Book Review: FOR A MOMENT – ‘Listen to the Listening’, by Stephan Kühne

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by Debra Barford

Stephan Kühne trained as a music therapist with Maria Schüppel at Musiktherapeutische Arbeitsstätte in Berlin and works as a music therapist at a community hospital in Berlin. In this collection of music, he shares 32 of his compositions for lyre, used at various times when working with children and adolescents on psychiatry wards, with others on cardiology units, and for those with chronic pain.

Most of the compositions can be attempted by even a beginning lyrist, but they are deceptively simple for more experienced lyrists to master. The tone, tempi, and modes are variable, but all challenge the lyrist to enter into an inner listening relationship, which requires time and practice to develop. Almost all of the pieces are for solo lyre, with two written for three lyres.

As I have worked with these pieces, I have decided that the first and last ones are among my favorites. The first, Zeit Vergeht (Time Passes), with its large melodic intervals that must be made to move smoothly from one tone to the next, with ear and heart following, leaves a kind of ‘after-listening’ that invites one to stop and actively listen to the resounding of the silent movement that occurs once the playing is finished. The last piece, 21st of September, has a melodic gesture that alternates between 4 and 3 beats per measure, blurring the exact meter, and extending the melodic movement with each phrase. By the end of this short piece, the sounded tones, which started in the middle of the lyre, extend both downward and upward in a widening gesture that results in a feeling of inner expansion and balance in the lyrist – and, I imagine, in the listener as well.

FOR A MOMENT – “Listen to the Listening”
Contents:
Zeit Vergeht – Time Passes
Wohlgemuth – Light Hearted
Wie es ist – It is What it Is
Fragend – Questioning
Nicht Allein – Not Alone
Im Schwung – In the Swing
Piece in e-minor
Osterwind – Written Easter Sunday
Im Glockenklang – Bell Sound
Mit dem Wasser – With the Water
Sonne – Sun
Im Moll – In minor
Zwei Geschwister I – Two Sisters I
Zwei Geschwister II – Two Sisters II
Zu Zweit – In Twos
Für Drei Ganz Verschieden – Trio with unique parts
Zum Abend – In Evening
21st of September

Click here to see Listening to the Listening in LANA’s store.

International Conference – Lyre Symposium 2022

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Lyre Symposium 2022

World Lyre Conference 2022

The Presence of Spirit:
Playing the Lyre as an Art of Presence

LANA is pleased to share the updated news from our Czech colleagues that as of May 1st, the international lyre conference or "Lyra-Symposium" in the Czech Republic is on track to go forward as planned with the weekend pedagogical conference running from August 5–7 and the main conference taking place the following week from August 7–14, 2022.

As of April 9th, neither Covid vaccines nor tests are now being required to enter the country, therefore it should be possible for everyone who wishes to travel to Český Krumlov.  It is recommended, however, that travelers check requirements for specific airlines and countries they might be traveling through to get to the Czech Republic as well as with the US Embassy regarding any requirements for re-entering the US.

Since payment must be made in the Czech currency, LANA is prepared to assist with this process.  Please send your registration payment via LANA's website, and LANA will arrange the international exchange on your behalf after receiving your payment.

Register for the 2022 World Lyre Conference here: https://www.lyra-symposium.cz/en/world-lyre-conference2022, then click LANA’s website link to submit payment) – and we’ll do the international exchange on your behalf. Please confirm via email to Margo Ketchum at lyrists@gmail.com.

(Or mail by check to – Lyre Symposium c/o LANA, 2237 Kimberton Road, Phoenixville, PA 19460.)

Symposium fees:

*Reduced fee (for students under 26 years, seniors with fixed incomes, and expectant parents)

Up until May 30th: Amount to pay (as of today) –

  • Fee for participants – 6450 CZK or $285.30 USD

  • Reduced fee* – 3860 CZK or $170.74 USD

After May 30th 2022:

  • Fee for participants – 7450 CZK or $329.53 USD

  • Reduced fee* – 4860 CZK or $214.97 USD

Lyre rental cost – 1200 CZK or $53.08 USD

Note: The conference fees can be refunded in full up until the end of June 2022 or at any time, should the event be canceled by the organizer.

LODGING: Map showing accommodations

Please check the conference website for updates: https://www.lyra-symposium.cz/en/world-lyre-conference2022.

