Many of us, in our own way, wanted to send a message of condolence, support and love to those affected by this tragedy and also to declare that we stand on the side of love and peace.           

Renee sang the song she had been preparing on Sunday January 9th at Unity of Phoenix in all 3 of their services.  It took on a far greater meaning to her as to why she had been "called" to prepare this song and those who heard Renee sing the song: "We Can Be Kind" by David Friedman, stood in unity of the message in the song at the end of Renee’s performance. 

Renee’s performance of this song is dedicated to Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords and all those who were who were killed or injured in the shooting in Tucson. It is also dedicated to Pima County Sheriff Clarence Dupnik and President Obama. May we all return to kindness and sanity.  

SINGER: Renee Morgan Brooks PIANIST: Jerry Wayne Harkey DRUMMER: Mark Stoper

Filmed at Unity of Phoenix on January 9, 2011

http://reneemorganbrooks.com/

Here at Dare2create we continue to send love, peace, comfort and strength to all affected by the shooting. 

Bookmark It

We’ve featured the amazing Mr. Balsamo on dare2create before– check out:

http://www.dare2create.com/music/steve-balsamo-gives-a-knockout-performance-of-gethsemane-from-jesus-christ-superstar/

Bookmark It

The fourth video is a wonderful compilation of the various religious and faith traditions in the greater Phoenix area who took part in  this concert.   For more information about the Arizona Interfaith Movement  visit: www.interfaitharizona.com

The first  video is introduced by Dr. Paul Eppinger, Executive Director of the Arizona Interfaith Movement.  The song is Live with Joy by Zephryn Conte who is on piano.  The soloists are Cerise Patron, Renee Morgan Brooks, Barb Horton (of the JaJa’s) and Jeanne McLaughlin (of the JaJa’s).

The song in this "Let Freedom Ring"  by Cerise Patron and Mark Broder.

 The song in this video is "Oh How Usual"  by Zephryn Conte.

 This video shows clips from all the different faith groups who participated in the concert.

Click Here to Become a FREE VIP 
member of Dare2create!

Bookmark It

My good friend, Renee Morgan Brooks, performing an amazing version of Desiderata and leading straight into a soulful rendition of Amazing Grace.  The word "desiderata" is Latin and means ‘things that are yearned for’, and ‘essential things’.  After watching Renee’s inspiring performance scroll below the video to find out more about the fascinating background of this amazing poem.  

 Who Wrote Desiderata?
Desiderata was written in 1927 by Max Ehrmann. Max was born on September 16th, 1872 in Terre Haute, Indiana to German immigrants. He graduated from DePauw University in Greencastle in 1894, and after studying law and philosophy at Harvard returned to Terre Haute to practice law.  He also began a life-long love affair with writing and became known as the ‘Poet Laureate’ of Terre Haute, even though his writings did not become widely known until after his death.  Desiderata, one of his most famous poems, was originally copyrighted in 1927 as ‘Go Placidly Amid The Noise And Haste’.

In 1933 Max included a copy of Desiderata in a Christmas message to a friend but never added any copyright notice, a factor which featured strongly in legal considerations in the 1970′s about Desiderata copyright .

In 1942, US Army psychiatrist Merill Moore contacted Max to let him know that he used the Desiderata poem in his therapy work.  He wrote to him again 2 years later suggesting that the poem should be bottled and sold as ‘Dr Ehrmann’s Magic Soul Medicine’.

Shortly before his death in 1945, Max married Bertha, also an avid and published writer. After Max’s death, Bertha published  among other poems, the Desiderata in a collection titled The Poems Of Max Ehrmann. She re-renewed the Desiderata copyright in 1948 and 1954. When Bertha died in 1962, the copyright ownership passed to her nephew, Richmond Wight.  In 1975 he sold the copyright to Crescendo Publishing Company.

Confusion Over Date Desiderata Was Written
Confusion around the date Desiderata was actually written began in the late 1950′s when Rev. Frederick Kates, the rector of St. Paul’s Church in Baltimore, Maryland, (1956-1961) compiled the poem into a small booklet of devotional poetry for his congregation.  The page on which Desiderata was had the notation, "Old St. Paul’s Church, Baltimore A.D. 1692 — the year of the church’s founding.

