the hum / By Bob Doran

Songs for Bryan

(Dec. 8, 2011)  Monday night’s memorial for gone-too-soon musician Bryan Osper was at once heart-wrenching and life affirming, with hundreds of his bandmates, friends and family gathering to tell tales of his life, make music in his honor and share tears, laughter and hugs.

The musical tributes started with a tune strummed and picked on a ukulele by Evie, one of his young students, who explained that they’d written the song together, but since he was not there, she’d just play her part. It was a thing of beauty, just one of many that night as one performer after another played for a room full of people touched by Bryan’s short but very full life. 

Bryan Osper PHOTO BY BOB DORAN

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For me, Bryan was the young musician who lived down the street for a time. When he moved into my neighborhood a few years back, it solved a mystery. Until then I thought there were two almost identical curly-headed kids making music in Humboldt, one the smiling guitarist who stood out in the crowded local string music scene, the other a drummer/world music explorer/pan player. Once I started hearing him practicing on his congas and picking on the front porch with The Bucky Walters, I realized my mistake. There was no doppelganger, just one Bryan, a player open to music of all sorts and a shining star no matter what style he was playing.

I was surprised to find a CD review he wrote for the Journal attached with a clothespin to the lattice that made up a portion of the altar at Monday’s memorial at Humboldt Brews.

“The human voice is a most spiritual and mysterious force,” he began in that piece. “The first instrument of expression in the history of our species has always been the means of our deepest forms of communication, be it with each other, between a human and the Earth, or through a song, which is sung as a message to the gods. On a musical level, the power of a beautifully realized harmony and the strength that lies in the manipulation of our most natural and unique instrument is undeniable. Always moving, it is at times overwhelming.”

That last sentence describes Monday perfectly. It was at times overwhelming, with the music and love pouring forth all night, eventually spilling out into the street at closing time. No one wanted it to end. (For more on Osper’s life, see page 9.)

You’ve seen the Toys For Tots bins around town, and maybe you saw the local bikers toy run rolling down the road over the weekend. The Humboldt Collective Holiday Showcase and Toy Drive Saturday at the Red Fox adds to the Xmas love. The multifaceted showcase includes The Luscious Ladies (with special guest Madi Simmons), the worldly harmonies of Vidagua, the mellowness that is Berel Alexander, Deep Groove DJ Touch and a ton of hip hop with local legends Potluck, Hiway, Fortuna’s Dirty Rats, Area Sound and C Baker, all backed by B Swiz‘ Hip Hop Lounge. Sonny Wong and Julia Finkelstein provide live art; Marcus Matthews from KISS-FM serves as host. Admission price is a new unwrapped toy valued at $5 or more or a cash donation.

The Mateel’s 35th annual Winter Arts Faire takes place Saturday and Sunday at the community center offering gifts galore, mostly handmade, plus music all weekend by Humboldt Time, SoHum Girls, Ambush, Garberville Town Band, Eric Cornforth and the Hicktown Homeboys, Frisky Brisket, Seabury Gould and Jefferson Parson, among others.

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