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Red Tenor Saxophone has received additional contributions during “Glory and Freedom for Ukraine Has Not Yet Perished”, and on November 27 made a donation of $14 to the Byzantine Catholic Eparchy of Passaic, N.J. Every contribution helps in some way—thank you. Let us hope that in 2023 the war and the suffering will end.
The historic 1815 mansion Violet Bank, the oldest house in Colonial Heights, Virginia, held it annual series of Candlelit Open Houses on three weekends in December, and Red Tenor Saxophone had the honor again of performing for the visitors to this popular community event on Sunday, December 11. This year, Red Tenor Saxophone enjoyed sharing the performance duties with legendary Tri-Cities flute virtuosa and conductor Iris Schwartz, as they alternated between popular, and even a few obscure Christmas and holiday classics. December is not yet over, and Red Tenor Saxophone already is looking forward to returning to Violet Bank in 2023! Many thanks to the curators and volunteers at Violet Bank for this opportunity.
Red Tenor Saxophone will be back in Merchants Square in Colonial Williamsburg at around 11:00 p.m. or so....maybe! Depends on the weather — lightly sprinkling right now, and the forecast comes and goes for rain as we get closer to midnight. We had a good ninety minutes in front of the Kimball Theatre earlier this afternoon, with visitors and residents enjoying a warm(er) day outdoors, even if a little damp at times. Here is Red Tenor Saxophone performing “Auld Lang Syne”:
The unseasonably warm weather in southeast Virginia this week brought capacity post-Christmas crowds to Merchants Square — delightful to be outdoors after the sub-freezing Christmas Weekend. Red Tenor Saxophone enjoyed seeing Williamsburg friends and meeting people from all over the world during the “Holiday Season” — and your generous support of the Christmas show was deeply appreciated.
Looking forward to a successful 2023. Red Tenor Saxophone will be branching to new venues and with more instruments — stay tuned for dates and times and locations. Might not see you as often in Merchants Square during January and February — the colder weather and lower numbers of visitors can affect the performance schedule — but you can be sure that the Classic Melodies will be heard somewhere, someplace!
Thank you, again — Red Tenor Saxophone wishes for you a Happy New Year with good blessings to come. Maybe we’ll see you at midnight!
Red Tenor Saxophone is back in action! Despite our recent report on the end of the red tenor saxophone, Amory Music (at John Tyler Highway and Ironbound Road) was able to patch up the instrument enough to keep the classic melodies coming. It’s going to be a beautiful Friday evening, so look for Red Tenor Saxophone in Merchants Square in a few hours.
Williamsburg City Council approves regulations for street performers in Historic Area
by Sian Wilkerson
Virginia Gazette
Aug 12, 2022 at 1:00 pm
WILLIAMSBURG — Street performers in Merchants Square will have more regulations after an unanimous vote by City Council at Thursday’s meeting.
The new ordinance establishes “time, place and manner” regulations for street performances in Merchants Square and the Historic Area, City Attorney Christina Shelton said.
“So the where and the when and the how loud,” she continued. “These are not content-based restrictions because they cannot legally be that.”
During public comments, a local street musician expressed his belief that the ordinance has become necessary with the recent increase in performers in the area.
“In the beginning, we were able to, amongst ourselves, divvy things up,” said David Gussman, who plays the accordion. “It was very informal but there are more people now, so I understand the need for the regulations.”
Shelton clarified that there is nothing preventing performers from asking for tips or from putting out tip jars, cases or signs.
She also floated the possibility of making public issuances of short-term special events permits, which become necessary for performances including more than 20 participants and for those that include extra equipment placed in the right-of-way. Other performances cannot occur during the time a short-term special events permit has been issued.
“This is not in any way an attempt to prohibit performances on the street. It’s just intended to regulate it enough that everybody can use the street in comfort and together and in cooperation with each other,” Shelton said.
Medallions, which will mark the areas of Merchants Square available for street performances, should be placed within the next few weeks, City Manager Andrew Trivette said.
Sian Wilkerson, sian.wilkerson@pilotonline.com, 757-342-6616
You can read here the original text of the ordinance prior to slight modifications that were made at the City Council meeting on August 11.
Here is the official video of the City Council meeting, cued to the start of the discussion on this ordinance.
Proposed ordinance will limit street performers in Merchants Square
By Sian Wilkerson
Virginia Gazette
Aug 09, 2022 at 2:00 pm
WILLIAMSBURG — Street performers in Merchants Square may soon find themselves restricted on when, where and how loudly they may perform.
At Monday’s work session, Williamsburg City Council heard a proposal for an update to the city code to establish regulations on street performances in and around the Historic Area.
“We saw an increase in downtown performance art, and at times it has been bothersome to both businesses and patrons because it can be competitive and loud,” said City Manager Andrew Trivette during the presentation. “We were asked by some local residents as well as Merchants Square Association to look at what we can do to regulate this better.”
During an investigation into the best way forward for street performances in the area, staff determined that limiting performance areas to three specific locations in Merchants Square will help maintain reasonable sound levels for all visitors in the space.
The proposed ordinance sets an appropriate volume level, designates areas where street performances may or may not occur and sets daily hours. The performance areas, which would be marked by medallions, are available on a first-come, first-serve basis, with performances allowed from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m.
In the Historic Area, performers are prohibited from blocking the street or pathways used by pedestrians and cars. Performers must also stay more than 50 feet away from any church or residence.
