MUSIC FOR HEALING
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SOFIE OVERCOMES AUTISM
"Sofie has really connected with Stacy and the piano. Having autism she has always struggled with her speech and forming words fluently and completing sentences. She also struggles with sensory issues. But with the piano through the notes and fluidity of the music Sofie's words, thoughts, and emotions flow more easily. She is able to really reach into her creative side and use the music to express her feelings and help her communicate without struggling for the words. Piano with Stacy has really impacted her daily life and she loves it so much. We are really blessed to have Stacy in Sofie's life." Sofie's mother, Samantha
WHO SAYS YOU NEED TWO ARMS?
I'll never forget the day Julio called me and asked for piano lessons. I'll admit I had doubts when he told me his story. He was homeless. A stroke had left him with the use of only his left arm. But he wanted to learn to play the piano. I agreed, unsure of what would happen. Julio practiced his keyboard in the park each day, amid jeers of onlookers who mocked him for trying to play - no, actually playing - with only one arm. Julio stopped lessons with me when he enrolled in a music program at a local community college. Music opened a whole new world to him.
MAKING MUSIC ACCESSIBLE
October is National Arts Month, for which the city of Colorado Springs sponsored 20 pop-up art events to engage the community and make art more accessible to populations that might otherwise not have access to good art. My application to do a free concert for the city's homeless and disadvantaged was accepted! I set up my keyboard outside the soup kitchen, which serves between 500-700 low-income, veterans, homeless, people fallen on hard times each day. The response of the crowd was overwhelming, likely the most appreciation I have ever received for a concert.
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A BRIGHTER DAY IN THE HOSPITAL
I try to play the piano in the lobby of the Penrose Hospital once a week. Some days I feel more pulled to play there than others. There is always a reason, always someone who needs to hear my music, always appreciation for what I do. This video shows one of the most poignant hospital experiences for me. A lady was strapped in head to toe, totally unable to move, I'm not sure why, but it looked pretty bad. I played a song just for her, after which her nurse told me it was the highlight of her day. I was so glad I was there to offer some sunshine to her dreary day.
TREMORS BE DAMNED!
Joe is a kidney transplant recipient, with tremors in his hands the result of his anti-rejection medication. Playing piano helps him to control the tremors! "I think having to play the piano has forced me to hold my hands on the keys. The tremors can be really bad, so I have to concentrate on staying still and keeping in contact with the keys so that I don't jiggle off of them. It's helped me have that control. The smaller fingers on the sharps and flats are sometimes an issue, but in the overall playing, I think I'm doing pretty well. " I am so pleased with Joe's progress, tremors be damned!
MUSIC IS MEDICAL
This man was especially touched by my performance on the patio of the soup kitchen. When asked how the concert impacted him, he replied, "When I first walked up with my bicycle, I could hear the piano playing. And it was very spiritual. Motivating. You know...medical. It's a medical thing. You have to really listen to it. This is some real music. I thank the Lord for leading me this way." The man broke down in tears before he could explain further. But the details didn't matter, for his words were enough to know that my music had reached his innermost part that needed to be healed.
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