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Showing posts from August 19, 2010

Magical Moment 202, "Fifth String"

I spent several hours today in artistic creation, sandwiched between 2 dreadful bus rides and 4 smelly trains. Though the weather is gloomy, windy, and even chilly, it didn’t dampen my spirits for my 5th pre-production meeting. We picked up on “ A Builder ,” still completing the demo recordings for my EP, which the musicians will take their cue from when it comes time to record the actual tracks. Recording musicians are really amazing and talented people. They can come into the studio, listen to a song they’ve never heard before, and in a day, play it to perfection for a permanent, professional recording. My producer explained that guitar, bass, and drums will take slight liberties in their renditions and are encouraged to explore spontaneity and creativity. Often, fresh ideas will flow when artistic minds begin to wander. But strings... strings get printed music and play only the notes that are written. And that’s what we worked on today. A string arrangement for “A Builder.” The st

Magical Moment 201, "The Sailor's Tale"

He had been watching the darkening sky for an hour now. The wind picked up, giving him haunting chills up and down his arms. He knew the storm would strike at any moment. He gazed out into the chilly water, now brewing uneasily, and prepared himself for a fight. He straightened his back and drew in a deep breath, resolving to combat the elements and save his ship at all cost. That’s when a gust of wind came out of nowhere and like a fist, knocked him off his feet. It had begun. His ship violently rocked from side to side, making it impossible to keep the wheel steady though he gripped with all his might. He had lost his crew in the last storm and now only he remained. Powerful waves crashed upon the deck and swept him across the wooden floor. Just as he braced himself to crash into the wall, an enormous wave tipped the ship just so, threatening to dump him over the side into the vast, unforgiving ocean. At the last second before he was separated from his ship forever, he managed to g

Magical Moment 200, "Two Hundred"

It's hard to believe that I've gone through another 100 of these things! When I think back to how this blog began and the place I was at in my life, I realize that I've come a long way. It began as a way for me to force myself to look for at least one positive, happy, and beautiful moment a day. Had I not done this and followed through, who knows. Maybe I would be in a darker place right now, or let the weight of the world pull me down even farther. In a business where I've taken self-esteem beatings and rejections almost daily, this blog has been a way for me to outlet some of my thoughts and emotions that I didn't even know I felt until I typed them in black and white. Thank you to those who take the time to read my blog and I sincerely hope and pray that you too have found something positive from it. I hope you'll keep reading as I continue to give it my time, thought, and heart on a daily basis. Below, I've linked some of my personal favorite blogs. If

Magical Moment 199, "Destined for Chicken"

Tonight, I had the first 3-hour music set that I’ve had in a looong time. I was booked at a restaurant in Brooklyn called Los Pollitos 2 .   Most gigs I’ve played recently involve only a few songs and usually none of which are my choice. Eddie and I made our way down Manhattan in a torrential rainstorm that added at least an hour’s time to our travel in backed up traffic. Thankfully we arrived on schedule and I set up Ray  (my keyboard) in the tiny corner of the small dining space designated for the musician. Thank goodness Eddie is available and willing to be my “roadie.” I don’t know what I would do if I had to unload and set up all those stands, amps, and cords on my own. Initially, I was a little nervous about the performance, but after a few songs, I really felt at home. I played the same songs I used to play at Lee’s in Lincoln – boogie-woogie, Billy Joel, and other popular standards. At Los Pollitos, I earned a decent amount of tips and an unexpected bonus from the manager

Magical Moment 198, "Felicity"

Felicity is the name I gave to the robin I found in the yard today. When I walk Joy in the enclosed grassy area near our apartment building, I often let her off the leash so she can chase and bark at the birds as they scatter to the sky. She’s never come close to catching one. Today from afar, Joy and I spotted one lonely robin digging in the grass for worms. “Ready Joy?” I asked. As soon as Joy’s eyes were locked on the bird, I unclipped her leash and watched her shoot like a rocket straight towards the robin. But I instantly felt something was wrong when after a few seconds, the robin made no effort to fly away. I hollered at Joy who was overcome with excitement at the prospect of catching her very first illusive, flying creature. As I always suspected, when Joy was near enough to the bird to actually do something, she froze, stunned at the sight of the helpless little creature who was only inches away from her nose. I rushed to the scene and restrained Joy from the bird who was

Magical moment 197, "Seashells and Life"

Today at the Jersey Shore, Eddie and I tried to soak up every ray of sunshine possible, realizing that somehow, the summer is nearly over already.  The water had warmed considerably since our first visit in June when we nearly froze to death. We waded in the shallow end, slowly inching deeper until we finally let the waves wash over our heads as we bounced on our tip-toes and spread our arms out, swaying in the murky water to steady our balance. After the waves tossed us around to the point of exhaustion, we walked up and down the shore, scanning the sand for seashells. When my friend Deb visited, she took some shells from the shore back to her daughter, Zoey who was enthralled with the tiny objects.  So I decided if I found another pretty one, I would clean it off and send it to her. I was shocked to find that almost every shell was chipped or broken. I had a lot of trouble finding even one that was in good shape.  That was until we got further along the shore. After a while, my e

Magical Moment 196, "Hey Jude"

This video is from the very last of the 60 pianos that I played for the Play Me, I'm Yours project in NYC. I remember how totally exhausted Eddie and I were as we scoured the city for the final piano. It happened to be one of only two pianos that were indoors, making it all the more difficult to find. As I reached into my brain for one last song to play by memory, I suddenly felt sad that our piano hunting journey would be over soon. So here is "Hey Jude" at the piano on 51st and Park Avenue. Enjoy. To see photos from the project, click here . To see videos, click here .