May they be lifted up....

Our love and compassion go out to the people of China as we prepare for our departure on Monday. There is no way to comprehend the magnitude of suffering that has enveloped this country, as well as Myanmar with it's own tragic death toll. All I know is music heals, music touches hearts and souls without any words being expressed, therefore we will be able to transcend the language barriers as we express our love for our brothers and sisters, wherever they may be crying out. We will be dedicating each concert given in China to the victims of this disaster, a disaster no one called down upon themselves and no one deserved. Life is fragile, this we know, so in the words of Leonard Bernstein, "This will be our reply to violence: to make music more intensely, more beautifully, more devotedly than ever before".

Truly, no man is a island.

Bless the men, women and children....

Sunday, May 18, 2008

And the journey begins.....


Hello all...

Today begins the trek to China, finding us busing to Cincinnati to spend the night so we can be on our 6 a.m. flight Monday morning. We then take a quick jog up to Chicago, change planes and then off to San Francisco. We depart Frisco for a 13 hour flight to Shanghai, arriving at 5:30 pm (China is 12 hours ahead of the Eastern time zone), good thing too, not needing to stay awake all day just to get on China time....quick dinner and off to bed....ahhh!

Many have expressed they feel we're part of a bigger picture now, one where many are thinking how they can best serve the Chinese people in their mourning, how to make our performances more uplifting and inspiring. Today, China has entered it's official three days of national mourning for the earthquake victims. If we can inspire or help lift the spirits of those we meet, then we will have served this trip well. My focus now is to ask, "What can I give", whereas before I think I may have felt "What can I get out of this trip"? It's the subtle shift in one's thinking that can make all the difference. How may we serve? We will be led.....

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