Hello Party Goers!

I've chosen the Musicians' Benevolent Fund for my charity (see their blurb on the lower left) because music has given me so much pleasure over the years.   I grew up before television, listening with my mother to the Met broadcasts and to the whole of Glen Miller.  At church, religion passed me by, but not the old hymns like 'Abide with me' and Rock of ages'.  As a teenager, I was either listening and dancing to rock 'n roll or at the movies watching Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers and singing their songs.  When I grew up, I discovered Lou Reed, Bach's organ preludes and fugues, and jazz (the listenable kind!).  In the eighties and nineties I discovered lieder, particularly song cycles by Franz Schubert and Robert Schumann, French song, and opera, which culminated in trips to Ring Cycles in Bayreuth and Adelaide.  Piano music has grown on me over the past 15 years, forming a substantial part of my listening.  In 2004 I acquired a wonderful piano (I had wanted one since the age of 5!) and, later, an equally wonderful teacher.  My latest passion is Chopin's preludes.

So, what better choice than a musical charity.  Thank you so much for diverting my prezzie to the Musician's Benevolent Fund!