A pleasant potluck

I attended a potluck dinner tonight. The evening began at six, and at five I was still pondering what to bring. I took peanut butter cookies, one of the quickest recipes in my arsenal. They are simply 1 cup of peanut butter, 1 cup of sugar, 1 egg, and 1 teaspoon of baking soda, mixed, dropped onto a cookie sheet, flattened with a fork, and baked at 350F for 10-12 minutes. They drew so many accolades I ended up writing the recipe down for two of the people in attendance.

The party also included a full concert by the early music group Camerata California. It was something of a dress rehearsal for a concert they will give later this spring, meaning mainly that they spent a few extra moments between songs hunting for music and reminding one another whether or not to play repeats. By early music, I mean that they play pieces from the 1700s and earlier. The most modern piece on the program tonight was Telemann.

The seven musicians played to only nine listeners, in our hostess's living room. I must give them credit for getting something musical out of a crumhorn. They also have a wide variety of other early instruments, including a full complement of recorders, a sackbutt, a rankett, a viol de gamba, a harpsichord, and many others. Most of them also sang if they were not playing an instrument.

Those interested in hearing the ensemble can download recordings of some of their previous concerts here.