Category Archives: Music
Handbells for Christmas
I love handbells. I play in a handbell choir at my church. Here we are playing Advent Carol on December 1, 2019. (If you listen carefully, you may hear O Come, O Come Immanuel and a snippet of Let All … Continue reading
Tchaikovsky and The Nutcracker
Poor Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky. Following the huge success of The Sleeping Beauty ballet in 1890, the Tsar wanted another hit from Tchaikovsky and choreographer Marius Petipa. Petipa took charge of the storyline of the ballet and created two scenes based on the … Continue reading
Favorite Songs of the Season
This article appeared last year on ARHtistic License.
Two Years After Leaving My Church: Honest Reflections
I quit the worship band at my lifelong church a little more than two years ago. I typed the phrase “easily the most difficult and painful decision I’ve made” in that first sentence, and its sterility taunted me so I … Continue reading
Landfill Harmonic…by ARHuelsenbeck
This article previously appeared on ARHtistic License. You may have heard of the Recycled Orchestra of Cateura, Paraguay. This YouTube video, posted in 2012, has been viewed more than seven million times: Cateura is the site of a huge garbage dump. … Continue reading
My Country ‘Tis of Thee…Memorial Day Tribute by Betty Mason Arthurs
My Country, ‘Tis of Thee…Memorial Day Tribute The song, “My Country, ‘Tis of Thee,” was written by Rev. Samuel Francis Smith in the 1800s when he was 24 years-old. This Memorial Day, May 2017, its beautiful words ring out over … Continue reading
“Hi Mom!” A Mother’s Legacy…Part Two
“Hi Mom!” A Mother’s Legacy…Part Two by Betty Mason Arthurs “Hi Mom!” I look up towards heaven with Mother’s Day coming this Sunday, and say “hi” to my beautiful mother who passed away years ago. I also say “hi!” to … Continue reading