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!