by Phil Houseal | Apr 13, 2017 | All Articles, Events, People of the Hill Country
April 12, 2017–While the world bubbles over with international conflict, one Hill Country enterprise is quietly working diplomacy using currency that is truly bubbly–beer. “We’re celebrating our fifth anniversary with a new beer–Pedernales/Albur Chico Temido–the...
by Phil Houseal | Apr 5, 2017 | All Articles, Music
April 5, 2017–As someone who can play eight instruments but can’t sing a simple nursery rhyme tune so you’d recognize it, I am enthralled with a cappella groups. Maybe it’s polyphony envy, that ability to hear and match vocal harmonies. The newest sensation on this...
by Phil Houseal | Mar 30, 2017 | All Articles, Events, Music, People of the Hill Country
Mar 29, 2017–She’ll be singing Gedenken-vergessen, a lieder composed by Frank Valentine Van der Stucken in 1892. But truth be told, mezzo-soprano September van der Stoel would feel just as comfortable singing jazz. “Jazz is my first love. I absolutely love...
by Phil Houseal | Mar 22, 2017 | All Articles, Events, Music, Venue
Mar 22, 2017–Cause that’s what makes her happy. That is the top reason Sloan Ruth gives for creating The Backyard behind Fritztown Cinema. The new outdoor music venue will open April 7 with its first of many regular concerts. “I’m not musical, though I took piano for...
by Phil Houseal | Mar 16, 2017 | All Articles, Events, Music, Venue
Mar 15, 2017–Asleep at the Wheel’s Ray Benson calls them the “Carnegie Halls of western swing.” But if you are old enough to have waltzed across Texas, you know them as dance halls. When I wrote about these two-stepping temples in 2013, Stephen Dean of Texas Dancehall...
by Phil Houseal | Mar 8, 2017 | All Articles, Education, People of the Hill Country, Uncategorized
Mar 8, 2017–About eight years ago I was invited to be a guest at a writer’s group. As they discussed and critiqued each other’s writing, I was drawn into the process. For the first time I felt that I, too, could get a book into print. (I did, too. It’s called Finding...
by Phil Houseal | Mar 1, 2017 | Music, People of the Hill Country
Mar 1, 2017–Back when we were picking under the trees at Luckenbach 40 years ago, Maggie Montgomery laughingly promised to write a book entitled How To Survive In the Hill Country With No Visible Means of Support. Making a living solely by playing guitars was harder...
by Phil Houseal | Feb 22, 2017 | Philosophy, PR Tips
Feb 22, 2017–Has the world officially run out of words? When it comes to labeling things, we’ve given up even trying to be creative. Now we communicate using initials. Texting and social networking has brought its own jargon–LOL, SMH, ICYMI. LOL. Even casual internet...
by Phil Houseal | Feb 15, 2017 | Music, People of the Hill Country, Philosophy
Feb 15, 2017–Every once in a red, white, or blue moon you stumble across a band that seems to be playing just for you. Over the years, I’ve seen, heard, and written about every style and genre and level of bar band. But then you find something unexpected but...
by Phil Houseal | Feb 10, 2017 | All Articles, Philosophy
Feb 8, 2017–With New Year resolutions safely behind us, you can stop worrying if you didn’t meet all your goals. In fact, if you didn’t reach them, you might want to celebrate. Because goals are for losers. That is the counterintuitive argument put forth by Scott...
