My Musical Musings Blog | betsyleebaileymusic.com - The Music of Betsy Lee Bailey

Oh, to Sing Again

4/2/2021

Over the past few months, people have been telling me that I have been a part of their Stake Conferences. Well, not just me. Really, some old Tabernacle Choir videos were played in their meetings. I just happened to be visible in some of those videos.

It sure would be nice to be able to sing with the Choir again. The current members of the Choir have that same wish, too! They wish the Tabernacle Choir was able to sing LIVE and IN PERSON again.

(See? There I am on the bottom row left of the
Soprano I section singing "Come Thou Fount.")

Being in the choir loft during General Conference was always so amazing. For those of you who watch for these kinds of things, the choir loft is always completely full for Conference. In fact, there are even a few who cannot fit, so they have to sit out for a session and rotate in during another. Either those people have had less than stellar attendance, or they are one of the newbies.

The outpouring of the Spirit is very moving during Conference. I was always so impressed that I could feel the presence of the Spirit from the time I entered the immense Conference Center early in the morning. We loved sharing the stand with our Apostles and Prophets, and Teachers and Leaders. And when we sang, I always felt that we had extra singers helping from beyond the veil. Perhaps my Grandma, Uncles and my Mom were there to sing when we were too overcome by the Spirit. (There were those times when I knew I wasn't singing. I was trying, but it was hard to sing through the tears!)

In the meantime, I guess General Conference Music will be provided again by videos of past performances of the Tabernacle Choir. My friends saw me during the last two Conferences. Who knows? Maybe, I will get to sing again in this weekend's Conference. (It's just not the same as being there in person!)

Trying to Feel it Together through Masks

3/25/2021

The first choral concert of this Pandemic year was very interesting. The choir was "social distanced" across a very wide extension of the stage in the quite large high school auditorium. The students wore "singer's" masks that stuck out a good three inches from their faces. Some of the singers stood on the risers in the center near the piano, but most were very spread out and very far away from others in their part sections.

The product was just what you might well imagine. Try as they might, the poor singers could hardly hear the other sections or the piano. So, staying in tune and keeping rhythm together was marginal at best. Forget about understanding the words. All the audience heard were muffled attempts at diction.

I have got to hand it to the brave choral conductors who are valiantly trying to prepare their students for concerts during this time of pandemic. I have been to several school choir concerts over the past year. Each time, the poor choral conductors have tried new strategies in an attempt to give their students a good learning/performance experience.

It is such a shame that these students are not getting the full experience of singing music and feeling the shared vibrations, empathy and sounds around them together. Being so spread out puts some of the students in different time zones. That effectively limits their ability to keep rhythms and diction synchronized.

I sure hope that somehow these students will keep their enthusiasm for music alive even though their Pandemic year's experiences have been disappointing, disheartening, and so dismal.

What a Difference a Day Makes

3/10/2021

For the past few days, the weather has been unseasonably warmth. We thought for sure we were witnessing an early Spring. But what a difference a day makes! Yesterday, the wind blew in dark clouds a-billowing and dropping the temperatures quite suddenly. I began my walk in temps over 50 degrees, and by the time I was nearing home, I was glad I had thought to wear a heavier coat!

Now, I realize this was not a big snow event, and how nice that the snow apparently only fell on the vegetation, but it just reminded me that we are not through with winter just yet.

This gives me license to freely work on Christmas songs, then. Right?

Two more songs my granddaughters recorded vocals for me on are Christmas songs arranged for 2-Part Children's Chorus. With four girls willing to sing, they could neatly pair up on the two parts. Jingle Bells is technically not Christmas-specific, so editing audio and video of it on any snowy day is sanctioned, right? And Under the Christmas Tree is a song of longing for Christmas Day to come. Some folks in marketing start the count down to Christmas in January. So, I must be good there, too. Huh?

I have been playing around with iMovie as another way to showcase my songs.
Enjoy these YouTube videos sung by my cute granddaughters Makayla, Melanie, Megan and Maya.

