It's all about the people.
The music has got to be good and taken care of, but it's about the people. Music is an angelic force not of this world--we know it when we are touched by it in its purest form because we get chillls or teary. In order to be touched by it we have to have good and authentic people delivering it AND receiving it. You have been that for me this year and I hope I have returned the favor! Thank you.
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With your help, I played Seattle, Austin, Nashville, New York City, plus the Netherlands and Germany for the very first time and continued to build community with recent immigrants and women musicians.
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Café Belcampo, Amsterdam, with violinist Chris Murphy (Los Angeles). Photo courtesy of Bram Heeren Photography (NL)
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Spring 2019 with my NYC band, the Outer Borough Boys:--Jonny Meyers, Seth Goldberg, Paul Trust. The best!
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The 2nd Sunday Women's Singer-Songwriter-Composer Showcase at Blue in Portland entered its second year, second round of Artist-in-Residency, and added a mentoring program.
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The 2nd Sunday Womens Showcase at Blue
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The Immigrant Music Connection (formerly Maine Immigrant Musical Instrument Project) moved into an office within the Greater Portland Immigrant Welcome Center on Preble Street, produced four installments of the International Open Mic at Mayo Street Arts, gave away dozens of musical instruments and many hours of free instruction to recent immigrants.
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International Open Mic at Mayo Street Arts, Dec 20, 2019. In photo: is the brand new IMC Band. Photo: OPEN Vision Studios.
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Manuel Afonso and José Alino of the IMC hanging the gold record (Community Leader Award from MAMM) on the wall of the IMC home office in Portland.
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In May 2019, we formed a partnership with Maine Academy of Modern Music (MAMM) to provide musical scholarships. We received a Community Rock Star / Community Leader award from MAMM at their annual gala in November, and a grant from the Garden Hill Fund of the Mountain School of Milton Academy.
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I learned a lot about performing, community, friendship, life, family, mistakes, forgiveness, and excellence....and photo opportunities. (Thanks, Gov. Mills!)
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Yeah, that's my rental car, seen here going nowhere fast out front of B&B 'In da Lavinde', Millingen aan de Rijn, Holland. Not shown:: is being lost in the alternate rental car when GPS failed me coming home from Amsterdam at 2AM.
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Joking around after a gig with the amazing Gov. Janet T. Mills of Maine. Photo by John Ochira Photography (Portland).
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2020
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This winter!
Vinyl release for Happiness to Burn!
My first official music video release!:: Music video release for "Never Alone" created in conjunction with amazing Rwandan-American videographer Egide Images.
April
Kickstarter for new album
May
Los Angeles to record Indigo Blond with producer Shane Alexander
June
County Clare, Ireland TeXchromosome retreat. I'll be teaching songwriting and a few other things.
Autumn-Winter 2020-2021
Indigo Blond release and European tour
If you make it to the tail end of this email, there is a VERY special surprise for the first responder!
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Photos above:, L to R, top to bottom--
With Karen Biser & Lisa Redfern, Common Ground Fair, 9/2019, Unity, ME; With Ness Smith-Savedoff, Jake Hoffman, Carlos Olmeda, Gé Gé, and Drew Wyman at Robinhood Free Meetinghouse, Georgetown, Maine; with Chris Murphy at Cafe Belcampo, Amsterdam (photo by Bram Heeren); with Alex Sturbaum (Seattle) and Ness S-S; horse Millingen aan de Rijn, below the dyke by the Rhine; post-gig with Carol Thomas-Knipes in Jackson Heights; with my family & French friends Claire & Lea, Versailles; with some of my IMC family, MAMM annual gala, Aura nightclub, Portland; with college friend JR Rhodes in Seattle at our reunion gig in Ballard, winter 2019; IMC band at the IOM, 12/2019; in Seattle with Clare, Nick, and Howard, contradancing buddies & bandmates from the 1990s; Portland Greenfest, photo by Alban Esprit; in Nijmegen, Holland, on my last night in Europe, with my promoter Jan Janssen and his lovely wife Ella Janssen.
YOU MADE IT! FREE copy of the LP of Happiness to Burn to the first person to respond to this message.
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