Beautiful Babelfish

While all those clever literary types were hob-nobbing in Auckland last weekend, some of us stayed in Christchurch and worked.  However, the could-have-been-onerous nature of this work was hugely mitigated by the fantastic May Music Month performance right next to my desk.

Babelfish are a Christchurch-based folk and gypsy duo who play guitar and violin.  They have been performing together for some time, and seem to work really well as a team.  I wasn’t sure what to expect (there’s something about the word ‘gypsy’ that I find slightly unsettling, and my personal music tastes lean slightly more towards screamer punk than symphonic melodies), but the performance was simply lovely.

The songs and melodies were pitched just right for the audience, and there were rows of very appreciative library patrons, several of whom appeared to have timed their visit to coincide, but many others who were drawn in by the performance.  My only (and tiny) quibble was that it would have been nice to have just a wee bit of introduction, or perhaps one or two words about some of the songs, particularly for those of us who are less than familiar with the genre, but the hour flew by, and it was with great reluctance that we packed up and turned The Blue Lounge back into just Plain Old Magazine Reading Area.