Reading through my journal, I can find many interesting stories to share. The purpose in all of these adventures, of course, is to inspire and "paint musical pictures" in the mind of the listener.

We had arrived in the kingdom of the Narratas in the late afternoon of a beautiful autumn day, and, once there, set about finding a place to stay for the night. After finding a small inn that would accommodate us, we ate a late supper while speaking with several of the local villagers. Happily, there was to be a celebration the next day, bringing nobles from far and wide to pledge their allegiance to the newly crowned King Rantives.

One of the villagers, a man named Gestane, hinted that his brother, one of the chamberlains in the palace, could possibly gain us admittance to the audience chamber for a closer look. It would cost us a small fortune, but we felt that this was a great opportunity. He left to confer with his brother and said that he would return for us in the morning. Retiring shortly after our conversation, we enjoyed a wonderful night of sleep and woke refreshed.

While enjoying a breakfast of local fruit, cheese and nuts, Gestane and his brother found us in the common room and informed us that if we were to arrive before the nobility, we had best move quickly. Our usual attire did not attract notice as we entered the palace courtyard. Basio always looks stylish in his blue military breastplate, while Zyndal always fits in with his exotic robes. We were ushered into an small alcove, then up a winding staircase that came out onto a balcony that overlooked the entire audience chamber.

The audience chamber was enormous! Incredible pillars of white marble, trimmed in gold soared above us supporting a ceiling inlaid with sparkling gems. Curtains of purple and red surrounded us, while the azure color of the window glass behind us shimmered in the morning sun. We didn't have long to wait before the court musicians started to arrive. Of course, I was extremely interested in the upcoming processional music! Representatives of the entire kingdom had been invited for this momentous event, but the attending crowd was so huge that hundreds had to stand in the courtyard and palace grounds.

The master of the chamber entered, spoke a few words to the musicians, and immediately, the entire crowd stood as the new king and his queen entered to the sound of a solitary trumpet. Then, with a great flourish the music started. As each noble entered, their coat-of-arms went before them. Bowing to the king and queen, each noble would take a predetermined place in an ever widening half-circle in front of the royal couple. The excitement of the assembled crowd was palpable, while the music accompanying the procession was truly inspiring.

I always have my musical notebook within reach and jotted down a few musical fragments, intending to incorporate them into my music upon our return. As the procession ended, the nobles with one voice shouted their acclamation to the royal couple. A truly exciting time! My hope is that as my music plays, you too will see the glory of that day.......Davutus