We are hoping that many of you are considering making plans to join your international colleagues for this important conference.  We understand that the current situation is quite difficult for everyone, and we do not know what the future holds. The words of Flavia Betti, lyre teacher from Brazil, speak deeply to our current world situation: “The living strength of the tone has never been more evident to me. Never has music been more needed…” Recognizing the importance of music and especially of the lyre at this time as well as all of the important impulses from teachers, players, and lyre builders, we continue to prepare optimistically for the 2022 World Lyre and Pedagogical Conferences.

The 8th World Lyre Conference in Český Krumlov aims to revive the lyre community with joint creativity, and to support the lyre community in the Czech Republic, but above all to bring the quality of live lyre music played on many lyres to the contemporary world. We cordially invite all of our lyre colleagues throughout the world to join us!

Colleen Shetland and Sheila Johns for the LANA Board

The Silent Minute

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Peggy Grimshaw from the Arion Lyre Association has shared the following thoughts as an addendum to our new Lyre Mantle initiative taken in response to our current world situation. In conjunction with our lyre playing, perhaps we can consider joining others worldwide with this additional inner observance.

Instead of the helplessness with which we express our concern about the current situation in Ukraine, we can use powerful and non-violent means to try to make a difference. Since 1940, the activity of the Silent Minute has lived – beginning with English military officers who experienced the hopelessness of the fight against Hitler's Germany.

Major Wellesley Tudor Pole, who initiated the silent minute, wrote the following:

There is no power on earth that can withstand the united cooperation on spiritual levels of men and women of goodwill everywhere. It is for this reason that the continued and widespread observance of the Silent Minute is of such vital importance in the interest of human welfare.

Since 1940, in the time before the Battle of Britain and the so-called Blitzkrieg, people all over the world, of different faiths, have agreed that every evening at 21:00 Greenwich Mean Time (GMT), a moment of silence would be observed – a moment of meditative peace, in which everyone considers a prayer for peace, a saying, a poem, or an ideal to provide a portal for cooperation with an “unseen but mighty army” in the subtle realms.

The impulse was later taken up again – in 2001, on the occasion of 9/11 – and it is still alive today.

Thank you for sharing this inspiring proposal with us, Peggy!

The World Lyre Conference 2022

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Dear friends of the lyre,

We are pleased to announce that registration for the World Lyre Conference 2022 will be open on Sunday 13th of March, and you will find all of the information on our updated website -
www.lyra-symposium.cz.

We regret that in our current world situation, we cannot predict what may happen tomorrow,
much less in August, but we can choose to be more present for this moment, and hopefully, our
conference will be held this year in Ceský Krumlov, Czech Republic from the 7th to the 14th of August, with the Pedagogical conference from the 5th to the 7th of August.

Thank you for your patience and goodwill in accepting this situation as it is, staying fully present
in the moment, and being aware of possible changes that may arise.

With warm regards, with peace and with hope,

Helena Hlaváčková (Bartošová) with the WLC team
Organizer and Coordinator of World Lyre Conference 2022

St. Patrick’s Day is coming!

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Book Review: Irish Traditional Slow Airs Volumes III - V

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By Dr. Andrea Intveen, Music Therapist, Ulm, Germany

Volumes III through V of John Clark’s arrangements of Irish traditional Slow Airs are now available in LANA's online Music Store. As in the previous two volumes, the tunes come in three different versions: First, the tune on its own, then the same with embellishments and chord indications, and last but not least, the tune with harmonies, as well as chord indications. Volume III contains 30 tunes, Volume IV another 32, and Volume V adds another 44 tunes to the collection. The pieces are intended for solo or ensemble playing on melodic and accompanying instruments.

Personally, I have been playing them on my small Gärtner alto lyre that I only got fairly recently after not being able to play lyre for quite a few years (due to the lack of an instrument). I actually find the pieces in all five volumes ideal for getting into it again, having become a bit “rusty” on the lyre. I usually play the tune on its own and later with harmonies – I haven’t had the courage to approach the embellished versions yet. This usually works quite well for me, and mostly the fairly limited range of my small instrument isn’t a problem. Very rarely, a few notes are “missing” but it is easily possible to improvise around it. The tunes are also nicely playable with guitar, tin whistle, low whistle, or violin – just to mention a few possibilities.

