Thank You

Hello, Trick-or-Treaters!

Yes, trick-or-treating can apply to all seasons. Right now the “treats” are candy canes and chestnuts and … Stollen. No, not thievery. Stollen is a Germanic sweet bread that makes this American grin quite broadly. There’s a German deli in Orange called Mattern that imports all sorts of German treats. Tasty treats. Johannesbeersaft, marzipan, lebkuchen. Ahhhhhhhh …

The “trick” involved in this season is one’s pants magically shrinking. So, logically, we ought to call it “trick-AND-treating” during this season.

But fun curvatures aside, I want to spend this blog thanking you.

I have received such encouraging, kind words from many of you in cards, emails, and social networking sites. I don’t always have time to respond to every facebook post, but I read them and I smile and I revel in learning a little bit about you. Thank you.

When I was interviewed by Stephen Fortner for Keyboard Magazine, he told me that four of you had written him letters, telling him he ought to check out my music. I’m sure you can guess how grateful and appreciative I am, but I’m still having many “Zoinks, Scoob!” moments.

When I write music, I try to focus on serving you. And as many of us experience in labor-intensive/creativity-intensive projects, sometimes I get discouraged and just plain tired. But when I hear from you and read how my music has affected you, it buoys me up and reminds me that it is YOU I’m serving.

So, I thank you. With trampolines in my feet and cheesecake in my heart, I thank you.

I hope all of you have a Merry Christmas!

For my Wiccan friends, I hope your Yule is warm and bright.

For my Jewish friends, I hope your Hanukkah earlier this month was peaceful and fulfilling.

For my friends of other faiths, I wish you happiness in your celebrations.

And for my fellow Christians, I share in the gratitude for the birth of our Savior.

An encouraging New Year to all!

Bewitched

My dear Trick-or-Treaters, I must share an extraordinary experience that occurred just last night, the 2nd of November (All Souls’ Day/Dia de los Muertos). I share because this will eventually concern you with the “food” you give your ears.

The Muse decided to crack open my skull and pour in a new melody last night. The first part of the melody came right out through my fingers without needing any adjusting. I couldn’t believe how smoothly everything glided out. Like ribbons of silky cream. Well, thicker. Like soft-serve.

I was astonished … and swept away … and grateful.

I played around with the rest of the melody until not even 45 minutes had passed and the melody and chords were complete. Now to arrange/orchestrate it.

This dream-like occurrence struck me as rather special because it came at the close of the All Hallows season. It was as if this little melody-spirit came to me and said, “OK, the season is over. Now you can focus on me. Come bring me to mortal life.”

And I am in love with this little being. I suppose I’m treating it much like a newborn human right now – holding it, hugging it, kissing it, rocking it. I’ve been playing it over and over, and sometimes I cry because it’s such a pretty little thing.

And it has a certain nobility to it. Quite a stately personality. I feel a responsibility toward it, that I need to work hard to give it a good setting. I’m looking forward to sharing this elegant entity with you as soon as I can.

Of Maidens and Monsters

Hello Trick-or-Treaters!

Sigh. What a beautiful month it has been. Whenever October comes, I make a point to devour it as completely as I can. “Lick the plate clean” …

… like I do at one of my favorite restaurants, Zov’s (in Tustin on 17th, right off the 55). They have a calamari appetizer that sends my brain to far-off places. It’s not fried like most calamari dishes are. Rather, it comes swimming in this sauce. Oh, this sauce. Thanks to the mopping power of their chewy rolls, we send the dish back completely wiped clean and dry.

Mmmm, that’s how I take in October. The sun is doing that magical thing again. That lower-angle thing.

I had a particularly cozy day a few Saturdays ago while that choice sun angle framed everything. I spent all day in my pajamas, figuring out and working with some sheet music software on my computer. 16 hours - 9am to 1am. Computers and technology used to make my brain shut down, but now I ask myself, “Kristen, if you lived a few centuries ago, would you be freaked out by pipe organs? Quite the advanced technological gear back then.”

Then I take out my cat woman whip and make the computer programs whimper.

***

Last Saturday I had the delight of playing keys with The Iron Maidens (all-female tribute to Iron Maiden) for their Halloween show in Santa Ana. They are outstanding musicians. And it’s always a thrill for me to play with drums. Drummy, drummy, yummy.

Mid-show, I played the toccata from Bach’s “Toccata and Fugue in D minor” then we went straight into “Fear of the Dark.” They’re in the same key and it made for a bunch of yelping fun.

That night I played the role of “Michelle Kenney,” the feminine counterpart of Michael Kenney, the original keyboard player for Iron Maiden. And he came to the show. It was a pleasure to meet him and chat. We’re pals now.

Also appearing at the show was Derek Riggs, the artist who created Eddie and all the album covers. He’s a sweet guy. You wouldn’t think he’s got all of these monsters in his brain.

***

Well, I hope all of you are having a marvelous Halloween weekend. I can’t get enough of these glowing pumpkins.

