Hey y'all.  Well it's time I officially update this page to reflect my current status.  After years of gig playing, availing myself of the myriad opportunities that Albuquerque has presented me, I am what you might call "retired" from gig playing.

 

With a caveat.  I am still the organist/accompanist/artist-in-residence at St. John's UMC.  I enjoy being part of the music program there and love the good folks I get to work with every week.  We've been through a lot, adjusting to the livestream world of COVID, coming back to in-person services, and having some wonderful holiday events with extended choirs and some of the finest orchestra players in town.  It is a job I love.

 

So, why am I "semi-retired" from gig playing?  There are two reasons.  The primary one is that my hands have been deteriorating over the years due to what I've been told is "repetitive motion osteo-arthritis".  Honestly, it has been coming on for many years, and is probably genetic.  There are various ways to treat the symptoms (and believe me I do them all!) but the bottom line is, there is no real cure for this type of arthritis.  I can and do still play the piano, but I do not have the endurance I used to have.  And, I often alter the way I play so as not to aggrevate my joints.  It alters how I play, and how long I can play.  Pain while one is playing is really distracting at the least, and can quickly rip one's focus away from that "zone" that is required to really play well.  So, I have become extremely selective about how and when I put my hands on piano keys.

 

The other reason is more subtle, and has to do with COVID, the lockdown, and being gone (with everyone else) from public playing for many months.  Without trying to explain something I cannot, I found that, after all these years of being out almost every night of the week making a living behind the keyboard, I actually didn't mind not being out playing gigs.  Yes, it surprised me too.

 

I have enjoyed a long, exciting career.  I have lived a life that most people can only dream of.  I have memories that will last a lifetime.  And, I pass the torch of gig playing to those with the passion, energy, and talent to best make that happen.  I will always be grateful for the audiences, the fun times, the memories.  I can say for many years, I made my living playing the keyboard.  And that is something not too many can say.

 

As always...savor the moments.  They may not come again!