Is it really January 2009?

OK. It's time.
A new year, a new President, new hope and a new perspective.
Time to start envisioning what we really desire,
what resources we need,
what we're willing to do to get there,
and who we can count as partners and collaborators
to go there with us.
Come with me.

In the midst of this current global economic nightmare,
banks failing and more & more people out of work,
and how many billions in bailouts?
and the ongoing and never-seeming-to-end
military retaliation and ancient antagonism between peoples
resulting in bloodshed and devastation,
as well as the environmental crises challenging this earth
and our ability to continue to thrive on this planet...
I see possibilities. I feel upbeat.
I see people opening their minds to new ways
of thinking and new ways of looking at situations.
Am I nuts?

It's clear - we have to try something new:
If we keep doing what we've been doing,
we'll keep getting what we've been getting.

I am thrilled to be starting off this year by singing at a new venue
with a truly outstanding band in the beautiful Julia Morgan Chapel
of the Chimes. The Chapel provides a wonderful visual backdrop
and acoustic listening venue for live music in a setting like no other.

It is Martin Luther King weekend.
It is two days before the inauguration of Barack Obama.
What a great way to come together in community and celebrate!

Read this Interview I did with my friend,
writer and musician Deborah Crooks.
It's about my upcoming show and prospects for 2009:
http://deborahcrooks.blogspot.com/2009/01/ellen-robinson-chapel-of-chimes

Let's go.
See you on the journey....please smile back.
(I'm the one on the right with the yellow and red pack.)

The Fullness of Fall

It's September and vacation is over. I had another awesomely beautiful backpacking trip in the Sierras hiking out of Mineral King. This year we based camped at Little Five Lakes overlooking the magnificent Kaweah Mountain range. I literally spent hours watching the change of color on these mountains as it went from a clear gold in the early morning to an intense rose by the end of the day at sunset. Still... I'm glad to be back doing the work I love: music. Too much time alone and I crave human interaction and I miss being the center of attention once again - performing and leading my flock of singers & students. Arranging, composing, rehearsing, teaching, directing, planning, emailing, returning phone calls, booking gigs, multi tasking and generally just being a musician again. New choral arrangements have been chosen for the six (six!?) groups I regularly direct. And in addition to the usual six, I have also taken on two more new groups this fall. Yes, I know...I am completely nuts. 

#1 The Berkeley Broadway Singers, a mixed community chorus of 70 singers (while Ellen Hoffman takes a well deserved sabbatical). I will teach the music, prep the singers for their four concerts, and conduct them in the November shows. 
#2 Stagebridge, a senior theater company. I will be teaching songs from "Guys and Dolls" and collaborating with the drama and dance instructors. This 12 week workshop will culminate in a performance for the public of several scenes from the musical.  

So, copies of all the music have been made and organized. Piles of music are all over and everywhere in my studio. Voice parts have been reviewed, tricky spots noted, piano accompaniment practiced...and I am ready to go.

In between all this, I am excited to have a new venue in Sacramento called Savanna's where I will be performing and then in December I will be back at Anna's Jazz island in Berkeley.

What a life! I have a full fall.