Recipe for "The Bread of Love" - You Knead This

Hello Trick-or-Treaters!

When the dark evenings begin to appear earlier, I often think of two mighty forces of nature: soup and bread.

Let’s focus on the latter.

What is it about fresh, hot bread right out of the oven that turns our brains into, well, soup? And makes our hearts melt like the butter we slather on it?

I don’t know. But I don’t knead to know. I knead to feel the bready love. And I have a recipe that will throw you into bready ecstasy. You’ll find yourselves kneading it every day. It’s good for any time of the year, but it’s especially wondrous in the autumn and winter months.

I call it “The Bread of Love.” And because it is “The Bread of Love,” I will lovingly share the recipe for this love ... because I love you!

It's a recipe my mom found in the LA Times years and years ago that I adapted for whole wheat bread. It's practically fool-proof. Even if you don't get the best floofiness out of the yeast, it always turns out just fine once you bake it. Love.

It produces a lot of bread. It produces a lot of love.

THE BREAD OF LOVE

2 tablespoons yeast 1/2 cup lukewarm water 2 eggs 2/3 cup honey 2 1/2 cups hot water 1 can (12 oz.) evaporated milk (EVAPORATED ... not sweetened condensed) 1/3 cup oil (I use canola) 2 tablespoons salt about 12 cups of whole wheat flour

HONEY-CINNAMON-BUTTER

honey cinnamon butter (must be REAL butter ... margarine is false love) little itty bit of salt

(Mix together whatever amounts you wish. Love in varying degrees!)

CREATING THE LOVE

Dissolve the yeast in the lukewarm water in a small cereal bowl (use a fork to help the dissolving process). In another cereal bowl, break up the eggs with a fork.

In a very, very large bowl, dissolve the honey in the hot water. (Tip: line the 1/3 cup measurer with a bit of oil so the honey slides out easily.)

Add the milk, oil, eggs, salt, and yeast to the honey-water and stir together.

The elevation and humidity of where you are will determine how much flour you need. I've found that in Utah I need about 11 cups of flour total. In California it's all 12.

Add about 6 cups of the flour and stir. Add the rest of the flour and knead it in. If the dough is too sticky, add more flour. If it's too dry, add a little milk. Knead about 5 to 10 minutes.

Once it's in a relatively cohesive mass, cover the bowl with plastic wrap and let it rise 1 and 1/2 hours. (If it's a cold day, I'll let it rise in a 100˚ oven.) Then punch it down. Then let it rise another hour.

At this point you can shape it into traditional loaves, or you can do the "snakey-braidy" thing like I usually do. Divide the dough into six equal parts and squeeze into long "snakes." On a greased pan, take three of the "snakes" and braid together. Do the same thing on another pan.

Let these rise for yet another hour.

Gas ovens cook rapidly. The newer models of electric ovens are pretty fast, too, so watch your bread carefully. Cook in a preheated 350˚ oven anywhere from 15 to 35 minutes, depending on your oven.

It should be a little golden on top. I usually gently ever-so-slightly pull apart at a "braid crease" and see if the the dough is fully cooked.

Overcooking decreases the "love," in my opinion, so just watch it carefully and you'll be fine!

When you pull it out, while it's still smokin' hot, slather the top with butter.

Serve with honey-cinnamon-butter and feel the love! Don't bother with a knife. Just pull it apart. Mmmmmmm! LOVE!!!

Sugar and Spice and Puppy Dog Tails

Hello Trick-or-Treaters!

I can’t believe it was a year ago that I had finished recording my “A Broom With A View” CD and was waiting for its printing, to get ready for sale by September 21^st. It’s amazing to me how everything was finished in time for Halloween – tracking vocals, strings, keyboards, Jamie’s guitar and bass, Brian’s cello, Micah’s drums, Molly’s meows.

But I will admit that I was rather Kamikaze about getting everything finished and out the door. I didn’t take any major breaks or vacations during the recording process (except for one Saturday where I blasted the air conditioning and slept all day long … ahhhhhhh). My back went out from the stress of the deadline last year because I had decided in February to do a full-length CD instead of another 5-track EP. Tallyho!

And I came down with pneumonia in November, which made a wasteland of my lungs until about this past March. Tallyho!

Ah, but the CD was finished. However, next time I think I need to integrate more breaks and little vacations. Like this year. I think riding in the front of a speedboat is one of my favorite things ever. I like to pretend I’m a ship’s figurehead, but inside I feel like a puppy dog with an excitedly wagging tail. It’s such a happy-making thing.

So are bonfires and quality marshmallow time. Goo can be so glorious.

Well, speaking of goo, I have some goooood news: I’m going to be in two magazines next month. I’ll announce them on facebook/twitter/myspace when they’re out.

Tallyho!

Free to Rock

Hello Trick-or-Treaters!

I realize my “Bloggy Monster” here reaches a worldwide audience, so to my dear Trick-or-Treaters in lands foreign to mine, I hope you’ll still enjoy reading as I take a moment to commemorate my nation’s independence day this past week.

