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A holiday gift that lasts a lifetime
A friend of mine recently asked me to suggest some piano etudes he could give his son for Christmas – something to help improve technique. His son is an excellent musician – with an advanced degree in oboe from a major music school. He has recently bought a piano and now wants to become a better…
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At least we still have music
In the midst of the depression and hopelessness that engulf millions of us in America today, I feel compelled to write about something that inspires hope – a program at Walter Reed Army Medical Center called MusiCorps. But allow me a couple of paragraphs to get there. Today the unthinkable has happened and Americans have…
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Compulsion for music – part II
Throughout her career, Scottish percussionist Evelyn Glennie has been an intrepid trailblazer. She is the most well-known percussionist in the world and the first person in musical history to create a career as a full-time percussionist (a field traditionally dominated by men). At recent count, over 170 percussion works have been written for her, she was…
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Compulsion for music – part I
I saw the film Florence Foster Jenkins a few days ago and haven’t been able to get it out of my mind. I’ve known about Florence since I was a student. She was the stuff of legend, known as the world’s worst singer – with no sense of pitch, no vibrato, frequent register breaks, glottal stops,…
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Exercise and memory
There is a beautiful 9-mile trail that runs between the town I live in and a nearby town. The trail is constructed from a former rail bed and is extremely popular with walkers, joggers, and bicyclists. It’s an idyllic place for an early morning walk, and I try to walk some portion of it several times a week. We…