As the longfingered sun
reaches out to touch
a cloistered trillium
or a lake trembles in
the light of read more

As the longfingered sun
reaches out to touch
a cloistered trillium
or a lake trembles in
the light of moon and stars
so can a poet's long rainbow
of words
play our heartstrings from afar.

I've outdone anyone you can name -- Mozart, Beethoven, Bach, Strauss. Irving Berlin, he wrote 1,001 tunes. I wrote 5,500.

I've outdone anyone you can name -- Mozart, Beethoven, Bach, Strauss. Irving Berlin, he wrote 1,001 tunes. I wrote 5,500.

The musician who always plays on the same string is laughed at.

The musician who always plays on the same string is laughed at.

When I speak of the gifted listener, I am thinking of the nonmusician primarily, of the listener who intends to read more

When I speak of the gifted listener, I am thinking of the nonmusician primarily, of the listener who intends to retain his amateur status. It is the thought of just such a listener that excites the composer in me.

Tom he was a piper's son,
He learned to play when he was young;
Bug all the read more

Tom he was a piper's son,
He learned to play when he was young;
Bug all the tune that he could play
Was "Over the hills and far away."
- Unattributed Author,

Whereupon are the foundations thereof fastened? or who laid the
cornerstone thereof;
When the morning stars sang together, read more

Whereupon are the foundations thereof fastened? or who laid the
cornerstone thereof;
When the morning stars sang together, and all the sons of God
shouted for joy?

Without music, life would be a mistake.

Without music, life would be a mistake.

Music washes away from the soul the dust of everyday life.

Music washes away from the soul the dust of everyday life.

Composers should write tunes that chauffeurs and errand boys can whistle.

Composers should write tunes that chauffeurs and errand boys can whistle.