I have my special “heart places” around the world – like the Vienna Woods in Austria and the Luzern Bridge in Switzerland and the Weinachtsmarkts in Germany and just about every church, cathedral, museum, and gelato stand in Italy and so many other beautiful, magical, meaningful places in other countries – but all the while I feel deeply who I am as an American. I love my country.

I am grateful to my founding fathers (and their brave wives!) who so daringly forged the country where I was born (which birth happened to be 200 years after the Declaration of Independence was signed). My personal belief is that the United States Constitution is a document inspired by God. This is a nation of religious freedom and I hold to that fervently. Through my studies of music and Halloween history I have met many people of different religions, and I respect and honor their right to practice and worship as they wish.

As a musician, I find founding father John Adams’ words especially meaningful:

“I must study politics and war that my sons may have liberty to study mathematics and philosophy. My sons ought to study mathematics and philosophy, geography, natural history, naval architecture, navigation, commerce and agriculture in order to give their children a right to study painting, poetry, music, architecture, statuary, tapestry, and porcelain.”

My gratitude and the honor I feel run more deeply than I can express.

***

And so, with said gratitude, I was able to indulge in some hearty, tasty, most excellent rock this past week. See, I used to play keyboards for my friends’ band, “Checkpoint Charley,” but as my Halloween Carols project bloomed, I simply didn’t have the time to dedicate to them anymore.

A few weeks ago I received a call from Kevin, the lead singer. I hadn’t heard from him in a while, so I didn’t know why he would be calling. After the greetings and pleasantries, he bluntly segued with, “So, have you seen ‘The Godfather III’?”

“Uh, no. I haven’t seen any of the Godfather movies.”

“Well, there’s a line from that movie that goes, ‘Just when I thought I was out, they pull me back in.’”

Right then I let out one of the deepest, lustiest belly laughs I had bellowed in a while. I knew EXACTLY why he was calling.

It turns out that Jesse, the bass player, was having a high school reunion where “Checkpoint Charley” was to play a bunch of cover songs and a few originals, but the new keyboard player couldn’t make it.

“Just get me some chord charts and program the synths for me.”

We had an epically long rehearsal this past Friday, then played on Saturday. I was so tired on Friday night. It was half past midnight and we had one more song to go over. The cool thing about pop music is that you can fake a lot of things, especially as the keyboard player, so I rested my head in my left hand and used my right hand to fiddle around with the four chords of U2’s “With or Without You” – D, A, Bm, G.

I had to learn about 30 new songs, but I just wrote notes on my chord charts. Along with U2, we played Journey, Van Halen, The Cure, The Cult, The Pretenders, Toy Dolls, Oingo Boingo, INXS, Squeeze, Def Leppard, AC/DC, Guns n’ Roses, Alphaville, Paula Abdul, Jimmy Barnes, R.E.M., Crowded House, Sting, Poison, Modern English, Simple Minds, Tears for Fears, Electric Light Orchestra, and of course a few Checkpoint Charley specials, my favorite being “Cardiac Arrest.”

Jesse found the exact Van Halen “Jump” synth sound on the keyboard. I don’t know what it was, but playing those chords with the exact sound just made me laugh and laugh. So much fun! Same thing with Oingo Boingo’s “Not My Slave” – that jazz organ sound is unmistakable and so much fun to play with the syncopated piano chords in the background. I’ve always loved that song, but playing it live made me love it even more. Such great rhythms and chords! I love you, men of Boingo.

I was in dreamy-happy land when we played The Cure’s “Just Like Heaven.” Oh, he loves her so much, doesn’t he? Such pretty melodies in there. “I’ll run away with you … I’ll run away with you …”

Alphaville’s “Forever Young” is a great song, which I’ve always loved, but the connotations to all the school dances of yore make it hysterical. I laughed as I played that trumpet part at the end. So great! So memorably comedic! So iconic!

And … sigh. I’ll say it again and again … I love playing with drummers! They are magical people.

Thanks, Kevin, Jesse, Mike, and Dave. I had a fun time! Now back to my Halloween composition world. Can you believe Halloween is so close at hand? But I’m enjoying one season at a time …

… and there is always room for the graveyard in any season. Summertime in the graveyard is divine because the sprinklers are on and I ride my bicycle through them. As I was doing just that on a recent ride, I thought of all the “sleeping dust” in the graves around me and how happy I am that it’s my turn to be alive, in my body, using it to ride my bike and feel such wonderful sensations like mists of cool water on my skin. What a gift life and body are.

I hope you all are having lovely summers! Eat succulent food. Be with family and friends. Listen to great music. Read good words. See tasty films. Be in the water! Girls, pretend you’re mermaids. Guys, pretend you’re pirates. (Hey! That would be fun to dress up as a ship’s figurehead for Halloween!)

Molly says hi. I need to brush her more often in the summer months. Her silky, black coat is in many places these days.

