Singing Along the Journey

General

A room for things that just don’t fit in other categories.

The Gift of Love

Today I had an opportunity to speak instead of to sing at service. And what did I talk about?  My two favorite topics -- music and love, excuse me, Love.  It will make sense as you read on.  The following is somewhat close to what I actually said, just in case you weren't there. Over the past week, I’ve gone back to school full time.  Let me tell you:  going back to school is nothing like it was the last time I went back to school.  In the last week, I’ve spent a lot of time taking tests to tell me just how I learn.  Many of you won’t be…
Read More

Creating a new rumor…

All summer, ever since the end of Calvary's 150th anniversary weekend at the beginning of June, there has been something new....something new just out of reach, not visible, not clearly felt, not yet arrived...but there and clear enough to hold my attention now for a couple of months.  And the only framework my conscious mind seems to have with which to understand that feeling is through a story I heard told by John Bell at a recent conference.  I know that I won't get the details right, but that is how it goes when you repeat a story...you repeat it through the lens that has meaning for you. It seems…
Read More

A beautiful day…

Something that I was reading this morning at the gym brought me back with a snap to the moment when the idea for this blog was born...I was riding on a plane to somewhere, who remembers where, and I was reading an amazing book by John O'Donohue, Beauty:  The Invisible Embrace  (John O'Donohue is most known for his work with Celtic poetry and wisdom, published as Anam Cara).  I am not a person normally drawn to the "celtic"...not in music or poetry or, well, anything, but I had heard Krista Tippet interview John O'Donohue one Sunday morning.  I was moved by him as a philosopher and I was moved by the…
Read More

Making an allelluia…

There are times in the life of a community that are for celebration and times that are for sorrow.  And, there are times like this one, that are for both. And it was that smile that I remember from the first time I met Dee.  In those first few moments of conversation, when I sat eating a sandwich in a place I had never been, about to embark on a journey I could not imagine, I learned in a few short minutes of small talk that this woman sitting next to me was a pioneer, an educator,  a worker for social justice, a lover of nature, and a lover of all…
Read More

Your input most urgently requested…

In a life fueled by freelance music and church work such as mine, this is a difficult time of year.  You are not really not busy, but as the seasons of work wind down to the days of summer, what really looms before you is the work of planning your next season -- beginning new projects, submitting ideas to concert series to procure performance dates, working on classes to start in the fall, and so forth.  This year, for me, added to all this planning and thinking and arranging is the spector of returning to school full-time:  not knowing how much time I will have available to freelance work, not knowing…
Read More

Thinking about…

...Pentecost.  Yes, this is an official church-nerd-out-of-control post. Well, maybe not.  Maybe it is just me being sentimental.  You see, this Pentecost Sunday (May 27, 2012) will be the second anniversary of my licensing by the Calvary Baptist Church (you can read about it here).  That day was the beginning of many wonderful changes for me.  And as I embrace the remembrance of that first Pentecost again this year, I am about to step off on yet another adventurous  path along the way.  I have been accepted to the program in Christian Formation at the Virginia Theological Seminary in Alexandria, VA. I have no idea where I am going, but…
Read More

Why, and on whose authority?

If my mother were still with us and you could ask her, she would tell you that "Why?" and "Who says?" are two questions that I have asked since the moment I first understood how to ask a question.  I was one of those children, you know, the kind who drive all adults around them to total distraction with repeated questions about how the world works and why it works that way and who says it works that way.  Clearly, asking the big questions and living in a world of questions has been part of my spirit since, well, since forever. So it is probably not surprising to anyone that one of…
Read More

Pink, and orange, and white, and red

Reader alert:  it is Spring, and therefore it is time for my annual garden analogy blog entry. I just can't help myself.  But no kudzu this time, I promise. Instead, this year, the topic is roses.  Somewhere, a long time ago, when we first moved into this house on Capitol Hill, I read an article that said planting roses in front of possible entries that might invite, shall we say, unwelcome visitors, was an excellent way to use landscaping to increase the security of your home.  And so I proceeded to plant climbing roses in front of the ground floor windows of each apartment.  In front of one house, I planted a…
Read More

One Body, One Song…

In March, I had a chance to attend a conference about singing in the church.  I wrote my personal impressions while I was still there, but now I'd like to talk about a few of the things I learned.  The following is not just for those who work as musicians in the church.   If you go to church, if you have ever gone to church, if you have ever faced a moment when you had to sing in a group and were uncomfortable, if anywhere in your life someone made you feel like you couldn't take part in something just because you weren't "trained", please keep reading.  I think you will relate to…
Read More

It is never about the high note…

Music is, in so many ways, all about the phrasing.  When you experience someone as a "very musical" performer, the technical musical thing that is happening is phrasing--phrasing that best showcases the emotion or meaning of the music being presented.  For the best musicians, phrasing becomes like breathing and requires little thought.  Most of the rest of us work at it most of the time. But one of the most important things we learn, as we learn to phrase, is this rule:  the high note is hardly ever the point of the phrase.  This rule applies to singers and to instrumentalists;  the most important thing about a phrase is its destination...and it is…
Read More

The Gift of Love

Today I had an opportunity to speak instead of to sing at service. And what did I talk about?  My two favorite topics -- music and love, excuse me, Love.  It will make sense as you read on.  The following is somewhat close to what I actually said, just in case you weren't there. Over the past week, I’ve gone back to school full time.  Let me tell you:  going back to school is nothing like it was the last time I went back to school.  In the last week, I’ve spent a lot of time taking tests to tell me just how I learn.  Many of you won’t be…
Read More

Creating a new rumor…

All summer, ever since the end of Calvary's 150th anniversary weekend at the beginning of June, there has been something new....something new just out of reach, not visible, not clearly felt, not yet arrived...but there and clear enough to hold my attention now for a couple of months.  And the only framework my conscious mind seems to have with which to understand that feeling is through a story I heard told by John Bell at a recent conference.  I know that I won't get the details right, but that is how it goes when you repeat a story...you repeat it through the lens that has meaning for you. It seems…
Read More

