This was my second Mother’s Day since gaining the name “Mama,” and it was such a pleasure to spend it with the mothers and daughters at Centenary UMC in Jacksonville! My own mother (who spent countless hours on the road driving me to harp lessons) and daughter were able to come along.
The church held their mother-daughter banquet on the Monday after Mother’s Day, with a dinner in the basement of the church, followed by the program in the sanctuary. After honoring the oldest and youngest mothers in attendance, I began the program playing “Great Day” by Nancy Gustavson. Filled with glissandos, this is a piece that really shows off the harp!
Honoring the harp’s Celtic heritage, I played a set of Irish songs (Fanny Power, Carolan’s Welcome, Brian Boru’s March, and Danny Boy), followed by the wedding classic “Canon in D.” I told the audience a couple of my favorite wedding stories (no, I won’t post them here!), and continued with a group of older pop songs – “Crazy” by Patsy Cline, “Can’t Help Falling in Love” by Elvis, and “All You Need is Love” by The Beatles.
I love playing music that people don’t expect to hear on the harp! That’s especially true of my Bollywood repertoire. The film music of India is something that isn’t heard much in Central Illinois, much less so on the harp! I played one of my personal favorites, “O Re Piya,” and followed that with a set of Disney songs for all generations – “A Whole New World” from Aladdin, “When You Wish Upon a Star” from Pinocchio, “A Dream is a Wish Your Heart Makes” from Cinderella, and “Let it Go” from Frozen.
The concert concluded with Leonard Cohen’s “Hallelujah,” a song I sing to my daughter every night at bedtime. I loved sharing the harp with the ladies of Centenary! Please contact me or visit my website (Jacksonville IL Harpist) to schedule a concert or program for your organization!
