A megathrust earthquake struck on June 22, 1996. Mom died. So powerful an event, I knew it had happened without solid confirmation. The nurses kindly said that there had been no change in my mother’s condition, though the pauses in … Continue reading
After Mom died, I couldn’t listen to Brahms for about four years. Truth be told, all classical music remained highly problematic. For whatever reason, though, Brahms topped the don’t touch list, the trigger-warning list. I can recall a conversation between … Continue reading
Our band will never sound the same again. – Duke Ellington, after the passing of Johnny Hodges Not a minute of this Thanksgiving will go by without my thoughts turning time and again on my brother Robert. This will be … Continue reading