I thought back when I played in a band.....

Tonight on my drive home I was thinking about various moments in my past. One such time was my days of playing lead electric guitar in a Blues band in Long Beach. I would be terrified now if I had to get up in front of a crowd and play, but back then it was different -maybe I was less self conscious (or was it a few beers) but all in all it was a lot of fun. 

So here is a track I wrote some years back and recorded. it's called JAZZ AT 6:10 PM (click on the title) and it's a fun groove that I finished recording one night at 6:10 pm.

As usual this track can also be found on the right hand column of this blog

ASH WEDNESDAY THOUGHT, 2008

The season of Lent has arrived and once again I am aware of man's insignificance. But a passing shadow, we humans come and go - and are gone.  On this brevity of existence (which we will all feel sooner or later) is a composition of mine based on. It is an orchestral meditation of sorts for organ, glass armonica and orchestra. The title is: O HOW SHORT THIS LIFE DOTH SEEM. (click on the link to hear it)

I composed this short work probably 7 years ago.   In case you are wondering, " What the heck is a glass armonica?" CLICK HERE and find out. You'll be amazed to know that our own Benjamin Franklin is the inventor or this unusual instrument.

Jan 29- the feast day of Brother Juniper

" Would to God, my brothers, I had a whole forest of such Junipers!"

-St. Francis of Assisi.

I couldn't let this day go by without giving some homage to this most interesting fellow. If you have never read that great 14th Cent. classic, The Little Flowers of Saint Francis (i fioretti di San Francesco) you should. In it you will find many wonderful stories about the early days of the Franciscan order; about Francis and his early companions. One such lovable fellow, was Brother Juniper. His simplicity and innocence got him in trouble; often he gave away what few possessions the friars had if a poor person came begging at their door. After being scolded, he once made some porridge and took it to the one who scolded him because he noticed that in the heat of the scolding the other friars' voice was getting hoarse!

He died in 1258 and is buried at Ara Coeli Church in Rome.

From the diary of an obscure painter

Within a week, I arrived. Earth is indeed lush; more so than I had read about. I spent a fortnight painting various scenes  of the place.  The inhabitants are very friendly, the few that are left here. They told me that in their distant past there were many people known for their paintings. In fact, they claim that there are ruins of large monuments to the arts. I would like to see these someday, but I recently received an odd commission to paint a portrait on the moon of Aura, so I must depart.

-Tyraine  son of Minuriat

 AD 3246 

If You wondered about what kind of Harp I play....

Today I thought I would show my harp. It is a high headed Harp that I designed with the help of Rick Stanley of Celticharps.com. who also built the harp as well. This fine instrument is made of Maple and sounds very nice. Now I am not the best harper, I'll tell you that much. I usually have the best intentions of leaning new pieces of music (I don't read well-have trouble with black spots on lines) but when I start to play I usually get wound up in the overtones and just ad-lib. I've managed to ad-lib so much that I go from Renaissance, to 2oth century romantics, to Baroque, and other places....so, as I said I have trouble with concentration.

Well, that being said, if you want to hear me play this harp a little, CLICK HERE.

In his youth the old man saw Angels....

With not much longer to live, an old man goes back to the fields he played in as a boy. He has composed a poem for the occassion. Unable to speak anymore, his robot companion reads to him.

CLICK HERE to hear the Poem and read the text.

New Music added

 I wanted to put up another composition of mine (music) for some time but have been at a standstill as to which one. As the years have gone by, I have moved away from blues, jazz, electric guitar and all that. Not that They aren't viable forms of  musical expression; no, but rather that I find the Orchestra as a new instrument, one more suitable for expression. Yet there were times when a certain mood could only be accomplished with elements of the pop culture. One such composition of mine, THE DARK SIDE OF NIGHT fits this bill.  I wanted  to compose something that suggested the darkness of young, street wise detective and the life that he lived. These were the beginnings of my character Eddie Skate. To hear this track CLICK HERE, or go to the right column and look for the songs title.

'SQUIRT'-the little surfer kid

I started surfing back in 1964. Every time Surfer

magazine came out, I dug into the comic section

to follow the antics of 'Murphy', by Rick Griffin.

Inspired by Murphy and the wacky humor or Mad magazine, I have managed to make a living

in the arts.

So a few years back (2002) I had an idea for a strip, drew it up but never really promoted it. So I dug it out and and publishing it here.

So here it is. CLICK HERE

The New Year comes.

Since I can't help but draw and do art, I thought I would do something for Jan. 1st, which other than being the first day of the new year, is also in catholic circles, the feast of the Solemnity of Mary the Mother of God.

I did this little work as a small honor this great Mother of mothers who has been given such great titles by humanity throughout the ages: the Mystical Rose, the Morning Star, the House of Gold and so many other sublime names. 

