DulcetDreams

The journey to understanding what I want to accomplish with my music has been an evolving revelation.  My goal to  ”brighten the world one song at a time” releases me to be who I am, an individual who processes life through creative expression and finds joy in sharing what I see, but in bite-sized pieces.  Sometimes what emerges is a collection of pieces as in record production or live performances, but it all starts with one song.

When I decdied to establish a web presence in 2003, I just wanted a place to post my music where it could be heard by whoever happened by.  Peter, the IT guy where I worked created my first website for me, the theme of a happy flower where each petal presented a different page.  It was fresh and sweet, representing my essence well.  However, Peter was the only one with access so when I wanted to input or change content I had to wait till he had a moment.

A change came when I produced my Vessel CD in 2004.  A musician friend, Georgette Dashiel, let me know I could sell my CDs on CD Baby (an online music store specializing in independent music) which led me to also sign up with HostBaby (webhosting for independent musicians, authors and artists) where I have happily thrived since.  Hostbaby outfits you with tools that are fun, easily learned, and affordable for anyone on a budget! 

My next steps were MySpace, FaceBook and Twitter, in that order, where I began networking with other musicians, artists and people of all types.  The web is certainly a learn-as-you-go experience and you can’t help but wonder how we ever navigated without it.  It’s definitely connecting us to one another globally.  (Another blog entry for later lest I digress …)

I can understand why some folks resist the social networking aspects of weblife.  But for those of us who have decided to jump in and let it do what it’s designed to do have found the positives outweigh the negatives.  For instance, I resisted Twitter at first for the same reason many have - it can be lame commenting about what you had for lunch.  Instead, it turned out not to be about lunch at all.  When I tweet it’s usually to announce a gig or a favorite musical quote or to pass on something great someone else has said.  Even your Twitter byline (the bio to explain who you are) forces you to define your identity in one memorable quote with only 160 characters.  Tweets are 140 characters so I’ve had to learn to squeeze my lofty thoughts into nutshell statements.  If nothing else, it forces the thinking/writing process which can’t be bad for my aging brain. Each tweet is a virtual personal billboard, so to speak.  The good news is I’m not really limited to that 140-character tweet because I can link it from twitter to my blog post and blather on till I find full expression with as many words I choose.

All this to say, my web presence, with all its honing qualities, has helped me discover who I really am and what I’d like my purpose to be.  I’ve heeded lots of advice posted by social network bloggers along the way, and though I’ve used what works for me, I’ve noticed some of it doesn’t apply to my goals.  To determine my goals, I’ve learned to live with an honest assessment of my strengths and weaknesses which has come through trial and error, not just on the web, but in the real dimensional world as well. 

This journey to my true purpose has revealed to me there’s a fine line between believing all things are possible and discerning who I am and what I am meant to do.  And for now, I believe it’s to brighten the world, one song at a time. 

And with that, feel free to chime in what you have learned in your journey along the way.  I’d love to hear from you!

New songs seem to light themselves like little birds in my musical space - I’m fortunate to usually have some kind of flow going.  But with all the new visitation, I’ve found it important to keep my older songs alive, too, so they don’t disappear into the lonely void.  Lately I’ve been revisiting some of those forgotten pieces that gathered dust over the years, crowded out by the spiffy younger ones.  It’s been  satisfying to tweak them and bring them to the front again; to make them a bit more current by adding a riff of piano to the arrangment or removing some cluttery notes that could now make it annoying (sometimes less is more); or rephrasing the lyric so it’s less of an eye-roller.  I must say, I find myself shaking my head in wonder at some of what I’ve written in years past. 

It’s a bit like cleaning house and remembering a picture that once graced the wall.  You dig it out of  storage, shine it up a bit and rehang it just to see if it still reflects who you are and what you’d like to say.  Then you find a new home for the artwork you just replaced, whether it be on another wall or leaning in repose behind the closet door waiting for another turn in the spotlight.

I am in the process of redesigning my website which is great fun.  Stay tuned and hopefully I will post it at the beginning of the new year.  The reason I do this is to keep things fresh and new - plus, because I’m a creative, I can’t help myself - I’m always in Creative Mode.  Since my website is through Hostbaby I have access to the templates they provide.  The newest development available is that within the templates I have more liberty to customize the template I choose to my liking.  It gives me more options without having to get a degree in graphics design or pay hundreds of dollars to a web designer.  Website on a budget, so there you go!  In essense I can put as much time or as little time as I want into the design with the functionality remaining pretty simple.

Just thought I’d share that.  Click HERE if you are interested in a musician or author website of your own!  Thank you HostBaby! 

