Bernard's Christmas arrangements are off to be printed

Holy smokes!! 

I was in way over my head on this one. The Bernard's Christmas arrangements are finished and off to print!! What a giant relief. I knew that it would be a huge undertaking, but I really didn't estimate it taking so many hours to put together. 

I've listened to the recording a billion times and notated what was played, entered everything into Finale, made it look pretty, proof-read, changed stuff, proof-read, changed stuff, proof-read, saved as a PDF... and poof! Off to become a book.

One thing is for sure: I (still) love this music. So much. I love the Andres' pieces. I love the Christmas music. I love the two of them together. 

Throughout the process of creating these arrangements, I was reminded of the original recording endeavor about 2 years ago. I can still taste the 3rd trimester of pregnancy. I can smell the cold November air. I can remember my studio engineer, Fred Betin, and how fun it was to work with him. I can remember dropping my little girl off at school with my harp in the car, kissing her goodbye and telling her that it was a big day for me. 

It was 3 days, actually. Three full days of playing and listening in the studio. Love. Exhaustion. Exhilaration. Gratitude.

My daughter these days will repeat things her sponge-like ears have heard me blurt out. ("You've got to be kidding me!" "Really guys?" "Holy smokes!") She is my mirror. In the same way, I feel like I know myself as a harpist a little more now. I've had to listen and transcribe what I do when I improvise. It's been an interesting process. I definitely have a unique way of accompanying a melody with two hands and using syncopation. After seeing it on paper, I often thought to myself, "huh." Works. I like it. 

Another thing I noticed: I really, really don't follow a metronome. Kind proud of that. I like it when music can breathe and move around. 

I have a whole new appreciation for arrangers and self-publishers. Sylvia Woods comes to mind, with her extensive arrangements for harp--- wow. And I also have an idea of what a time-consuming and tedious undertaking it is to engrave music, even when you're Finale-software-savvy. Good riddance. 

I'm thankful for some friends that have helped me get this thing printed: Gerard Martin, for translating the introduction into French. Katherine Kappelmann, for playing through and proofreading each piece. For Shawn Landis, for his amazing work on the cover. For Thierry, the guy at the printer's, for his patience with me. And I'm especially thankful for the harpists that have written to me, encouraging me to make these arrangements. 

And now, as much as this was "so much fun," I'd like to set the harp down and not look at these arrangements for a good while. :-D oooof   Camomile tea. Good night.

Ribambelle #5 by Bernard Andres/ Carol of the Bells

Sneak peek! 2 more days 'til the release. I can't stand it!

Moondance question

Fellow Harpist:

Dear Miss Metheney,

I recently bought your cd "Notes On The Moon". It is truly lovely!

I was a harp student myself, and just graduated from a musician academy in Belgium. I graduated playing Deborah Henson's "New Blues". However, this has been my only experience with jazz/blues on the harp so far.

I would love it if you could give me some inspiration or information, such as where to find the sheet music for your arrangement on "Moondance" from Van Morrison.

Many thanks for considering my request.

Megan's reply:

Thank you very much for your email! 

I love "New Blues," too. Deborah Henson is great! Maybe you would like Baroque Flamenco and Nataliana by her, too.

Yes, its difficult to get started with jazz, and there aren't a lot of options for finding arrangements. My best advice would be to download a piano version of a jazz/blues song you like, then adapt it for the harp with fingerings, pedals, different chords or arpeggios, etc to make it more "harp-y." That's what I did for Moondance. I bought a skeleton version of it from musicnotes.com or sheetmusicplus.com and learned it, then threw away things I didn't like and added notes that sounded good to me. In learning and playing and experimenting, I would make mistakes and play notes that weren't on the page. The beautiful thing about mistakes is that sometimes they sound really cool! So if I accidentally played something "wrong" that actually sounded cool, I would try to remember it for the next time. Little by little, you will have your very own arrangement of a song you love. 

If you read chord symbols, there is a whole other world out there for you. A lead sheet is what jazz musicians use to play from and improvise. There is a written melody, usually for the right hand, and above that, there are chord symbols like C (do major) or am (La minor). If you can read the chord symbol, and know that in a C chord, there is a C, E, and G (do, mi, sol), you could play those three notes somewhere in the left hand. So the place to start would be to google image search or purchase the lead sheet of a song you like, then learn the chord symbols, and then have fun making your own arrangement. 

I hope this helps get you started!! 

Kind regards,

Megan

The Egan

Two weeks to go now before the big week in the studio! 

I’ve decided to record the entire program on my Celtic harp- a Salvi Egan. Going out on a limb. In the harp world, you’re unfortunately categorized as a pedal harpist or a Celtic harpist. It’s especially disapproving to “go back” to the Celtic harp after “becoming” a Classical harpist. Like you’re backtracking. 

But I’ve got to say: I love the sound of the Celtic harp. Or at least mine! :-) The Salvi Egan. It has a clear, light sound with a rich bass. Choosing to play this harp is also, in a way, a statement from my end concerning the program: so much of the music of Bernard Andres is accessible on the Celtic harp and Classical harp alike. 

