This afternoon I have the good fortune of joining some incredibly talented musicians to sing Bach’s Johannespassion. We’re singing it in English instead of the original German, which brings a different sort of drama to the whole thing, and has been an interesting expressive journey.

If you care to watch via the livestream, I highly recommend it.

If amazing singing isn’t your thing (the choir will be joined by Kyle Stegall and Charles Wesley Evans… so if singing isn’t your thing now it might be afterward), then you might join for the historically informed orchestra and their instruments. For our instrumental enthusiasts out there, I’ll tell you that we have a viol de gamba and an oboe de caccia joining us which is as delightful as you might imagine.

If none of this caught your eye, then I still encourage you to watch the concert if for no other reason than because I would love your support. ☺️

I first heard of Sing Street on NPR. It’s a charming musical about musicians by John Carney. If you watch it (and you should, it’s on Netflix right now) and you’re a musician, by training or by passion, then you’ll probably see a bit of a younger self in these characters.

When I’m not making the world a better place, one technology event at a time, I’m often found singing with this charming and passionate group. Our spring season held some wonderful and complex music and this piece was my favorite. Friede auf Erden, op. 13 by Arnold Schönberg is a work whose difficulty is essentially fabled. It’s hard to comprehend and hard to sing, but to say it’s worth more than a single listen is a complete understatement.

The first listen can really be surprising and, if I’m honest, somewhat grating. When I first sang it, I didn’t enjoy it. But as you hear it a second time the harmonies seem to settle in your ears. On the third listen, you realize that the bass sound is wonderfully smooth and their line comfortingly steadfast in its way. A fourth listen you realize that this is an expression of struggle bookended by hope and peace on either side.

My time with this group is a privilege and a joy. I hope they have me back for many seasons to come. And I hope you continue to listen to us as we go. 🙂

I am in the habit of playing old movies in the background as I work. There is just enough noise to keep me productive, but since I can basically recite them all I don’t get distracted enough to stop and watch.

Royal Wedding is showing behind me today and I just had to share with you the scene where Fred Astaire dances on the ceiling.

The room was mounted and rotatable as they filmed. It’s one of those things that, if it happened today, would have so much YouTube footage of the contraption. However, since it wasn’t filmed today, we have to make do with representations.

Also, if anyone tried to remake this I would go see it.