The Process of Letting Go
Our young and sprightly new minister at church delivers wisdom beyond her years. Her latest sermon centered around John 12:20-33. As she spoke, she mentioned death as being an uncomfortable…
Category: Thoughts
The Right String Is Going to Be in There Somewhere (??)
One of my webcam autoharp students began playing melody a couple months ago (after a couple years of singing songs and strumming chords), and the learning curve really got kind…
How I Choose Tunes for a Contest
Recently and in one week’s time, two autoharpists asked me how I choose tunes for a contest. (There must be some contest karma going on out there.) Here are some…
How Many Autoharp Techniques Can There Be?
Many of you reading this post may be doing so in response to my recent question to the Cyberpluckers (autoharp) forum about how many autoharp techniques I apply when I…
Teaching vs. Teaching, Part II
[one_half] (Excuse me: Yay, Broncos!) I’m still learning how to make Viking knit chain. I made the piece at right in the Broncos’ honor for just a few dollars (the NFL…
The 2015 Mountain Laurel Autoharp Championship
The 2015 Mountain Laurel Autoharp Championship took place on Friday evening, June 26, during the Mountain Laurel Autoharp Gathering (MLAG) outside Newport, Pennsylvania. A number of folks in the autoharp community…
A curious comment about folk music
Recent events remind me of a comment that came my way during a gig twenty years ago. This comment has weighed on my mind ever since. My blog, now just…
Bach practice, etc.
With Good Friday on the horizon, my practice sessions have necessarily turned to preparing “Were You There?” on the ultratonic autoharp for the church service this Friday afternoon. Memorizing the chords in…
Music for Holy Week
Today it happened, at church. One of the youth played a Bach prelude on guitar (from BWV699) at the onset of communion, and when she finished, people applauded. During communion?!…