Story Behind The Song

River's mother inspired me to perform these one of a kind unrehearsed piano meditations to create a peaceful environment in anticipation of our daughter River's birth. Our lives were so complicated and stressful when we received the amazing news we were pregnant. We knew we had to do everything we could to ensure that our baby had the best chance for physical and mental health. Our goal was to create the most healthy, calming, consistent environment for our unborn daughter. We sheltered them both as much as possible from the stressful effects of life situations. The recordings were played almost non-stop during pregnancy, labor, birthing, sleeping and through River's toddler years to soothe, calm and welcome her to the world. Her mother and I both intuitively knew that River's potential as a human being would be greatly effected by the environment that her developing body, mind and spirit experienced in the womb. We didn't want just any old music. We wanted something from our hearts. Something that we could call our own and our daughter River would recognize and know that it came from Daddy especially for her. As I recorded each piece, I would play it back for Julianna and she would say "slow it down even more - play even more sparcely." So as you experience the collection of songs, you will notice that the pace naturally takes you into a relaxed state. It ebbs and flows like the natural rhythms of life and the rhythms of a river. Playing the recording near our bed at night time or during naps during her pregnancy was vital in bonding with our unborn River. I would talk to her through Julianna's tummy and tell her that Daddy recorded these sounds especially for her. We also thought it would be a good idea to play these songs while she was being delivered to give her a sense of peace and familiarity from the same loving music she experienced in the womb.

Song Description

This piece is from the album "Welcome River" which was created as a meditation for bonding with my daughter River through each stage of her life from the womb thru childhood. Each piece reflects a different stage of the journey of water. The river has always been a metaphor for the beauty and flow of how to live life and each song was performed and titled with that intention.