A beautiful day…

Something that I was reading this morning at the gym brought me back with a snap to the moment when the idea for this blog was born...I was riding on a plane to somewhere, who remembers where, and I was reading an amazing book by John O'Donohue, Beauty:  The Invisible Embrace  (John O'Donohue is most known for his work with Celtic poetry and wisdom, published as Anam Cara).  I am not a person normally drawn to the "celtic"...not in music or poetry or, well, anything, but I had heard Krista Tippet interview John O'Donohue one Sunday morning.  I was moved by him as a philosopher and I was moved by the…
Read More

Making an allelluia…

There are times in the life of a community that are for celebration and times that are for sorrow.  And, there are times like this one, that are for both. And it was that smile that I remember from the first time I met Dee.  In those first few moments of conversation, when I sat eating a sandwich in a place I had never been, about to embark on a journey I could not imagine, I learned in a few short minutes of small talk that this woman sitting next to me was a pioneer, an educator,  a worker for social justice, a lover of nature, and a lover of all…
Read More

Your input most urgently requested…

In a life fueled by freelance music and church work such as mine, this is a difficult time of year.  You are not really not busy, but as the seasons of work wind down to the days of summer, what really looms before you is the work of planning your next season -- beginning new projects, submitting ideas to concert series to procure performance dates, working on classes to start in the fall, and so forth.  This year, for me, added to all this planning and thinking and arranging is the spector of returning to school full-time:  not knowing how much time I will have available to freelance work, not knowing…
Read More

Thinking about…

...Pentecost.  Yes, this is an official church-nerd-out-of-control post. Well, maybe not.  Maybe it is just me being sentimental.  You see, this Pentecost Sunday (May 27, 2012) will be the second anniversary of my licensing by the Calvary Baptist Church (you can read about it here).  That day was the beginning of many wonderful changes for me.  And as I embrace the remembrance of that first Pentecost again this year, I am about to step off on yet another adventurous  path along the way.  I have been accepted to the program in Christian Formation at the Virginia Theological Seminary in Alexandria, VA. I have no idea where I am going, but…
Read More

Why, and on whose authority?

If my mother were still with us and you could ask her, she would tell you that "Why?" and "Who says?" are two questions that I have asked since the moment I first understood how to ask a question.  I was one of those children, you know, the kind who drive all adults around them to total distraction with repeated questions about how the world works and why it works that way and who says it works that way.  Clearly, asking the big questions and living in a world of questions has been part of my spirit since, well, since forever. So it is probably not surprising to anyone that one of…
Read More

Pink, and orange, and white, and red

Reader alert:  it is Spring, and therefore it is time for my annual garden analogy blog entry. I just can't help myself.  But no kudzu this time, I promise. Instead, this year, the topic is roses.  Somewhere, a long time ago, when we first moved into this house on Capitol Hill, I read an article that said planting roses in front of possible entries that might invite, shall we say, unwelcome visitors, was an excellent way to use landscaping to increase the security of your home.  And so I proceeded to plant climbing roses in front of the ground floor windows of each apartment.  In front of one house, I planted a…
Read More

One Body, One Song…

In March, I had a chance to attend a conference about singing in the church.  I wrote my personal impressions while I was still there, but now I'd like to talk about a few of the things I learned.  The following is not just for those who work as musicians in the church.   If you go to church, if you have ever gone to church, if you have ever faced a moment when you had to sing in a group and were uncomfortable, if anywhere in your life someone made you feel like you couldn't take part in something just because you weren't "trained", please keep reading.  I think you will relate to…
Read More

It is never about the high note…

Music is, in so many ways, all about the phrasing.  When you experience someone as a "very musical" performer, the technical musical thing that is happening is phrasing--phrasing that best showcases the emotion or meaning of the music being presented.  For the best musicians, phrasing becomes like breathing and requires little thought.  Most of the rest of us work at it most of the time. But one of the most important things we learn, as we learn to phrase, is this rule:  the high note is hardly ever the point of the phrase.  This rule applies to singers and to instrumentalists;  the most important thing about a phrase is its destination...and it is…
Read More

The Gift of Love

Today I had an opportunity to speak instead of to sing at service. And what did I talk about?  My two favorite topics -- music and love, excuse me, Love.  It will make sense as you read on.  The following is somewhat close to what I actually said, just in case you weren't there. Over the past week, I’ve gone back to school full time.  Let me tell you:  going back to school is nothing like it was the last time I went back to school.  In the last week, I’ve spent a lot of time taking tests to tell me just how I learn.  Many of you won’t be…
Read More

Creating a new rumor…

All summer, ever since the end of Calvary's 150th anniversary weekend at the beginning of June, there has been something new....something new just out of reach, not visible, not clearly felt, not yet arrived...but there and clear enough to hold my attention now for a couple of months.  And the only framework my conscious mind seems to have with which to understand that feeling is through a story I heard told by John Bell at a recent conference.  I know that I won't get the details right, but that is how it goes when you repeat a story...you repeat it through the lens that has meaning for you. It seems…
Read More

A beautiful day…

Something that I was reading this morning at the gym brought me back with a snap to the moment when the idea for this blog was born...I was riding on a plane to somewhere, who remembers where, and I was reading an amazing book by John O'Donohue, Beauty:  The Invisible Embrace  (John O'Donohue is most known for his work with Celtic poetry and wisdom, published as Anam Cara).  I am not a person normally drawn to the "celtic"...not in music or poetry or, well, anything, but I had heard Krista Tippet interview John O'Donohue one Sunday morning.  I was moved by him as a philosopher and I was moved by the…
Read More

Making an allelluia…

There are times in the life of a community that are for celebration and times that are for sorrow.  And, there are times like this one, that are for both. And it was that smile that I remember from the first time I met Dee.  In those first few moments of conversation, when I sat eating a sandwich in a place I had never been, about to embark on a journey I could not imagine, I learned in a few short minutes of small talk that this woman sitting next to me was a pioneer, an educator,  a worker for social justice, a lover of nature, and a lover of all…
Read More

Your input most urgently requested…

In a life fueled by freelance music and church work such as mine, this is a difficult time of year.  You are not really not busy, but as the seasons of work wind down to the days of summer, what really looms before you is the work of planning your next season -- beginning new projects, submitting ideas to concert series to procure performance dates, working on classes to start in the fall, and so forth.  This year, for me, added to all this planning and thinking and arranging is the spector of returning to school full-time:  not knowing how much time I will have available to freelance work, not knowing…
Read More

Thinking about…

...Pentecost.  Yes, this is an official church-nerd-out-of-control post. Well, maybe not.  Maybe it is just me being sentimental.  You see, this Pentecost Sunday (May 27, 2012) will be the second anniversary of my licensing by the Calvary Baptist Church (you can read about it here).  That day was the beginning of many wonderful changes for me.  And as I embrace the remembrance of that first Pentecost again this year, I am about to step off on yet another adventurous  path along the way.  I have been accepted to the program in Christian Formation at the Virginia Theological Seminary in Alexandria, VA. I have no idea where I am going, but…
Read More

Why, and on whose authority?

