My Musical Journey

People may like to know about my background. So, very briefly: As a child, I was extremely sensitive to auditory phenomena. Music of any kind seemed to penetrate my body energetically. It seemed I could hear the instruments singing actual words. Any kind of music, from Rock & Roll to Rhythm & Blues to Classical and Christmas music, could carry me off enraptured. I’ve always had some degree of synesthesia—-seeing flashes of color in response to auditory events..

Coming of age in the later 60s, I was captured by the folk and blues “scare”—I mean “craze”— of the time. Who wasn’t ? The first generation icons were still living and performing well—Son House, Mahalia Jackson, Albert King, Doc Watson, Merle Travis—and so many, many others. They enthralled us with a beauty that flowed from that connection to their roots deep in the soil and to those country churches “outside the county line”—to that “Spring of living waters” that fed the “soul” of American music that then went around the world.
Show Me (Shortened Versions)

I had my own experience with that Spring, having performed and written music and directed a contemporary choir for years in the so-called “shouting church,” Perhaps some time I could share more about that with you.
Musical inspiration comes not to those who wait only, but to those who prepare for it. So, desiring to broaden my musical boundaries, in 2003 I enrolled at university and completed a degree in music composition in 2008. In ways, it seemed foolish to do so, at a “certain age,” but it was the best thing I ever did for my creative process. It fed my thirst for musical knowledge and opened my hearing and musical thinking. I am enriched greatly for the experience, and what I learned has become integral to my continuing creative work.
I’d rather simply listen and let the music speak for itself. Likewise regarding my listeners: They have ears; they can listen for themselves and hear in the music what they will. All the influences will make themselves known, like the spices and flavorings in a well-seasoned meal. I hope you enjoy.
Guiding Light (Shortened Version)