In working my way through the books, I found some favourites among the pieces. For example, “Port Na bPúcaí” (Tune of the Fairies, No. 84, Volume III). I perceived it as etherical, light, and clearly modal in quality. The harmonies – perfectly set by John with movements of parallel fifths – give the tune a lingering impression. Or No. 76 in the same volume (Marbhna Luimní/Lament for Limerick): I heard it for the first time played by the Chieftains many years ago (“Limerick’s Lamentation”), and played it on tin whistle myself. It’s one of the few pieces in this whole collection I actually knew before. I really enjoyed playing John’s version with its absolutely gorgeous harmonies on the lyre. Tune No. 101 in Volume IV with the impressive title “Separation of Soul and Body” was apparently wrongly attributed to Turlough O’Carolan. But whoever the original composer was, it is a lovely melody – again brought to life in a most beautifully melancholic way by John’s harmonies.

“Last Night, As I Was Thinking of the Ways of the World” is piece No. 153 in Volume V. While playing through it, I perceived it as calm, pensive, and almost dreamlike. I also liked No. 168 in the same volume very much (“The Song of the Blackbird”), possibly because of its peaceful character.

The few tunes I mentioned here are of course only a fraction of the vast collection John created. They are all quite special in their own way and very well worth playing. This collection of Irish slow airs is a gem for every lyre player, no matter what skill or level of playing. I can only vaguely imagine the enormous amount of work that is behind this very impressive compilation of tunes. I would highly recommend these books to any lyre player.

Book Review: An Irish Collection for the Lyre

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We are excited to offer Anna Prokhovnik Cooper’s most recent collection of music for lyre groups. An Irish Collection for the Lyre contains arrangements of 16 traditional Irish tunes as well as melodies by Turlough O’Carolan and a beautiful nocturne by 19th-century Irish composer, John Field. The pieces are set for different combinations of lyres: some for solo lyre, some for duos, and some for two soprano lyres and an alto lyre. Notably, the collection contains a group of tunes entitled “Three Pieces for Lyre Teacher and Pupil” (“Kerry Slide,” “Buttered Peas,” and “South Wind”) that are duos arranged simply so that early players can join in with confidence.

The composer says: “… I find that Irish music speaks to us all in a special way. It expresses fun, sadness, joy, and pain in a way we can all relate to.” This collection truly taps into the range of human experiences and emotions that Irish music so vividly embodies. From the haunting “She Moved Through the Fair” to the joyous, energetic “John O’Connor,” Anna Cooper has artfully set pieces that are moving and resonant, suiting the lyre perfectly. And because the arrangements accommodate so many different groupings, there is something here for everyone.

With St. Patrick’s Day just around the corner, we highly recommend this beautiful collection of Irish music!

Julia Elliott, for LANA Music Sales

Lyre Mantle for Ukraine

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Dear friends of the lyre,

Due to recent and ongoing events taking place in Ukraine, the wish has been expressed to me to reawaken our international Lyre Mantle initiative with the attached composition by Christian Giersch, Kleines Gebet in Klang für Leier rund um die Erde ("Short prayer in sound for Lyre surrounding the Earth"). This powerful piece of music dedicated to the memory of Channa Seidenberg could very well also be played to address so much else that is going on in the world right now that calls for our renewed musical efforts. The sounding of this musical prayer throughout the world will also serve to strengthen our unity and awareness of each other across the globe, transcending time and space.

With warm greetings,
Veronika Roemer

Click here for this free music download.

Calling for contributions for Lyre Notes

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Spring 2022 Lyre Notes, coming out soon . . .

We welcome news, stories, short articles, photos, and announcements of lyre happenings in your region.... also reviews about any item in our music sales store as well as ads from our members.

If you are using special music for the Lyre Mantle, we'd like to know what you’re playing!

The copy deadline is March 10th.

Send contributions: lyrists@gmail.com. We look forward to hearing from you!!

International Conference – Lyre 2022

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Dear Friends,

Rising out of the global situation that did not permit us to gather as a world lyre community in the summer of 2021 as originally planned, our brave colleagues and friends in the Czech Republic have rescheduled their hosting of our international lyre conference for this summer of 2022.

The conference has been planned to take place in the stunningly beautiful town of Český Krumlov in the South Bohemian Region of the Czech Republic from August 7–14, preceded by a Pedagogical Conference from August 5–7.

The theme that has been chosen is “The Presence of Spirit: Playing the Lyre as an Art of Presence.” During our musically rich days together, we will be able to experience the following:

  • Meeting with lyre-builders and music publishers

  • Workshops for all the levels of playing the lyre (for children and young players, for beginners and advanced players)

  • Eurythmy, meditation work, open stages, concerts, lectures

  • Rehearsals for the common public concert.