If my mother were still with us and you could ask her, she would tell you that "Why?" and "Who says?" are two questions that I have asked since the moment I first understood how to ask a question.  I was one of those children, you know, the kind who drive all adults around them to total distraction with repeated questions about how the world works and why it works that way and who says it works that way.  Clearly, asking the big questions and living in a world of questions has been part of my spirit since, well, since forever. So it is probably not surprising to anyone that one of…
Read More

Pink, and orange, and white, and red

Reader alert:  it is Spring, and therefore it is time for my annual garden analogy blog entry. I just can't help myself.  But no kudzu this time, I promise. Instead, this year, the topic is roses.  Somewhere, a long time ago, when we first moved into this house on Capitol Hill, I read an article that said planting roses in front of possible entries that might invite, shall we say, unwelcome visitors, was an excellent way to use landscaping to increase the security of your home.  And so I proceeded to plant climbing roses in front of the ground floor windows of each apartment.  In front of one house, I planted a…
Read More

One Body, One Song…

In March, I had a chance to attend a conference about singing in the church.  I wrote my personal impressions while I was still there, but now I'd like to talk about a few of the things I learned.  The following is not just for those who work as musicians in the church.   If you go to church, if you have ever gone to church, if you have ever faced a moment when you had to sing in a group and were uncomfortable, if anywhere in your life someone made you feel like you couldn't take part in something just because you weren't "trained", please keep reading.  I think you will relate to…
Read More

It is never about the high note…

Music is, in so many ways, all about the phrasing.  When you experience someone as a "very musical" performer, the technical musical thing that is happening is phrasing--phrasing that best showcases the emotion or meaning of the music being presented.  For the best musicians, phrasing becomes like breathing and requires little thought.  Most of the rest of us work at it most of the time. But one of the most important things we learn, as we learn to phrase, is this rule:  the high note is hardly ever the point of the phrase.  This rule applies to singers and to instrumentalists;  the most important thing about a phrase is its destination...and it is…
Read More

The Gift of Love

Today I had an opportunity to speak instead of to sing at service. And what did I talk about?  My two favorite topics -- music and love, excuse me, Love.  It will make sense as you read on.  The following is somewhat close to what I actually said, just in case you weren't there. Over the past week, I’ve gone back to school full time.  Let me tell you:  going back to school is nothing like it was the last time I went back to school.  In the last week, I’ve spent a lot of time taking tests to tell me just how I learn.  Many of you won’t be…
Read More

Creating a new rumor…

All summer, ever since the end of Calvary's 150th anniversary weekend at the beginning of June, there has been something new....something new just out of reach, not visible, not clearly felt, not yet arrived...but there and clear enough to hold my attention now for a couple of months.  And the only framework my conscious mind seems to have with which to understand that feeling is through a story I heard told by John Bell at a recent conference.  I know that I won't get the details right, but that is how it goes when you repeat a story...you repeat it through the lens that has meaning for you. It seems…
Read More

A beautiful day…

Something that I was reading this morning at the gym brought me back with a snap to the moment when the idea for this blog was born...I was riding on a plane to somewhere, who remembers where, and I was reading an amazing book by John O'Donohue, Beauty:  The Invisible Embrace  (John O'Donohue is most known for his work with Celtic poetry and wisdom, published as Anam Cara).  I am not a person normally drawn to the "celtic"...not in music or poetry or, well, anything, but I had heard Krista Tippet interview John O'Donohue one Sunday morning.  I was moved by him as a philosopher and I was moved by the…
Read More

Making an allelluia…

There are times in the life of a community that are for celebration and times that are for sorrow.  And, there are times like this one, that are for both. And it was that smile that I remember from the first time I met Dee.  In those first few moments of conversation, when I sat eating a sandwich in a place I had never been, about to embark on a journey I could not imagine, I learned in a few short minutes of small talk that this woman sitting next to me was a pioneer, an educator,  a worker for social justice, a lover of nature, and a lover of all…
Read More

Your input most urgently requested…

In a life fueled by freelance music and church work such as mine, this is a difficult time of year.  You are not really not busy, but as the seasons of work wind down to the days of summer, what really looms before you is the work of planning your next season -- beginning new projects, submitting ideas to concert series to procure performance dates, working on classes to start in the fall, and so forth.  This year, for me, added to all this planning and thinking and arranging is the spector of returning to school full-time:  not knowing how much time I will have available to freelance work, not knowing…
Read More

Thinking about…

...Pentecost.  Yes, this is an official church-nerd-out-of-control post. Well, maybe not.  Maybe it is just me being sentimental.  You see, this Pentecost Sunday (May 27, 2012) will be the second anniversary of my licensing by the Calvary Baptist Church (you can read about it here).  That day was the beginning of many wonderful changes for me.  And as I embrace the remembrance of that first Pentecost again this year, I am about to step off on yet another adventurous  path along the way.  I have been accepted to the program in Christian Formation at the Virginia Theological Seminary in Alexandria, VA. I have no idea where I am going, but…
Read More

Why, and on whose authority?