As the material was shared and passed along from one person to another and made its way outside of St. Paul’s congregation copies with the "Old St. Paul’s Church" notation were printed and circulated and at some point someone assumed that the poem itself was from 1692, the date that was on the letterhead indicating the founding of the church. The ancient date probably added to the poem’s attraction and even though the language used in the poem is of a more modern vein people people who came across the poem mistakenly assumed it was written in 1692.

Adlai Stevenson’s Influence
The poem gained widespread attention in 1965 when a copy was found near the bedside of American politician, Adlai Stevenson when he died.  Apparently he had planned to put a copy in his Christmas cards. The incorrect date of the poem’s origin continued and believing there to be no copyright concerns because of the poem’s age printers began putting out numerous posters of the poem. Around this time or even before the "Flower Children" of the 1960′s adopted the Desiderata.  They adored it because they felt that the "ancient" writing validated their avocations for a world of peace and love.

Les Crane and Copyright Issues
In 1971singer Les Crane used the Desiderata words in his 1971 hit pop record, for which he received a Grammy award for the ‘best spoken word recording’. Supposedly he saw the Desiderata verse on a poster and believed the words to be in the public domain, but then (so the story goes) had to share his royalties with the then Desiderata copyright owners — the Crescendo Publishing Company.

Confusion continues to abound over the copyright status of Desiderata. While it appears that the ruling of the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois, Eastern Division (Bell v. Combined Registry, Co.) supporting the abandonment of copyright is valid (it was upheld by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit), the late Mr. Robert Bell, the owner of the copyright until his death in 2009, had been successful in pursuing his copyright claim in other jurisdictions of the United States.

Old St. Paul’s Continues to Receive Inquires about Desiderata
As for the relationship of the poem with Old St. Paul’s Church — the ongoing confusion also  continues. Old St. Paul’s has received inquiries on the Desiderata from all around the world and numerous visitors to Baltimore come to the church expecting to be able to see the original Desiderata.

Bookmark It

When I was growing up in London, England I went to see Jesus Christ Superstar at the Palace Theatre, many times. Contrary to what some people thought, that Superstar was sacrilegious, it actually opened me up to exploring more of who Jesus was and is.  It actually assisted greatly in my own spiritual journey.  To this day I love, love, love the music from Jesus Christ Superstar.

Steve Balsamo”s success in music is an inspirational story of what can happen when we really stay true to following our passion.    

Thrown out of his school choir and told he couldn’t sing, Welsh-born Steve put his creative energies into art for a while, yet never forgot about  singing.  When he was 17 he decided to follow his musical passion and for the next few years formed several bands and mainly performed classic rock songs.

Steve turned down a spot at Bristol University to study Graphic Art, instead following his intuition and attending a local music college.  Here he first played Jesus in a college production of Jesus Christ Superstar.

Around the same time he attended a workshop in Cardiff put on by the Pince’s Trust, a UK charity founded by Prince Charles. His performance at the workshop led to him being asked to open for the The Princes Masters of Music Concert at London’s Hyde Park in 1996.  150, 000 people came to hear this concert which featured, among many others, The Who, Alanis Morissette, Eric Clapton and Bob Dylan.  

When Steve discovered Andrew Lloyd Webber was auditioning for the part of Jesus in Superstar, Steve  made up his mind the part was his. Although thousands of other hopefuls auditioned, many with more experience, Steve’s focus, determination and amazing voice landed him the role in the 1996 revival of the show at the Lyceum in London.

Steve’s gone on to write and record his own successful albums. In addition he’s performed in the French musical "Notre Dame de Paris, performed in 2003 at  the world premiere at Abbey Road Studio of a musical based on the life of Edgar Allan Poe: More Tales of Mystery and Imagination, (music and lyrics by Alan Parsons Project writer Eric Woolfson).

In 2004 he formed The Storys, a West Coast influenced harmony country-rock band.  This band has  twice toured Europe with Elton John and has also toured and performed with such greats as Joe Cocker, Katie Melua, Celine Dion, Santana, Runrig, Sinead O’Connor, Daniel Lanois, Van Morrison and Tom Jones.  The Storys songs are featured in the teen drama  "One Tree Hill", and the British movie "The Bank Job", in which they make a cameo appearance playing two of their own songs. The Storys currently have two albums out which have both been received with wide acclaim.

