Bach Brandenburg 2 on Melodicas and Recorder

Okay, I wasn't going to post another Bach piece as my second video, but this was done so well, and in such a novel way that I just HAD to share it. I mean, not only does this guy know what he's doing with these instruments, he actually knows the music. Just listen to the control he's got over his dynamics!
It's the first movement of Brandenburg Concerto No. 2 by J. S. Bach for violin, Blockflöte, (recorder) trumpet and oboe. Here's how the instrumentation stands in the video:

Concertino:
Trumpet: Soprano melodica
Alto recorder: Alto recorder
Oboe: Alto melodica
Violin: Alto melodica

Ripieno:
Vln 1, Vln 2, Vla: Alto melodica
Cello and Bass: Bass melodica

(If you're not sure what a melodica is, look them up on Wikipedia, there's a good page of info there.)

"... The winds are now exalted in the Concerto No. 2 in F Major. The solo group is made up of violin, recorder, oboe and trumpet. This is not just an unusual combination, it is unprecedented. Far from tailoring the writing to suit the disparate bunch, Bach treats them virtually as equals. If counterpoint is akin to musical juggling, here the composer is juggling eggs along with a basketball and a running chainsaw. The work is in fact, a bold attempt at a hitherto unknown musical democracy."
-From the liner notes of the 2000 recording by Apollo's Fire.

April Snow!!

You have heard that it was said to the people long ago: 'April showers bring May flowers,' but I tell you that a warm dry March will surely bring snow in April. In other words, March came in like a lamb, went out like a lamb and now, it appears, we're seeing a little of the lion. :-)


I wasn't nearly as cold as I look here. It wasn't even a proper cold. (For all y'all Dixielanders: That's barely cold enough for the white stuff to stick. :-))





At about 10:00 this morning, I snapped these out the back patio door just to show how deep it got. Our old, broken barn looks rather ghostly through the blowing snow.
Of course, at noon, seo sunne came out and the lovely snow melted VERY fast.