If my mother were still with us and you could ask her, she would tell you that "Why?" and "Who says?" are two questions that I have asked since the moment I first understood how to ask a question.  I was one of those children, you know, the kind who drive all adults around them to total distraction with repeated questions about how the world works and why it works that way and who says it works that way.  Clearly, asking the big questions and living in a world of questions has been part of my spirit since, well, since forever. So it is probably not surprising to anyone that one of…
Read More

Pink, and orange, and white, and red

Reader alert:  it is Spring, and therefore it is time for my annual garden analogy blog entry. I just can't help myself.  But no kudzu this time, I promise. Instead, this year, the topic is roses.  Somewhere, a long time ago, when we first moved into this house on Capitol Hill, I read an article that said planting roses in front of possible entries that might invite, shall we say, unwelcome visitors, was an excellent way to use landscaping to increase the security of your home.  And so I proceeded to plant climbing roses in front of the ground floor windows of each apartment.  In front of one house, I planted a…
Read More

One Body, One Song…

In March, I had a chance to attend a conference about singing in the church.  I wrote my personal impressions while I was still there, but now I'd like to talk about a few of the things I learned.  The following is not just for those who work as musicians in the church.   If you go to church, if you have ever gone to church, if you have ever faced a moment when you had to sing in a group and were uncomfortable, if anywhere in your life someone made you feel like you couldn't take part in something just because you weren't "trained", please keep reading.  I think you will relate to…
Read More

It is never about the high note…

Music is, in so many ways, all about the phrasing.  When you experience someone as a "very musical" performer, the technical musical thing that is happening is phrasing--phrasing that best showcases the emotion or meaning of the music being presented.  For the best musicians, phrasing becomes like breathing and requires little thought.  Most of the rest of us work at it most of the time. But one of the most important things we learn, as we learn to phrase, is this rule:  the high note is hardly ever the point of the phrase.  This rule applies to singers and to instrumentalists;  the most important thing about a phrase is its destination...and it is…
Read More

The Gift of Love

Today I had an opportunity to speak instead of to sing at service. And what did I talk about?  My two favorite topics -- music and love, excuse me, Love.  It will make sense as you read on.  The following is somewhat close to what I actually said, just in case you weren't there. Over the past week, I’ve gone back to school full time.  Let me tell you:  going back to school is nothing like it was the last time I went back to school.  In the last week, I’ve spent a lot of time taking tests to tell me just how I learn.  Many of you won’t be…
Read More

Creating a new rumor…

All summer, ever since the end of Calvary's 150th anniversary weekend at the beginning of June, there has been something new....something new just out of reach, not visible, not clearly felt, not yet arrived...but there and clear enough to hold my attention now for a couple of months.  And the only framework my conscious mind seems to have with which to understand that feeling is through a story I heard told by John Bell at a recent conference.  I know that I won't get the details right, but that is how it goes when you repeat a story...you repeat it through the lens that has meaning for you. It seems…
Read More

A beautiful day…

Something that I was reading this morning at the gym brought me back with a snap to the moment when the idea for this blog was born...I was riding on a plane to somewhere, who remembers where, and I was reading an amazing book by John O'Donohue, Beauty:  The Invisible Embrace  (John O'Donohue is most known for his work with Celtic poetry and wisdom, published as Anam Cara).  I am not a person normally drawn to the "celtic"...not in music or poetry or, well, anything, but I had heard Krista Tippet interview John O'Donohue one Sunday morning.  I was moved by him as a philosopher and I was moved by the…
Read More

Making an allelluia…

There are times in the life of a community that are for celebration and times that are for sorrow.  And, there are times like this one, that are for both. And it was that smile that I remember from the first time I met Dee.  In those first few moments of conversation, when I sat eating a sandwich in a place I had never been, about to embark on a journey I could not imagine, I learned in a few short minutes of small talk that this woman sitting next to me was a pioneer, an educator,  a worker for social justice, a lover of nature, and a lover of all…
Read More

Your input most urgently requested…

In a life fueled by freelance music and church work such as mine, this is a difficult time of year.  You are not really not busy, but as the seasons of work wind down to the days of summer, what really looms before you is the work of planning your next season -- beginning new projects, submitting ideas to concert series to procure performance dates, working on classes to start in the fall, and so forth.  This year, for me, added to all this planning and thinking and arranging is the spector of returning to school full-time:  not knowing how much time I will have available to freelance work, not knowing…
Read More

Thinking about…

...Pentecost.  Yes, this is an official church-nerd-out-of-control post. Well, maybe not.  Maybe it is just me being sentimental.  You see, this Pentecost Sunday (May 27, 2012) will be the second anniversary of my licensing by the Calvary Baptist Church (you can read about it here).  That day was the beginning of many wonderful changes for me.  And as I embrace the remembrance of that first Pentecost again this year, I am about to step off on yet another adventurous  path along the way.  I have been accepted to the program in Christian Formation at the Virginia Theological Seminary in Alexandria, VA. I have no idea where I am going, but…
Read More

Why, and on whose authority?

If my mother were still with us and you could ask her, she would tell you that "Why?" and "Who says?" are two questions that I have asked since the moment I first understood how to ask a question.  I was one of those children, you know, the kind who drive all adults around them to total distraction with repeated questions about how the world works and why it works that way and who says it works that way.  Clearly, asking the big questions and living in a world of questions has been part of my spirit since, well, since forever. So it is probably not surprising to anyone that one of…
Read More

Pink, and orange, and white, and red

Reader alert:  it is Spring, and therefore it is time for my annual garden analogy blog entry. I just can't help myself.  But no kudzu this time, I promise. Instead, this year, the topic is roses.  Somewhere, a long time ago, when we first moved into this house on Capitol Hill, I read an article that said planting roses in front of possible entries that might invite, shall we say, unwelcome visitors, was an excellent way to use landscaping to increase the security of your home.  And so I proceeded to plant climbing roses in front of the ground floor windows of each apartment.  In front of one house, I planted a…
Read More

One Body, One Song…

In March, I had a chance to attend a conference about singing in the church.  I wrote my personal impressions while I was still there, but now I'd like to talk about a few of the things I learned.  The following is not just for those who work as musicians in the church.   If you go to church, if you have ever gone to church, if you have ever faced a moment when you had to sing in a group and were uncomfortable, if anywhere in your life someone made you feel like you couldn't take part in something just because you weren't "trained", please keep reading.  I think you will relate to…
Read More

It is never about the high note…

Music is, in so many ways, all about the phrasing.  When you experience someone as a "very musical" performer, the technical musical thing that is happening is phrasing--phrasing that best showcases the emotion or meaning of the music being presented.  For the best musicians, phrasing becomes like breathing and requires little thought.  Most of the rest of us work at it most of the time. But one of the most important things we learn, as we learn to phrase, is this rule:  the high note is hardly ever the point of the phrase.  This rule applies to singers and to instrumentalists;  the most important thing about a phrase is its destination...and it is…
Read More