And so it will be: this album will be recorded on a Celtic harp. 

I realized while I was changing strings that when the idea for this recording project was born, I was working at the Sylvia Woods Harp Center where I was enveloped in harps of all kinds. I remember thinking that if I could adopt any harp from the floor, I would take the Egan. It was years later that I took mine home. And in a couple weeks, it will have all meant to be. 

Excited. Nervous. Thankful. 

Bernard's Christmas

An independent solo harp Christmas album infused with the works of Bernard Andrès, legendary French harp composer...

I've been playing the harp for twenty short years now. It wasn't long into my harp lessons that I was exposed to the works of Bernard Andrès.  Today, I own 36 of his publishings, but my collection is not complete.

I started avidly collecting his works 10 years ago, about when the birth of this project began.  I was experimenting with my way through some of his pieces during Christmastime in my apartment in Los Angeles. As a gift to my family, I had planned to make a little Christmas album of solo harp. One thing led to another, and an improvised album of Christmas music combined with selections of Bernard Andrès was made. 

Bernard Andrès is my favorite composer for the harp. His music is simple, thoughtful, and idiomatic. Oh- and AMAZING! He was born in France in 1941 and lives hours away from my home. I've tried to meet him personally a few times, but have only succeeded by snail mail correspondence. All photos I've seen of him are smiley and warm. My harp students can tell you: I'm a fan. They are each subjected to learn at least one of his pieces at some point. There was even an Andrès piece played at my wedding. So: fan. 

I pull up the album every December. It's one of the few recordings of mine that I actually enjoy listening to. :-) "Wouldn't it be fun to actually revisit this album and record it in a studio?" I've thought to myself for the past 10 years. 

And it finally came time. I mustered up the courage to write to Mr. Andrès and sent him the little home recording, asking him if he would be up for letting me re-do it "for real." And... yes! He said yes!

So the plan is to re-record the album professionally in November and release the new album in time for Christmas 2014. I'm so excited about this project! It's a tribute to Mr. Andrès,  a celebration of Christmas music that I love (no Jingle Bells, sorry), and feels very "me." 

There are many people that come to mind when I'm practicing and preparing to record this program... I think of my aunts that I don’t get to see enough of and them decorating their Christmas tree. I would love for this music to be with them on Christmas eve. I think of my sister and our Christmas album days growing up. We had a few different records that we would throw on and dance around the house to... in bright green socks. I think about those socks. For me, music plays a crucial part in Christmas celebration.

I also think about the baby girl in my belly. She’s getting to hear a LOT of Christmas music and Mr. Andrès’ music... I wonder if these pieces will be imprinted into her conscience.

I think about the words to the Christmas carols and what they mean to me. 

I envision people baking serious holiday cookies to this album. I envision someone listening to this when they might be alone on Christmas eve. Or perhaps two parents throwing this music on while playing Santa Claus.

And, of course, I think of Bernard Andrès and his creative genius. 

Here is the tentative track listing (only the Christmas piece is listed):

The Holly and the Ivy

Whence is that Goodly Fragrance

Unto us is Born a Son

Tomorrow Shall Be My Dancing Day

O Come, O Come Emmanuel

Still Still Still

The First Noel

Bring a Torch, Jeanette, Isabella

Carol of the Bells

Coventry Carol

We Three Kings 

I Wonder as I Wonder

O Come, All Ye Faithful

Marche des Rois

What Child is This?

Basque Carol

Join me in getting this project up and running! Kickstarter.com

Blue Lake and Rough Drafts

Heading home now after teaching at the Blue Lake Fine Arts Camp in Michigan... exhausted as usual, ready for fresh food and my own bed. Thankful, as usual, for the experience of being a part of this creativity-factory, surrounded by nature. 

This year I experienced the Blue Lake faculty community in a new way- it wasn’t so much in late night campfires and inspiring conversations, but moral support for being there alone with my 21 month old daughter. Boy, was I optimistically naive by committing to be here. We’ve made it to the end, though, and with one diaper to spare.

My duties consisted of private harps lessons and teaching the “intro to harp” group class. 

The thing I like about this camp is that it’s not a merit-based entry for campers. They are placed into appropriate groups upon arrival, but you could be a beginner or advanced player alike and be welcomed the same. That means that the young people that come are there simply for the joy of music, of dance, art, theater, whatever their interest. Joy. Gotta have it.

They are also there because they don’t mind nature’s inconveniences. Inclement weather, bugs, dirt, powdered eggs- it’s all good. Wind in the trees. The smell of a campfire. Mmmm

One highlight was playing in the Festival Band under the direction of Donald Flickinger. We performed in “the shell”- a covered, open air venue with seats that are interrupted by trees. Amazing acoustics and fresh air- perfect for music making. One of the pieces we performed was Codex for Wind Ensemble by one of the camp counselors, Marko Bajzer. The situation was typical of what goes down at Blue Lake, and it struck me on a personal level...

