Yes, like most musicians, I’m also a cat-lover.
For many years, I have had late-night arranging helpers.
Milo, our sweet orange kitty, was adopted from an animal rescue group in 2002. He loved the sound of barbershop music and migrated to any part of the house where live or recorded music of that genre was played. His size made it difficult for me to get much arranging done when he decided to occupy my lap, but his companionship was always appreciated. We sadly said goodbye to Milo at his age of 19+ years.
After two months of empty nesting (feline-wise), we adopted a young black and white kitty, Maestro. Having been born at the start of the pandemic lockdown, he received very little socialization and was very frightened when we brought him home. We once found him huddled at the back of the soundboard inside our baby grand piano, followed by an inspection of our collection of Schirmer folios and possibly signaling an interest in music.
Rewinding to September of 2011, we lost our dear Jasper, a black and white kitty who demonstrated intense interest in the performance and physics of music, particularly the keyboard. (He also indicated an interest in the art of directing). Jasper was an important helper in piano-side arranging activities, ‘talking’ to me and adding special chords and embellishments.
Several months after losing Jasper to a heart condition, we adopted Yuri, a grey and white kitty who joined our family in December of 2011. He showed a limited appreciation for music but provided good companionship for us all, including big brother Milo. We were heartbroken by his tragic passing in 2018.
One of our dearest kitties was Zippy, our female black and white feline friend, who ascended to kitty heaven after sharing our family life for over 20 years. We fondly remember this sweet little cat and her late night piano compositions!
Tony, our ‘tiger’ cat, joined Zippy in the mouse field in the sky after living with us for 16 1/2 years. We found and rescued Tony, a feral kitten, living in a barn along with his mother, sister, and brothers. He shared Andrea and Lauren’s childhood and was a patient participant in childhood games. Andrea once sang to him, “You are my friend, you’re special to me,’ which summed up how we all felt.
Here are some candid shots of the kitties!