The Gift of Love

Today I had an opportunity to speak instead of to sing at service. And what did I talk about?  My two favorite topics -- music and love, excuse me, Love.  It will make sense as you read on.  The following is somewhat close to what I actually said, just in case you weren't there. Over the past week, I’ve gone back to school full time.  Let me tell you:  going back to school is nothing like it was the last time I went back to school.  In the last week, I’ve spent a lot of time taking tests to tell me just how I learn.  Many of you won’t be…
Read More

Creating a new rumor…

All summer, ever since the end of Calvary's 150th anniversary weekend at the beginning of June, there has been something new....something new just out of reach, not visible, not clearly felt, not yet arrived...but there and clear enough to hold my attention now for a couple of months.  And the only framework my conscious mind seems to have with which to understand that feeling is through a story I heard told by John Bell at a recent conference.  I know that I won't get the details right, but that is how it goes when you repeat a story...you repeat it through the lens that has meaning for you. It seems…
Read More

A beautiful day…

Something that I was reading this morning at the gym brought me back with a snap to the moment when the idea for this blog was born...I was riding on a plane to somewhere, who remembers where, and I was reading an amazing book by John O'Donohue, Beauty:  The Invisible Embrace  (John O'Donohue is most known for his work with Celtic poetry and wisdom, published as Anam Cara).  I am not a person normally drawn to the "celtic"...not in music or poetry or, well, anything, but I had heard Krista Tippet interview John O'Donohue one Sunday morning.  I was moved by him as a philosopher and I was moved by the…
Read More

Making an allelluia…

There are times in the life of a community that are for celebration and times that are for sorrow.  And, there are times like this one, that are for both. And it was that smile that I remember from the first time I met Dee.  In those first few moments of conversation, when I sat eating a sandwich in a place I had never been, about to embark on a journey I could not imagine, I learned in a few short minutes of small talk that this woman sitting next to me was a pioneer, an educator,  a worker for social justice, a lover of nature, and a lover of all…
Read More

Your input most urgently requested…

In a life fueled by freelance music and church work such as mine, this is a difficult time of year.  You are not really not busy, but as the seasons of work wind down to the days of summer, what really looms before you is the work of planning your next season -- beginning new projects, submitting ideas to concert series to procure performance dates, working on classes to start in the fall, and so forth.  This year, for me, added to all this planning and thinking and arranging is the spector of returning to school full-time:  not knowing how much time I will have available to freelance work, not knowing…
Read More

Thinking about…

...Pentecost.  Yes, this is an official church-nerd-out-of-control post. Well, maybe not.  Maybe it is just me being sentimental.  You see, this Pentecost Sunday (May 27, 2012) will be the second anniversary of my licensing by the Calvary Baptist Church (you can read about it here).  That day was the beginning of many wonderful changes for me.  And as I embrace the remembrance of that first Pentecost again this year, I am about to step off on yet another adventurous  path along the way.  I have been accepted to the program in Christian Formation at the Virginia Theological Seminary in Alexandria, VA. I have no idea where I am going, but…
Read More

Why, and on whose authority?

If my mother were still with us and you could ask her, she would tell you that "Why?" and "Who says?" are two questions that I have asked since the moment I first understood how to ask a question.  I was one of those children, you know, the kind who drive all adults around them to total distraction with repeated questions about how the world works and why it works that way and who says it works that way.  Clearly, asking the big questions and living in a world of questions has been part of my spirit since, well, since forever. So it is probably not surprising to anyone that one of…
Read More

Pink, and orange, and white, and red

Reader alert:  it is Spring, and therefore it is time for my annual garden analogy blog entry. I just can't help myself.  But no kudzu this time, I promise. Instead, this year, the topic is roses.  Somewhere, a long time ago, when we first moved into this house on Capitol Hill, I read an article that said planting roses in front of possible entries that might invite, shall we say, unwelcome visitors, was an excellent way to use landscaping to increase the security of your home.  And so I proceeded to plant climbing roses in front of the ground floor windows of each apartment.  In front of one house, I planted a…
Read More

One Body, One Song…

In March, I had a chance to attend a conference about singing in the church.  I wrote my personal impressions while I was still there, but now I'd like to talk about a few of the things I learned.  The following is not just for those who work as musicians in the church.   If you go to church, if you have ever gone to church, if you have ever faced a moment when you had to sing in a group and were uncomfortable, if anywhere in your life someone made you feel like you couldn't take part in something just because you weren't "trained", please keep reading.  I think you will relate to…
Read More

It is never about the high note…

Music is, in so many ways, all about the phrasing.  When you experience someone as a "very musical" performer, the technical musical thing that is happening is phrasing--phrasing that best showcases the emotion or meaning of the music being presented.  For the best musicians, phrasing becomes like breathing and requires little thought.  Most of the rest of us work at it most of the time. But one of the most important things we learn, as we learn to phrase, is this rule:  the high note is hardly ever the point of the phrase.  This rule applies to singers and to instrumentalists;  the most important thing about a phrase is its destination...and it is…
Read More

The Gift of Love

Today I had an opportunity to speak instead of to sing at service. And what did I talk about?  My two favorite topics -- music and love, excuse me, Love.  It will make sense as you read on.  The following is somewhat close to what I actually said, just in case you weren't there. Over the past week, I’ve gone back to school full time.  Let me tell you:  going back to school is nothing like it was the last time I went back to school.  In the last week, I’ve spent a lot of time taking tests to tell me just how I learn.  Many of you won’t be…
Read More

Creating a new rumor…

All summer, ever since the end of Calvary's 150th anniversary weekend at the beginning of June, there has been something new....something new just out of reach, not visible, not clearly felt, not yet arrived...but there and clear enough to hold my attention now for a couple of months.  And the only framework my conscious mind seems to have with which to understand that feeling is through a story I heard told by John Bell at a recent conference.  I know that I won't get the details right, but that is how it goes when you repeat a story...you repeat it through the lens that has meaning for you. It seems…
Read More

