated on his valve... looks like it is time to give the euphonium a post-tour 

bath!

One final picture is from Hot Springs, Arkansas where I enjoyed a phenomenal breakfast as the Colonial Pancake and Waffle House. Highly recommended! 

Vacation in Colorado

I spent my summer leave days in Colorado and Texas visiting with friends and family. It was a fantastic trip. Colorado is incredible in the Summer and we took full advantage of all the fun outdoor activities. 

This picture is from our very memorable hike at Greyrock, near Fort Collins. It was quite an adventure getting to the top. We lost the trail near the end, did some exciting boulder scrambles, and then got to take in this magnificent view from the summit. There is a little frog pond at the top that was so serene and lovely. 

Here I am goofing around on the trail. We came upon all kinds of wildlife and wildflowers. 

One day we went in to Denver for a Rockies game. They came back in the final inning to beat the Atlanta Braves. 

At the Loveland Sculpture Garden there were many creative photo opportunities with the artwork.

Fort Collins has a very unique sculpture park called the Swetland Zoo. A farmer took the time to create amazing pieces with metal and other scraps. The entire display is so imaginative and really makes you smile. This was one of my favorites. 

This is a picture of Greyrock from the meadow that lies at its base. 

We hiked for several hours just to get to this point. Looking at it now, it is hard to imagine that we were able to make it to the top. So much fun! 

Another great thing about Colorado is the generous amount of breweries. Here I am about to enjoy one of the samplers at O'Dell's. 

The other hike we tackled was a smaller trail called Arthur's Rock. 

It was a chance to see Colorado wildflowers at their best. The hills were covered in so many beautiful colors and shapes. 

Here is a picture from the top of Arthur's Rock. It was a little cloudy but the view was great. Wish I had my horn and could blow a few notes from the top! 

Summer Tour Part I

The Field Band is on the road for two 8-day tours this Summer. The first was in late June leading up to the 4th of July. I'm posting a few pictures that highlight our adventures. 

This first is from the Independence Day concert in Pittsburgh, PA. It was my first visit to the city and I was so impressed. It really is beautiful. Our performance was held on a stage by the river downtown with the Soldier's Chorus singing behind us on a Corps of Engineers Barge! That was a very interesting set up. You can see the people lounging on the green in front of the stage. It was a massive crowd. 

This photo was taken from the barge. I'm trying to put on an intimidating face with Rob and Chris. Another cool thing about this gig is that they opened up the Steeler's stadium for the masses to walk through. Pretty cool arena. 

This was from an outdoor concert in Boardman, Ohio. We have been very lucky to have nice weather. Not too hot, and no big storm scares either. It was a fabulous show on July 3rd. The crowd was great and we were treated to a lovely fireworks display after. 

In the small town of Clearfield, Pennsylvania the band heard tell of a local joint called Denny's Beer Barrel Pub that boasted of having the World's Largest Burger. This wasn't their biggest meat monstrosity by any means, but one of their smaller challenges. If the contestant can manage to eat the entire burger in an hour they get 1/2 off and a free shirt. One of our very hungry soldiers attempted to step up to the plate on this challenge. It was 2 pounds of beef... after it had been cooked and then was adorned in an unholy amount of toppings. He fought bravely but in the end could not quite eat the entire thing. One of my favorite memories of this tour! 

This is from a concert in New York that was held at a large outdoor arena. The audience is sitting fairly far away in these viewing stands. 

The American Legion was gracious as usual and willing to pose for a picture with me.

 

After we completed this tour, the band had some open leave days available and I hit the road again to Colorado and Texas for a fun vacation. The next post will follow that trip... 

Lance's Wedding

I've been the worst blogger ever. I will attempt to catch my readers up on the past few months over the course of several posts. One of the most important recent events was my brother's wedding. I was able to get leave and fly down to Texas for the ceremony on June 27th. I'll always remember their anniversary because it is two days after my birthday. Speaking of my 25th birthday.... it was much better than 24. This time last year I was in the middle of Red Phase in Basic Training and probably getting smoked most of the day. This time around I got to be with my family and celebrate my brother's big day! 

The wedding was held on a boat that runs off the Gulf of Mexico in the town of Kemah. It was gorgeous and very special. My new sister-in-law is beautiful and fantastic- such a great addition to the family. The only bad thing is that her name is also Lauren..... so there are now two "Lauren Veronie's." A little confusing, but we will manage. Here I am enjoying a drink with my Dad while we are cruising around the Gulf. 

The whole Veronie clan turned out for the event. This picture is just a few, including Dad, my sister Roxanne, brother Tommy, and sister-in-law Becky. 

Here I am posing with my little brother, the LT. I'm so proud of him!