Gravenhurst Winter Carnival Theme Song

GRAVENHURST WINTER CARNIVAL MUSIC VIDEO SUCCESSFULLY LAUNCHED

MUSKOKA AS WALDEN

THE GROUP OF MUSICIANS-FRIENDS, WENT OUT YESTERDAY TO DO SOME VIDEO TAPING AT GRAVENHURST'S GULL LAKE PARK. WHAT AN INCREDIBLY BEAUTIFUL DAY IT WAS FOR BEING OUTDOORS IN THIS AMAZING REGION OF ONTARIO. THE GROUP I'M REFERRING, IS KNOWN AS "PRESSURE POINT," AND THEY HAVE JUST RECENTLY COMPLETED A NEW SONG, IN SUPPORT OF THE GRAVENHURST WINTER CARNIVAL. LATE LAST WEEK, THEY PRESENTED THE FINISHED SONG, TO THE COMMITTEE FOR THEIR PROMOTIONAL USE. NO CHARGE. SO THE WORK YESTERDAY, WAS TO GET SOME FOOTAGE OF SKOKIE, THE CARNIVAL'S OTTER MASCOT, AND MEMBERS OF THE GROUP….AND SIGNIFICANT OTHERS, TO ACCOMPANY THE MUSIC VIDEO, THAT YOU CAN NOW FIND ONLINE, BY CLICKING ONTO http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AuwE6cFlRCg

THE GROUP INCLUDES DANI O'CONNOR, AARON BINDER, ANDREW AND ROBERT CURRIE. GUEST VOCALS WERE PROVIDED BY LONG TIME MUSIC-ASSOCIATES, JON O'CONNOR AND RAY PARSONS. THE WINTER CARNIVAL SONG WAS INSPIRED BY OTHER MUSKOKANS, WHO IN THE EARLY 1970'S, ALSO WROTE THEME MUSIC, INCLUDING SONGS BY BRAD AND BONNIE VEITCH, AND HOWARD CABLE AND HIS ORCHESTRA. TOUGH ACTS TO FOLLOW. BUT IT WAS ACTUALLY A PROJECT WHICH DATED BACK TO THE WINTER OF 2010-2011. BUT BECAUSE OF OTHER COMMITMENTS, THE PLAN WAS PUT BACK A YEAR. IT WAS THE HIATUS THE GROUP NEEDED. NOW WITH LEAD SINGER DANI O'CONNOR COMING OFF LOCAL SUCCESSES, SUCH AS THE CHRISTMAS-TIME SONG, "I GOT SOCKS," PLAYED ACTIVELY ON THE MOOSE FM, OVER THE HOLIDAYS, AND HAVING FINISHED A NEW BODY OF WORK READY TO LAUNCH……THE GROUP ADMITS IT WAS THE PERFECT TIME TO WORK ON THE CARNIVAL SONG. IN LESS THAN 24 HOURS, THE NEW RELEASE HAD ENJOYED OVER 100 HITS, AND SOON AFTER THE VIDEO WAS PUBLISHED ONLINE, IT HAD 63 VIEWS. NOT IN THE MILLIONS, AND THERE'S NO CLAIM HERE THAT "IT WENT VIRAL," BUT ROBERT IS PLEASED BY THE EARLY RESPONSE. "WE HOPE IT BRINGS MORE PEOPLE OUT TO THE WINTER CARNIVAL. THAT'S THE OBJECTIVE," HE SAID. "WE LIKE WHAT THE GRAVENHURST WINTER CARNIVAL COMMITTEE IS DOING FOR THE WHOLE TOWN, AND WE WANTED TO HELP OUT. SONG WRITING AND PERFORMING IS WHAT WE DO, SO WE SET ASIDE A MONTH TO GET THIS DONE."

