I can't imagine my life without music. Or trees. Music and trees.
And gardening and hiking and really wonderful tea, and that first cup of strong coffee in the morning.
I studied piano from the time I could reach the keys, and started taking harp lessons when I was 17. After college I went to work five nights a week in a restaurant, four hours a night, and was soon gigging all over the Willamette Valley. For ten years I played the restaurant in the evenings, and raced from one event to another the rest of the week. It was spectacular.
Then my husband and I moved back to my family farm to take care of things and raise two fantastic daughters, and I took on a few harp students.
Teaching is a wonderful way to learn.
While I was teaching, I encountered a need for more beginner's music. My piano students had an unlimited supply of darling pieces to play, but my harp students complained. They did not want to play the same things their friends were playing. So I started writing pieces just for them. It was fun!
And they loved them, and asked for more. Eventually I had four little books of original pieces, and Afghan Press Music agreed to publish them. I’m still in awe that this happened.
Then Sandy Norman, an amazing flutist, proposed we become a flute and harp duo. We called ourselves "RoseWynde", for my rosewood harp and Sandy's golden wind instrument. Sandy was inspired by Celtic and other folk music, and it did not take long for us to discover that we enjoyed writing and arranging together.
Sandy and I performed concerts and gigs for 20 years, and arranged and produced five CDs. With Ann Beesley and Bruce McIntosh, we created unique multi-media two hour concert events that included costumes and stage props and dramatic storytelling. Our audiences laughed and cried and treated us to heartfelt standing ovations, something I’ll never forget.
After 33 years I had to give up the formal gowns for office clothes. It's just the reality of our times. I miss going to beautiful locations and meeting wonderful people, and if I am honest, I really miss applause, but I do not miss hauling my harp around.
Now that I don't have the distraction of practicing for "the next gig" or a major concert event, I am once again improvising and giving more attention to composition. I have a sizable backlog of arrangements that have never been published, and half finished original songs to complete and submit to the world of harp repertoire.
And I am more interested than ever in the people who play the music I write. What helps you love your harp? What keeps making you come back to play, even if it is just for your own enjoyment?
Let's chat. I'll make tea.