An Early Fourth of July

On Saturday, DH and I attended a Paso Pops concert, which combined a Pops-style orchestra with fireworks (a money-saving combination, from the viewpoint of the town, which has struggled to afford both a Fourth of July fireworks event and the Paderewski Festival of Music. Paderewski lived in the Paso region for many years, played concerts there, owned property, made wine...

So the Pops concert was part of a larger celebration honoring Paderewski, and an excuse for one heck of a town party.   Local wines were poured, local food trucks were there to counter the effect of all that wine, and members of most of the county's professional and youth orchestras had a chance at glory. Ditto members of a nearby Army National Guard unit, who brought three cannon (with blank but satisfactorily loud shells) to make Tchaikovsky's 1812 Overture come alive in the right places.

My photos (as usual for nighttime, hand-held shots) are out-of-focus, but should convey an appropriately tipsy effect:

May you all have a safe and enjoyable Fourth of July.