Oh, and I found that Godfather line on YouTube:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fvzdehnJA9k&feature=related

Jack o' My-Baby-I-Love-You-So-Much

I just ate a pumpkin cookie. Are pumpkin cookies ever out of season? The correct answer is “no.”

And I’m feeling the need to carve a jack o’ lantern. Are jack o’ lanterns ever out of season? The correct answer is “well, it depends on what you’re carving.”

I don’t often make art out of tangible things (except for food … I will frankly admit that I make rockin’, from-scratch pasta sauces and killer salads and lovely whole-wheat bread … I love meat, but haven’t mastered it yet … however, I do make a quick, tasty chicken tender with olive oil and white wine … many of you know that I don’t drink, but oh, my goodness, how wine does amazing things when cooked with!!!) …

… and wow, that was some fun parentheses action, but to continue …

But when pumpkins aren’t in season, sometimes one must make a melon o’ lantern (except when you save a pumpkin on top of your fridge from October to your friend’s birthday in May when she turns 31 – the magical “Halloween Birthday” for which one NEEDS a pumpkin carved with a big “31”) …

… and that was another fun bit of parentheses, but onward. MUSH!!! …

I remember the first time I made a melon o’ lantern back in college. I saw that honeydew sitting on the counter, and it looked like such a nice noggin. Such a nice, little noggin.

It made the prettiest green glow after I carved a face into it and put a candle in its brains. Light green, radiant, iridescent. I stood in a dark hallway and held it in front of a mirror. It was a surreal scene of chiaroscuro. Ah, my beloved chiaroscuro.

I also once made a watermelon o’ lantern for a July luau. Very totem pole-y. Aren’t fiery faces alluring? They add such mystique to an atmosphere.

Jack o’ lanterns have been on the mind lately because I pulled out my jack o’ lantern carol to spruce up and get ready for recording. This was the fifth Halloween Carol I wrote, back in 2004. I had only written one verse, so I just added five more verses in the past few days.

I’ve reviewed my studies of the jack o’ lantern to write these lyrics – its history is fascinating! The tradition originally comes from Ireland, but they carved turnips and beets, not pumpkins. So the glows were purple, not orange – so different from what Americans are used to! They tied strings to these turnip lanterns and carried them or hung them.

There are several other names by which a jack o’ lantern is known – Lantern Men, Kitty-candlestick, Peg-a-lantern, Hob-with-a-lantern, and others. My favorite is “Spunky.”

This tradition came across the Atlantic most noticeably during the terrible potato famine of Ireland. Once on new shores, the old ways were adapted, and apparently the Irish found the pumpkin a much more suitable vessel for carving.

I was thinking about that … wishing I could time-travel back to the very moment when the idea was first had to carve a pumpkin instead of a turnip. Who was it? Or what group of people? I’ll bet it was amusing. Was it a farmer? Did he take a pumpkin back to his home that night and try it out with his family by the hearth light? Was it a little boy or little girl who first thought of it? Was it a courting couple who were taking a stroll through an outdoor market, then happened to pass by some pumpkins and joke with each other about the idea? (… because Halloween was originally associated with romance … something lost on modern tradition, unfortunately … something I’d like to have a little part in bringing back!)

“Jack o’ lantern” was also the name given to mysterious, floating lights around swamps and bogs. Also known as “will o’ the wisp” or “teine sith” (fairy light), it turns out that this is a natural phenomenon known as “ignis fatuus” (foolish fire or false fire), formed from decaying natural matter. Around cemeteries, these occurrences were called “Corpse Candles.” Some people believed they were the souls of the dead, or unbaptized infants, or even goblins released from the dead.

Isn’t that FASCINATING?

And it doesn’t end there.

In the early American South, these enigmatic, hovering lights were called “jack-ma-lanterns” or “jacky-my-lanterns.” It was believed dangerous to encounter one, and even more dangerous to follow one. The superstitions to protect oneself in the event of encountering a jack-ma-lantern included turning one’s coat pockets inside out or stabbing a knife into the ground (interestingly of English and Scottish origin, respectively). Some, believing these lights to have been created by witches, would say, “In the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, drive these witches away with their evil jack-ma-lanterns.” Or they would quickly hurl themselves to the ground, shut their eyes, plug their ears, and hold their breath.

There are also tales of Jack, a persnickety, old curmudgeon, who played tricks on the Devil. Upon dying, he wasn’t accepted by St. Peter or even the Devil. But Satan did give him a lump of Hell’s coal which Jack put in a lantern, then wandered the earth, a lost soul. Or tales of Billy (Will) Dawson, whose inebriation caused his nose to become flammable, and then, in a fight, got seared with hot tongs which made his face catch on fire, fueled by facial hair. Now he is still seen going about the wetter parts of the land, trying to put out the fire.

There is so much more to this history, so many variants on these tales. And much information online and in books. With books, I recommend Lesley Bannatyne, Jack Santino, and Lisa Morton.

