QQN News

QQN News - February 2004

Dear Readers,

It’s been a fascinating January here in south central British Columbia in Canada. We’ve gone from –30 C to spring thaw and back again, and there’s snow, lots of it this year which will be good for the water table this coming summer.

Asha (Hope)

CD - Asha (Hope) by Rosemary Phillips

So, it’s been a good month for writing and doing special projects. The most important project for me has been doing the recording of Asha (Hope) - follow this link for audio sample - at John Vere’s recording studio on top of a mountain. It was a beautiful place for such a project, very inspiring as I made my way through a new fall of snow up an unplowed mountain road to get there.

With the greatest challenge behind me, meaning the snow, I focussed on the recording and in just 1½ hours we had the song down (no frills or technical effects – just voice, guitar and mic). It’s human, simple, and yet the best I have done.

Lyrics to songs Asha, One Seed, Stuff and Old Old Tree

I was recently asked if I wrote lyrics. Well, yes I do. And to help show a cross section of those lyrics we have now included a Lyrics page for those songs that are most frequently visited on this web site, or searched for.

Asha (Hope) is to me the most powerful song I have written to date, and when you read the lyrics you will understand why. It is a song calling for world harmony and peace. It was first performed for the USCC (Doukhobor) community for a youth concert and then as the opening song for the first Festival of Freedom at the Forks during the raising of the Pole of Hope.

David Jalbert

David Jalbert pianist, new recording

Meanwhile, Endeavour Classics sent me pianist David Jalbert’s recently released CD of music by Corigliano and Rzewski. It’s new music, new classical music. David is certainly a very gifted and talented pianist - a rising star and master of his instrument. I say this because this music definitely requires a great deal of technical skill. I recommend you give it a listen. Included on the QQN web site this month is a Review of the CD.

Calvin Dyck

The Golden Violin

I took in a performance of The Golden Violin and couldn’t resist writing about it (see Review). Calvin Dyck and Betty Suderman have developed a show that brings classical music to a general audience in a way that is fun, educational and full of warmth.
And to cheer up a rather cold and wintry January we used a unique way of promoting the show – inviting folk to wear a hat – you see, Calvin is into hats. It was great fun!

The Tiller’s Folly

Songs about pirates, railways, gold rushes and unrequited love – introducing The Tiller’s Folly. It’s great music – Pacific Maritime music - performed by incredibly talented and experienced musicians Bruce Coughlan, Laurence Knight, Nolan Murray and Eric Reed. Talking with the guys for this interview article was fascinating. They really know their stuff.

Bruce Coughlan	Laurence Knight	Nolan Murray	Eric Reed

Man from Mars

What with all the news of landing another space module on Mars, and with George W. Bush’s announcement that NASA will be working on future expeditions in the next 30 years, I felt it would be a good idea to add this story in Bite of the Month. It is based on events of 1967 when science determined that man would be landing on Mars within 20 years (1987), and would solve the mystery of Earth’s creation within five years (1972). The story raises the question - what is fact and what is fiction? And how truth changes.

Web site stats getting even better

More people from around the world are finding this QQN web site. It is encouraging to see the number of visitors to each of the articles, and how that number increases each week. I certainly have to thank M for all her work.

Well, it’s February and Ground Hog Day and news is there’ll be six more weeks of winter. Here’s hoping you keep warm and happy. Smile – spring is just around the corner.

Cheers
Rosemary