Start a discussion on Alaska, and people think of glaciers, cold, Eskimos, the gold rush and the oil spill. While it is all of those things, the culture embodies so much more. How Alaskans transform their experiences in this environment into works of art is...
Read MoreFAIRBANKS 7/20 Yesterday we worked like ground squirrels preparing for winter, only we were preparing our pieces. Today, we met at the Museum of the North. 2013 is the 100 year anniversary of the first successful ascent of Mt. McKinnley. A special exhibition highlights the journey. I...
Read MorePART 2- YUKON CHARLEY 7/14 Our long travel day suddenly became much shorter when we learned that a flood will necessitate our flying to Yukon Charley Rivers National Preserve instead of driving and boating to the park. A chartered 10-seater whisks us up over the Alaska...
Read MorePART 1- DENALI 7/9 I am back in Alaska with nine other composers to explore Denali National Park and Yukon Charley Rivers National Preserve as park of a joint venture with the Fairbanks Summer Arts Festival and Alaska Geographic. It is tremendously exciting to get a...
Read MoreWater is thematically defining my work this year. Hiking and rafting the Rogue River inspired a horn trio. Later this summer, I will travel to Alaska to explore the Yukon and Charley Rivers Preserve in Alaska, and in the fall explore the history and culture...
Read MoreIn my migratory move across the country, my personal Oregon Trail so to speak, I’ve immersed myself into each place encountered, observing the obvious, listening to each place’s unique sounds, and trying to absorb as much as possible about the geology, history, culture, human stories...
Read MoreHave you been to the state of Jefferson? Have you even heard of Jefferson? Its topography spans a rugged shoreline, mountain highlands, and high desert. Some of the tallest and oldest trees on continent hug its coast, wild and scenic rivers – important watersheds -...
Read MoreI’m equally an explorer and composer – I explore through musical means, and I compose through exploring the world around me. Studying the landscape, its formation and evolution, the impact of human history and how people through time, their beliefs, customs and values blend to...
Read MoreThe Black Hills first registered in my mind as a special place when someone other than my mother gave me one of my very first pieces of jewelry - a tricolored gold ring that I cherished until I lost it about 10 years ago. My...
Read MoreOur mantra on this month-long cross country adventure was “there are no wrong decisions, only different ones”. We had planned to spend a two to three days in southeastern Wyoming exploring Cheyenne, and Medicine Bow National Forest, but a tire problem in Utah ate up...
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