Hello!

Many of you have been asking about my blog site (which I had actually given up on), so I decided to give this thing another go and let you know about all of the things I've been doing.

It was an extremely busy semester for me at Berklee College of Music. It's hard for me to believe I've already been there for 3 full semesters. I've already gotten over the fact that I won't be graduating the same year as my former Webb classmates (Class of ’01). I’m now dedicating myself to my passion and I definitely don’t regret the education that I received at Chapman University because it was priceless. Although I never fully felt socially comfortable there, I miss the academic side of it. I was provided with a general background in Political Science, International Relations, Broadcast Journalism, and classical vocal training.... I can't imagine that my previous studies will do anything but help me as I enter into the business of music and venture into my main life goal of becoming an global humanitarian.

In terms of my life in Boston, it might interest some of you to know that I spent a good amount of my free time doing volunteer work for the recent presidential campaign. I served on a Voter Registration Mobilization Task Force and volunteered time at the Kerry Campaign Headquarters of Boston. As you might imagine, November 3, 2004 was a day that will probably continue to hurt my heart for a long time coming; however, given the results of the election, I took it upon myself to put my energy and passion into something else instead of wallowing in my disappointment and shock. I am currently serving on the Social Action Committee at a Unitarian Universalist church in Boston.

On the evening of November 2, 2004, a best friend of mine, Summer, stood with me in the cold rain in Copley Square waiting anxiously for John Kerry to come out and announce his victory. After we'd spent more than 4 hours shivering to the bone, Summer finally had to drag me away, much to my dismay, and we trudged home through the ice-cold rain with our looming defeat and deep devastation in our hearts. I'll stop there, before I strike any nerves in those of you who spent that night celebrating. ;-)

At Berklee, I have been plugging away at my schoolwork and rehearsing. Harmony (music theory) continues to amaze me, as it gets more and more complicated. This past semester, I had a class taught by Livingston Taylor, and given the fact that he grew up with his brother, James Taylor, he had a lot of interesting advice and stories to tell. Livingston is also a singer-songwriter, and he’ll be releasing a new album soon that he recorded over the course of the fall semester. It was in Livingston’s class that I finally had the guts to perform one of my original pieces that I’ve written instead of always covering other artists’ work.

Outside my actual schedule of classes, I sang for a friend of mine’s rock band. I was originally only supposed to sing the background vocals, but they ended up asking me to sing lead and backup on all three songs. We even had a photo shoot on the Berklee Performance Center stage for the CD’s insert booklet and took photos of us in the studio. I will admit that the music is far from anything I’m accustomed to singing, but I gained some great experience from the whole situation.

Not long thereafter, I took on my own project and recorded my second demo (1st demo containing my own original material). This was a very scary venture for me. Now that it’s over and done with, I can clearly see how great it was for me to take such a step – there’s so much more I can do!

Other little tidbits of information are as follows: I adopted an adorable cat named Neenoo in September, I spent a FANTASTIC Thanksgiving with all my Berklee buds (and Liz who came up to visit from Georgia!), I celebrated my 22nd birthday with a wonderful surprise party at Summer’s place (and when I came home to CA, my family had a gift certificate to a day spa waiting for me – yes, it was a great birthday!), I just celebrated a very special Yule/Winter Solstice with Liz Selk, and my health has improved and my spirit is more alive than ever! I’ve got a lot to be thankful for this year!

Right now, I am thrilled to be spending valuable time with my family and friends. I needed this break in a very big way – and so far so GREAT!

That’s all for now… Have a very happy and safe holiday season! Remember to take extra time to appreciate your loved ones…

Happy Late Winter Solstice (Dec. 21st)!

Love and Light,

~Brianne Widaman~