It’s the longest day of the year, why not fill it with music? What a great idea!

Celebrating the summer solstice with a city full of music apparently started in Paris and now 700+ cities do it, including Madison WI, according to the Make Music Madison website. So when Cameron, one of the new interns at work, took me up on an offer to show him the city of Madison by bicycle, we decided that there was no better day to do it than the first day of summer. And why not check out as many concerts as possible on our quick ride around Madison.

Well actually there might be a better day, because the weather wasn’t perfect. But before the rain started we were able to enjoy snatches of great music as we biked around Madison. This is what we had in mind. Bike + Music = fun and adventure.

But before we could start our tour of Madison, we had a project that needed to be finished, load up the U-Haul and help Lisa move. Fortunately, Lisa was well prepared and the truck didn’t take long to fill.

As we headed downtown we biked through the arboretum, hoping to see some wildlife. Instead we encountered this caravan of Segways, also perhaps looking for the wildlife.

Across from the Vilas Park Zoo we arrived at ZuZu Cafe, where the Intemperance Collective was getting ready to play Eastern European music. And as soon as they started playing, the folks in the front tables got up to dance. Clearly this group has a loyal fan following. We proceeded up Randall Avenue to Camp Randall stadium and the University of Wisconsin campus, headed for the Howard Temin Lake Path along Lake Mendota. I pointed out the Babcock Dairy Store but we didn’t stop, since we headed for lunch at the Memorial Union.

We also noticed a bride’s photo shoot at the Allen Centennial Gardens, one of the most beautiful corners of the UW campus.

When we arrived at the UW Memorial Union we collided with the Isthmus Jazz Fest which was also going on. Actually we also collided with another rather notorious bike ride but no photos lest I offend your sensibilities. We parked our bites, ordered some delicious Union food and settled in on a couple of the iconic Union chairs.

The Union Terrace was busy but not overcrowded and it was the perfect place for lunch on the first day of summer. Once again, the music was so good that people couldn’t help but dance to it. At least that was the case for this little girl in pink who reminded me of a couple of my granddaughters.

Eventually we left the lake shore behind and sallied up State Street, and the music venues started to intensify. We stopped briefly at Lisa Link Peace Park where two music organizations seemed to be showcasing their members’ talents.

As we neared the Overture Civic Center the music concentration really intensified. We couldn’t see everything but this men’s chorus singing at the front door of the Orpheum Theater was hard to miss in their red shirts. And they sounded pretty good too.

Then our attention was attracted to a rather ethereal sound from across the street. I have never seen this, whatever it is. The music was strangely attractive, yet repetitive, and I wondered, “When does he know to stop?”

 

Around the corner another style of acoustic music was being featured on a small stage.

We pushed on to the Capitol Square and observed this trumpet player in the shadow of Grace Episcopal Church, playing for an audience of One.

 

In the next block played the Mad City Jug Band, billed as America’s Most Adequate Jug Band.

As we rode around the square I heard a sound that was hard to identify, a hard driving percussion rhythm. Then I spotted these guys, making their own kind of music.

 

Along King street we stopped to listen to the classical guitar showcase as we left the capitol square.

Madison’s newest music venue, Central Park, was strangely silent. No music scheduled there until July.

But as we continued along the bike path we arrived at the Goodman Community Center where She She was rocking out.

 

 

By this time it was starting to rain and we pushed on hoping to hit one more venue, but alas we arrived too late. Nonetheless, we heard some great music and wished that we could have heard each musical presentation in its entirety. Madison has some great music!