A beautiful day…

Something that I was reading this morning at the gym brought me back with a snap to the moment when the idea for this blog was born...I was riding on a plane to somewhere, who remembers where, and I was reading an amazing book by John O'Donohue, Beauty:  The Invisible Embrace  (John O'Donohue is most known for his work with Celtic poetry and wisdom, published as Anam Cara).  I am not a person normally drawn to the "celtic"...not in music or poetry or, well, anything, but I had heard Krista Tippet interview John O'Donohue one Sunday morning.  I was moved by him as a philosopher and I was moved by the…
Read More

Making an allelluia…

There are times in the life of a community that are for celebration and times that are for sorrow.  And, there are times like this one, that are for both. And it was that smile that I remember from the first time I met Dee.  In those first few moments of conversation, when I sat eating a sandwich in a place I had never been, about to embark on a journey I could not imagine, I learned in a few short minutes of small talk that this woman sitting next to me was a pioneer, an educator,  a worker for social justice, a lover of nature, and a lover of all…
Read More

Your input most urgently requested…

In a life fueled by freelance music and church work such as mine, this is a difficult time of year.  You are not really not busy, but as the seasons of work wind down to the days of summer, what really looms before you is the work of planning your next season -- beginning new projects, submitting ideas to concert series to procure performance dates, working on classes to start in the fall, and so forth.  This year, for me, added to all this planning and thinking and arranging is the spector of returning to school full-time:  not knowing how much time I will have available to freelance work, not knowing…
Read More

Thinking about…

...Pentecost.  Yes, this is an official church-nerd-out-of-control post. Well, maybe not.  Maybe it is just me being sentimental.  You see, this Pentecost Sunday (May 27, 2012) will be the second anniversary of my licensing by the Calvary Baptist Church (you can read about it here).  That day was the beginning of many wonderful changes for me.  And as I embrace the remembrance of that first Pentecost again this year, I am about to step off on yet another adventurous  path along the way.  I have been accepted to the program in Christian Formation at the Virginia Theological Seminary in Alexandria, VA. I have no idea where I am going, but…
Read More

Why, and on whose authority?

If my mother were still with us and you could ask her, she would tell you that "Why?" and "Who says?" are two questions that I have asked since the moment I first understood how to ask a question.  I was one of those children, you know, the kind who drive all adults around them to total distraction with repeated questions about how the world works and why it works that way and who says it works that way.  Clearly, asking the big questions and living in a world of questions has been part of my spirit since, well, since forever. So it is probably not surprising to anyone that one of…
Read More

Pink, and orange, and white, and red

Reader alert:  it is Spring, and therefore it is time for my annual garden analogy blog entry. I just can't help myself.  But no kudzu this time, I promise. Instead, this year, the topic is roses.  Somewhere, a long time ago, when we first moved into this house on Capitol Hill, I read an article that said planting roses in front of possible entries that might invite, shall we say, unwelcome visitors, was an excellent way to use landscaping to increase the security of your home.  And so I proceeded to plant climbing roses in front of the ground floor windows of each apartment.  In front of one house, I planted a…
Read More

One Body, One Song…

In March, I had a chance to attend a conference about singing in the church.  I wrote my personal impressions while I was still there, but now I'd like to talk about a few of the things I learned.  The following is not just for those who work as musicians in the church.   If you go to church, if you have ever gone to church, if you have ever faced a moment when you had to sing in a group and were uncomfortable, if anywhere in your life someone made you feel like you couldn't take part in something just because you weren't "trained", please keep reading.  I think you will relate to…
Read More

It is never about the high note…

Music is, in so many ways, all about the phrasing.  When you experience someone as a "very musical" performer, the technical musical thing that is happening is phrasing--phrasing that best showcases the emotion or meaning of the music being presented.  For the best musicians, phrasing becomes like breathing and requires little thought.  Most of the rest of us work at it most of the time. But one of the most important things we learn, as we learn to phrase, is this rule:  the high note is hardly ever the point of the phrase.  This rule applies to singers and to instrumentalists;  the most important thing about a phrase is its destination...and it is…
Read More

The Gift of Love

Today I had an opportunity to speak instead of to sing at service. And what did I talk about?  My two favorite topics -- music and love, excuse me, Love.  It will make sense as you read on.  The following is somewhat close to what I actually said, just in case you weren't there. Over the past week, I’ve gone back to school full time.  Let me tell you:  going back to school is nothing like it was the last time I went back to school.  In the last week, I’ve spent a lot of time taking tests to tell me just how I learn.  Many of you won’t be…
Read More

Creating a new rumor…

All summer, ever since the end of Calvary's 150th anniversary weekend at the beginning of June, there has been something new....something new just out of reach, not visible, not clearly felt, not yet arrived...but there and clear enough to hold my attention now for a couple of months.  And the only framework my conscious mind seems to have with which to understand that feeling is through a story I heard told by John Bell at a recent conference.  I know that I won't get the details right, but that is how it goes when you repeat a story...you repeat it through the lens that has meaning for you. It seems…
Read More

A beautiful day…

Something that I was reading this morning at the gym brought me back with a snap to the moment when the idea for this blog was born...I was riding on a plane to somewhere, who remembers where, and I was reading an amazing book by John O'Donohue, Beauty:  The Invisible Embrace  (John O'Donohue is most known for his work with Celtic poetry and wisdom, published as Anam Cara).  I am not a person normally drawn to the "celtic"...not in music or poetry or, well, anything, but I had heard Krista Tippet interview John O'Donohue one Sunday morning.  I was moved by him as a philosopher and I was moved by the…
Read More

Making an allelluia…

There are times in the life of a community that are for celebration and times that are for sorrow.  And, there are times like this one, that are for both. And it was that smile that I remember from the first time I met Dee.  In those first few moments of conversation, when I sat eating a sandwich in a place I had never been, about to embark on a journey I could not imagine, I learned in a few short minutes of small talk that this woman sitting next to me was a pioneer, an educator,  a worker for social justice, a lover of nature, and a lover of all…
Read More

Your input most urgently requested…

In a life fueled by freelance music and church work such as mine, this is a difficult time of year.  You are not really not busy, but as the seasons of work wind down to the days of summer, what really looms before you is the work of planning your next season -- beginning new projects, submitting ideas to concert series to procure performance dates, working on classes to start in the fall, and so forth.  This year, for me, added to all this planning and thinking and arranging is the spector of returning to school full-time:  not knowing how much time I will have available to freelance work, not knowing…
Read More

Thinking about…

...Pentecost.  Yes, this is an official church-nerd-out-of-control post. Well, maybe not.  Maybe it is just me being sentimental.  You see, this Pentecost Sunday (May 27, 2012) will be the second anniversary of my licensing by the Calvary Baptist Church (you can read about it here).  That day was the beginning of many wonderful changes for me.  And as I embrace the remembrance of that first Pentecost again this year, I am about to step off on yet another adventurous  path along the way.  I have been accepted to the program in Christian Formation at the Virginia Theological Seminary in Alexandria, VA. I have no idea where I am going, but…
Read More

Why, and on whose authority?