Jingle Bells for 2-Part Children's Chorus
Under the Christmas Tree - Partner Song for 2-Part Children's Chorus

Virtual Musical Numbers for Ward Conference

3/7/2021

My daughter was given the responsibility and challenge of providing two musical numbers for her Ward Conference next week. She was given the theme and asked to provide videos that would be shown during the meeting to the few people in attendance as well as the virtual ZOOM congregation. While she would much prefer live music in a meeting attended by many live people, she willingly accepted this opportunity. (Providing any singing is better than NO SINGING!)

The theme has something to do with how to survive life's TESTS. Seems quite appropriate due to the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic. She thought and thought about what songs to do, and then she asked me for ideas. I suggested a song sung by the Tabernacle Choir at Pres. Thomas S. Monson's 85th Birthday Celebration Concert, Golden Years, "If the Way Be Full of Trial, Weary Not." (I know I was there in the video, but I couldn't find me. sigh)

I had been visiting their family in Pennsylvania for the week doing some recording of songs for my website. Kathryn has five daughters between the ages of 9-17. They have lovely voices, good musicianship, and are willing to do Grandma a big favor by learning and singing some of my songs. One song Kathryn heard Megan practicing, "My Baptism Covenant." She asked us if Megan could be filmed singing that song as the second number. Megan was willing, and so we stayed after the meeting at Church and filmed her singing in the chapel.

When I got home to Utah, I rendered the Megan's video in iMovie. I think she did such a beautiful performance. Here is the video. Enjoy!

"My Baptism Covenant" video - sung by Megan Rock, age 10

Singing the Hymns for Praise and Worship

2/10/2021

A couple of weeks ago, the Counselor conducting the meeting instructed, "now let's join in singing the opening hymn." I took him at his word, although our congregation had not been invited to actually sing in many months due to the COVID pandemic. However, the week before, the congregation (both in the chapel and those tuning in from home) had been invited to actually sing during Stake Conference. So naturally, I thought that the policy had changed. However, it occurred to me that being new to the calling, he may have had a slip of tongue.

As soon as I opened my mouth to sing (behind a mask of course), it became obvious that I was singing a solo. "Too late now," I thought to myself, "I'm committed." So, I sang out loud and clear. It actually felt very good. I felt like I was allowed to worship again in the meeting.

After the meeting, many people came up to me and said how much they enjoyed hearing the words of the hymns again. I asked them if they had been singing. They said that they had just been enjoying listening to me sing.

"Oh, no, no, no! You are supposed to sing, too!"

The next Sunday, I decided to sing the hymns again, no matter what. This time, I could actually hear more people singing with me. After the meeting, some people that I had not seen at Church physically in a very long time thanked me for singing. They told me that the reason they had not come out to Church for so long was that they thought, "It just doesn't feel like Church without the singing! And because we can just watch on the computer, why go to the effort to dress up to go to the building?""

They did say that if I continue to sing each week, they would come back to Church in the chapel.

Singing the hymns during meetings helps us unite in praises and worship and invites the Spirit to testify. Oh, that we could have more of that across the world today!

Respecting Beethoven

2/5/2021

Singing the glorious last movement of Beethoven's Ninth Symphony as part of the Tabernacle Choir will remain one of the highlights of my life. In my college years, I studied the works of Beethoven as part of the Music history modules, but always came away not really able to understand or give his music the respect it deserves. For me, his music was very difficult to perform and took great exertion to master. I admit, my skills were probably lacking and that is the bigger reason why I only embraced certain of Beethoven's works.

After listening to a very moving podcast about Beethoven's life and works, I came away better able to understand the man and the greatness of his music. In Music History courses, students are exposed mainly to just the few musicians who played pivotal roles in pushing the parameters of music. Three Germanic composers, Bach (1685-1750), and Haydn (1732-1809), and Mozart (1756-1791), are recognized as TRANSITIONAL FIGURES because of their originality, genius and sheer output. Bach basically defined the Baroque period in Music, however many of his compositions pushed the accepted boundaries of that era. Haydn's music defined the new, clean, well-ordered style of the Classical Period. Mozart lived during the Classical age, but defied the rules and pushed towards more freedom of expression and emotional content. He helped transition music into the age of Romanticism, a style period that Beethoven matured in and further defined through his genius and originality.

Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827) grew up studying the works of the masters, and even met both Mozart and Haydn in Vienna. He actually studied for a time with Papa Haydn. Beethoven had the desire to master and even go beyond the performance capabilities and compositions of these masters. He witnessed the demise of the "Court Composer" Patron system (like Haydn) to the new commercial model of the "freelance musician" (like Mozart). Beethoven had equal hard luck with both systems.

After learning about all of Beethoven's hard luck throughout his life from family problems, to romantic heart-aches, from sickness to total deafness, it is hard to imagine how this tortured man could create such sublime music. Through all of his difficulties, though, he still managed to continue his faith in God. In fact, Beethoven covenanted with Him to continue to create music for as long as he was able to use his God-given gift. How truly inspirational!

I think I respect Beethoven and his music better now.

Bartering --- Of the Past or In Our Future?

2/3/2021

My mother spent her life building up people and molding musicians. She operated by pure love --- her love of music and her love of people. She often taught more than 30 piano or vocal lessons a week, but did it mostly for the blessings of satisfaction that she had helped people bring joy into their lives through working on skills. This usually meant that she rarely charged the going rate and did a lot of BARTERING.

We lived in Texas in the mid to late 1960's. Most of my mother's students came from our Church congregation and also happened to live pretty far away from our neighborhood. One family had 12 children and not enough money for them all to get luxuries such as private lessons. My mother loved this family and saw some real talent in many of the children. She offered to give lessons in exchange for having the mother, who was a good seamstress, sew for us.

In those days, the schools had dress codes. That meant the girls wore dresses every day. So, my mother would contract with this seamstress --- so many dresses for so many lessons. This seemed to work out well for us. Mom would allow me and my sister the opportunity to choose fabric and some time later, we would get new school clothes. I think I remember our brothers getting a few new shirts this way, too. These clothes were never very fancy, but they were new! (That was a luxury for us!)

My mother was a pro at BARTERING --- music lessons for yard work, babysitting, produce from the garden, bottled fruit, rides to activities for her children, and the list goes on. I am sure this hearkened back to her pioneer heritage and lessons from living through the Great Depression of the 1930's. When people have no currency, they trade.

With the way things are heading in our country with so many people put suddenly out of work, we may need to get back to the thrift practices of our ancestors!

Having an Attitude of Gratitude

1/29/2021

Victorian piano party - notice all of the open-flame candles!

Lately, I have been fascinated by Victorian England. My ancestors lived for many generations in Yorkshire (northern) England. Two PBS series I have watched with great interest this month are "All Creatures Great and Small" and "How the Victorians Built Britain."

"All Creatures Great and Small" is the story of James Herriott, a country vet (animal doctor). The setting is at the turn of the 20th century (1900) in and around the tiny villages and moors of northern England. That is the same area my great grandparents knew just before they immigrated to America in 1910. This beautifully filmed series has given me a new appreciation for my ancestors. They left a very green island for a very lonely wilderness of Idaho. I was struck by how similar the wide open spaces of the English moors and the ranch land of southern Idaho are. It's just that one land looks like it might be green year-round, where the other tends to be dry and grey most of the time.

"How the Victorians Built Britain" has also been fascinating to watch. During Queen Victoria's long reign (1837-1901), Britain's people figured out some extraordinary advances in technologies that solved a lot of problems and brought comforts and a measure of safety and prosperity to even the poorest people. The engineers figured out how to put in pipes throughout the cities and towns to bring in fresh clean water and take away sewage. And after they figured out the water systems, they discovered that gas could be manufactured from coal (a product found in abundance in Britain) and could also be piped into the homes to provide light, heat and used as a controllable fuel for cooking.