"WHILE WE WERE FILMING AT GULL LAKE PARK, A LOT OF PEOPLE WERE WAVING AT SKOKIE, ESPECIALLY THE KIDS, REMEMBERING IT FROM THE PAST TWO CARNIVALS," HE ADDS. "WE DIDN'T WANT TO UPSET ANY OF THESE KIDS, SO WE ASKED IF OUR VOLUNTEER SKOKIE, CHRIS O'CONNOR, COULD WEAR THE SUIT BACK OVER TO THEIR MAIN STREET MUSIC SHOP. IT WAS A LONG WALK AND WE DIDN'T KNOW IF HE WAS GOING TO MAKE IT OR NOT. HE WAS GETTING AWFULLY HOT. IT WAS WILD HOW MANY MOTORISTS WERE HONKING, AND PEOPLE WE MET WERE SAYING HELLO TO SKOKIE, AND TRYING TO SHAKE HIS PAW. WE WERE THRILLED TO BE ABLE TO USE SKOKIE IN THE VIDEO, AND WE HAD A LOT OF FUN FILMING. IT WAS LIKE OUR OWN WINTER CARNIVAL AT GULL LAKE."

ANDREW AND ROBERT GOT HOME LAST NIGHT TOO TIRED TO EAT. NOW FOR OUR BOYS, THAT MEANS THEY'RE TRULY EXHAUSTED. YET THEY WENT RIGHT BACK TO WORK GETTING THE MUSIC VIDEO ONLINE. OF COURSE, THERE WERE A FEW SNAGS. JUST SOME MINOR COMPUTER GLITCHES. IT TOOK MORE THAN AN HOUR TO GET IT PUBLISHED, (I DON'T KNOW ABOUT THIS HIGH TECH STUFF), AND WHEN ROBERT CAME OUT OF OUR OFFICE BEAMING, I KNEW HE WANTED TO DEBUT THE FRUIT OF HIS LABORS. SO WE SPEEDILY GATHERED IN FRONT OF THE COMPUTER, AND WATCHED "PRESSURE POINT", SKOKIE, AND MUSICIAN RAY PARSONS, (IN THE TOP HAT WITH HOCKEY STICK), GIVING THEIR PREAMBLE OF THE WINTER CARNIVAL YET TO COME. THE GROUP HAS BEEN ASKED TO PERFORM THE SONG AT THE OFFICIAL OPENING, IN HERITAGE SQUARE, AT THE OPERA HOUSE (LAST WEEKEND OF FEBRUARY).

WHEN I ASKED THEM IF THEY COULD DO SUCH A SONG, IN LATE DECEMBER, I HAD NO IDEA IT WOULD TAKE UP SO MUCH TIME. I SUPPOSE IT WAS PRETTY IMPOSING OF ME, BUT THEN THEY'RE USED TO IT AFTER ALL THESE YEARS WITH FATHER. I CAN'T KEEP MY OAR OUT OF INTERESTING PROJECTS. IT WAS THE SAME WITH THE BRACEBRIDGE HISTORICAL SOCIETY, AND WOODCHESTER VILLA AND MUSEUM, THE CROZIER FOUNDATION AND THE BRACEBRIDGE SPORTS HALL OF FAME, WHEN ALL HANDS WERE REQUIRED TO MAKE IT WORK. OF COURSE, AS RE-PAYMENT FOR ALL THE HELP THEY'VE GIVEN US, MOM AND POP HAVE BEEN THEIR ROADIES IN THE MUSIC BUSINESS FOR MORE THAN SIX YEARS NOW. WE'RE NOT EVEN YET, BUT GETTING CLOSER. BUT YOU KNOW WHAT? I'VE ENJOYED ALL THE SHARED PROJECTS WE'VE BEEN INVOLVED OVER THE YEARS, AND HONESTLY, WE COULDN'T HAVE DONE ANY OF IT SUCCESSFULLY, WITHOUT THEIR ENTHUSIASM. WHEN SOMEONE ASKED RECENTLY WHY THEIR MOTHER HAD BEGUN KNITTING WINTER CARNIVAL SCARVES, ANDREW SAID, "IT'S JUST WHAT WE'VE ALWAYS DONE, WHEN ONE OR MORE OF US GET INVOLVED IN A COMMUNITY EVENT." WE'VE HAD A LOT OF PRACTICE. AND OF COURSE, SOMETIMES IT GETS A LITTLE PERPLEXING AND DIFFICULT, BUT WE STAY THE COURSE. THE MOST IMPORTANT REALITY, IS THE FACT WE'VE FOUND SO MANY FRIENDS AND ASSOCIATES OUT THERE, WHO FEEL THE SAME AS WE DO……AND ARE WILLING TO JOIN US, ESPECIALLY FOR THE FUNDRAISING CONCERTS WE'VE PUT ON EACH YEAR. IT'S NOT THE "CURRIE SHOW." IT'S THE "COMMUNITY CONCERT." AND AS THE BOYS LOVE THEIR HOMETOWN, THE EFFORT IS ALWAYS WORTH IT, BECAUSE OF THE FRIENDSHIPS MADE AND REKINDLED EACH SHOW.

