Music for a Funeral: "The Rising"
www.bentibbetts.net/rising

The month of August started out on a sad note, with the loss of a friend. My old buddy Adam Zibura passed away on August 4 at the age of thirty-three.

Adam was awesome. He was one of the most altruistic, self-sacrificing people I ever met. It was awful to lose him at what felt like too early an age. I was looking forward to many more years of his company.

I flew up to Maine to attend his funeral on August 10, and made a piano arrangement to perform at the event. The song I arranged was "The Rising", by Bruce Springsteen.

"The Rising" can be interpreted a few different ways. I hear it as an ode to service-men and -women, as well as an encouragement to people struggling through difficult times.

I thought that was appropriate for Adam. He was a volunteer firefighter and he worked as a 911 dispatcher. He believed in serving his community. It meant a lot to him.

Music for a Documentary: "The Music Came First"
www.bentibbetts.net/creedtaylor

Also in August, a film was released which featured music I wrote on commission. It was a documentary, called "The Music Came First", about the life of music producer Creed Taylor.

This film was produced by Snapshots Foundation. I was honored to be a part of that project, although it was intimidating to hear my background music alongside classic jazz and bossa nova.

Piano Students
www.bentibbetts.net/students

It was a busy two months for my piano students, and for me as a teacher.

A few of my students recently participated in a piano recital, and I've been putting new recordings and lesson materials on my website.

Music for Violin and Piano: "High Strung"
www.bentibbetts.net/highstrung

In my last update, I mentioned the "High Strung" concert, which was a collaboration between a bunch of musicians to put on original music for violin and piano. Those recordings are now available online.

One of the pieces on the concert was my musical re-telling of "The Emperor's New Clothes". It featured violinist Phil Davidson and mezzo-soprano Julie Silva.

Future Projects

On Saturday October 8, I'll be performing in "Three of a Mind: A Trio for Two Pianos". This is a concert of piano four-hands music (and sometimes six-hands) with my friends Graham Yates and Karl Logue. Our program will include Bach's Inventions, Gershwin's "American In Paris", and Ravel's "Bolero". This will be at the First Unitarian Universalist Church of Austin, at 7:30pm. Tickets are $15 for adults, free for children/students of the performers: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/three-of-a-mind-a-trio-for-two-pianos-tickets-421409556327

Other works in progress include music for pump organ (an instrument you pump with your feet to make sound), preparations for a benefit concert in December, more tracks for the audio store, and an update to the website that will enable me to sell items individually.