One other little tidbit I’d like to share is the partly related custom of “lanterns of the dead.” The use of a lantern, the use of light interests me. It’s very telling that the pranksters in Ireland used a lantern, but a spooky, “corrupt” one, to scare friends and neighbors on Halloween because lanterns were originally used to ward off evil. It’s that “turning-the-world-upside-down-for-a-night” thing that Halloween revolves around. I’ll quote straight from Lesley’s book, Halloween: An American Holiday, An American History, in the endnotes on page 96:

“Irish people believed goblins and fairies took the place of souls of the dead on Halloween and were set free to terrorize humans. Special precautions were taken on that night to prevent harm, such as stone lighthouses (‘lanterns of the dead’) lit to give protection against malicious ghosts on All Hallows Eve. After the establishment of the Church in Celtic lands, prayer was added as protection against the night. Men in Great Britain assembled in a field at midnight on Halloween and held high a torch of burning straw while they prayed for the souls of their departed friends. On some old farms in northern England these fields are called ‘purgatory fields.’”

Such a rich melting pot of history this holiday is, no?

So, with my jack o’ lantern carol, I was recently on a bike ride, thinking of how I might arrange it. To conceive ideas, I try to just relax my brain and feel out the spirit of a tune. Ask it. Wait for it to tell me. I never bicycle or go running with an iPod – must keep the mind clear! So, as I was pumping pedals up a mountain, the feeling of acoustic guitar came to me. It felt good, but then I fought it a little bit. I thought, No! Let’s make it big! Let’s rock it with massive pipe organ and heavy strings or something!

But no, this little jack o’ lantern spirit steadily whispered acoustic guitar and soft organ to me. It wants to focus on the intimacy of carving its little soul. Enjoying the flickering candle, not the monstrous bonfire. Halloween gives a time and place for both. I’ve already recorded a heavy bonfire song (“Souling Song – Samhain Version”), so now it’s time for a mysterious, mellow, flickering candlelight song.

My new recordings will still be a while yet, but I’m deep in arranging mode, preparing them for you! I can’t wait to share this one with you. Perfect music for turning out the lights, lighting a candle inside a jack o’ lantern, and letting its lovely spirit seep deeply into your bones.

Announcing Kristen's Trick-or-Treater Street Team

Hello Trick-or-Treaters!

I want to say thank you. THANK YOU, my dear, darling Trick-or-Treaters. I have received such nice emails from many of you, and I appreciate your kind words and your support.

Some of you have asked me how you can help spread the word of my Halloween Carols. I’m delighted and grateful! Because I’m my own record label – Vörswell Music – I need to sell pumpkin heaps of CDs (and/or get my songs licensed for TV or film … oooh la la!) before I can record my next CD.

So, I hereby announce to those interested:

Kristen Lawrence’s Porch-to-Porch Trick-or-Treater Street Team

– Sharing Her Halloween Carols –

And I shall call you my …

P.U.M.P.K.I.N.S.

– Porchgoers Under Masks Promoting Kristen’s Intriguing New Sound –

The beauty of this street team is that you don’t have to sign up to be official. If you want to be one of the PUMPKINS, you are!

How to help:

- Tell friends in person. Tell friends through email. Send out an email to your good friends, and if they like my music, ask them to tell their friends, and their friends, and their friends. You can link to my YouTube channel: http://www.youtube.com/VorswellMusic

- Find stores, shops, and boutiques in your area where my CDs would fit in. Tell the manager why you like my music, that it is growing in popularity around the world, and that they would probably get sales if they play it in their store during September/October. If they want to sell it, they can contact me through my website: http://HalloweenCarols.com

- And any other ideas that you creative souls come up with! I’m sure many of you are connected to event organizers, teachers, dance instructors, journalists, popular bloggers, theme parks, pumpkin patch owners, radio/TV stations, filmmakers, and other influential people. Slip them some of my “ear candy” – let’s see if they would like to incorporate it!

Why so early? Why right now?

Right now is the time to get Halloween merchandise arrangements settled with shops. Most stores are buying or have already bought what they will sell this Halloween. But even if a store has already made its purchases, there is nothing like persuasive enthusiasm! Tell them what this music does to your ears! Tell them why you like it so much! Tell them it will sell if people can hear it!

I’ve been contacting local and nationwide stores, but don’t worry if you duplicate my efforts – it will only help!

I’ve contacted Grandin Road, hoping to be included in their “Halloween Haven” catalogue. This company has ties with Martha Stewart and all of the more elegant Halloween décor she promotes, so I’m crossing my fingers extra twisty on this one. If you or someone you know has ties to Grandin Road or Martha Stewart, I’d be very grateful for any “greasing of the pathway.”

I’ve contacted Victorian Trading Company as well. They sell lovely items there as well as Lesley Bannatyne’s books (my Halloween heroine)! Crossing fingers and skulls!

I’m hoping to find a way to be a “Starbucks Pick of the Week” this October. I talked with a Starbucks dude (thanks, Peter!) who was very helpful, but alas, iTunes is in charge of those picks. iTunes is a different creature to try to get a hold of. Any connections or ideas, please do send them my way!