"WE'RE LOOKING FORWARD TO THE WINTER CARNIVAL," ADMITS ROBERT. "IT MAKES A LONG, COLD WINTER SEEM A LITTLE WARMER. WE WISH THE WINTER CARNIVAL COMMITTEE A LOT OF LUCK WITH THIS YEAR'S CELEBRATION. HOPE YOU WILL COME OUT AS WELL. MAYBE YOU'D LIKE TO VOLUNTEER. I'M SURE THEY'D BE GLAD TO HAVE THE EXTRA HELP."

FUNNY THING. EACH YEAR THAT WE'VE LIVED HERE IN GRAVENHURST, DATING BACK TO THE WINTER OF 1989, I HAVE SPENT MY WINTERS WRITING…..LARGELY LOOKING OUT THIS OFFICE WINDOW, ONTO THE SNOWY WOODS OF THE BOG. FOR YEARS WORKING WITH THE MUSKOKA SUN, AND OTHER REGIONAL PUBLICATIONS, I WROTE ALL MY SUMMER-SEASON EDITORIAL COPY, DURING THE WINTER MONTHS. THAT WAS TOUGH. EVEN THROUGH THE WILDEST SNOW-STORM, I'D BE WRITING ABOUT CANOEING AND OUTDOOR ADVENTURES……WORKING ON HISTORICAL THEMES LIKE STEAMBOATING ON THE MUSKOKA LAKES, AND ALL KINDS OF SUMMER EDITORIAL COPY WHICH HAD TO BE COMPLETED BY THE END OF MARCH. I'M A LOT MORE SEASON-APPROPRIATE NOW, AND SPEND MOST OF MY TIME, ON WRITING PROJECTS THAT ARE LESS ABOUT WINTER, SPRING, SUMMER OR FALL…..WITH MORE FOCUS ON BIOGRAPHIES INSTEAD. SO I BEGAN WRITING THIS "MUSKOKA AS WALDEN" BLOG, TO MAKE SURE I RECOGNIZE THE GOOD QUALITIES AROUND HERE, THROUGHOUT THE YEAR……A LITTLE SOMETHING EACH DAY, THAT HOPEFULLY REFLECTS MY APPRECIATION FOR THE NATURAL GRACE WE ARE SURROUNDED BY HERE, IN THE DISTRICT OF MUSKOKA. AS DAVID THOREAU CELEBRATED HIS STAY AT WALDEN POND, THIS IS MY OWN REFLECTION, OF A GOOD TIME, AND A WONDERFUL PLACE, IN A SPECIAL ENVIRONS IN THE WORLD. IT'S WHY I FEEL SO EXCITED BY THE WORK OF THE WINTER CARNIVAL COMMITTEE……THAT DRAWS FOLKS INTO THIS AMAZING SEASON, TO PROMOTE THE GOOD LIFE HERE IN GRAVENHURST AND SOUTH MUSKOKA. DEMONSTRATING THE DYNAMIC OF A HOME TOWN TO CELEBRATE ALL THE SEASONS OF THE ROLLING YEAR. I LIKE THAT!