"And the Skies Are Not Cloudy All Day"

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Yesterday was the annual Symphony in the Flint Hills and it was simply stunning. As guest artist Lyle Lovett said, "once you have seen the Flint Hills you are changed forever."

My teammates at WeatherData were doing the forecasting and storm warnings and I was the on-site meteorologist for the event (the subject of a posting tomorrow). The weather was quite cloudy at the time the gates opened.  However, I was confident the sky would not be "cloudy all day."

As background, please go to my posting of ten days ago to see the site before the tents and other structures were constructed. One of the goals of the organizers is to give people the opportunity to get deep into the Flint Hills to see their incredible beauty.

Because the weather was quite questionable during the morning, I was extremely busy until I took a quick lunch break. Before you is the view from the food tent before the gates opened.

The atmosphere is quite a bit different from most symphonic concerts.

The Kansas City Symphony and Lyle Lovett performed an exquisite program of music appropriate to both the occasion and location. Click on the photo to enlarge.

The closing number was Mr. Lovett leading the crowd in a stirring rendition of the state song of Kansas, "Home on the Range." Men were so moved, they put their stetsons over their hearts. The sky was not cloudy all day.

People come from all over the United States for this event and I highly recommend it. If you are interested in tickets for 2011, click here to sign up for information (lower right).

UPDATE: A friend of mine attended for the first time yesterday and emails me the following:  I was completely, totally blown away. It was so beautiful, and the music was so wonderful that I find myself using the word "magical."

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