And there are lots of other connections I’m in the middle of making. I’m so grateful to be making music today when we have the glorious internet. I’m so glad that I don’t have to sell my soul to a record company. I want to deliver my music 100% pure to you!

Thank you again, my Trick-or-Treaters throughout the world! It’s lovely to hear from so many of you. FYI, I do most of my conversing on facebook, so if you aren’t already on my page, come share “candy” on my “porch” with all the other masquerading souls: http://www.facebook.com/HalloweenCarols

And for those who want to be PUMPKINS, be my PUMPKINS and know that I deeply appreciate you! You are helping me give you more music!

Go to, you wonderful PUMPKINS!

Curl and swirl

Your lithe, little tendrils,

Oh, my PUMPKINS fair.

Reach into

Those dark, hidden corners

To my music share.

Carve atop

Your brains, mighty PUMPKINS!

Open minds and aught.

Dig out what

You dig, darling PUMPKINS!

Show your seeds of thought.

Etch and shape

Your ears and your eyes so

Music comes to sight.

And a smile

Engrave, lovely PUMPKINS!

Share your glowing light.

Birthday Trifle and Other Feasty Treats

Hello Trick-or-Treaters!

As promised, I will commence this blog entry using effulgently descriptive language over the culinary matter of a trifle. No, not a trifling matter. A trifle. My special Birthday Trifle. Glorious, rich, heady, painfully delicious Birthday Trifle.

But this lovely trifle is no respecter of birthdays. It would gladly and graciously enhance yours … as it did mine earlier this month. And mine really needed it, because my body decided to become terribly ill on said birthday. To use popular internet language – “Epic Birthday FAIL.” (I thought I had paid my dues for a while with pneumonia this past December, but apparently not. Boo.)

Luckily I had celebrated the weekend before with my sweet friends (and prepared Birthday Trifle for the party). We had a make-your-own-grilled-cheese-sandwich dinner with tomato soup. So much fun. Five different kinds of cheese. Three different breads. And we even had tomatoes and bacon. My favorite combinations were Jarlsberg/bacon/tomato, brie/boysenberry jam (put jam on after grilling, bite by bite), and just plain Dubliner (brilliant Dubliner).

And now for dessert. I invented Birthday Trifle out of some very deep flavor needs – those culinary needs that go beyond mere taste buds, and when met, go up into the brain and its synapses, then down into the limbs, fingers, and toes, making the spirit dance and shiver. I love classic English trifle – layers of lemon cake, vanilla pudding, and fresh berries, topped with whipped cream and more berries – but I have such a love for heavy, rich, intense flavors that I decided to put what I love in layered form: namely, chocolate, cream, and pistachios.

Pistachio ice cream has got to be one of the best things ever designed for the human tongue. And so, its cousin, pistachio pudding, becomes the trifle-equivalent ingredient. Bring in the eternal magic of brownies, and Birthday Trifle starts to come together. Here’s what to put in a trifle dish, layer by layer:

- brownies (undercooked a little bit, of course)

- chocolate sauce (chocolate chips or any dark chocolate melted in whole milk or cream in a double boiler)

- pistachio pudding (made with cream instead of milk so it’s thicker, whipped with a bit of almond extract)

- whipped cream (whipped with a bit of rum extract but no sugar, whipped longer than normal so it’s thick)

- after all the layers are in, ending with whipped cream, finely grate dark chocolate (even 100% if you have it) over the entire top (optional – design a spiral of pistachios on top, too)

One bite, and it nearly forces you to close your eyes in reverence. I always make it the day before, cover with plastic wrap, and refrigerate overnight (the dark chocolate shavings keep the plastic from sticking to the whipped cream).

I’ve been off of refined sugar for the past few months, but I had to meld my soul to Birthday Trifle for my special week! (Er, ahem, yes … week.) I’m back off of sugar now for a little while longer – kind of like spring cleaning for the body. But I’m a fervent Trick-or-Treater, so there will always be chocolate in my life.

And for my fellow fervent Trick-or-Treaters, you might like to know that I wrote two new carols this week. I have a large collection of carols already written from which I’m selecting for the next CD, but this CD wanted a couple of new personalities to get the mix just right, so my artistic womb gave birth. They must be fraternal twins because they are nothing alike. Now to arrange them.

It’s really amazing how the personality of each carol will tell me what it wants – harpsichord, guitar, triangle, slapping, etc. Sometimes I need to coax the information from them, and sometimes it’s shouted at me, but they always let me know.

I really like being in writing mode. It’s delicious to tick away and scribble for hours with a pencil, figuring out the best turns and motions of the notes, fitting them together – like coming up with a music recipe. The hard thing is to choose between multiple good ideas – this chord or that chord here, this melodic motion or that, steak or shrimp, cinnamon or saffron? Sometimes there is room for both. Sometimes not.

So, I guess we could say I’m in the “kitchen” right now – measuring, slicing, whipping, squeezing – preparing everything for the “oven” (recording).