The full program will be published in March, but a number of lyrists from around the world have already submitted workshop offerings, including three from the United States. Some will address the conference theme and others will address more broadly-themed aspects of lyre playing. All of the workshop proposals sound intriguing and pertinent! For more detail, please see https://www.lyra-symposium.cz/en/symposium-2020/workshopy.

It would need to be said that although the planning is going forward without impediment, the reality on the ground is a moving target, and over the next several months, we will need to pay careful attention to hopeful changes in travel requirements that are currently still barring the entrance of many of our colleagues from around the world. We ask you to join us in putting all of our positive thoughts toward policy changes that would open the Czech Republic to all who would wish to travel there. LANA will be publishing updates on this situation and the conference in general here in this blog and in our Lyre Notes.

Please also feel free to consult the conference website at any time for updates (ignoring any 2021 year indications...): https://www.lyra-symposium.cz/en/world-lyre-conference2021.

Because we have not been together as an international lyre community since 2018 in the Netherlands, this summer's gathering will be a particularly joyous event! We hope that many of you will consider joining us in this very special fairytale land of castles and fortresses to sound the lyre together once again as an international community of musicians and friends!

With enthusiasm for the musical possibilities before us.

Sheila Johns for the LANA Board

From Brazil - Gift of the Butterfly Dance

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Dear Friends of the Lyre!

The world needs more joy, more optimism, more lightness... the Butterfly Dance brings light and joy when we play it.

Two years ago we received Longing for Spring, sent by Veronika Roemer. At that time, it brought for me a kind of lull, that I could share with my lyre students.

So, I send now my Butterfly Dance, a pentatonic composition, hoping that it can bring light to your hearts

With love,
Karla Polanczyk
https://www.cantaro.com.br/

Download a free copy of Butterfly Dance from our store here.
To see more from the LANA store, click here.

Prints and Postcards of the Raphael Madonnas

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NEW IN OUR STORE! Prints of the Raphael Madonnas – set of 15, size 19 x 13”

Set of 15 Prints

Raphael’s paintings of the Madonna express secret truths. Rudolf Steiner described the healing effects of Raphael’s Madonnas in August 1908, and between 1908 and 1911 he directed Dr. Felix Peipers to arrange fifteen images as a therapeutic meditation for patients suffering from emotional disturbances. Sometimes called the Raphael Madonna Series, these fifteen pictures invite our active contemplation. Each image can awaken inner pictures that lift us into communion with realms beyond the physical world, stirring our feelings of wonder and reverence and opening our souls to divine mysteries. – By Brian Gray, from Discovering the Zodiac in the Raphael Madonna Series.

“In the different arts… we are presented with different languages that give expression to certain truths living in the human soul. They are often the most secret truths, the most secret knowledge, which cannot readily be reduced to rigid concepts nor clothed in abstract formula, but seek artistic expression.”

– Rudolf Steiner, 29th April 1909.

Book Review: “Xavier Sings Stories of His Alphabet Friends”

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Xavier Sings Stories of His Alphabet Friends
By Mary Lynn Channer

See this new book in the LANA store here. 10 copies available now at $17.50 each.

I have been using several songs from Xavier Sings Stories of His Alphabet Friends (by Mary Lynn Channer) for many years, much to the delight of my beginning first grade lyre students. The beautiful illustrations and catchy lyrics make these songs fun and bring true joy to the children’s faces. It makes learning the fingerings of the fifths in “Naughty Nymph” a fun challenge. The children build their vocabularies as well, as they try to think of the meaning of such words and phrases as raucous and regal revelation in the “Raucous Rooster” song. The children insist on playing and singing “Raucous Rooster” in every lesson! Thank you, Mary Lynn, for sharing your delightful songs with us.

Review by Nancy Carpenter
LANA President and lyre teacher at The Detroit Waldorf School

A note about the author, Mary Lynn Channer: Mary Lynn Channer, BME, is a graduate of the Dorion School of Music Therapy. As a vocal and strings teacher for over fifty years, she has applied the educational principles of Rudolf Steiner in Waldorf schools and various other settings. Even as a child growing up in Canada, she loved to draw pictures and make up songs. Now in her later years of life as an anthroposophical music therapist, she considers these creative activities essential for the nourishment of all children – more important than knowing their ABCs! The delicate tones of the lyre have been the background of all this work.

