What I'm doing now

Finished scoring "Attributes" for MELISANDE (which took nearly two months).

Scored "The Test" for MELISANDE (this one only took five hours over four days, it was a reprise).

Began scoring "I Know" for MELISANDE.

Completed one assignment for Dwell.

Taught four piano students and five voice students.

Began a developmental editing project with a new writer. It's been over a year since I last helped a writer revise a novel, and I was surprised at how much I missed it (and how much fun it is).

Continued serving as organist for the Quincy Unitarian Church.

Performed OVER THE PIANO AND OTHER SONGS OF LOVE with Larry and five other vocalists at the Unitarian Church's Candlelight Dinner and Cabaret (I also accompanied several of the singers and scripted/directed the production).

Began rehearsing new material with the Eventide Singers.

Continued Andrew Byrne's "Singing Athlete" method.

Continued Bruce Pandolfini's "Solitaire Chess."

Continued studying the Brahms Rhapsodies, Op. 79.

Began studying the John Duke Triptych (three songs based on poems by Edwin Arlington Robinson: "Richard Cory," "Luke Havergal," and "Miniver Cheevy"), singing and accompanying myself at the piano.

Began reading Emerson's essays, after reading Rough-Hewn by Dorothy Canfield Fisher (the prequel/sequel to The Brimming Cup) and learning how important they were to her husband's intellectual and philosophical development. Emerson led me to Uncle Tom's Cabin, which I'd never read, and to Friedrich Wieck's Piano and Song: How to Teach, How to Learn, and How to Form a Judgment of Musical Performances.

I haven't finished Emerson yet – not by half, especially since I stopped to read two other books in between, and a friend told me I should read every Emerson essay at least twice – but I'm going to pause just long enough for Helen DeWitt and Ilya Gridneff's Your Name Here because I just got a library copy.

The current quote on our blackboard is from Wieck: "Three trifles are essential for a good piano or singing-teacher: the finest taste, the deepest feeling, the most delicate ear, and, in addition, the requisite knowledge, energy, and some practice."

Continued scoring "Attributes" for MELISANDE Act II. (This is the big Act II ensemble number [with a diegetic dance break] and the sequence is about eight minutes long.)

Taught four piano students and five voice students.

Continued serving as organist for the Quincy Unitarian Church, including a "Carols & Cocoa" service on Christmas Eve.

Continued preparing OVER THE PIANO AND OTHER SONGS OF LOVE, a candlelight dinner and cabaret to be held at the Unitarian Church in January.

Performed multiple holiday concerts with the Eventide Singers.

Continued Andrew Byrne's "Singing Athlete" method.

Got back into classical chess study and classical piano study. Am using Bruce Pandolfini's "Solitaire Chess" for the former and the two Brahms Rhapsodies for the latter (obviously only the second rhapsody at the moment, since that's the one I know, but soon soon soon I'll start learning the first one).

Finished reading the Federalist Papers. Read Dorothy Canfield Fisher's The Brimming Cup and then read it again so I could take notes. It's the best book I've read this year, and I did keep track of all of the books I read this year, because it's such a remarkable distillation of a necessary and fundamental philosophy.

Then I read Sinclair Lewis's Main Street because The Brimming Cup was the second-best-selling book of 1921 and Main Street was the best-selling, and it's actually worth reading them both back-to-back because one is literally about truth and the other literally about falsehood, but The Brimming Cup is the one you'll remember.

Current quote on our blackboard: "If your standards are consistent, there must needs be more you can learn," which is something I said (and, more specifically, realized) when we were talking with friends a few weeks ago.

Revised "Entr'acte," "To Grow," "Knowing Something New," and "For You (Reprise)" for MELISANDE Act II.

Began scoring "Attributes" for MELISANDE Act II.

Taught four piano students and three voice students.

Continued serving as organist for the Quincy Unitarian Church.

Began preparing OVER THE PIANO AND OTHER SONGS OF LOVE, a candlelight dinner and cabaret to be held at the Unitarian Church in January.

Continued rehearsing holiday material with the Eventide Singers.

Continued Andrew Byrne's "Singing Athlete" method.

Continued revising MELISANDE Act I.

Completed one assignment for Dwell.

Taught four piano students and four voice students.

Continued serving as organist for the Quincy Unitarian Church.

Completed work as musical director for DIARY OF A WIMPY KID at Quincy Community Theatre.

Began rehearsing holiday material with the Eventide Singers.

Continued Andrew Byrne's "Singing Athlete" method.

Began revising MELISANDE Act I and transferring files from Finale to Dorico.

Completed two assignments for Bankrate.

Taught three piano students and two voice students.

Began serving as organist for the Quincy Unitarian Church (returning after the summer break)

Continued serving as musical director for DIARY OF A WIMPY KID at Quincy Community Theatre.

Continued Andrew Byrne's "Singing Athlete" method.

Scored "Every Time We Tell" for MELISANDE.

Completed four assignments for Bankrate.

Taught two piano students and one voice student.

Began serving as musical director for DIARY OF A WIMPY KID at Quincy Community Theatre.

Continued studying Andrew Byrne's "Singing Athlete" method.

