In the fall of 2015 I contacted two Cape Cod-based musicians I had long admired - pianist Lucy Banner and flutist Mariellen Sears - to see if they might be interested in meeting for a session to play some classical repertoire. A date was set, and at the end of that very exciting first session Lucy and Mariellen asked if we were all available to meet the following week. Trio Vivo was born! For the next seven years we continued to rehearse weekly and to perform regularly in concert. We described our style as "Classical Music by an Uncommon Ensemble".

In October 2018 we released a recording entitled "Uncommon" featuring music we had been performing in our concerts. 

Compared to other instruments there is not a lot of classical music composed for saxophone. To alleviate that we saxophonists take music that has been composed for other instruments - such as oboe, violin, viola, cello, French horn - and adapt it for saxophone. For example, the first three tracks on the album, Amuse-bouches by Gary Schocker, is composed for flute, oboe and piano. I am playing the oboe part on soprano saxophone.

The lively and uplifting song "Samba de Orfeu" has long been a favorite of mine to play. It was composed by Luiz Bonfá for the 1959 film Orfeu Negro (Black Orpheus). Set in Rio de Janeiro during Carnaval, the film is a retelling of the Greek legend of Orpheus and Eurydice. 
 
The film Orfeu Negro introduced the music of Brazil, particularly samba and bossa nova, to a wider audience. Along with Luiz Bonfá it also featured music composed by Antonio Carlos Jobim. (Although it's not part of the film's music, most people will know Jobim as the composer of "The Girl from Ipanema".) Both Bonfá and Jobim were young composers in their 30's at the time and went on to achieve worldwide renown. 

Guitarist Jim Robitaille and I recorded "Samba de Orfeu" for our duo album This Masquerade with Jim on guitar and yours truly on flute. 

As always, thanks for listening!

Here on Cape Cod we love to go boating on Pleasant Bay in Orleans. Each April, one of our favorite signs of spring is the return of ospreys that have migrated from southern climates. These magnificent birds are wonderful to watch as they hunt for fish, soaring in the sky on a six-foot wingspan, then diving down to the water to grab their prey. 
Now it's late August. Their young have been raised and they are ready to migrate south again. But we will look forward to their return next spring and a summer filled with their majestic beauty.
It was that beauty that inspired my composition "Osprey". "Osprey" began with the creation of the piano part. Next, I improvised a melody on my Native American style flute, then added synthesizer strings for the second half. At the end, a touch of osprey call fading into the distance.

Learn more about Ospreys by visiting the Massachusetts Audubon Society website. 

"Dolce far niente" is an Italian phrase that translates to "the sweetness of doing nothing" or "sweet idleness". I first learned the phrase from my brother Arnie and sister-in-law Marie who is of Italian heritage. It describes a state of relaxed enjoyment and appreciation of leisure. It's not about being lazy, but rather about savoring and finding contentment in the present moment. 
My wife Lisa and I had a full dose of "dolce far niente" this past March in Italy where we savored the simple opportunity to rest, reflect and recharge. 
In my composition "Dolce Far Niente" I try to capture this simplicity. Just a few chords with melody played on alto saxophone, an accordion included to add some Italian seasoning.
I hope you'll enjoy three minutes of "sweet idleness" as you take a listen! 

The summer solstice and days of long light are on their way!

"Here Comes the Sun" was written by George Harrison and was recorded by The Beatles on Abbey Road (1969). It has since been covered by many artists. I have recorded the song on two different albums.

The first is a jazz arrangement I wrote for my 2018 album Summer Mood. In that arrangement I included some reharmonization and a slight reworking of the melody. (See Dec. 15, 2024 blog for more on reharmonization.)

The second is part of a Beatles medley created by guitarist Dennis Costa for our 2021 album Echoes of a Century.

During the COVID-19 pandemic The Beatles' recording of Here Comes the Sun was played in many hospitals as a way to help lift the spirits of weary staff and recovering patients. Dennis and I recorded our Echoes of a Century album during the pandemic and having that project at that time certainly lifted our spirits! 

​Here on Cape Cod many of our oak trees have been badly damaged by winter moths and gall wasps over the years. A beautiful large red oak stood behind our house and was showing signs of stress. It was a little too close to the house for comfort and we sadly decided to take it down. This song is a tribute to that tree which provided us with beauty and shade (and a whole lot of leaves to rake!) for 28 years.

Art inspires art. An art creation in one form (music, dance, visual art, literature, etc.) can inspire a new creation in the same form (such as music inspired by music) or another form (such as art inspired by dance).

A couple of years ago my wife Lisa and I visited the Newport Art Museum in Newport, Rhode Island. It's a small museum packed with lots of history and variety. A painting on display from the museum's permanent collection mesmerized me, "Sunlit Sea" by Frederick Judd Waugh. I returned to it several times during our visit and its effect on me only got stronger.

When I began recording music for my second album of music for Native American style flute, Light on the Leaves, I decided to create a song inspired by Waugh's painting. First, I recorded two percussion tracks, one with a frame drum and the other with a pangi tree seed pod shaker. Next, I improvised a melody with my Native American style flute. The result is Sunlit Sea, inspired by the painting of the same name.

See below for a fun and educational eight-minute video from the Kennedy Center about dance inspiring music inspiring art.

Also, an article from Daily Art Magazine - The Sound of Colour: Music Inspired by Visual Art.

I composed After the Dust Has Settled in response to Russia's invasion of Ukraine three years ago this month on February 24, 2022. Although that event was the impetus for this composition, in a larger sense it is a musical response to all violence, whether on an international or domestic stage or in our own neighborhoods.

In 2007 the United Nations established the "International Day of Non-Violence" which is recognized annually on October 2nd, the anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi's birthday. You can learn more by clicking here to visit the UN's website.

On this track I am playing soprano & alto saxophones and flute. As I was working on the recording I felt that the melody as played by the woodwinds needed more depth and strength. To accomplish that I decided to fill out the orchestration with strings. Let's not forget that there is strength in numbers!

"This Masquerade" is an album that guitarist Jim Robitaille and I recorded in 2005. At the time, we were playing weekly at the Chatham Wayside Inn on Cape Cod and decided to record an album we could offer for sale on our gigs. Now, some 20 years later, we have re-released it and made it available on all streaming platforms.

We selected the album's songs from the repertoire we were performing at our gigs. Jim had introduced me to several of them including "Creepin'" by Stevie Wonder, "Love Theme from Cinema Paradiso" by Ennio Morricone, and "Angel" by Jimi Hendrix. Other tracks are "Samba de Orfeu" by Luiz Bonfá, "Things Ain't What They Used To Be" by Mercer Ellington, "A Child Is Born" by Thad Jones, and the title track "This Masquerade" by Leon Russell.

Jim is a virtuoso guitarist and award winning composer. I have always marveled at his mastery of multiple styles and this album offers an opportunity for you to hear that mastery for yourself. Whether it's pop, jazz, classical or blues, Jim gets it exactly right!

Visit Jim's website at www.jimrobitaille.com to learn more about his projects and performances.

Best wishes to everyone for 2025!

Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas by The North Star Jazz Ensemble
​Bruce Abbott, arranger, soprano saxophone
Ron Fournier, piano
Marty Ballou, bass
Paul Mason, drums

​With the Hawthorne String Quartet
Si-Jing Huan, violin
Ronan Lefkowitz, violin
Mark Ludwig, viola
Sato Knudsen, cello