Beautiful Youth!

It's an incredibly clear, sunny day here in Boston today.  

Warm for Feb. anyways. I think I'm acclimating to this northern climate because at 40 degrees it feels balmy.

I took a walk while on a break from teaching some online voice students and I sat down in an inviting courtyard filled with trees and good energy, then I noticed it was one of Berklee's dorm buildings.

I watched young musicians making their way to rehearsals and classes pushing double basses on wheels, cellos and violins strapped to backs...two young men guiding a dolly filled with drums trying to avoid snow mounds on the sides of the street. 

I could feel the focus and excitement of their inspired musical journeys. It was almost visceral. I remember that energy well. It made me smile. The winter light-warm sun and sounds of sparrows anticipating spring...eavesdropping on bits and pieces of conversations passing by me about Bartok and Chick Corea wafting on the air. 

In spite of the insanity of the world right now I felt so full of hope and contentment.

This was outside the dorm. A lovely dedication to Wayne Wadham in the courtyard.

He said "Drench yourself in the torrent of life. Devour and conquer the best and most current technology available to you. Know how great artists achieved miracles with virtually no tools at hand. Then when life confronts you point-blank, shakes you like a leaf in a hurricane-and you survive to relate the experience-you will be equipped to do so in the most empathetic and powerful form possible."

The path at the Charles river this morning.

Along the frozen shore...

Embracing the snow!

 Hello World!

Life has been in such an incredibly interesting flux for George and me. 

We moved from L.A. across the continent 3,000 miles to Massachusetts so he could take a great gig as associate professor of film scoring at Berklee School of Music.  He adores working with so many motivated talented young composers. He comes back from classes inspired and that makes me happy and inspired as well!

Boston got slammed with snow last week but we thankfully missed the storm by one day driving home to Lenox on clear roads. 

I'm super stoked about meeting in person some the amazing people we've hooked up with online involved with Berkshire Jazz and also the Berkshire Film and Media Collaborative.  For now we're just sitting tight and looking into the future when Omicron doesn't make it quite so hard to meet with big groups.  

I'm so grateful for the beautiful mention in Jazz Wax about my collaboration with Denny on Quiet Now as it's brought some interesting new collaborations my way. 

As far as the big move to New England, George and I are both loving the changes in the light and the weather...literally minute by minute here, but we're excited about spring coming!!  It will make the walks in Boston a little more enjoyable for sure! 

That being said, I must admit sitting by a fire in our 110 year old cozy house listening to jazz on vinyl has been lovely. We are feeling extremely fortunate.

Stay warm, healthy and inspired! 

All the best!

Suzi

Here's a few lines from Jazz Wax if you missed it last month:

 

Denny Zeitlin: Back then, singer-lyricist Suzi Stern sent me a cassette after she completed an album on which she wrote lyrics to jazz compositions and recorded them, including Quiet Now. I'm not sure if the album was ever formally released, but I was very impressed, and accepted her lyric for copyright.

JazzWax: What made her Quiet Now lyrics different? 
DZ: I was knocked out by both the lyrics and her voice. She is one of my favorite singers. She combines a deep, sophisticated musicality with a haunting, pure sound and a rich amalgam of strength and vulnerability. She’s a brilliant lyricist, navigating the complex terrain of jazz compositions. Suzi showed me that Quiet Now can be a beautiful love song celebrating the moment of connection, not just the fragility of love.

JW: What did you think?

DZ: I thought the chemistry was very special. The album had limited distribution, but Suzi recently uploaded Quiet Now on YouTube, and I’m very happy to hear it brought back to life.