Happy Holidays to all!

 

Hello and Merry Christmas, Happy Solstice, Happy Hanukkah, Happy holidays to all!  

I find it a bit hard to believe the year is coming to a close. I got out my Christmas music and have been enjoying playing all my favorite traditional carols. For some reason I don't tire of playing them. What are your favorites? Some of mine are: "The First Noel" (which you can listen to by clicking on the link). I also love "Joy to the World," "Silent Night," "God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen" and the list goes on.  To me they are very comforting to listen to and play. 

On Thanksgiving, I chose to go and play music for ICU patients at the hospital where I work. I realized I have spent most of my Thanksgivings there since I started working there in 2004. I had my Thanksgiving meal there too. It was a nice way to spend my holiday. 

My birthday came a few days ago, so i am all set for another year around the sun! I do want to share something about that. Which is to say that I've always thought of myself as a winter child being born in December. But that is not true - I am an Autumn child because the winter solstice is not until December 20th. That realization has made a difference to me. I've always loved the fall as well as winter. The months tend to be more introspective and gives me more time to work on new music. 

I do wish you all a happy New Year and hope that the remaining days of this year are safe and happy and healthy for all of you. Thank you for stopping by! 

The above picture is a collage I made for a nursing home where I work playing music for residents. 

Halloween Music Adventures

 

Happy Halloween to everyone! I've always liked this holiday. I enjoyed leading a Halloween themed music activity with a group at Access Arts here in Charlottesville.   We sang some fun songs like the theme song to, "Addams Family," "Love Potion No 9," "Monster Mash."  We also played a game I used to play years ago as a child. We called it "Statue." This is a group of us would dance to a record (vinyl in those days!) and someone would take the needle off the record to stop the music. When the music stopped, we all had to freeze in to a statue pose. Then go back to dancing after the needle was placed back on the record. How funny to remember those days! We played this game with the song, "Thriller" by Michael Jackson. Who can not get a thrill out of that spooky laughter at the end by Vincent Price?

We also did a Halloween madlib song. Madlibs are where you take out the main nouns, verbs, adjectives and fill them in with new words. So for example, we used the song "You Are My Sunshine." I asked for a Halloween noun with two syllables. They picked, "mummy." An adjective to replace "happy" was "ghostly." A verb replacing "love" was "scream." so here is the first verse of You Are My Mummy"

"You are my mummy,  my only mummy

you make me ghostly when pumpkins are purple

you'll never howl dear how much I scream you

please don't take my mummy away. "

Things got pretty silly there but it was fun. As a child, I was scared of vampire and mummy movies. My older sister would tease me. One night I begged my parents to let me stay up later to watch, "Creature Features, " (who remembers this?) But as soon as the theme song came on, I decided it was too scary. I then said, "I am so tired.. I want to go to sleep now. " My sister said, "You are SCARED!!" I said I was not !!  In the end, I had to watch some of it lest my sister think I was a coward. 

Having said all of this, I am hoping Halloween this year will be a safe and fun one for the young and young at heart. I know last years' was not so fun with Covid raging. I know we have been seeing some improvement this year. 

The collage above was a piece I did for Halloween that I donated to a local nursing home. They had no art in their dining room. After Halloween is over, I plan to alter it for Thanksgiving and keep it up! 

Hope you are all well and happy! Thanks for stopping by! 

Autumn musings

 

Happy Autumn season to you! I really like the fall, how about you? For me the fall is a more contemplative time and a time of harvesting seeds planted in the spring. So, let's see about things I planted. 

For me my art has become a "thing." I have been doing some music themed art like the one pictured above. This collage will be donated to The Front Porch (local roots music school) new location. I have more I will be giving to them. I am excited to know that these artistic musings will be seen and enjoyed by the community. 

Other thing going on... I have been going through some old classical guitar repertoire I used to play and bringing back some of the pieces. One of them is "Classical Gas" by Mason Williams. That is one of my favorite guitar pieces of all time. It came into my life when I was 10 years old and there was a lot of change going on. My parents divorced, my mother remarried and we moved from the only home I knew all within the time frame of less than 2 years. "Classical Gas" was a song that got me through these changes. I know we all have important songs that are part of our life soundtrack. I learned to play Classical Gas about 20 years ago and somehow it faded from my repertoire. It is back now and it is like having an old friend return to my life. A great feeling!