It was the work’s premiere performance. Marko played the French Horn for the concert, but during rehearsals, he assisted the conductor in molding the piece into what he wanted it to be. What an opportunity for him- to have professional musicians debut his piece, on live radio, at the age of young 20 something, in front of 800 enthusiastic junior highers! It must have been a total thrill, to finally hear your work finished and performed after hours (years?) of thought, rough drafts, and artificial playback.

I feel like I’m in the “creating” stage of so many things right now. I’m in the middle of a heck of a lot of thought and rough drafts, not knowing exactly what the finished product will finally sound like. Family, love, friends, music, teaching- it’s all a big rough draft somehow. I’m still figuring it out. 

Bear with me here... 

It’s kind of like the composition of LIFE: a series of thought and rough drafts that lead to DEATH: the premiere performance in which the big picture is finally revealed, with each instrument’s part fitting together perfectly. 

It’s gonna be (better be? lol) beautiful. One day, everything I’m doing and have done is gonna make sense and I’ll get to hear my life in something better than artificial playback. 

In the meantime: more thought, another rough draft, more thought, more artificial playback, listening listening listening, another draft. And perhaps the most important... giving way to the Conductor to help me mold the bits in place. 

Deep stuff over here. 

Anyway, here we come, la France! Until next time, Blue Lake.

In with the 2013

When I was growing up in Phoenix, my family would buy a live Christmas tree for the holidays, then plant it in the back yard next to the cacti and creosote shrubs when the holidays fizzled out.  

Christmas tree shopping in France isn’t quite the same experience as in Arizona. No boy scouts. The trees are from Turkey and super small. I bought a live one this year, though, and planted it in front of our house yesterday. I was thinking of the year-in-end, Eloise was playing with dirt, and Cash was surveying us. 

2012.There were some rough days in there along with some great memories. Top 10 would be:

1.Bringing Eloise to Phoenix this summer, chilling with my parents, seeing my brother and sister, smelling the desert air.

2.Playing for the Prince of Monaco at his ball thing.

3.Playing music with my next door neighbors in their garage from time to time, after-hours and when Eloise was in bed. I love them.

4.Seeing the mountains of Corsica up-close and in person- I had only admired them from afar, from the mainland of Cabris. Being at their feet, even if it was on a ferry with my family in law, was magical.

5.On that same trip to Corsica: Eloise saying “mama” (and meaning it) for the first time, in my arms, under the sun, wading in the sea. It was like a marriage proposal. Heart-melter.

6.Having a pizza with Francois the other night in Cannes: our first time in too long to be away and alone together.

7.Teaching a first harp lesson to a new student, fresh ears, clean slate--- it’s an honor to teach a first lesson! Such a responsibility, if you ask me.

8.Getting to know Anita, my Nepalese au pair friend

9.Inviting my friend Santiago to Cabris this summer for a harp masterclass, all the way from La Mexique, being inspired by his mere presence, and thanking God to have him as a friend

10. Wearing Eloise everywhere, seemingly. In particular: the strawberry patch in back this summer. Those were some sweet mornings, picking strawberries and passing them over my back to be grasped by a little hand and devoured.

I was thinking about some of the rough days and wondering if it was time to forgive anyone that pissed me off in 2012. Ding! It was immediately obvious: the general practitioner in Cabris. 

My parents came to visit this Spring, and my mom caught a bug on the plane over. She was not herself, and her state was worsened because of her multiple sclerosis. I took her to see the doctor in Cabris, and in his cold manner, he prescribed medicine. We were sure to be sure that he had the list of her current medications, but sure enough, he prescribed something that was never meant to fly with something she was already taking. Bad to worse. Days later, we finally realized what was going on. 

I have hands-down never been so angry. “Angry” doesn’t cover it. I was shaking with rage towards this man. I exploded on him in his office, in front of other patients, demanding a humble apology that never came. I was furious for my mother’s sake, to see her as she was and to know that it could have been helped. Thinking of that day brings the hot tears back into my eyes. 

To this day, when I see the guy driving around in his little orange car, I shiver. But the truth: he’s just a guy that messed up. It was a mistake.  Mistakes are unintentional. The dude didn’t mean to destroy my parent’s visit and put my mother into an utter mess. It happened. 

I mess up, too. 

Hate sucks. I didn’t realize it was making me ugly until I was digging a hole for the tiny Turkish Christmas tree. It’s got to be done: Cabris doctor, I forgive you for messing up and hurting my mom. I’m letting it go. I’m letting you go. Forgiveness with no holds barred. Over.

Back to the hole, I wondered what’s in store for 2013. We rang in the New Year with pancakes and pajamas this morning with rain outside. Quiet start. 

And for the infamous New Year’s resolution: I’ve got it in my heart to do less and “be” more. It’s an ongoing project and I’ve made some huge strides thanks to Eloise, but I’ve still got a ways to go. 

I like seeing the little tree out front, letting its roots do what they do, adapting to its new life in France. Welcome to chez nous, little tree. 

Happy New Year, and best wishes for us all in 2013.