Recently, I have been going through thousands of old pictures from my attic. It has been quite an emotional journey since I had never before seen some of these pictures, especially of my mother. If you have read my about me page, you know she was a tremendous influence on my music, even though I don't remember her. Here is a picture I found of her with me as a baby in the swimming pool. This would have been taken around the time she was first diagnosed with cancer. I can't imagine how she must have felt. Here is another treasure I found of us four children on Easter Sunday, 1962. (Yes, you could say I was the runt of the litter!) This would have been exactly one month before my mother passed away. I find the broken picket fence in the background quite telling. For me, it symbolizes the brokenness, shattered dreams, and deep holes/gaps that a family experiences after the loss of a parent, especially a mother. It is not only devastatingly huge, but it is also forever. This great loss in my life has had much to do with my spiritual, emotional, and musical journey. The good news is that God is a great Redeemer! Even though neither of my parents lived to see their grandchildren, they have been blessed with seven grandchildren and seven great-grandchildren, and one on the way! (update: as of 12/2017 make that eight with 3 on the way)!. Some of our family members gathered at the farm over Easter weekend to celebrate the youngest great-grandchild's first birthday! My mother, quite the gardener, planted these and many more azaleas around the yard more than 65 years ago. They are still beautiful today! Here is a brief video clip of our time together…same porch…same azaleas…so many years later. Truly a picture of God’s Amazing Grace!
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King David wrote that the one thing he wanted more than anything else in this world was to dwell in God’s presence all the days of his life and to gaze upon His beauty. All throughout Psalm 27, David recounts many things he experienced in God’s presence: freedom from fear, safety, hope, courage, and joy, to name a few. I wrote the song “Your Presence” out of a similar yearning that David expressed in this Psalm. I have found that no matter what I am feeling or experiencing in life, if I get quiet in God’s presence and listen for His voice, I will start to see things from His perspective and it changes mine. No matter the situation, seeing it from God's perspective and experiencing His presence in the midst of it, brings change in our hearts, our attitudes, our physical conditions and our circumstances. God's presence changes everything. Lyrics to "Your Presence" by Marlowe Carruth Your presence Lord, is the most important thing. Your heartbeat Lord, is the song I want to sing. To see Your face, as I look into Your gaze, To hear Your voice, as I rest in Your embrace. Your presence Lord, is the most important thing. Your heartbeat Lord, is the love I want to bring. Your beauty Lord, I want others to behold. Your goodness Lord, I don’t want to go untold. God, You are good, and Your presence is real. God, You are good, and Your presence will heal. Your presence Lord, is the most important thing. Your presence Lord, changes everything. This month’s blog is dedicated to my beloved college piano teacher and friend, James L. Clyburn Nocturne - a work of art dealing with evening or night; especially: a dreamy pensive composition for the piano (Webster’s Dictionary) Is it Spring Yet? Even though snow is predicted for this weekend, I say ……Happy Spring Ya’ll! This time of year many music students are preparing for their spring recitals. It reminds me of my years at Meredith. Practice! Practice! Practice! I still love the sound of walking down the hallway of a music building and hearing the beautiful cacophony of sounds coming from the practice rooms! For me, it’s just a warm fuzzy, what else can I say? I recently attended the funeral of Margaret Clyburn, a wonderful Raleigh musician and piano teacher. Her husband, the late James Clyburn, was my beloved piano teacher at Meredith College. All those who knew them, loved them both and miss them very much. Mr. Clyburn had a great love and knowledge of Chopin music which he passed on to his students. My freshman year, he taught me my very first Chopin Nocturne, Nocturne Op. 9, No. 1 in B-flat minor. It is still one of mine and my husband’s favorites. Because I fell in love with nocturnes, it’s no surprise that the very first piano piece I wrote, I titled “Little Nocturne” and have dedicated it to Mr. Clyburn. If you would like a FREE copy of my sheet music for “Little Nocturne”, just subscribe to my blog in March and put “Little Nocturne” in the comments section. I will email you a free PDF copy! Listen to Little Nocturne by clicking here If you live in North Carolina, you probably remember the big Valentine weekend snowfall Down East in 2010. Such a rare sight to see such deep beautiful snow at the coast! Some stunning photos taken by Kathy E Davis were emailed around at the time. I was so taken by their beauty that I was inspired to write the song “Manna”. This peaceful snowfall reminded me of the Manna from heaven that God provided on the ground every morning for the Israelites in the wilderness, a gentle covering of provision. The song begins with the depiction of the first tiny snowflake, and then carries us through Kathy’s photographic journey around the quiet town of Beaufort, NC and surrounding areas, such as Taylor’s Creek. The underlying rhythm is much like that of a gently rocking boat. We finally come to the tapering off of the last gentle snowflake, giving the feeling of not wanting the peaceful scene to be disturbed. At least this is how I felt it when I wrote it. I hope you feel it too! Let me know if you saw this beautiful snow. Send me pics to post if you have any! Happy New Year Everyone! I cannot thank all of you enough for the amazing support you have given me for the release of my EP, “Eternal Light". Though this venture has been daunting for me in many ways, hearing stories of how the music has touched your lives has made it all worth it! If you are like me, you like to hear the back stories of what inspires artists to create. My December blog was about the inspiration for my title song "Eternal Light". This month I would like to highlight the song "Prayer for Peace". I wrote this song for World Communion Sunday in 2013. I was going through a troubling time in my own life and was seeking refuge at the piano, as I often times do. As I was 'praying & playing', the song began to emerge and God's presence brought peace and hope to my heart, reminding me that He has always been faithful to me throughout my life. As we look ahead to the New Year, I think we can all agree that we need to pray for peace...peace in our world, peace in our homes, and peace in our hearts. I was so very honored to have Dr. Jonathan Kramer play cello on this recording. He has traveled to almost fifty countries studying music and culture. Check out the musicology textbook he co-authored, What in the World is Music? With over 300 audio/video clips included, it's on my bucket list of books to read! Here is a clip of Jonathan and me practicing for a holiday concert we played at NC State a few years ago. It was such a privilege to accompany him! Enjoy! |
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