Northern California

With a plethora of live music events happening locally, it’s a rare occasion for me to venture elsewhere. However, when my son’s idol, the very inspiration for his college degree, announced a visit to the Blue Note in Napa, I had little excuse not to go with him. For locals, the Blue Note is the go-to spot for some of the most exceptional artists and musicians touring the United States. And on this particular evening, the stage was graced by the incomparable guitarist Trace Bundy.

If you live in Lake County, you find fewer and fewer reasons to leave unless you have to. And when you leave for any reason, you might be a little like me and eager to return. We truly have a slice of paradise. But there is one thing we don’t have: the ocean. Trips to the ocean and the redwoods are two of the biggest reasons for our family to leave Lake County from time to time. Luckily the coast is an easy day drive to visit. How lucky for us!

It is an unmatched sound that most of us have heard many times before. Its reverberating music fills the ear and body with notes high so high they prick the ears and so low they shake the ground. Collectively, its delicious music brings a full-body encounter. Nothing quite compares to an organ’s music, but absolutely nothing compares to listening to it in a cathedral. Welcome to the monthly organ recital at Grace Cathedral in San Francisco.