Sounds of Encouragement

Overview

Episodes

Recent Episodes

JAN 20, 2022

Interview with Pianist, Teaching Artist & Arts Advocate Jessica Evotia Andrews Hall

Jessica Evotia Andrews-Hall is an award winning pianist who is in demand as a collaborative performer, teaching artist and arts advocate. Her past teachers include Michi North, Dr. Peter Mack, Dr. Rebecca Steele, Francis Walker-Slocum and Dr. Karen Walwyn. Under their guidance, she has performed at venues like Carnegie Hall, the White House and Benaroya Hall. In 2011, Jessica became a Seattle Symphony teaching artist where she was an early education childhood specialist and created music curriculum for babies and preschool. She also led Carnegie Hall Link Up residencies that taught hundreds of students to perform along side the orchestra. She also helped homeless families write and record songs with Seattle Symphony musicians for their children during The Lullaby Project. In 2013, she was featured in a traveling museum exhibit called Treemonisha: Celebrating African Americans in Classical Music. In 2019, Jessica became a pianist for the Pacific Northwest Ballet and recently completed her third tour with the Seattle Opera. As an avid arts advocate, Jessica uses music to inspire, motivate and empower people. She is the owner of JAM Studios which is a large vibrant piano studio where she teaches private and group lessons for ages two to senior citizen. Jessica is on faculty at Music Works Northwest where she created a popular Parent & Me group piano class and her Creative Keyboard summer camps sell out every year. As a Steinway teacher and educational partner, Jessica has been teaching piano for over a decade and her students have went on to music conservatories, competed on nation wide televised competitions, performed on Broadway in NYC and pursued professional music careers. Jessica has an equal passion for providing quality arts education and lighting up the concert stage and she feels extremely fortunate to be doing both every single day!

To learn more go to: http://jessicaandrewsmusicstudio.com

Top 5 Songs of Encouragement:
1) Still Have Joy by Tye Tribbett
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vfw6wOuN32M
2) You Can't Stop Me by Andy Mineo
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IddPVKt3lYs
3) Ain't No Mountain High Enough by Marvin Gaye
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eu2gAqn4I2A
4) Run the World (girls) by Beyonce
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xqo08TXbxWQ
5) Grateful by Hezekiah Walker
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-ZWZeUR3rBQ

Support the show (https://www.buymeacoffee.com/Encouragement)

68 MIN

JAN 7, 2022

Interview with Composer, Pianist, Arranger Christopher Norton

Composer, arranger, and teacher, Christopher Norton is universally regarded as the leader in his field. Born in 1953, he is a New Zealand-born, now Canadian-based composer.

His long and fruitful association with Boosey & Hawkes has resulted in the world-famous Microjazz series, the Preludes for piano, 2 Concert Collections for piano and, with his wife Wendy, 30 Micromusicals.

In 2005 he wrote Connections for Piano for the RCM. The series is now owned by Christopher and published by his own company, www.80dayspublishing.com. In 2006 he wrote American Popular Piano for Novus Via Publications.

Christopher is in high demand for his unique and creative presentations, both live and on line. He offers sessions ranging from improvisation coaching for private teachers to adjudicating non-competitive piano festivals with literally thousands of student entries; from offering personal, intensive master class sessions at all levels to lectures in advanced composition. Everywhere he goes, his fresh and uplifting approach to music never fails to inspire and enlighten all who attend.

In the last 5 years, Christopher has written a series of concert works A very well received Jazz Piano Sonata, an Italian Suite for 2 Pianos, a Turkish-Anatolian Suite for 2 pianos and an Idaho Suite for solo piano are among the many new publications from 80dayspublishing.

Christopher now lives, with his wife, another published composer, in Stratford, Ontario, Canada.
Links:
Youtube channel: www.youtube.com/christophermicrojazz
Website (Boosey & Hawkes) www.christophernorton,com
Facebook: facebook.com/christophernortoncomposer
Soundcloud: www.soundcloud.com/nortonchristopher

Top 5 Songs of Encouragement:
1) "I'll See You Again" by Noel Coward, sung by Jeanette MacDonald and Nelson Eddy
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2bA_G1twjCo&t=3s

2) "Christ on the Mount of Olives" Op. 85 Hallelujah by Beethoven performed by UCLA Philharmonia, UCLA Chorale, and Angeles Chorale
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5ZKWcn7bqsQ&t=4s

3) Debussy Cello Sonata with Cellist Eve-Marie Caravassilis and pianist Jean-Bernard Marie of the London Symphony Orchestra
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NRBNS3PQkww&t=3s

4) "So What" by Miles Davis
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zqNTltOGh5c

5) Prokofiev Piano Concerto No. 3 performed by Martha Agerich with the Singapore Symphony
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BS0SwRoYAW0&t=143s

Support the show (https://www.buymeacoffee.com/Encouragement)

79 MIN

DEC 17, 2021

Interview with Wendy Beardall-Norton, Pianist, Composer, Teacher

Wendy Edward’s Beardall-Norton was born in Toronto, Ontario, raised in Hamilton, Ontario, married and lived in Toronto and in Fredericton, New Brunswick, where she lived and taught music and was very involved with the musical life of the city for over 40 years, and where two of her sons, Gregory and Cameron and their families still live.

In 2014, some 15 years after her first husband, Alan, died, Wendy was remarried to Christopher Norton, a man well known in educational, religious and entertainment-style music in many parts of the world. The couple settled in the U.K., Chris’s adopted country, in London, where Chris had lived for a number of years.

In 2018 Wendy and Chris moved to Stratford, Ontario, Canada, (close to where youngest son, Jeffrey lives with his family in Toronto), where they continue to enjoy both the life-style, the people and the vibrant music community. They travelled pre-pandemic to much of Canada, the U.K., the U.S., Australia, New Zealand, Europe and Asia both to work and to visit with Chris’s three children, Daniel, Juliet and Isobel and their families in various parts of the U.K., and to visit close friends and relatives in France, NZ, Portugal, the Netherlands, the US, and other parts of the world.

Wendy has published three books of piano music, the first two with Debra Wanless Publishers (www.debrawanless.com), the third with 80dayspublishing.com. She has, with Christopher, created 31 MicroMusicals which are taught as part of the curriculum in a number of UK schools> Wendy writes story-lines, lyrics, and in some cases the melodies; she has also co-authored 10 books of songs from the Micromusicals, for use in vocal examinations and Festivals. Wendy has also written new melodies for 20 John Wesley Hymns which are being released as Eternal Depth by 80dayspublishing.com and as audio under the title Wesley Rediscovered. She is proud to say that her youngest son Jeffrey has been the sound engineer and also a musician on the last project and his daughter Riviera is one of the singers on the album! Finally, Memories, a book of songs with music and words by Wendy, is about to be published by 80dayspublishing.com.

You can find much more at https://wendyedwardsbeardall-norton.com

Top 5 Songs of Encouragement:
1) Fantasie Impromptu in C# minor by Chopin, performed by Jonah Ho
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DQeC5i9c09M
2) Piano Concerto no 2 by Rachmaninoff, performed by Artur Rubinstein
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u9QLiefnoDE
3) Crystal Silence by Chick Corea, performed by Return to Forever
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0Epv4Zk6stQ
4) Skylark, Music: Hoagy Carmichael, words: Johnny Mercer performed by Hoagy Carmichael
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j7HsGBJjilQ
5) Southern Serenade by Christopher Norton, performed by Marek
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2644uI135wU