You know how it is when you set out to prepare a special feast. All your fresh, beautiful ingredients are laid out. You work with them. Sometimes your back and feet hurt, but the love of food and sharing it keeps you going. You put the mixtures on the stove, grill, or in the oven. The cooking starts off slowly, but then you know it’s almost done when aromas start filling the house (and hopefully not the sound of the smoke alarm). You pull it out and put it on pretty dishes.

What usually happens when we taste something good? We immediately want to share it with someone. If someone is taking a bite at the same time you are, you revel in the flavors together. I’m looking forward so much to sharing this next batch of Halloween Carols with you. It will be a while yet, but in the meantime, you’re allowed to snack on other music.

Food and music. Physical and spiritual. Which is necessary for which? Well, that’s a discussion for another time.

Treat-or-treat! (I don’t want any tricks to befall you. Not yet.)

Dancing Skulls

Hello Trick-or-Treaters!

I’m currently cringing because I’m watching the Olympic women’s downhill skiing. Eeeeesh. It’s funny – I watch it, hoping to enjoy it … and I do … mostly … but ai yai yai, sometimes I just cringe and feel so sad for those who are bombing out.

And snow injuries always make me shudder more than other injuries. I bombed out on the snow in a major way when I was 13 years old. I was sledding with my sister, Stephanie, on one of those saucer-shaped sleds. We were going very fast downhill, spinning out of control … and my memory is now blocked out – I don’t remember the trees.

My sister was OK, just landing in some shrubs. I, however, was the lucky chosen one to hit my head on a very thick tree trunk and fly about 30 feet (friends present said it was one of the sickest sounds they’d ever heard). X-rays later showed that my skull cracked like an eggshell. I was bleeding out of one ear – a basal skull fracture. I am very, very fortunate that I am alive and all right in the brain.

My mom says that music healed me. I had a hard time focusing after the accident, had impact nightmares/anxiety, and was generally scatter-brained, but I practiced the piano and organ over the following weeks and months, and she noticed that doing so “set” my brain back where it ought to be. The power of music. It’s real.

As for what I’m currently working on in music, yes, I’m in the middle of arranging my next batch of Halloween Carols™ (getting so many new ideas for more), but I’m also simply practicing the organ – must keep Bach’s “Toccata and Fugue in D minor” in my chops! And I’m having a sensational blast learning Saint-Saëns’ “Danse Macabre” transcribed for organ by Lemare:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HhsGpNE4abY

I remember listening to this as a child and finding it so hypnotizing and mesmerizing. It made me do little waltzes until I was dizzy. And as an adult, it still makes my head swirl.

And you know what else is making my head swirl? Alice in Wonderland is almost out! It comes out the week of my birthday, so of course I’m having a tea party and will be watching it. No Un-Birthday for me!

I’m looking forward to hearing Danny Elfman’s score. And where Danny is, we can almost always count on his right-hand man, Steve Bartek, to be working on the score with him. Steve does a lot of the orchestrating for Danny’s scores … so I love them both. Magical musical men! Steve was the guitarist for Oingo Boingo, and I’ve always loved his on-stage personality – you can see how obviously skilled he is, but he just focuses on doing his thing, totally confident and content while letting Danny present the drama. Makes for a successful performance. Such a pair! And kudos to each one individually.

Happy Wonderlanding, my dear Trick-or-Treaters. I hope your skulls, too, will dance about while lovely madness dances within.

(And stay tuned for my next blog, where I will discuss “Birthday Trifle” – a maddeningly succulent, gloriously caloric, opulently layered, lavishly chocolate-y, desperately pistachio-y, savagely whipped-creamy affair.)

Monster Eyes, NAMM, and Blood Beats

Hello Trick-or-Treaters!

I almost turned into a one-eyed Corpse Bride a few days ago. Well, at least it felt like that. But I have since learned that hydrogen peroxide will not melt one’s eyes out.

I woke up and was getting ready to go out for a run. I wasn’t completely awake, and while putting my contact lenses in, instead of reaching for the saline solution, I reached for the hydrogen peroxide cleaning solution. Once my left contact reached my eye, I knew immediately what I had done. And I heard a terrible sizzling sound.

AAAAAAAAAACK! As I violently stuck my face in the sink and slapped water into my ocular area, I had visions of my eye bubbling up and dissolving. A mini zombie flick, right there in my bathroom.

But my eye didn’t bubble up and dissolve. However, it has been very angry at me for the past few days. I’ve had this little monster eye. Bright red. And because my eyes are green, with the principles of complementary colors (red vs. green), the colors have looked very exaggerated. Grrr, monster.

Fun. I’m just glad that I can see.

Well, in the world of music, I went to NAMM about a little bit ago (Jan 14 – 16). Ah, what a glorious gathering. Once a year, the Anaheim convention center (which is city blocks long and three stories high) fills to the brim with every sort of music company you can think of. It feels so good to walk around and take it all in, just being around music-minded people.

