Undoubtedly you’ve heard of one-name celebrities — people who are recognizable by just their first name — such as Cher and Beyoncé. If there is ever a person in the organ world that could go only by one name and be universally recognized, it’s Joey Fala, who I see changed his FaceBook persona to just… Read More One name organist
By my calculations, it has been two weeks since I’ve touched an organ keyboard. We have been on the mainland visiting family and I have to say that music and playing the organ, or even writing this blog, for that matter, have been the farthest things from my mind. So what have I been doing?… Read More Like riding a bicycle?
Last night, Carl and I had a quiet dinner at home before he went off to sing with the St. Andrew’s Cathedral Choir at the midnight mass. He and I both remarked that it was the first time EVER in thirty-six years of marriage that we found ourselves alone on Christmas Eve for dinner. In… Read More Home alone
Part of our family Christmas Eve tradition is to listen to the broadcast from Kings College Cambridge of their Festival of Nine Lessons and Carols, which in Hawaii has been aired at 8:30 am on Christmas Eve morning. The broadcast has been sponsored in Hawaii by the choir of the Lutheran Church of Honolulu for… Read More A Festival of Nine Lessons and Carols
Lately, a number of people have come up to us with the question, “How is retirement?” And I have to tell people that both my husband Carl and I are still performing music, but the big difference is that we are not in charge anymore! That means we don’t need to do any planning, organizing,… Read More Still performing music, but —
This morning, I played for All-School Christmas Chapel in the Lower Gym at Iolani School. The nativity story is narrated by the second grade class, which includes a pageant, interspersed with familiar Christmas carols. Because of my recent post in which I bragged that I could probably play any Christmas carol without looking at the… Read More Tug of war
Over the weekend, my husband and I looked in vain all over our apartment for the Christmas carol books. You see, Carl is out playing the piano for St. Andrew’s Priory’s Home for the Holidays fundraiser tonight, and they asked him to play Christmas carols as entertainment. “You mean you actually need the music?” I asked… Read More Playing by ear
The other day when I was asked about what music I play for funerals, my first reaction was to say that no “one size fits all.” That is to say, that I try to fit the music to the person who has died. I ask how old the person was, and what type of faith… Read More No “one size fits all”
I heard a story on public radio yesterday about the loneliness of the music practice room and how communication only happens when there is an audience. I would add that the factor of light makes a huge difference! Let me explain. The Kona Music Society held two performances of Handel Messiah over the weekend, for which I played continuo… Read More The difference of light
I’m on the Big Island of Hawai’i for two performances of Handel Messiah with the Kona Music Society, conducted by Susan McCreary Duprey. I was met at the airport by Joann Roberts, a soprano in the choir, whose doctor prescribed singing in the choir to improve her breathing following open heart surgery! We met the… Read More ‘Messiah’ comes to Waimea