Xavier Sings Stories of His Alphabet Friends is a 91-page, beautifully illustrated book with a song for every letter of the alphabet. Audio files of the songs can be found at Waldorf Publications: www.waldorfpublications.org/collections/xavier-sings-of-his-alphabet-friends-audio-files. This book is a treasure for parents and teachers of young children.

For a current list of featured book reviews, click here.

Have you read the recent issue of LYRE NOTES?

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LYRE NOTES - Advent 2021

READ IT HERE: https://mailchi.mp/5b7e719bedef/lana-advent-2021

  • An "Ode" to the Season

    • Including excerpts from Lyre Newsletters in 1986 and 1991. Christof-Andreas Lindenberg‘s words from 30 years ago are more relevant now than ever before….

  • Greetings from President Nancy Carpenter and the Board of LANA

    • We are pleased to include a seasonal gift of music, a free download from lyrist John Billing for all of our members and friends, to thank each of you for your continued financial as well as soul support.

  • Used Lyres For Sale

    • LANA offers its members the opportunity to buy and sell used lyres through Lyre Notes and on our website. The sales transaction is solely between the buyer and the seller, and we do not take responsibility for the condition of lyres being sold or purchased. All communication must go directly through the seller, and buyers should have all their questions answered before purchasing a used lyre.

  • LYRE Rentals

    • The Lyre Association has lyres of various types and sizes that are available for LANA members to rent. Monthly rent is typically $20–$40, depending upon the size and quality of the lyre. For more information on lyre rentals, go to: lyreassociation.org/lyre-rentals, or contact Julia Elliott – (978) 352-5581 / juliabelliott@gmail.com.

The Board of LANA is grateful for your support. Tax-deductible donations from members and friends around the world are so important in defraying the costs of accomplishing our mission. Our membership numbers continue to grow, and we look forward to bringing even more new lyrists to LANA. We invite all members to help us in this endeavor and urge you to consider promoting membership in the Lyre Association among your lyre-playing friends so that more people can enjoy the community support of the ‘freed tone’ that is so rare in our world today.

Calling for Contributions for Lyre Notes for Advent 2021

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We welcome news, stories, short articles, photos, and announcements of lyre happenings in your region, reviews about any item in our music sales store, and ads from our members ... also your favorite songs to play at your region’s Advent Gardens.

The copy deadline is December 9th.

We look forward to hearing from you!!  Contributions may be sent to lyrists@gmail.com.

Book Review: “Lyre One”, by Colin Tanser

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Colin Tanser’s compositions in his book Lyre One, edited by Andrew Dyer and published by Upper Esk Music, is a rich collection of 22 varied, short pieces that can be played for festivals, healing, and inner enrichment. They are written variously for one or more lyres and other instruments, but many can be played by the solitary lyrist. Some are deceptively simple, and others take some careful practice to sound their best.

Here are a few comments on some of the pieces… I have performed the first piece, ‘Sarabande,’ for a funeral, and am preparing the ‘Advent Pastoral’ for the weeks before Christmas. For many years I have loved playing ‘Sun Child’ in the version for two lyres, and I am very much looking forward to seeing if I can develop the inspiring solo version presented in this collection.

‘Six Untitled pieces’ are deceptively simple, and the ‘Seven Modal Moods’ are a great introduction to modes and an invitation to work more with them.

Then there is ‘Breathing,’ working to accomplish the balance between breath and heart beat.

I am looking forward to working more with these compositions in the future.

Debbie Barford – Chicago, IL

Lyre One by Colin Tanser is available at LyreAssociation.org. “Twenty-one original compositions by Colin Tanser, some with variation - including ‘Sun Child’, Prelude to ‘Silent Stones’ , ‘Advent Pastoral’, and more.”

Music Sales

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LANA’s music sales service has been growing and expanding at a rapid pace this year. The store has offered us a platform to reach out to the community, sharing free downloads in support of International Lyre Day and the Lyre Mantle of Sound initiative, showcasing contemporary composers’ latest works, and connecting customers to important historical texts. We sent out 433 orders (including PDF downloads) to 22 different countries in the past year, and we are thrilled that we were able to make lyre music and accessories available internationally.

