Upon my return to Spring Ridge Park Assisted Living Facility, I had the opportunity to play for residents I had performed for several times before as well as new residents who had recently moved into the home.  I played several patriotic works: “Battle Hymn of the Republic, “The Caisson Song,” and Robert Schumann’s “Soldier’s March,” an energetic work originally written for piano.  Also included in the nine-piece set was a classical guitar rendition of Beethoven’s “Ode to Joy,” a piece that several of the residents hummed along with.  Andrew York’s classical work “Snowflight” evokes the image of snowflakes falling from the sky, a piece which augered the May snowstorm that arrived in the Colorado mountains a few days later!

Tonight, I performed French singer Édith Piaf’s signature song “La vie en rose” as well as the traditional Spanish classical guitar piece “Romanza” at the First Friday JUC Open Mic.  I drew the first performance slot and then enjoyed an eclectic musical evening of storytelling, blues, country, jazz, and other musical genres.

I had the wonderful opportunity to sing the choral work “Draw the Circle Wide” as part of a group of five soloists in the “Draw the Circle Wide” Unitarian Universalist Front Range Music Concert that took place in the Broomfield United Methodist Church.  The Foothills Unitarian Church choir director put together a creative arrangement of solo singing and inspirational readings that were interwoven with the rich sounds of the large choir.  It was a musical eye-opener to sing this and other choral works under various choir directors with members of the Front Range Unitarian Universalist choirs.

Easter is a very special holiday for me–always a reminder of renewal and reawakening that is perpetually regenerated throughout the unpredictable cycle of life. In anticipation of Easter, I decorated my house with vases of pussy willow branches, a tradition that stems from Eastern Europe during Palm and Easter Sundays.  I sang Ralph Vaughan Williams’s “Easter” from Five Mystical Songs and “This Joyful Eastertide” with the JUC Choir on Easter Sunday followed by a foothills hike that took place in a warm glow of afternoon sunlight.  The following day, I performed a set of pieces at the Spring Ridge Park Assisted Living facility, several of which were inspired by Easter and the advent of spring.  Included in the ten-piece set were the sing-along songs “You Are My Sunshine” and “Edelweiss” as well as Andrew York’s compositions “Chant,” “Willow,” and “Heath.”  York’s guitar works evoke the beauty of Easter choral music, longstanding Easter traditions, and the beauty of an open, uncultivated heathland, a fitting way to musically express the joys of spring to the residents of Spring Ridge.

This evening, I performed a set of pieces at Spring Ridge Park Assisted Living facility.  This is my second time performing at Spring Ridge, a facility for adults experiencing Alzheimer’s Disease or other forms of dementia.  I performed four classical works as well as a set of six songs.  The activities director made song packets for the residents to sing along with me.  Included in the song set were the traditional patriotic song “God Bless America” along with the uplifting song “The Happy Wanderer.”  The latter, originally titled “Der fröhliche Wanderer,”  was written by Friedrich-Wilhelm Möller shortly after World War II.  The composer’s sister, Edith Möller, conducted a performance of the song with the Obernkirchen Children’s Choir, many of whose members were war orphans, at the 1953 Llangollen International Musical Eisteddfod.  A BBC radio broadcast catapulted the song to fame and the song was subsequently translated into several languages.  The song has laughter written into its refrain and expresses the feeling of joy one feels while hiking in the mountains.

Tonight, along with twelve other performers and groups, I performed at the Jefferson Unitarian Church First Friday Open Mic.  My contributions were Bach’s Air on a G String and a Stevie Wonder song.  The evening featured an array of storytelling, blues, folk music, jazz, and bagpipe music.  I enjoy very much playing classical music in this type of eclectic musical setting.  It is my goal to play classical music in a variety of different locations.  I observe with sadness that classical music’s development and continuation often takes place in an ivory tower and I aspire to connect classical repertoire with my community-at-large.

I left my home on this snowy, dark evening to perform at the Golden Pond Retirement Community, a seven-acre landscaped site nestled adjacent to North Table Mountain, an imposing desert mesa.  I intermixed classical repertoire, three Bach pieces and a Milán piece, with six traditional American folk songs.  The folk song set included “Shenandoah,” “Red River Valley,” and “Yellow Rose of Texas.”  These songs derive from the time of America’s restless westward expansion and remain a part of our national identity.

Today, I played Bach’s Prelude from Suite No. 1 in G Major, BWV 1007 and Andrew York’s “Willow” at the Jefferson Unitarian Church morning services, and again at the afternoon service held on the Evergreen Campus.  The prelude was originally written for cello, but was transcribed for guitar.  The minister opened the morning worship service with a quotation from Antoine de Saint-Exupéry’s The Little Prince: “It is only with the heart that one can see rightly; what is essential is invisible to the eye.”  Following the call to worship, I played Bach’s Prelude, mindful of the mysterious, invisible power music exerts over my life and the lives of others.

This evening, I played a set of songs at the Spring Ridge Park Assisted Living facility located in Wheat Ridge.  I started out the set with the spirituals “He’s Got the Whole World in His Hand” and “Amazing Grace,” songs that the residents spontaneously sang along with!  I continued with Stevie Wonder’s “You Are the Sunshine of My Life” and “I Just Called to Say I Love You” as well as John Lennon’s “Grow Old with Me,” contemporary love songs that seemed a fitting tribute to St. Valentine.  I turned to the classic American songs “Shenandoah,” “Yellow Rose of Texas,” and the beautiful, nostalgic “Red River Valley” to close the performance for the residents.  I will be performing a set of pieces at Spring Ridge Park Assisted Living on a monthly basis.

This afternoon, I performed John Lennon’s “Grow Old with Me” and Stevie Wonder’s “You Are the Sunshine of My Life” at The Katrina Twitty Voice Studio “Sing-in the New Year” recital.  I accompanied myself on the guitar and prepared upbeat, contemporary strumming patterns for Stevie Wonder’s ebullient love song.