May the new year bring peace to peoples of all creeds the wold over. 

6TH and 7th movements of Requiem up.

The 6th and 7th  movements of My Requiem for Choir and Orchestra are up.  Click on AVE CHRISTUS here for the 6th or the IN PARADISUM here  for the 7th movement to hear them (or go to right side of the page to the links).

A sad day for humanity

My heart goes out to the Pakistani people over the  loss of Benazir Bhutto. May love of  peace and freedom win out over hatred and destruction. 

Also, If you have been following these posts, I would like to mention that the 5th movement for my REQUIEM FOR CHOIR AND ORCHESTRA, the AGNUS DEI is up.

(click on AGNUS DEI or go to the column on the right of the page for the link.)

Greetings Everyone!

Movement 4, the  'SANCTUS' of my Requiem for Choir and Orhchestra  is up. 

Either click on the word SANCTUS above or go to the right side of the page where it is

listed with the other movements.

The Little King

The Little King greets a shepherd.

Have a Blessed Christmas everyone.

-J R Howley

Thoughts on the evening sky

Looking up this evening - this rather blustery evening- I noticed between the passing clouds the dark space of the beyond. A story came to mind, a story called THE DYING WISH OF A DROID.

Some years ago I thought of the idea while composing a piece of music of the same title. I imagined a place where robots go to die. One particular robot had somehow been programed with some information that it was to pass on to a human...it was a wish. As this poor machine lie in it's last days, it saw the great depth of the skies, and made it's wish, awaiting someone to come to hear it's story before it powered down.

St. John of The Cross. 

This most wonderous man, this great poet and Christian Mystic is celebrated today throughout the Latin Church.  On Dec. 3 1577, John was imprisoned by his own Religious Order in a Toledo Prison.  There in a narrow cell for nine months he wallowed as if a common crimnal. 

Here is a sample of what he wrote during that time:

"On a dark night, kindled with Love and yearnings - oh happy chance!

I went forth without being observed.

My house being now at rest"

-Book the First:Dark Night of the Soul

by St. John of the Cross

The writings of St. John of the Cross are so profound that the Church declared him a Doctor of Mystic Theology. His writings ,The Ascent of Mt. Carmel, Dark Night of the Soul, and others delve into the way of union of ones soul with God and the steps that slowly pull the senses away from the pleasures of the passing time we call life and enter into the hidden chamber of the Divine Presence.

Pax et Bonum .

Something for the kiddies.....

a little poem about 'Her Grape-ness', the lovely Queen of Jelly!

On thinking of the silliness of us men and our oftentimes dumb 'machismo', I made a little flash film called 'THE HUNT' - (click THE HUNT). It deals with men getting together for a hunt - all assembled with spears and chants for the great danger ahead. Will it be to face 'Turtles and Bunny Rabbits' or the dreaded Tyrannosaurus Rex?.....Hmmm... well, watch the film and find out!

Now those of you who know me know that I don't talk about my faith nor wear various objects that show it. It is my hope that my person will to some extent go thru life unnoticed and like a little boat, leave a small wake. Yet, I hope that at least one will think I was a good man most of the time (there are some whom I have let down and for that I am eternally sorry)and that they might see any good that I might have been as simply a result of my love of God and man.

ABOUT THE ABOVE SKETCH.

Today is Dec. 8 -the feast of the Immaculate Conception. So, in honor of the Holy Virgin, I thought I would publish this drawing I had done of her. Though it has to do more with the

moment of the Annunciation (The appearance of the angel) I thought it appropriate. The local tradition in the town of Nazareth has it that Mary was at the well drawing water when the Angel first spoke to her. Fearful, she fled to  her house only to find the Angel there as well. The rest of the story can of course be found in the Gospel of  saint Luke.  So I imagined the young virgin ( some say 12 yrs - some say 15) looking back at the well as she is leaving, wondering what in the world just happened.

Some years ago I had the great fortune to live in Italy, among the Franciscans for quite some time. Now this was no man feat considering I had, until that time, lived a rather loose life as a blues guitar player in Los Angeles.

It was 1973 and I was in my early twenties.  I found myself walking the dusty road out of the medieval Italian town of Cortona toward the ancient Franciscan hermitage of Le Celle (The Cells). Here in the year 1211 A.D. Francis of Assisi and some of his brothers came and built some huts along a stream. Now, more than 800 years later, along comes I to stay in the old stone monastery that has survived all these years.  It was, to say the least, a most marvelous and exciting time - a formative time - for one so foreign to this remote lifestyle.

I did the above sketch thinking about these things and the great Friars of Franciscan history.

Indeed it was my time in Italy that gave me a sense of the importance of the excellence of Art.