I also went and stayed at Shenandoah National Park with my sister and did a lot of hiking and thinking and musing about life. I am excited for October to come because I have some ideas of things I want to bring back into my life. I will tell you all about that when that time comes!

In the meantime, I want to show you another collage I did this month pictured here. It is probably my favorite one of all. I think my next piece will also be with horses. Hope you enjoy and that you are all well and happy. 

Making the best of things

 

Hello and Happy September to all! I don't know about you, but I can't say I am sorry that summer is coming to an end. I've always loved the fall season and I am looking forward to the colors of changing leaves and times! 

As for August, as the title of the post says, I am making the best of things as they come. My artwork (pictured above) is a good metaphor for that. I was given a bunch of rejected art student paintings and I  use them in my collage. This piece I found to be a real challenge because I found the original to be so ugly. How can I transform it into a piece of beauty?  What I usually do is an intuitive process. I think of what I'd like to color and then just color up things and later cut them up and paste.  I thought of a dragonfly theme because when my cat Jasper was in the hospital, I went walking in a nature trail and saw lots of dragonflies. There is something kind of magical about them, don't you think so?  I looked up the Native American totem meaning of them and they symbolize embracing change. So, that is a perfect theme for these swiftly changing times. 

My work with music has gotten stronger as it has become such an anchor for me and those I work with. At the hospital, I have gotten many doctors' requests to go and play for their patients. That's quite something because when I first started this work as a Certified Music Practitioner in 2004, many doubted we would ever be taken that seriously by doctors and medical professionals .  It's a really good feeling to see that our work is appreciated and respected. Now more than ever, music is needed! 

So I am here checking in with all of you to wish you a good September and hoping the changes ahead will be good for you. Thanks for stopping by as always! 

Mixed bag

 

July was a mixed bag. I loved being back to work at the hospital and having a sense of normalcy return.  This is my 17th year working as Musician-in-Residence at the hospital and by far the most meaningful work I have done in my life.  In my first days back to work, it was a mixture of feeling like I was starting over and at the same time, like I had never been gone. I'm sure you all have feel this way before. 

Another big change in my life is that my beloved cat, Jasper died on July 12th. He had been ill for many years but with medication, his symptoms were under control. Since January this year, I thought I would lose him but he bounced back every time. Except for the last time. I took a risk and agreed for him to undergo emergency surgery. They found a tumor which meant he likely had cancer. He stayed in emergency vet for 3 days before it became evident he could not overcome this last health crises. So, with great sadness, I let him go. He was in my life 15 years and lived with me in 3 different places. He was born in my loft apartment in rural Virginia on a farm.  I think his happiest times may have been my newest home where he spent many hours on his perch in the window. Life is quiet without him but change is the only thing we can count on. 

So that's what I meant by the title of this post, mixed bag.  It seems life moves in a series of dualities. On the one hand, happy to be back to work on my favorite job. On the other hand, sad to have lost a dear fury friend and family member. 

I wonder how things have been for all of you? Feel free to comment below. Are things steady or rocky or how are they for you? However it is, I do hope you are all happy and staying healthy. 

Thanks for stopping by. 

The artwork pictured above is a collage I started before I knew Jasper was leaving me. I finished it on the day Jasper died. The vets game me a clay imprint of his paws and you can see the blue pencil rubbings of them in the upper right corner under the rainbow bridge. I put a bird by his paws too. He so much loved watching them, now he is flying with them. Fly on, dear Jasper. 

Back to work!

 

Hello everyone! Happy Summer to all of you. I am happy that we here in the U.S. are able to have a sense of normalcy returning after our year of Covid isolation. I was thrilled that yesterday I was able to return to my job as Musician-in-Residence at U.VA hospital yesterday for the first time in 15 months! It was just wonderful to be back! 

Playing therapeutic music has been the most fulfilling work I've ever done. Yesterday, I loved walking those halls and riding the elevators and visiting the ICU units, playing for patients. 

