About The Album

What does it take to produce an album?

t started with a long-time dream birthed in a window of time and opportunity. There was a host of things that took place that made it clear that it was time to do an album. There was a demand, for starters. People would ask her husband Fred when Diane was performing, "does she have an album?" In the late 1980's Diane had produced a home- based cassette of her music which was recorded by a dear friend. That first version of her works was initially well received. In fact, in 1991 it was from that venture that Fred and Diane would meet and be married. DJ Fred continued playing her works on his local radio show, "Hymns To Live By", where it was well received by listeners. At the same time he continued to be the instrumental backbone of encouragement and to challenge her to consider recording a professional studio album. Struck by the challenge, she went to work at home revising some of the previous arrangements and adding several new ones to the mix. The overall goal and purpose for this album was to more fully capture the scope and majesty of her playing, which had also developed substantially over time, and to reflect the Glory of God, along with the power to bless and encourage others. In spring of 1999, with God's perfect timing and His direction, the decision was made to go forth with the actual recording of the new arrangements in a professional recording studio.

After work Fred and Diane would travel several times a week to a local recording studio located in a cozy setting outside of Saratoga Springs, New York. They often stayed for many long hours at a time working on the project with a talented recording engineer, Charlie Eble, who had a small grand piano in his music studio. It took about a year to produce the album, including nine months to record and edit the works followed by another three to four months for the artwork, overall design and finally the reproduction of the copies.

Diane has another hat she wears as a full time secretary. She was able to bring a wealth of that experience, knowledge and skills along with her college education to accommodate the project. With her extensive computer knowledge, her skill for writing and an eye for detail Diane collaborated with a local graphic artist named Kathleen Berry on the layout, cover design, liner notes and general content of the album. These skills also came in handy in creating the concert program notes, advertising and public relations.

About the Works

The pieces are an amalgam of over 20 years of musical experiences, trials of life, concert training, and improvisational arranging and experimentation. Most of the works are well-known pieces of the Christian faith arranged with a large-concert-like style that creates a marriage between some classical and jazz influences with improvisational-like flourishes. The arrangements vary in stature from very simple and quiet moments to more complex, sweeping and higher levels of pianistic and musical difficulty. These moments were captured through the usage of assorted musical tools, always with a view to bring out the essence of the words. Indeed the words of the pieces are the inspiring backbone to whatever Diane contributes musically to the works. The pieces Amazing Grace, The Lord's Prayer, El Shaddai, Emanuel, How Great Thou Art, Savior Like A Shepherd, Let Us Adore and the title selection Be Thou My Vision, a portion of which is magnificently sung by local artist/vocalist Heather Baird, all have their own unique story of what went into the making of each work. Most of the constructing of the music would take place in the quiet hours of the early morning or she would find herself often working into the late hours of night. The challenge was to raise the bar with a musical standard which would take the works beyond "the norm" of what the listener may be accustomed to hearing. She wanted to create them in such a way that the listener could reasonably understand and identify the works, and at the same time challenge the hearer to stretch musically, intellectually, emotionally and spiritually. Her ultimate goal was to create an atmosphere for worship bringing a deeper sense of the presence of the Almighty to the listener's experience.

Included in the album are extensive liner notes about each selection which also reflect the soul and heart of the artist. Perhaps this wonderful quote (included on the inside of the album cover) taken from the greatest composer that ever lived best summarizes Diane's vision, heart and philosophy.

"The aim and final end of all music should be none other than
the Glory of God and the refreshment of the soul."
— Johann Sebastian Bach