Received a decline letter from the State of Illinois regarding the Creative Accelerator Fund application I completed (for MELISANDE) in April. As before, participants were chosen by lottery so this isn't a reflection on my project or its possibilities.

Scored "For You (Reprise)" for MELISANDE.

Completed five assignments for Bankrate, one for Dwell, and one for Vox.

Taught two piano students.

Taught a four-week "Acting the Song" class at Quincy Community Theatre. Scripted and directed the cabaret at the end of the class, sharing accompanist duties with Larry. Performed "A Summer in Ohio" as a solo and "Move On" with Patrick Regner.

Served as Advanced Training Vocal Director for QCT's Triple Threat Boot Camp OVATION, a week-long day camp for theatre students that culminated in a fully staged production of Disney's DARE TO DREAM JR.

Continued studying Andrew Byrne's "Singing Athlete" method.

Scored "Knowing Something New" for MELISANDE.

Completed four assignments for Bankrate.

Taught two piano students.

Gave student tours at the Quincy Community Theatre.

Continued preparing for summer classes at QCT.

Directed John Holleman's LOCKER ROOM TALK for the QCT Playwriting Festival.

Continued serving as organist for the Quincy Unitarian Church; played Debussy's Petite Suite with Larry during the last service before summer break.

Began studying Andrew Byrne's "Singing Athlete" method.

Completed eight assignments for Bankrate and two for Dwell.

Assisted Larry as he prepared a recital with violinist Sebastian Manning.

Played memorial services for Claire Dittmer Myers and Jim Burns.

Taught two piano students.

Taught Fun Day classes with the Quincy Community Theatre.

Began the process of directing John Holleman's LOCKER ROOM TALK for the QCT Playwriting Festival.

Accompanied JERSEY BOYS auditions at QCT.

Continued serving as organist for the Quincy Unitarian Church.

Scored "To Grow" for MELISANDE.

Finished drafting the second act of MELISANDE.

Submitted an Illinois Creative Accelerator Fund grant proposal to fund MELISANDE.

Completed three assignments for Bankrate and two for Dwell.

Taught two piano students.

Began preparing for summer classes at the Quincy Community Theatre.

Had a play accepted as part of the upcoming Quincy Community Theatre Playwriting Festival.

Continued serving as organist for the Quincy Unitarian Church.

Scored the Entr'acte for MELISANDE.

Began writing and composing the second act of MELISANDE.

Worked two MELISANDE numbers with actors, to see if they worked.

Completed six assignments for Bankrate.

Taught two piano students.

Continued accompanying the Quincy Symphony Chorus through their spring concert.

Continued serving as organist for the Quincy Unitarian Church. Prepared and arranged selections from Dave Malloy's THREE HOUSES on the fifth anniversary of the first pandemic lockdown; prepared an all-Debussy set with Larry including four-hand piano; prepared an all-Schubert set that included a vocal performance of "The Trout" with an updated English translation; prepared a duet with a local violinist.

Reworked the overture for MELISANDE.

Scored "Tea Sequence" (the end-of-act number) for MELISANDE.

Completed one freelance assignment for Vox and one for Bankrate.

Taught two piano students.

Continued accompanying the Quincy Symphony Chorus.

Served as rehearsal accompanist for WAITRESS.

Co-taught (with Larry) a second session of "Acting the Song."

Continued serving as organist for the Unitarian Church.

Received a decline letter from the State of Illinois regarding the Creative Accelerator Fund application I completed (for MELISANDE) in October. Participants were chosen by lottery so this isn't a reflection on my project or its possibilities.

Scored "Exponential" and "Enter the Princes" for MELISANDE.

Did a first (unsatisfactory) pass at the overture for MELISANDE.

Completed one assignment for Bankrate.

Began accompanying the Quincy Symphony Chorus.

Played the auditions for the Quincy Community Theater production of WAITRESS, was asked to continue on as rehearsal accompanist.

Continued serving as organist for the Unitarian Church.

Prepared the first movement of Ravel's Sonatine, performed at the Unitarian Church.

Scored "I Want" for MELISANDE.

Completed one assignment for Dwell, two assignments for Vox, and one spec assignment that could turn into a monthly column.

Taught two piano students.

Performed three holiday concerts with the Eventide Singers.

Served as music technician for Quincy Community Theatre's production of CINDERELLA.

Served as organist for the Unitarian Church.

Composed a holiday medley for solo piano to play at the Unitarian Church on Christmas Eve.

Scored "To a Fairy Godmother" for MELISANDE.

Completed two assignments for Bankrate and one for Vox.

Taught two piano students.

Accompanied a four-week audition class at Quincy Community Theatre.

Co-taught (with Larry) a four-week "Acting the Song" class at Quincy Community Theatre. Scripted and directed the cabaret at the end of the class. Performed "Now/Later/Soon" with Larry and Patrick Regner during the cabaret.

Served as music technician for Quincy Community Theatre's production of CINDERELLA.

Served as organist at the Unitarian Church.

Scored "Like You" for MELISANDE.

Applied to the Illinois Creative Accelerator Fund to support MELISANDE.

Completed four assignments for Bankrate, one for Dwell, and one for Vox.

Taught two piano students.

Accompanied auditions for SIX at Quincy Community Theatre.

Began preparing for organist responsibilities at the Unitarian Church.