Imagine having new cleanliness and safety going from living in a dark, smelly, sickly city with dangers in the crowded streets (walking people, vehicles, machines, animals and their excrement with no rules of the road), dirty air, polluted water, no sanitation, no street lights, open-fire cooking, poor transportation, and the list goes on. No wonder these technological advances were looked on as miraculous.

I often wonder how we can have lost the sense of wonder at the enormous technological advances of our day.  We simply assume that our devices will work. We take no thought about who created them or how the systems are maintained. We get mad when something doesn't work when we push the button or flip the switch.  So many of us have never known want, or hunger, or cold, or even discomfort.  Instead of having gratitude for the marvelous products and resources at our fingertips, we are simply annoyed at some trivial inconvenience or delay.

Today, I am reminding myself that I have many technological advances to be grateful for --- my heated comfortable home, a car to get me around with a working garage door opener, stores that have goods I can readily buy, devices to work at or entertain me and allow me to connect with family and friends far away, clean running water, safe cooking appliances, refrigerators and freezers --- the list is endless.  As a musician, I am especially grateful to have a lovely piano (as well as other keyboards and instruments and a lot of books and copies of music). This would have been a luxury reserved for only the most affluent of society in former days.

My Victorian ancestors would not know what to do with all of these luxuries! So why don't more of us display an attitude of GRATITUDE?

Virtual Church with Virtual Singing

1/25/2021

Yesterday I attended a virtual Church meeting where the "congregation" was asked to actually sing the hymns. (I had expectations that this would feel better than just listening to or humming along.) The organist was wonderful and the conductor was plenty competent, but watching the songs unfold with everyone wearing masks was deflating, indeed. She conducted a very small group of people in the huge chapel, So, while we could tell that a few people were singing, we could not hear the singing let alone understand any of the words.

Where I should have been happy to sing along at home referring to my own hymnal for the words, the choir citizen in me was really missing singing en masse. And what I missed the most was seeing the lips of and facial expressions of the conductor. I wonder if I would have felt different if she had been allowed to direct without the mask --- even if she only mouthed the words.

The speakers were allowed to take off their masks while they delivered their talks. So, why not have the music leader conduct without the mask? As a choir conductor, I have spent a lifetime leading groups of singers MOSTLY just mouthing the words. It is very normal for a conductor to lead the singing without actually singing. But, even without singing, the conductor's job is to pull a performance out of the singers and guide the experience of the group.

I think we would have enjoyed the experience of singing virtually together much better yesterday had we watched a conductor who could have shown her facial expressions and at least "mouthed" to us the words!

Daddy, We Like You Mean

1/19/2021

Lee family in about 1966, Houston TX

Usually, our mother's six children enjoyed singing together. But, not this time. She was teaching us an arrangement of the hymn "Love at Home." It was very complicated and taking a lot of time to work out. We had made such a fuss about not wanting to double parts that she had written it in six parts, giving each of us our own notes to sing.

Actually, we were demonstrating anything BUT love at home right then. Bobby (16) and Betsy (13) were impatient because they had homework to do. Barby (8) had a cough. Billy (6) would rather just be off playing. Bonnie was very little (2 1/2) and had to have a lot of coaching. And Benny (11) was always up to his shenanigans that disrupted the rehearsal. The arguments got to fever pitch and Mom called for back-up.

Bonnie age 3, Houston TX about 1969

"TOM! DO SOMETHING!!!!"

As Dad marched down the hall, we all braced for a tongue-lashing. We could see the steam building up as he came closer. Just as he was about to let loose, little Bonnie looked up at him and very coyly said, "It's okay, Daddy, we like you mean."

At that, we saw the steam simply fizzle out Dad's ears. Then, we all started laughing. And then we started hugging. Bonnie had reminded us that we really did love singing together and we really did have love in our home. After that, we promised to continue our rehearsal without further bickering.

Wisdom out of the mouth of babes...

The Music of Betsy Lee Bailey copyright 2020