Steve continues to work on several side projects collaborating with musical greats and continues to be a songwriter much in demand   scoring hits in Europe and Australia, with artists as diverse as Meatloaf, Anthony Callea, Jonathon Cerrada and Slash of Guns N’ Roses fame.

As for his own singing, through the years he’s sung on stage with such artists as Mario Frangoulis, Justin Hayward, Lara Fabian, Madeline Peyroux, Glenn Hughes, Steve Harley, Roger Daltry, Robert Plant, Lulu, a couple of Stones, a couple of Eagles, a couple of Pink Floyd, Jon Lord, founder writer and and ex-keyboard player with Deep Purple and this is just to name a few!

What a testament to what can happen when we stay true to our dreams, goals and passions.  Congratulations on all your success Steve!  I wonder what the person who kicked you out of choir thinks now?  

Bookmark It

Dr. Mitzi Lynton and Ron Peer, of Secrets of The Secret, interview HUSSAIN JIFFRY, bass player for Herb Alpert and Lani Hall’s Anything Goes Tour.

HUSSAIN JIFFRY is an outstanding musician who has performed with some of the most famous musical artists in the world.  Here are just a few:

Tom Scott, Michael Bolton, Helen Reddy, Jim Messina, Tito Puente, Steve Winwood, Gloria Gaynor, Whitney Houston, Yanni, Crystal Gayle, Dionne Warwick, Monica, Sergio Mendes David Foster, Captain & Tennille, Freddie Ravel, DioNne Warwick, Russelle Ferrante, Rique Pantoja, Niki Haris, Hubert Laws, Robert Greenidge,.Ralph MacDonald, and the list goes on and on …

Listen to the audio interview with Hussain here:

Download the MP3 Here for Listening on Your Media Player

To learn more about Hussain, visit his website here:  Hussain Jiffry

Visit Amazon Here to listen to samples from the Anything Goes Album

Hussain also plays with the group SAMBAGURU.  Learn more about them here:  Sambaguru.com

 Herb Alpert and Lani Hall discuss how Anything Goes came about

Bookmark It

In 1982 the book was adapted for BBC Channel 4 into a 26-minute animated movie by Dianne Jackson.  It aired  for the first time on Christmas Eve, 1982 becoming an immediate hit.  Since then it’s become a staple part of British and International Christmas tradition and is shown on television around the world each year at Christmas time.  In 1983 the film was nominated for the Academy Award for Animated Short Film.

The film itself is wordless, except for a song which was composed specially for it entitled  "Walking in the Air".  Howard Blake wote both the music and lyrics of the song  and composed and conducted the complete orchestral score for the film with his own orchestra, the Sinfonia of London.  The song, "Walking in the Air," was performed in the film by a St. Paul’s Cathedral choirboy, Peter Auty. It has since been performed and recorded by numerous artists including: Chloe Agnew of Celtic Woman, George Winston, Emma Johnson, the Cincinnati Pops Orchestra conducted by Enrich Kunzel and sung by Stephen Van Dyck, to name just a few. 

As I was researching for this posting I discovered something very interesting.

Most people think a Welsh singer named Aled Jones was the original singer of the song in The Snowman.   This is because he released a single of the song in 1985 which reached Number 5 on the UK charts.   Peter Auty’s version, which was recorded for The Snowman,  had been released as a single in 1983. However, due to a rush to finish the film on time, Peter Auty was not credited on the film until it was remastered in 2002. And so when the single was released by Aled Jones in 1985 people mistakenly thought his was the voice that was singing in the movie.

THIS FIRST VIDEO IS PETER AUTY SINGING FROM THE ORIGINAL FILM

Today Peter Auty continues to share his gift of singing with the world as an operatic tenor.

Here’s a little background on him. 

Peter Autry received his musical training in the Choir of St. Paul’s Cathedral, London, which he joined when he was 8 years old and with which he stayed until he was 13, advancing to Senior Chorister. He made many recordings with the Cathedral Choir, including the gold-winning "Rejoice".  He was one of the lead singers on the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra’s recording entitled Arrested which featured the greatest hits by the  Police.  Peter’s contribution, "Walking on the Moon" was later released as a single.

