Dino!

Our weekend was FULL. As you just saw over the last few days, we had a jam-packed Saturday, touring around a state park. I wasn't sure I'd be able to move on Sunday, but I did. ;)

Anyway, Sunday evening, our church hosted Dino in concert. Some of you know exactly who he is, and others of you are very confused right now, so I'll start by telling you  his name is pronounced Deeno...not like the nickname for a dinosaur. ;)

He is a piano player and showman through and through. I remember hearing of him back in the 80s and had actually lost track of what he was doing in recent years. Evidently despite being 77 years old, he hasn't slowed down at all. He continues to travel, appears regularly in Branson and also has a coffee and cake shop in Branson.

His current tour is called a hymn revival, and I thought it sounded really wonderful. I love good, solid piano music and I love hymns done properly, so the night was a success to me even before it started.

Ryan and I signed up to be greeters and ushers, so we went early and worked our way through the concert, but we had a lot of fun.

My pictures from the night aren't the best quality ever, because the lighting in the sanctuary was off for my camera to capture properly (without flash) and of course I was too far back to get great cell phone pictures, but that's okay. You'll get the idea. ;)

Dino was fantastic, and between his amazing piano skills and our choir's full sound, it was the best night ever for an anthem-loving girl. (Several songs took my breath away - in a good way). If you've never seen or heard him play, this video gives a good blend of his talent and showmanship.

As the night kicked off, I was leaving my greeting post to walk into the sanctuary when I realized there was someone standing beside me. It was Dino. He was making sure he had the right door into the sanctuary.

So you know - just hanging out with Dino!

A few pictures of the choir and Dino:

He was teaching us some Greek song, and we were encouraged to dance. Some needed less encouragement than others:

LOL!! Sorry that's blurry; phone wasn't in live mode, and he was really moving! When I went up into the mezzanine later to hand out hymn books, one of the ladies said, "Tell your husband I really enjoyed his entertainment."

He had another musician with him that night, who was also a phenomenal piano player, so when Dino first pulled him up to the stage, he also called out a guy from the choir who can tear up a piano, and the three of them did a round robin number followed by a trio - all on the same piano! It was pretty fun!

This was Timothy (the guy who travels with Dino) watching Dino and Matt (the guy from our church) play a duet.

 Then Matt took a turn watching Dino and Timothy play:

 Then they all played!

A panoramic view from the back:

Dino had boxes of these hymn books that we distributed to the congregation and people sang from them while he played - and then they could either buy the books or return them to the boxes after the concert.

Dino's wife told a story and sang a little too:

And then his traveling musician, who is just a young guy, and his wife played and sang together. Their names are Timothy and Hosanna Noble. WOW. Talented. This isn't the song they did Sunday night, but this is a good one!

And here is the invisible picture of the two of us ushering together. I FORGOT TO GET ONE!!!!!!

#facepalm.

But it was a great night - and even Ryan liked it. (This isn't nearly as much his thing as it is mine.)

Great work, Dino, Timothy, Hosanna, and choir!