I was not sure what to expect since I know Covid was especially difficult on staff at the hospital. I was not sure if some of the same staff would still be there and how I would be received after an absence of nearly 1.5 years. 

To me surprise and happiness, I saw many of the same faces and they greeted me as if I had never been gone!  I was filled with admiration for the staff who braved such frightening times and were all still there. 

Playing for patients is always very meaningful for me. Especially more so since I know I can never take this work for granted again! 

Some things have changed. We have to wear surgical masks and goggles. We have a new locker. Otherwise... life goes on! 

I hope you are all doing well and getting your vaccinations to ensure we can all continue to move forward from this trying time of Covid. 

Happy 4th of July to all my American friends!  

New Directions

 

Hello out there! Spring has been a creative time for me. A few weeks ago, I got a hammered dulcimer! I have not even told that many people about it yet. Now I have told you, so the secret is out. I have always loved this instrument but it never occurred to me to try to learn it. Then a friend of mine gave me her old one sitting around for 30 years. It turned out to need to many repairs and I got my own. So far I can play a few tunes like, "Simple Gifts," "Planxty Fanny Power," "Morning Has Broken" and "Soldier's Joy." Years ago I played guitar in an Irish band and I loved playing the music of O'Carolan, the Irish harper who lived in Bach's time. Playing Irish tunes and fiddle tunes, hymns and other tunes makes me happy. I know I will also be composing new music soon. For now, I am still very much a beginner which is fun! Stay tuned!

In other news, I got a "Welcome Back" email from UVA hospital where I have worked a a Musician-in-Residence since 2004. I have not been back in 15 months due to Covid.  I have been given the good news that we are allowed back and I will be playing for patients again by next week. Yay! 

The picture above is of a new collage I did which is also part of my creative burst I'm experiencing. I am currently working on a jungle series and my next one has a magical elephant. It will likely be the picture on my next blog,  you shall see! 

I hope you are all able to return to family gatherings and social events and wish you all well. Thanks for stopping by! 

Breaking the silence

 

A couple of weeks ago I was allowed back to play music for residents at a nursing home in Madison county. It had been over a year since the pandemic closed the doors to my music work.  I was so happy to be back! I have been going to this nursing home since 2012, so it was just wonderful to see my CNA and RN friends again. When I arrived, I was told I was the first one outside of family members to be allowed back.  That was such an honor to me. 

As I walked down the halls and reconnected with the staff, I tried to imagine how the pandemic has changed their lives. I know this year has been very hard on them as they saw a lot of patients die and risked their own lives as well. 

It was a very emotional moment for me when I stepped into the big dining room where I play to see the staff gathered in the back who came to listen to me.  I chose to start with "Pachelbel Canon" and as I played, it was like a soundtrack to a historic time we will never forget.   It meant so much to me to feel I had broken the silence that place had with no musicians or visitors allowed inside the home. As I played, I felt as if i could cry but no tears came. It was so moving. I'm so happy to have my favorite place to play back in my life!

In the meantime, I continue to play for other nursing home residents virtually. That is also going very well. 

Pictured above is a collage I made awhile ago.  I enjoy coloring wildlife and images of nature and then creating a composition of some kind. Some of the pieces I did a long time ago but they were the perfect match for the mood I wanted. 

I hope you all have been finding ways to continue your creative endeavors through this challenging time. 

Thanks for stopping by! 

Hope and spring are in the air!

 

Yesterday was a happy glimmer of hope at the nursing home where I have worked playing music since 2017.  For the first time since the pandemic, we were able to gather in a small group (wearing masks) and sing together.   It was uplifting to us all and very meaningful to me.  I have played music in nursing homes for 16 years and since the pandemic, I have had to move all my music sharing to virtual. It is not the same as coming together as a group to sing and share as we were able to do yesterday. I was thinking how it got to be something I took for granted and I never would have imagined something like this pandemic could happen. 

At this nursing home, our favorite songs are gospel songs. I was struck by how much the words resonated and rang true for all we have come through this past year:

"Farther along we'll know all about it, farther along we'll understand why. Cheer up my brother, live in the sunshine, we'll understand it all by and by." 

