Greetings from Argentina and Uruguay — one of our several adventures this year. I started writing this post in bustling Buenos Aires and completed the post after a walk along the Atlantic Ocean, as it meets el Río de la Plata. A very cold, windy spring day in Uruguay inspires my heart in transition.

Other than a week here and there, over the years, I’ve never traveled in the fall, winter or spring. I am thrilled and extraordinarily grateful to now have the opportunity to do so.

This has been an amazing few months, beginning the transition from decades of full-time work in the church, returning to life as a freelance conductor, organist, pianist, and consultant.

To have such a healthy leave-taking from All Saints Church, Pasadena, after 34 years of musical leadership, continues to be a huge gift. The final four months of my tenure were filled with rich memories, and the celebrations of June — from the astonishing choirs’ concert, to parties large and small, to my final rehearsals and Sunday mornings with Canterbury and Coventry choirs — capped my tenure with great beauty and unforgettable, deeply moving experiences.

And I was exhausted at the end of all that. The months of July and August provided the time to simply stop and rest.

My Next Chapter is emerging, with several engagements, judiciously scheduled.  

Accompanying while reading the conductor’s mind

I was delighted when Zanaida Robles invited me to collaborate with her, from the piano, for the annual choir retreat of the Unitarian Universalist Community Church Choir of Santa Monica. Zanaida and I have worked together for 15 years, dating back to her starting as soprano soloist of Coventry Choir at All Saints, and it was a thrill to witness the great work Zanaida is doing with this choir, as I assisted from the piano bench.  

I truly enjoy accompanying a fine choir under the direction of an excellent conductor, as it keeps me on my toes — reading the conductor’s mind — and it is a joy to make music in this way.

Travel plans for the fall

We are able to travel extensively this year as my spouse, Dr. Douglas Duno, is on sabbatical leave from teaching the entire academic year. We began in September with a thrilling two weeks of full immersion into the glories of nature in Park City, Utah, Yellowstone and Grand Tetons National Parks and Jackson, Wyoming. We had never been to any of these locations and were able to bask in the beauty of creation.

Additional trips this fall include Argentina, Chile, Uruguay and Mexico. In addition to experiencing these countries as tourists, I will be taking a two-week language course at Academia Uruguay in Montevideo, while Douglas studies the history, arts and culture of Uruguay, as part of his sabbatical research.

Keeping it fresh

I continue to teach organ privately when I am in town and will be giving a workshop for the Long Beach Chapter of the American Guild of Organists in March — “Service Playing: Keeping it Fresh!”  

I will be conducting the Chancel Choir of First United Methodist Church, Pasadena, for three weeks in January, as their distinguished director, Greg Norton travels to New Zealand for a special celebration. I so look forward to this block of time with this excellent church choir and look forward to other similar opportunities in the future.

I’m always excited to be part of the organ marathons at St. Cyril’s Church, Encino, and will be participating in the Bach Marathon on Sunday, May 20, 2018.  And I am in conversation with a couple choral groups looking to schedule concerts that include major choral pieces with organ accompaniment, one of my joyful specialties.

An Easter with cherry blossoms

Other trips planned are to Cuba for two weeks and Japan for three weeks. We’ll be in Japan for the blooming of the cherry blossoms, which happens to coincide with Holy Week and Easter, 2018. So instead of singing “Bloom in every meadow, leaf on every bough” on Easter Sunday, we’ll be witnessing the spectacular signs of new life in this dramatically different way.

When we return from all this travel in late April, I plan to regularize my schedule and be available to perform with singers, instrumentalists and ensembles on a regular basis. Some solo performances are in the pipeline, as well. Of course, all that takes significant practice time, so I look forward to returning to a rigorous practice schedule.
 
I have also found several opportunities in the past few months to advise individuals and consult institutions about personal careers and church music programs, all of which I have found immensely gratifying.

So, no time for sitting back … Full steam ahead.