This year we also added two important collections of used music. When our beloved lyre colleague, Kerry Lee, crossed the threshold in September of 2020, her family asked LANA to make her collection of books available to the community. The collection includes books on curative music therapy, music education and pedagogy, science, religion, health and healing, the natural world, and anthroposophy as well as volumes of music. The books are gently used and in good condition and can be found in The Kerry Lee Collection. In addition to this important collection of used books, we recently added a listing of books on music. These books are also lightly used and cover such topics as music history, contemporary musical research, and the biographies of composers (see the “Books on Music” page). We feel that these two collections include important books that will appeal to LANA members and non-lyrists alike, and that offering them is a form of outreach to the broader community.

As ever, we continue to sell the music of lyre composers, both contemporary and from generations past, from all over the world. Throughout the year, we receive many orders for beginner books such as Anna Cooper’s “How to Play the Lyre,” Gerhard Beilharz’s “Meeting the Lyre,” and Mechthild Laier and Gerhard Beilharz’s “A Guide to Playing the Pentatonic Children’s Lyre.” But we also have a diverse and rich collection of lyre music for solo or ensemble playing, for performance or practice, for festival and seasonal events, and for all levels of experience.

One of the updates to our store has been our new offering of PDF downloads. With the LANA-supported International Lyre Day in July 2020 and the “Lyre Mantle of Sound” project (initiated by Veronika Roemer), the music sales site became a storefront for free music downloads, which created a powerful musical bond between musicians all over the world. Over the course of the year, 383 pieces were downloaded for free and the music we made available included compositions by Channa Seidenberg, Christian Giersch and John Clark as well as arrangements by John Billing and Veronika Roemer. We are hoping to expand our inventory of free downloads as well as to make as many of our printed music books as possible available in digital format. PDF downloads get scores into players’ hands immediately and in a cost-effective way, which expands our customers’ access to lyre music.

We hope that LANA members will be inspired by our store as you look for ways to support your musical life with the lyre. We always welcome your suggestions and will do our best to help you find what you need.

Lyre Gathering in Eugene, Oregon

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By Diane Rowley Portland, OR

Harmonizing tones resounded through the open windows and doors and out into the verdant gardens and beehives as the fingers of four women gently kneaded the strings of their lyres; some tentatively, after months of disuse, some with confidence and skill, all with joy and gratitude for the opportunity to play music together.

We would like to extend heartfelt thanks to Margo Ketchum for taking the initiative to organize this small gathering of northwest lyre players at the home of Lucy O’Neal in Eugene, Oregon. Margo and her husband were planning a trip to Eugene to visit their son and his family, so she contacted lyre players in the region and extended the invitation to participate in a day of lyre playing while she was there. Three people responded, a date was set, music was shared, and a potluck was organized. On August 26th, Diane Rowley drove down from Portland to join Jo Forkish and Margo at Lucy’s welcoming home on a green hillside in the outskirts of Eugene.

We spent time at the beginning of the morning chatting and getting to know each other, discovering unique individual and shared backgrounds, experiences, and interests. We warmed up with the scale of the day (E) and sang and played Colin Tanser’s piece on the related planet of Jupiter. Then we dove into our chosen repertoire with Reigen zum Johannisfest by Beatrijs Gradenwitz, which we repeated again at the end of our session. In between, we played a variety of music, including two pieces by Julius Knierim that appeared in the Supplement to our most recent edition of Soundings: Zwischenspiel aus “Der treue Johannes” and Klingen und Nachklingen. Our remaining repertoire was Sarabanda by Corelli, the Ashokan Farewell, the Old Gaelic Prayer, Enchanted Wood by Colin Tanser, Sarabande by Handel, and Spielmusik für Zwei Leiern by Lothar Reubke.

We enjoyed a delicious and bountiful potluck lunch on Lucy’s porch overlooking the garden, and the temperature of the day could not have been more perfect as we visited and commiserated. By the end of the afternoon, we had made plans to meet and play together again soon. Our invigorating day of lyre playing was thoroughly enjoyed by all, as the vibrations of the strings resonated in our hearts and bones and brought smiles to our faces!

A letter of thanks from the Bleffert family in Germany

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Manfred Bleffert Playing Celtic Cello

Manfred Bleffert Playing Celtic Cello

Dear LANA friends,

Many, many thanks to all of you all for your generous donations to support Manfred! Your great help is proving to be a big part of Manfred's healing process, and we are very, very thankful for that!

Manfred is slowly getting better, though he has not yet fully recovered, of course. He will be going into a rehabilitation program for the next two weeks, which should be very helpful.

