Early Spring, 2022
-Photos by Edith Bakland, age 8
I went for a hike today at Long Hill, where Arpeggione recorded its first project just a few weeks ago.
My daughter and I have a tradition of going to Long Hill to look for the first signs of Spring every year—the first snowdrops and crocuses, the green fingers of hyacinth starting to poke through the ground. Today on our yearly pilgrimage it was cold enough for a sweater or two, but the bracingly yellow aconite and delicate hellebore refused to be ignored. I love transitional days like this, days in-between seasons when there is so much possibility in the chilly, but sun-warmed air.
I’ve always thought that New Englanders only stay in New England because we forget what the different seasons are like from one to the next. In the middle of summer, it’s impossible to imagine the landscape covered with ice and snow and a layer of grit. In the winter, it’s difficult to imagine the heat and unrelenting stickiness of summer. But I love living here, and I have my whole life.
For a long time, I’ve dreamed of having my own ensemble on the North Shore, where I love to be in nature. What I tell my daughter today is that dreams are a lot like the seasons in New England: before you do the thing that you want to, it’s hard to imagine what it will be like, or if it is possible. But after you begin, it’s hard to imagine what it was like before.
Arpeggione is still in between seasons. We’ve made a start, and the shoots beginning to push through the earth and the roots beginning to form are just as hopeful as any garden plant. How fitting that Arpeggione was fortunate enough to record its first project at Long Hill!
We still have a long way to go before the ultimate goal of sharing music with a live audience. I’m excited and impatient to be able to embark on some of our many plans for the future, but I know that I can’t hurry this important time of growth and formation. Thank you so much for being a part of it.
In the meantime, please enjoy a teaser for our upcoming recording, and plan to attend our Virtual Launch Party on April 9, at 7:30pm EST.