I had the pleasure of meeting the president and the district manager for Allen Organs – Steven Markowitz and Joel Hurley. I’ve played on many Allens and like them quite a bit. I also met Franco Luzi of Viscount Organs. I was really impressed with the touch of its keyboard – very tracker-organ-like. It’s a lovely instrument – perhaps to record on someday …

In chatting with Franco, I gave him my CDs and asked him if he had seen any Halloween happenings back in Italy. He said that Halloween has just barely started up over there, that his 18-year-old daughter went to a Halloween party just this past October. I asked him about trick-or-treating and he said it started up maybe 2 or 3 years ago. And here I’m getting all excited and fascinated about this – like little giggly creatures silently bubbling up inside my head.

How did the children know about trick-or-treating? Through American movies, said Franco. And did the neighborhood people at each doorstep know what to do? He said many of them did not and the children had to teach them what to do. So, the next year they were prepared. Ha! Isn’t that great?

He said that of course Italians celebrated November 1 and 2 (All Saints’ and All Souls’ Days), but that just recently the Italian government declared it no longer a government holiday. Franco said the people still celebrate those days, but they don’t have work off like they used to. Boo.

I wish that Oct. 31, Nov. 1, Nov. 2 were official government holidays here in the U.S. October 31^st is a crazy/fun night, and November 1 & 2 are days to reflect on life and think about our ancestors and our posterity. I truly believe that how we think about death fashions our character in life. There’s a time to make fun of death and laugh at it (Oct. 31), and then there’s a time to be solemn, pensive, and have peace about it (Nov. 1 & 2).

So, after I talked with these organ companies at NAMM, I headed over to Fender. Sigh. I have a beautiful Martin guitar that a friend hooked me up with, but it turns my fingertips to pulp (because I’m still learning and am slow with getting the chord positions solid). I want to save up and buy a really nice electric guitar. My good friend, Ian Fowles (many of you might know him through The Aquabats! and Further Seems Forever – a most excellent player) let me try out the action on his Gibson and I loved it! It doesn’t hurt my fingers! So … I will acquire one such beauty someday soon and have a ball.

I was able to attend NAMM because my good friend, Kevin, works at Ludwig Drums and gave me a pass. So, he introduced me to some nice, Ludwig-endorsed drummers. I chatted with Mario Calire of Ozomatli – very nice guy. I gave him my CD and he asked if his kids would like it. Absolutely. It’s for all ages. I also had the pleasure of meeting Jon “Bermuda” Schwartz, the drummer for Weird Al Yankovic. Again, very nice guy. Such nice drummer boys! We chatted for a while about virtual drums and recording programs. I’ve been especially interested in this since working with Micah Anderson and the program Reason for my Samhain song.

I also met Jeff Friedl of ASHES dIVIDE and Puscifer. We discovered a mutual soft spot for cats and Halloween. He showed me his iPhone screensaver – a picture of his two beautiful Burmese kitties. Ah, now there’s a musician – rocks hard on the outside with pure kitty-loving tenderness on the inside. Good music is guaranteed. I liked him – I felt a nice friendshippy connection. Maybe we’ll work on a cat song someday (hang on! ding, ding, ding! I already have another cat song written that needs jazz drums … hmmmmmm ….). I love meeting fellow cat people. I met a fellow runner/fast walker yesterday who was being followed by a beautiful orange-and-white stripped cat. We stopped and petted it and chatted. Instant understanding between cat people.

Outside of the Ludwig group, there was one drummer I wanted to meet. I was told he was somewhere around NAMM. And I chased him down. Hunted, more like it. Vatos. Johnny “Vatos” Hernandez. The drummer for my favorite band, Oingo Boingo (now disbanded). I told him I’d been a fan since I was 10 years old. We bantered for a while. I told him I’m a pipe organist who writes Halloween music and gave him my CDs. He told me that he does Halloween concerts at Magic Mountain and other places and might give me a call for this year’s concert. Now, wouldn’t that be neat? Why, yes. Yes, it would. So, we shall see.

Why did I meet so many drummers and not keyboardists? I don’t know. It just happened that way. When I’ve played live with bands, I must say that the most thrilling part for me was to be playing with drums. Totally electrifying. Really. Electrifying down to my toes and fingertips. Those beats get into my blood and move me like I can’t explain. Purr! See, I’m used to playing for funerals, church services, and weddings – not a lot of drum action. Although, I did play a gig for a modern worship service with drums and guitar. That was interesting.

And I played a Spanish wedding mass with a mariachi band – that was cool. We weren’t slotted to play together, but they were up in the loft with me and I invited them to play Wagner’s wedding march with me. Why not? I usually play it in B-flat, and they said in their awesome accents, “Can you play it in the key of C?” Brilliant.

Well, my dear Trick-or-Treaters, it’s been fun. I hope I’ve filled your satchels up with a lot of good candy. Enjoy your munchings. And please, don’t put hydrogen peroxide in your eyes.