It has been a great blessing that we have my little apartment in the south of Germany near Basel, which I have needed for my work as a eurythmy teacher in Switzerland. So Manfred is now living here with me, and we are very grateful for that. Manfred is looking at the possibility to work as a composer and much more. He just needs more space for working in wood, in stone, or for building instruments.

Time will show us the right way, I think. We are just so thankful that he is still living! Things could be such a struggle for him, but he is so very positive in his thoughts and his speech, also painting, writing, and just being here. It really is a wonder, and most wonderful!

Warmest greetings to you all and to everyone who is thinking of Manfred and sending good thoughts!

God bless you all,
Ulrike Bleffert

LANA has raised $3,280 for the Bleffert Emergency Aid Fund to date.

Joyful Lyre Gatherings in Colorado!

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by Wendy Polich, Littleton, Colorado

The Rocky Mountain Lyre Choir: Holly Richardson (Carbondale, CO), Lorraine Curry (Glenwood Springs, CO), and Wendy Polich, (Littleton, CO)

The Rocky Mountain Lyre Choir: Holly Richardson (Carbondale, CO), Lorraine Curry (Glenwood Springs, CO), and Wendy Polich, (Littleton, CO)

We few lyrists of the Rocky Mountain region gathered over a July weekend as part of LANA’s regional summer-into-fall gatherings. For me, living on the Front Range near Denver, I always relish the opportunity to see my mountain lyre sisters, Holly and Lorraine. Each time I visit them it’s a breathtaking journey through pine and aspen forests and incredible mountain views, my little car chugging its way over not one, but two 11,000-foot mountain passes of the Continental Divide. The final 12-mile stretch of my 3-hour odyssey traverses through rugged Glenwood Canyon, equally breathtaking as you wind through its high mountain walls and tunnels along the Colorado River, a seemingly impossible place to put a railroad or an interstate, yet both are there, the interstate divided into an upper and lower highway, one above the other, in order to fit.

Both Glenwood Springs and nearby Carbondale, where Lorraine and Holly live, are charming, gorgeous, warmly hospitable places, just like these lyre sisters! It’s a magical nourishing place of natural beauty and sisterhood where my heart wells up with joy. And if that weren’t enough, the cherry on top is our communion with our lyre playing. After a year’s absence, we met where we left off, our lyres getting reacquainted with each other after reading the Calendar of the Soul verse, then streaming, improvising, singing; “Dona Nobis Pacem” and Colin Tanser’s “Sea Mist” among our favorites. And always there with us in spirit, listening intently or making mischief, was dear Hartmut, and, I imagine, Channa and Kerry, too.

Of course, I would be remiss not to acknowledge the darker side... that this was the first time I ever travelled that entire mountain corridor through veils of smoky haze coming from all across the West. Travelling through Glenwood Canyon was the first time since a year ago when the fires closed it for weeks. I was witness to the burn scar—the charred, barren canyonland annihilated by the fire—and after returning home, the canyon was again damaged and closed because of mighty mudslides.

I am so grateful that I have my lyre sisters and community to bring healing beauty, with intention, into the world.

Wendy Polich (Littleton, CO), Marianne Dietzel (Minnesota), and Virginia Anderson (Denver, CO)

Wendy Polich (Littleton, CO), Marianne Dietzel (Minnesota), and Virginia Anderson (Denver, CO)

And finally, I was pleasantly surprised when Marianne Dietzel, from Minnesota, contacted me recently because she was visiting Colorado and wanted to play lyre together! I contacted Virginia Anderson (who only lives 15 minutes from me yet we had never met) and we all got together to play this last Sunday. What a joy to play and sing for the first time ever together! It was as if we had always been playing together. After playing the tone of the day planetary scale and improvising on it, we played Colin Tanser’s “Sun Glimpse”, Thomas Pedroli’s “Prayer” arrangement, Channa Seidenberg’s “Though in Noon’s Heaven” round (while singing) and Christof-Andrea Lindenberg’s “Weaving Threads of Gold and Silver”. As we sent up prayerful tones and voices, we were nourished and grateful, since each of us are used to having to play alone.

I’m happy to report that Virginia and I will be playing together on a regular basis, and that Marianne and I are committed to going to the Czech Republic next year! Holly, Lorraine and I have committed to meeting at least once every quarter, and, I can’t wait to introduce them to Virginia and welcome her into the Rocky Mountain Lyre Choir. She will be a wonderful addition!

I look forward to reading about other regional gatherings!