If my mother were still with us and you could ask her, she would tell you that "Why?" and "Who says?" are two questions that I have asked since the moment I first understood how to ask a question.  I was one of those children, you know, the kind who drive all adults around them to total distraction with repeated questions about how the world works and why it works that way and who says it works that way.  Clearly, asking the big questions and living in a world of questions has been part of my spirit since, well, since forever. So it is probably not surprising to anyone that one of…
Read More

Pink, and orange, and white, and red

Reader alert:  it is Spring, and therefore it is time for my annual garden analogy blog entry. I just can't help myself.  But no kudzu this time, I promise. Instead, this year, the topic is roses.  Somewhere, a long time ago, when we first moved into this house on Capitol Hill, I read an article that said planting roses in front of possible entries that might invite, shall we say, unwelcome visitors, was an excellent way to use landscaping to increase the security of your home.  And so I proceeded to plant climbing roses in front of the ground floor windows of each apartment.  In front of one house, I planted a…
Read More

One Body, One Song…

In March, I had a chance to attend a conference about singing in the church.  I wrote my personal impressions while I was still there, but now I'd like to talk about a few of the things I learned.  The following is not just for those who work as musicians in the church.   If you go to church, if you have ever gone to church, if you have ever faced a moment when you had to sing in a group and were uncomfortable, if anywhere in your life someone made you feel like you couldn't take part in something just because you weren't "trained", please keep reading.  I think you will relate to…
Read More

It is never about the high note…

Music is, in so many ways, all about the phrasing.  When you experience someone as a "very musical" performer, the technical musical thing that is happening is phrasing--phrasing that best showcases the emotion or meaning of the music being presented.  For the best musicians, phrasing becomes like breathing and requires little thought.  Most of the rest of us work at it most of the time. But one of the most important things we learn, as we learn to phrase, is this rule:  the high note is hardly ever the point of the phrase.  This rule applies to singers and to instrumentalists;  the most important thing about a phrase is its destination...and it is…
Read More

The Gift of Love

Today I had an opportunity to speak instead of to sing at service. And what did I talk about?  My two favorite topics -- music and love, excuse me, Love.  It will make sense as you read on.  The following is somewhat close to what I actually said, just in case you weren't there. Over the past week, I’ve gone back to school full time.  Let me tell you:  going back to school is nothing like it was the last time I went back to school.  In the last week, I’ve spent a lot of time taking tests to tell me just how I learn.  Many of you won’t be…
Read More

Creating a new rumor…

All summer, ever since the end of Calvary's 150th anniversary weekend at the beginning of June, there has been something new....something new just out of reach, not visible, not clearly felt, not yet arrived...but there and clear enough to hold my attention now for a couple of months.  And the only framework my conscious mind seems to have with which to understand that feeling is through a story I heard told by John Bell at a recent conference.  I know that I won't get the details right, but that is how it goes when you repeat a story...you repeat it through the lens that has meaning for you. It seems…
Read More

A beautiful day…

Something that I was reading this morning at the gym brought me back with a snap to the moment when the idea for this blog was born...I was riding on a plane to somewhere, who remembers where, and I was reading an amazing book by John O'Donohue, Beauty:  The Invisible Embrace  (John O'Donohue is most known for his work with Celtic poetry and wisdom, published as Anam Cara).  I am not a person normally drawn to the "celtic"...not in music or poetry or, well, anything, but I had heard Krista Tippet interview John O'Donohue one Sunday morning.  I was moved by him as a philosopher and I was moved by the…
Read More

Making an allelluia…

There are times in the life of a community that are for celebration and times that are for sorrow.  And, there are times like this one, that are for both. And it was that smile that I remember from the first time I met Dee.  In those first few moments of conversation, when I sat eating a sandwich in a place I had never been, about to embark on a journey I could not imagine, I learned in a few short minutes of small talk that this woman sitting next to me was a pioneer, an educator,  a worker for social justice, a lover of nature, and a lover of all…
Read More

Your input most urgently requested…

In a life fueled by freelance music and church work such as mine, this is a difficult time of year.  You are not really not busy, but as the seasons of work wind down to the days of summer, what really looms before you is the work of planning your next season -- beginning new projects, submitting ideas to concert series to procure performance dates, working on classes to start in the fall, and so forth.  This year, for me, added to all this planning and thinking and arranging is the spector of returning to school full-time:  not knowing how much time I will have available to freelance work, not knowing…
Read More

Thinking about…

...Pentecost.  Yes, this is an official church-nerd-out-of-control post. Well, maybe not.  Maybe it is just me being sentimental.  You see, this Pentecost Sunday (May 27, 2012) will be the second anniversary of my licensing by the Calvary Baptist Church (you can read about it here).  That day was the beginning of many wonderful changes for me.  And as I embrace the remembrance of that first Pentecost again this year, I am about to step off on yet another adventurous  path along the way.  I have been accepted to the program in Christian Formation at the Virginia Theological Seminary in Alexandria, VA. I have no idea where I am going, but…
Read More

Why, and on whose authority?