I had a blast playing at the Farmer’s Markets this year! The more I play at Farmers Markets the more I hope to in years to come. Just like coffee houses, this type of venue seems to be my niche where my songs fit in and lend a little atmosphere without overpowering. People attend coffeeshops and markets to talk amongst themselves and browse - conversation is flowing - so it’s not just about the music yet the music adds a layer of color and warmth. And if people are hanging out solo the music can then add a bit of companionship without requiring interaction. Win - win for everyone! So, you will be seeing more farmers market gigs on my calendar. Be sure to drop by a market near you to check out all the lovely local flavor!

Sometimes Stan and I poach concerts above the Idaho Penn with about 100 other people and canines. On a good day you can hear really well but need binocs for the visual. We ride our bikes across town, park them and trek up the hill a short ways. Here’s a vid of our latest and the long bike ride home if you feel like cruiser biking back up to the bench with us! I was holding the flip while I was riding so it gets a little bumpy in places. Also, the river is really high this year and some places under the bridges are flooded although I had to put the flip in my pocket while rolling through the water so no footage of that! There is some footage of riding through the tunnels and under a bridge though!

I’ve already posted on my Spring Color thoughts a few years back but want to include my Spring Color Video here in 2011 as well since that’s when I made the vid. You can read about Spring Color by clicking here if you are so inclined.

This song was inspired by a quote by Ralph Waldo Emerson which I include in the song: “What lies behind us - what lies before us - are small matters compared to what lies within us”. Song concept is that what lies within us is worth fighting for - to take time to process what’s past for a hopeful and brighter future. C 2011 NancyKellyMusic

Our son Benjamin turned 30 this year so both sides of the family got together for the celebration! I sang a short version of a song I wrote for him when he was a young child in 1982. We are so proud of our son who has turned out to be quite an amazing person. Created on February 13, 2011 using FlipShare.

I donated music to the Idaho Food Bank for their Empty Bowls Event held at The Grove Plaza on Nov 26th. This is a little movie I made featuring my song Red Dress which is on my Christmas CD. My good friend Alisa Costa held the camera while I sang! Thank you Alisa! More on the story below the video.

It was tempting to not show up at the Empty Bowls event the day after Thanksgiving. I was scheduled to play a set at 2pm but the weather, although 20 degrees warmer than Tuesday, still threatened to be cold and blustery. I wasn’t just worried about my own comfort however; I also had misgivings about exposing my Yamaha keyboard to extreme cold. As long as it didn’t snow or rain, I figured it could survive for up to an hour, but I was apprehensive nevertheless.

Another reason I was tempted to stay in, the day after Thanksgiving is traditionally a replenishing day for me. I like to wake up slow, putter around and tidy up the house a bit, decorate, go for a walk. So to rouse myself to play music outside just didn’t have the romantic allure it did when I said I would donate my time. But I have to admit, when I thought of the food bank people working all day outside, the least I could do was show up for an hour and play.

So, bundled up like a Michelen man, I helped Stan load the keyboard into the car and we drove downtown. We double parked on 9th Street with our flashers on and wheeled the piano to the stage which was a flat bed on wheels provided by Admagination Studios. Tom Frazee was thankfully there to help me set up and do the sound. He would also be announcing me and I found out he is nicknamed ‘the voice of God” because he has such a powerful baritone - and I can see why! Woweezow!

It was also great to see Tom’s partner Nancy Roache. The paper said she was on the lineup for music too. I remember both Tom and Nancy from when I played the Boise River Festival events. Stan and I were recently reminiscing about how they organized the music for that event each year and it was amazing!

Anyway, I’m glad to say I played my set with relative ease, although my fingers didn’t cooperate as well toward the end, so the simplified version to those last 2 songs seemed to do the trick.

During one of my songs a tall thin man with a handwritten “Homeless” sign stood by and listened for awhile. I was thinking when I sang to him that if I made the trek down the hill just for that one song for that one man, it would have been worth it. Too bad I didn’t think to flip him too but I guess the serenade was what I was there for anyway. I trust he got some soup!

I haven’t found out what the Food Bank raised that day but I hope they made their goal. They were competing with the busiest shopping day of the year as well as bad weather, so they did well just to be there to get the job done!

Here’s a video of harvesting my mums and herbs just for fun! A follow up to my last post on gardening which you can view here if you haven’t read it already.

Latest gardening news: Besides cutting back the perennials and cleaning up the beds, I’m just about to plant some bulbs around the Kelly House. I’ve got my bulbs, bulp planter, and bag of bulb booster but it’s raining today. Dang. I hope it doesn’t freeze this week so I can get them in the ground in time. Guess you’ll have to come back next Spring to find out so to be continued I hope!!