King Richard's Faire is finally over!

And boy, are we beat! This was the biggest weekend we've seen. Attendance was huge, and we got seen by hundreds of people every day. The place was mobbed to the extent that you could hardly walk around because people were in lines waiting to get to various attractions.

On saturday, we played to some of the most packed shows of the season. We're new, so lots of people don't know us yet, but we got a lot of tips and cheers. We saw a lot of people taping and taking pictures, too. it was very encouraging. We noticed that several people came back for a second show, too.

At the end revels, we played our weird version of Platerspiel, which got some "WTF" looks from a lot of people. They didn't know what to make of it. Our version of the song is done with Rauschpfeife and Hurdy-Gurdy, as opposed to the traditional bagpipe duet that most bands to. It sounds very strange, and we bang our heads like heavy metal musicians during the fast part, which makes it even stranger, but funny, because people don't expect medieval music to rock.

At the gate closing, we had our first time ever where the whole band was able to show up. We played a few of our numbers, and used the opportunity to practice some new material, like Bransle Burgunde. All in all, Saturday was great. We got home tired and aching as usual, but thrilled that it turned out well.

Sunday was equally fantastic. It was packed just as much as Saturday, and we made about the same in tips. We invited dancers and children on the stage with us to be our "Diabolettes", quite out of the blue. It just sort of happened, and so we continued inviting people up on stage to dance while we played. We played Eisbaertanz for the end revels, and the crowd loved it.

Monday, our last day of the Faire, was the best of all. We ran the Musicians of the Realm, just as we did the first weekend. The magical Madrigals played a few English carols on kazoos, and it was hilarious, because they did it all so well, and it sounded like a consort of crummhorms. As we left, all the actors stopped us to let us know ho much they appreciated us and what we did. It felt really good. The Entertainment coordinator told us that they'd like us back next year (and no audition required, either). We know we'll do it, but we don't know about doing it every weekend yet. It certainly was a lot of work, and we're all tired. Perhaps money may convince us.

We are planning on spending the next few months recording a CD to sell at future shows. We can make hundreds more per show that way. All the hard work seems to be paying off. I think we're a success.