If my mother were still with us and you could ask her, she would tell you that "Why?" and "Who says?" are two questions that I have asked since the moment I first understood how to ask a question.  I was one of those children, you know, the kind who drive all adults around them to total distraction with repeated questions about how the world works and why it works that way and who says it works that way.  Clearly, asking the big questions and living in a world of questions has been part of my spirit since, well, since forever. So it is probably not surprising to anyone that one of…
Read More

Pink, and orange, and white, and red

Reader alert:  it is Spring, and therefore it is time for my annual garden analogy blog entry. I just can't help myself.  But no kudzu this time, I promise. Instead, this year, the topic is roses.  Somewhere, a long time ago, when we first moved into this house on Capitol Hill, I read an article that said planting roses in front of possible entries that might invite, shall we say, unwelcome visitors, was an excellent way to use landscaping to increase the security of your home.  And so I proceeded to plant climbing roses in front of the ground floor windows of each apartment.  In front of one house, I planted a…
Read More

One Body, One Song…

In March, I had a chance to attend a conference about singing in the church.  I wrote my personal impressions while I was still there, but now I'd like to talk about a few of the things I learned.  The following is not just for those who work as musicians in the church.   If you go to church, if you have ever gone to church, if you have ever faced a moment when you had to sing in a group and were uncomfortable, if anywhere in your life someone made you feel like you couldn't take part in something just because you weren't "trained", please keep reading.  I think you will relate to…
Read More

It is never about the high note…

Music is, in so many ways, all about the phrasing.  When you experience someone as a "very musical" performer, the technical musical thing that is happening is phrasing--phrasing that best showcases the emotion or meaning of the music being presented.  For the best musicians, phrasing becomes like breathing and requires little thought.  Most of the rest of us work at it most of the time. But one of the most important things we learn, as we learn to phrase, is this rule:  the high note is hardly ever the point of the phrase.  This rule applies to singers and to instrumentalists;  the most important thing about a phrase is its destination...and it is…
Read More

The Gift of Love

Today I had an opportunity to speak instead of to sing at service. And what did I talk about?  My two favorite topics -- music and love, excuse me, Love.  It will make sense as you read on.  The following is somewhat close to what I actually said, just in case you weren't there. Over the past week, I’ve gone back to school full time.  Let me tell you:  going back to school is nothing like it was the last time I went back to school.  In the last week, I’ve spent a lot of time taking tests to tell me just how I learn.  Many of you won’t be…
Read More

Creating a new rumor…

All summer, ever since the end of Calvary's 150th anniversary weekend at the beginning of June, there has been something new....something new just out of reach, not visible, not clearly felt, not yet arrived...but there and clear enough to hold my attention now for a couple of months.  And the only framework my conscious mind seems to have with which to understand that feeling is through a story I heard told by John Bell at a recent conference.  I know that I won't get the details right, but that is how it goes when you repeat a story...you repeat it through the lens that has meaning for you. It seems…
Read More

A beautiful day…

Something that I was reading this morning at the gym brought me back with a snap to the moment when the idea for this blog was born...I was riding on a plane to somewhere, who remembers where, and I was reading an amazing book by John O'Donohue, Beauty:  The Invisible Embrace  (John O'Donohue is most known for his work with Celtic poetry and wisdom, published as Anam Cara).  I am not a person normally drawn to the "celtic"...not in music or poetry or, well, anything, but I had heard Krista Tippet interview John O'Donohue one Sunday morning.  I was moved by him as a philosopher and I was moved by the…
Read More

Making an allelluia…

There are times in the life of a community that are for celebration and times that are for sorrow.  And, there are times like this one, that are for both. And it was that smile that I remember from the first time I met Dee.  In those first few moments of conversation, when I sat eating a sandwich in a place I had never been, about to embark on a journey I could not imagine, I learned in a few short minutes of small talk that this woman sitting next to me was a pioneer, an educator,  a worker for social justice, a lover of nature, and a lover of all…
Read More

Your input most urgently requested…

In a life fueled by freelance music and church work such as mine, this is a difficult time of year.  You are not really not busy, but as the seasons of work wind down to the days of summer, what really looms before you is the work of planning your next season -- beginning new projects, submitting ideas to concert series to procure performance dates, working on classes to start in the fall, and so forth.  This year, for me, added to all this planning and thinking and arranging is the spector of returning to school full-time:  not knowing how much time I will have available to freelance work, not knowing…
Read More

Thinking about…

...Pentecost.  Yes, this is an official church-nerd-out-of-control post. Well, maybe not.  Maybe it is just me being sentimental.  You see, this Pentecost Sunday (May 27, 2012) will be the second anniversary of my licensing by the Calvary Baptist Church (you can read about it here).  That day was the beginning of many wonderful changes for me.  And as I embrace the remembrance of that first Pentecost again this year, I am about to step off on yet another adventurous  path along the way.  I have been accepted to the program in Christian Formation at the Virginia Theological Seminary in Alexandria, VA. I have no idea where I am going, but…
Read More

Why, and on whose authority?

If my mother were still with us and you could ask her, she would tell you that "Why?" and "Who says?" are two questions that I have asked since the moment I first understood how to ask a question.  I was one of those children, you know, the kind who drive all adults around them to total distraction with repeated questions about how the world works and why it works that way and who says it works that way.  Clearly, asking the big questions and living in a world of questions has been part of my spirit since, well, since forever. So it is probably not surprising to anyone that one of…
Read More

Pink, and orange, and white, and red

Reader alert:  it is Spring, and therefore it is time for my annual garden analogy blog entry. I just can't help myself.  But no kudzu this time, I promise. Instead, this year, the topic is roses.  Somewhere, a long time ago, when we first moved into this house on Capitol Hill, I read an article that said planting roses in front of possible entries that might invite, shall we say, unwelcome visitors, was an excellent way to use landscaping to increase the security of your home.  And so I proceeded to plant climbing roses in front of the ground floor windows of each apartment.  In front of one house, I planted a…
Read More

One Body, One Song…

In March, I had a chance to attend a conference about singing in the church.  I wrote my personal impressions while I was still there, but now I'd like to talk about a few of the things I learned.  The following is not just for those who work as musicians in the church.   If you go to church, if you have ever gone to church, if you have ever faced a moment when you had to sing in a group and were uncomfortable, if anywhere in your life someone made you feel like you couldn't take part in something just because you weren't "trained", please keep reading.  I think you will relate to…
Read More

It is never about the high note…

Music is, in so many ways, all about the phrasing.  When you experience someone as a "very musical" performer, the technical musical thing that is happening is phrasing--phrasing that best showcases the emotion or meaning of the music being presented.  For the best musicians, phrasing becomes like breathing and requires little thought.  Most of the rest of us work at it most of the time. But one of the most important things we learn, as we learn to phrase, is this rule:  the high note is hardly ever the point of the phrase.  This rule applies to singers and to instrumentalists;  the most important thing about a phrase is its destination...and it is…
Read More