Welcome back to Spring and redbuds in bloom at the Hilltop! We are in quite a cold snap this week, though! Also, our area did have something like Noah’s flood last week, not to mention a few of Noah’s tornados. However, it was only a miniature version at the Hilltop. Tornado sirens awakened us at 3 a.m., so we drowsily went downstairs for safety. When I opened the door to the utility room, the concrete floor was covered by an inch or two of water! I admit, I was shaken, but I was not stirred!

I found my wet vacuum and went to work. No damage was sustained; everything is in big plastic boxes in there. We were just thankful that we didn’t get a tornado or any downed trees or power outages, but our hearts go out to those who did. I have tried everything to seal up that darned room, including sealing the front porch outside, which is directly above that room, but it seems to be of no avail when we have a major downpour.

Speaking of water, below is an audio mockup of movement one of my Symphony No. 4: Scenes from an Enchanted Lake. Just scroll down and press the play arrow. Here is part of the program note:

Symphony No. 4: “Scenes from an Enchanted Lake”

This symphony was inspired by four imagined scenes from an enchanted lake. Each movement’s description features a different species of fowl – swan, loon, phoenix, and wild geese – and some aspect of the lake. In each is a mysterious hint that the lake has a mind of its own and is responding to these birds by magically singing – perhaps an “invisible melody” that only the bird in question can hear.

1. Dusk: The Swan(Sonata form, 15 minutes): As dusk nears against a bright pink and yellow-orange horizon, a lovely but mysterious white swan glides silently and gracefully across the lake, seeking the source of a sadly enchanted melody that seems to be coming from all directions. Could it be the song of his beloved, long-lost mate? As he searches in vain, his longing grows more urgent. Then, in a sudden blaze, the sky is swallowed into the lake as night falls.

Having now completed the first two movements of this new fourth symphony, I confess that I’ve been struggling mightily to get past the introduction to the third (“phoenix”) movement. I was starting to get really discouraged. However, I think my composing brain must work in my sleep, because a few days ago I finally awoke early in the morning with new music just playing in my head, as if I had been dreaming it or as if I were hearing it through headphones. Poof! There it was, the next phrase of music, like a key unlocking the door to the next whole section to follow. It comes when it wants to, I’ve learned.

 Here’s a glimpse of our big lilac bush in front, bursting all over with blooms! And the Hilltop is buzzing with more signs of spring, such as a man’s natural instinct to grill. Since I last wrote, I irresistibly, involuntarily fired up the Webber kettle and slightly burned some good hot dogs to kick off the grilling year. And a few days ago, I stepped it up and grilled some Jamaican Jerk Shrimp, which I served with coconut rice. After a few pulls on its start-up cord, I revived my faithful old wheezing push-mower and have been doing the first mow of the season. It takes me about an hour on each of four days a week at this fast-growing time of year to work my way around and give the whole property a nice haircut. Great exercise!

A while back I was asked to contribute a book chapter to a new anthology to be published by Ignatius Press. I wrote around four thousand words and sent it off, and they liked it. The book now has their tentative title, The Brush and the Lyre: The Inner Lives of Christian Artists. My chapter has the provocative title “What in the World Happened to New Classical Music?” The editor wrote me that the book should be published early next year, with all kinds of artists contributing chapters.

To continue these random thoughts, I recently shared here a miracle tip (I refuse to use the word “hack”) for keeping celery from going limp in the fridge by removing its plastic bag and wrapping it in aluminum foil. Now I have learned that if your hunks of cheese keep getting moldy spots, just remove the plastic and wrap it directly in foil, and you won’t get any mold spots (it works). Well done, foil!

Yes, I’m still doing well on my diet and rarely make pasta these days. But I was very happy when Crystal requested I make her a birthday dinner of Fettuccine Bolognese using a recipe from Frank Sinatra’s old haunt, Patsy’s Italian Restaurant in mid-town New York (three blocks south of the southwest corner of Central Park). I bought both of their cookbooks during one of our visits there, and the recipes are authentic Italian and great! You can buy both books online, and they are full of stories about Frank and other celebrities who once dined there. 

Update: Thanks to a generous donor’s pledge, the CD of my music from the ballet Raffaella is once again a “go” on Parma Recordings, pending final approval of the new contract from the national musicians union.

I leave you with the lyrics of the great singing cowboy Roy Rogers,

“Happy trails to you, until we meet again!”