Everybody has a Voice

From the April 7, 2018 weekly Ezine

Do you wonder sometimes, like I do, about where your own creative voice fits? And sometimes whether it does at all? If so, I want to tell you that your voice – no matter what it sounds like – is part of the rich ensemble that is life as we know it.

I experience that every time I perform, and especially when I play with symphony, or ensembles – and especially when I hear the audience singing with me. You can hear an example of that in this new video from a small festival last summer. The song is called “You Have a Voice” and I got to sing it again with an audience of nearly 1000 in my recent performance in the great Northwest.

The image above is from that show with Symphony Tacoma and what you see in the background is what the audience actually saw (thanks to the Pantages Theater Lighting designer!). You can see more photos from this adventure here – a special “Earth Day” show with an unexpected appearance by the “Tacoma Harpbreakers” who played … and sang … along with me and the audience — Blues, Latin and oh so much more.

The show was so much fun, not just because of the great musicians who were so musical, passionate and funny…

Not just because of the wonderful new conductor, Sarah Ioannides who made the show a joy to play – even though we had only a single rehearsal…

Not only because of the symphony’s new marketing director, Susan Newsom and the local media she connected me with…

And the passionate symphony volunteers …

And the focused, dedicated staff in the Symphony office, Lydia Robinson and Laura Stone — who sold my CDs, and answered my questions, and picked up my tofu-and-rice bowls from the local asian cafe … (you can see the inside of that cafe in this photo, and the outside of the paper which read “Heaven … with theatrical flair”)

It wasn’t just because of the seemingly tireless general manager, Saul Cline (who – in addition to everything else he did – took me to the sub-sub-sub basement of the Pantages Theater in search of the essential bowler hat I’d left at home)…

Not just because of the incredible crew at the Pantages Theater (who turned me on to the local coffee company, Valhalla, spoiling me forever for any other brew — and brought the show to life with lights – like you see in the first photo here, and amplification – because I’m loud but not loud enough to soar over an orchestra without it – and aced all the details of getting us on and off stage)…

Not only because of the symphony’s meticulous librarian, Peggy Thorndill (who made sure that all the music I created for this show got where it needed to go when it needed to be there)… and the interim executive director, Kit Evans and the board members (who took me out to dinner after the show and regaled me with stories of their own adventures)

And not just because of my intrepid, creative, expressive harpist-collaborators, the “Tacoma Harp-Breakers” – a multi-generational ensemble – who stormed the stage ever-so elegantly after intermission for a Multi-Harp-and-Symphony feature …coordinated by legendary harp luminary Pat Wooster ...

But also because of the wonderful audience who filled the hall, and the families and friends of the HarpBreakers (and my own extended family) who have been sending me photos from both the show, the rehearsals, the after-show “Harp Petting Zoo” and so much more that happened so that I can share it with YOU and you can get a flavor of what a great adventure it was.

And THIS is how being a composer takes me OUT of my cave and onto the stage — with symphonies and players who bring my inventions to life – because it’s that moment, when it all comes alive with audience, players, sound, lights, stage, volunteers, family, music-lovers – that’s when all those notes I put on the page become a LIVING, BREATHING, LAUGHING, MOVING CONNECTION between human beings.

And I LOVE that I get to be right in the middle of all of that.

To share just a little taste of that, I created a blog post with just some of the wonderful photos I’ve been getting from audience member, family members of the Harpbreakers — and my own cousins who were at the show – Yay! It’s not often that my family is in the audience! See it HERE.

I hope you enjoy that taste and I look forward to seeing YOU at my next show – on line or off!.