Right now on SiriusXM, Symphony Hall, Channel 54, Ray and I are listening to Mahler’s First Symphony, the third movement—the Funeral March, to be specific. This movement was based on a satirical woodcut Mahler had seen, in which a group of forest animals conduct a funeral for a hunter. Mahler uses the familiar French melody…
Tag: music
Remembering Leonard Cohen
When Leonard Cohen died back in 2016, I felt as if I’d lost a lifelong friend. He was eighty-two then—still spry the last time I saw him perform, first in Las Vegas and then in Los Angeles. Ray and I even flew to Denver to hear him again, though that concert was rained out. We…
Flash Fiction: A Life Composed Anew
Janet wasn’t sure why life felt so complicated these days. Maybe it had something to do with the way the wind never seemed to stop blowing, tugging at her short gray hair, and stirring memories of happier times—before Chet died. Chet, her husband of 35 years, who’d woken up one morning saying he didn’t feel…
“Anything Else,” Another Song Collaboration that Brother Sam and I Shared
Here is the link to our song, “Anything Else.” Here is the other song that Sam and I collaborated on. I came up with the hook for the song and Sam and I worked together on the lyrics. He then took the lyrics and created music for the song. From a writer’s point of view,…
Revisiting “Just a Little Hope,” A Song Written by My Little Brother and Me
Last night, one of the members of my writing group, Taffy Kennedy, mentioned the song that had “hope in the title” that I had written with my brother Sam. I was so touched she remembered, I promised I’d find it so she could hear it again. Here it is below from a previous post here…
Twirling, Mr. Nugent, and Lessons in Excellence
I wrote this a while back, but I’ve been thinking about Mr. Nugent today and wanted to share it again. After all these years, he still holds a special place in my heart. He moved on to other towns and bigger bands, leaving a lasting impact wherever he went. He passed away a few months…
Leonard Cohen, Brother George, and How the Light Gets In
Someone recently mentioned Leonard Cohen, and I immediately thought of the verse in the song, Anthem, below. This is a piece I wrote a while back, but it makes me happy to remember my late brother George’s victory over substance abuse. This is George’s story and what lessons we can all learn from it. Ring…
An Excellent Meal: Ojai Tortilla House
Our Welsh friends, Jan and Rich, came up to Ojai for a visit. Here they are in front of our Buddha, who is a fairly large fellow. Jan and Rich visiting Buddha in our orange grove Besides meeting and playing with 14-month-old grandson Ethan, visiting with Liz and Ron, and touring the orange grove, Rich…
A Recent Trip to Disney Hall to Experience the Power of Mahler’s 6th Symphony
Recently, Ray and I heard the LA Phil perform Mahler’s 6th Symphony. This is the one with the two hammer blows, the one that some refer to as the “tragic.” We went to the talk before the performance and the speaker was California composer, Paul Gibson. He played different snippets from the symphony and challenged…
#39 – Something That Makes Me Happy – Another 1st Draft Song to Share with Brother Sam
I wrote this song shortly after writing the one I posted last night. I sent it to Sam this morning and we’ll see what comes of it in our songwriting collaboration. As Sam said last night when I sent him the first song, “We’re songwriting again. How fun!” Yes, yes, and yes. I’m in “Beginner’s…
20 Minutes a Day 