In addition to becoming the  musical voice behind some memorable British television commercials, Peter was a songman at Bristol Cathedral and York Minster before studying with Peter Alexander Wilson. In 1987 he emerged as an operatic tenor with the National Opera Studio and made his debut with British Youth Opera appearing in several roles. He has also sung many roles for Opera North, Opera Zuid, the Glyndebourne Festival,  Glyndebourne Touring Opera,  the Mid Wales Opera, Opera de Massy . He has sung in such famous operas as Carmen, La Boheme, Macbeth.

For the Royal Opera House he has sung several roles including Fenton (Falstaff), Michelis (The Greek Passion), Nathaniel (Les Contes D’Hoffman), Matteo Borsa (Rigoletto), Malcolm (Macbeth) and he sang the tenor solos in Stravinsky’s Les Noches for the Royal Ballet. Peter is also in demand as a concert artist  recent engagements have included appearances with the London Symphony Orchestra (Sir Colin Davis), the Orchestra of the Age of Englightenment (Mark Elder), the London Philharmonic Orchestra (Lothar Zagrosek) and the Iceland Symphony Orchestra (Vladimir Ashkenazy). Peter Auty has featured as the tenor in BBCTV’s Flashmob 2.

THIS SECOND VIDEO IS ALED JONES PERFORMING AS A BOY AND AS AN ADULT

 Here’s a more about Aled Jones.

Born in  Wales, Aled has been singing since he was two years old.  Aled joined the Bangor Cathedral choir when he was nine, quickly advancing to Lead Soloist.. A member of the congregation, Hefina Orwig Evans, was so impressed by Aled’s voice that she wrote a letter to the recording company Sain who signed him. Aled’s success continued.  In 1982, at the Urdd Eisteddfod, (a competition of singing, recitation, dancing, acting and music), he won the Cerrd Dant solo competitions for competitors under 12. In 1986 he sang the oratorio Athalia with Emma Kirkby.

To date,  Aled has recorded 24 albums, many of which gone gold or platinum in the UK and Australia. He’s performed for such people as: Pope John Paul II, Queen Elizabeth and the Royal Family, he sang at the wedding of Bob Geldof and Paula Yates.  He’s also worked with Mike Oldfield in Pictures in the Dark, Leonard Bernstien on Chichester Psalms and has performed worldwide with such  notable orchestras as the the Los Angeles Philharmonic and at such famous places as the Hollywood Bowl. 

After his voice broke when he was 16, Aled  took a little break before studying at the Royal Academy of Music and the Bristol Old Vic Theatre School. In 1995 he took the leading role in Andrew Lloyd Webber’s Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat. at Blackpool Pier, in England.  Today while performing as a lyric baritone he’s also expressed a desire to also move into the tenor range.

Aled’s been a presenter on Classic FM , BBC Radio Wales,  Radio Cymru, Television S4C.  Over the past few years he’s become one of the most popular presenters of BBC TV’s ‘Songs of Praise’.  In January 2006 he also joined BBC Radio to present ‘Good Morning Sunday’ on Radio 2 and ‘The Choir’ on Radio 3. 

In 2005 he launched his autobiography, written in collaboration with Darren Henley.

Dare2create salutes Raymond Briggs for having the idea of the snowman, all those involved in the making of the film version and Peter Auty and Aled Jones and Howard Blake for their magnificent contributions for making this film such a success and for continuing to follow each of their musical passions.  Truly each of you are "daring to create a life you love and a world you desire to live in."  

 Best Holiday Toys 2009

Bookmark It

Whatever holiday you are celebrating during this special time of year, may this song bring you closer to the song of love that is in your heart. 

Bookmark It

Like millions of others around the world I watched Michael Jackson’s memorial.

What especially moved me was the the performance of  We are the World.  The images of so many different religious and spiritual symbols beautifully incorporated into the stunning visual backdrop was profound.  And the words: "When we stand together as one"  took on a different meaning through the display.  An updated message for different times.  I’m putting this video up as exemplifying what Dare2create is all about.  And as a board member of the Arizona Interfaith Movement, this message also represents something close to my heart.  It’s amazing to me how far we have come since Michael and Lionel Richie wrote this song … and how far we still have to go.  

The other very profound moment for me as I watched  the memorial was when many young children came on stage to join in singing of  Heal the World.  During this CNN cut to images of people across the country who were watching the memorial and joining hands and singing along.  

Bookmark It