How many times have we been in the midst of something and been just dumbfounded by what it all means? why is this happening? What does it all mean? and then when time passes, we "get it" and understand. 

One man was in tears as we talked about their year in lockdown.  Now with vaccines, and covid under control there (they lost 17 residents last July from Covid), finally a glimmer of normalcy is beginning to return. Spring is on the way and we broke into, "I Saw the Light" by Hank Williams. 

"I saw the light, I saw the light, no more darkness, no more night. Now I'm so happy no sorrow in sight, praise the Lord, I saw the light!"  Another favorite. 

As always, people always tell me,  "You're so nice to be doing this. " but I can tell you I get so much out of it . To see how these people have endured being confined to a small, shared room for a year and to watch their friends dying, to not be able to have visitors from family or friends, to be deprived of any love and much needed social contact.. I don't know how they could have done it but their strength inspires me. 

I left with my heart so full of gratitude for them and sharing of music again . 

Drumming for Peace

 

Last time I told you how I fixed my broken drum. Now I am hear to tell you what inspired me to fix it and what I'm doing now with it! 

Each month at Unity Church in Charlottesville, my friend Ayesha leads a devotional Chanting session. The chants come from various traditions such as Native American, Hindi, Sufi, etc. If you've ever taken a yoga class, you have heard this music. It is not performance music, it is music used for meditation and sonic yoga.  A chant is a short song like a mantra that repeats over and over again.   I first discovered this music in the late 80s when I worked on summer staff at Omega in upstate New York. I was playing tabla drums then and it was great to find a community and music where I could play them. 

I am including a link for you here to see the whole chanting concert and sing along if you like! It is very uplifting and fun to do. 

For months, I was singing along from home and drumming along on my legs to this music. One day this fall, I remembered my broken drum sitting in the hallway and thought, "I have to get this fixed so that I can play with them!" and that is what I did! 

Here is the link and enjoy! 

The story of my broken drum

 

Pictured above is my favorite hand drum called a Doumbek. It's a middle eastern drum I bought when I attended a Percussive Arts Society convention in Ohio back in 2002. This drum saw me through so many happy times in drum circles I led with young adults with disabilities as well as senior drum circles. One favorite way I used the drum was passing it around the circle and letting everyone get a chance to lead the circle. One day though, someone dropped the drum and the head broke. After this it sat in silence for over 3 years. This is because I could not find anyone locally who would know how to fix it (unusual kind of drum) and the shop where I bought it 19 years ago went out of business. 

Recently, I got the drum out and decided it was time to figure out how to fix it. I googled, "How to change a drum head on a doumbek" and found an instructional video. I saw it looked pretty easy! Next I had to figure out what kind of bolts held in the drum head and what tool I needed to turn them. I sent a picture to a drum shop in TX about this and he told me I needed a "Hex key." Since I did not know the exact size, I ordered a whole set of hex keys. 

Next, I measured the drum head and ordered a replacement. When it came, I was excited to begin the project of fixing this drum. However, it was not the right size drum head. In doing more research, I discovered I measured the whole head of the drum (the outer extension that fits over the hoop) and that is a different measurement than the playing surface of the drum. I am telling you all these details so you can see all that went into this project! Once carefully re-measurued, I ordered another replacement head. 

When that arrived, it fit like a glove! However, I was unable to turn the bolts tightly enough by hand using just the hex key. I needed either a drill or a socket wrench. Turned out my upstairs neighbor had just the right tool for me (socket wrench) and viola! It worked! 

All of these steps from start to finish took me about 2 months. I am very happy because I learned so much in this process and also discovered I like learning about new tools and I even ordered myself my own socket wrench set. I never would have thought I would be someone into tools but there it is! 

I had even thought of getting rid of the drum because I didn't know I could fix it myself and if I were to hire someone, by the time I paid for parts and labor, it would have cost more than the drum itself. 

I tell you this story as an example of how music and caring of instruments is a continual learning and growing experience. Now I have even more appreciation of this drum since I spent so much time researching how to fix it. 

I plan to play this drum with my church group who sings sacred chants once a month. 

In the meantime, if you have any bolts that need tightening, give me a call! :)