Our Annual Meeting was yesterday, and was the last board meeting for Kip Cranna who has been on and off our board for 28 years ( starting in l985 when Chanticleer was 7 years old)  contributing his unique combination of musicological creds ( he was heavily involved in the creation of “La Serenissima”- our last concert set), experience in the performing arts, very long perspective on Chanticleer including friendship with Louis A. Botto (our founder) and just all around kindness and wisdom.  He’s not leaving town though, and we will look forward to seeing him around.  Thanks Kip for service to Chanticleer for longer than some of us have been alive!

“La Serenissima” had her fourth and final airing today in hot Sacramento. We’ve been performing in Sacramento since the beginning of Chanticleer; there’s a particularly keen early music crowd here. They came out in force, and helped us bid farewell to Casey and Mike Axtell as they performed their last Chanticleer concert. Chanticleer in Sonoma starts on Wednesday.

On an extremely chilly evening ( that’s June in San Francisco) we brought our Venetian program to the Basilica of the Mission Dolores where Chanticleer was founded 35 years ago. A big crowd included people who were at that performance in the old mission in l978. Those longstanding supporters heard Chanticleer in a lot of Renaissance music in those days, and they are very happy when we do it again. In San Francisco we are always surprised when it’s freezing cold in June – which it always is. It is not so cold, however, as that January day in Venice last year.

It’s been a while since we’ve performed in the Cathedral in San Jose which was perfect for “La Serenissima” – very good sound, and full of light and air ( on a very warm evening.) The audience which comes to San Jose and Santa Clara is full of people who have been with us for so long – some since the beginning of Chanticleer – it’s always a kind of homecoming. This program also brings out the early music fans – who are many, especially in the South Bay, Berkeley and Sacramento.





We couldn’t resist a little more reminiscence of our day in Venice last winter, especially as Casey and Michael Axtell are doing their last few performances as members of Chanticleer. They will be with us through Chanticleer in Sonoma next week, of course, and then for the recording of our new album at the end of July. Tomorrow night and Sunday, though, are the last times they will suit up in white tie for a Chanticleer concert.

One of our more memorable Casey-led excursions was to Venice. It was last January, we were in the north of Italy, it was very cold, but Venice ( which some of us had never seen) was a mere 4 hour train ride away. We went and came back in the same day, with 6 or so hours between trains to soak up the fantastic sights of “La Serenissima.” It was a great day and gave us all kinds of background for our current program of music by Monteverdi, both Gabrielis, Rore, Willaerts and more including the majestic sacred music of these composers followed by some very sophisticatedly naughty madrigals. Tonight’s audience in Berkeley (including the 99 student choral singers from Phoenix) gave us a standing ovation. Friday in San Jose, Saturday in San Francisco, and Sunday in Sacramento – our last concert of this season.