City council will vote on the proposal at Thursday’s meeting.
Red Tenor Saxophone was lucky to squeeze fifteen years out of the...red tenor saxophone; but it finally reached the end of its “playability” a week ago. The classic melodies play on, however — listen for Rusty Brass Trombone or Obsolete ’80s Guitar in Merchants Square. Next week, keep an eye out for Red Tenor Saxophone browsing the pawn shops in Newport News and Hampton as he shops for a new saxophone — any saxophone will do. We appreciate the loyal $upport during the past week as we branch out into different instruments and styles — the Red Tenor Saxophone ’blog will have an update soon on the new name and format.
Red Tenor Saxophone continues to receive contributions during “Glory and Freedom for Ukraine Has Not Yet Perished”, and on July 31 made an additional donation of $8 to the Byzantine Catholic Eparchy of Passaic, N.J. Every contribution helps in some way—thank you.
Red Tenor Saxophone enjoys meeting people from around the world. During a performance from three weeks ago, he found in the bucket a five-pound note from a generous contributor, issued in 2015 and featuring Elizabeth Alexandra Mary Windsor on the obverse and Winston Churchill on the reverse. (This one goes in the scrapbook!) As always, Red Tenor Saxophone is grateful for the kind and generous support!
Since February, Red Tenor Saxophone has been opening most shows with “The Glory and Freedom of Ukraine Has Not Yet Perished”—and contributions received during the anthem have been pledged to relief efforts for the people of Ukraine. Because of your generosity, Red Tenor Saxophone was glad to make donations to three worthy organizations in early July. We have received additional contributions since then, which are being donated to the Byzantine Catholic Eparchy of Passaic, N.J., which has connections in Ukraine where the donations can be put to effective use. On July 17, Red Tenor Saxophone made a donation of $13. We will have an update on forthcoming contributions.
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Thanks to the generosity of residents and visitors in Merchants Square during Independence Weekend, on July 8 Red Tenor Saxophone made a donation of $65.00 to Disabled American Veterans, 440 Merrimac Trail, Williamsburg, Virginia 23185.
In fact, at the DAV thrift shop on Merrimac Trail in Williamsburg, they said that it was the largest cash donation that they had received—thank you for your support!
Not only do we encourage you to support Disabled American Veterans for the fine work that they have done for decades, you can find a lot of good stuff for great prices at their Thrift Stores—in addition to the shop on Merrimac Trail in Williamsburg, throughout the Hampton Roads region they have stores in Gloucester, Smithfield, Newport News, Hampton, Chesapeake, and two in Virginia Beach.
For the third year in a row, Red Tenor Saxophone had the privilege of performing for visitors and residents in Colonial Williamsburg’s Merchants Square during Independence Weekend. Support was very strong for our Disabled American Veterans fundraiser—we will have an update on the final tally soon. Red Tenor Saxophone enjoyed meeting people from all across the U.S.A., and for their feedback and for sharing their stories. The fireworks display was impressive, as always, and the support continued as viewers headed back home or to their lodging. Here is a short video of “Yankee Doodle Boy” by the legendary George M. Cohan. Red Tenor Saxophone will see you in July 2023....!
For the third year in a row, Red Tenor Saxophone is performing in Merchants Square at Colonial Williamsburg during Independence Weekend. Crowds have been generous and supportive, and we appreciate the comments and have enjoyed meeting visitors from across the nation and around the world.
This year, Red Tenor Saxophone is donating 10% of Independence Weekend contributions to Disabled American Veterans, 440 Merrimac Trail, Williamsburg, Virginia 23185. Thank you for your generosity—we will report soon on the final tally. Have a safe and meaningful holiday!
Recently, Red Tenor Saxophone reported that since February, he has been opening each show with “Glory and Freedom for Ukraine Has Not Yet Perished”. We kept a tally of contributions received during the anthem, so that we could donate the sum to one or more organizations that provide relief to those suffering in Ukraine.
Because of your generosity, Red Tenor Saxophone has made donations of $38.00 each to the following organizations:
Razom for Ukraine (which was recommended by the Ukrainian family from Pennsylvania whom we met in April)
International Fellowship of Christians and Jews
International Medical Corps
Again, we thank you for your support, and hope that this will make at least some difference to those who need it at this time.
Spring is here in Southeast Virginia, and Red Tenor Saxophone has enjoyed performing for the crowds in Merchants Square at Colonial Williamsburg, and meeting people from all over the United States and the world. Since February, Red Tenor Saxophone has been opening each show with “Glory and Freedom for Ukraine Has Not Yet Perished”. We are keeping a tally of contributions received during the anthem, and soon will donate the sum to one or more organizations that provide relief to those suffering in Ukraine. Today, a Ukrainian family from Pennsylvania stopped to listen to the song, and said, “Thank you for supporting Ukraine,” and made a generous contribution. Red Tenor Saxophone hopes that what he is able to donate will make at least some difference to those who need it at this time. We will have an update soon on where to donate for this important cause.
Happy New Year. Thanks to the generosity of residents and visitors in Colonial Williamsburg during the Holiday Season, Red Tenor Saxophone was able to make a donation of $175.00 to F.I.S.H., Inc. (Friends In Service Helping), an all-volunteer not-for-profit agency providing help to residents of the greater Williamsburg area. (You also can contribute to Red Tenor Saxophone online through PayPal; and to F.I.S.H. at their online donations page.)
