Was priviledged to be part of a classical music house concert in support of Medecins sans Frontieres (MSF: Doctors Without Borders) yesterday in Novato. Wonderful to be with such caring people and fine musicians!

The cause is great: how to reach people, now in 70 countries, who cannot help themselves with medicines and training teams so that when MSF leaves, often after a month or so, there is a local health team in place to treat those experiencing extremes of violence and disease wherever they may be. For me, it raises Mother Teresa, Audrey Hepburn treating lepers in Nun’s Story, the basic desire to save women, children, dads, lonesome old guys, whoever, from disaster.

So it was with great appreciation that we heard from Amy Segal and her husband about her Baker’s dozen missions to Uganda, Nigeria, South Sudan and Sierra Leone, Indonesia, Kyrgyzstan. She’s a sort of super assistant who rounds up all the supplies for a mission and makes sure everything works together so the doctors and medical assisants can accomplish their healing work. Her passion for the work seemed to shine through her; to know you are instrumental in saving lives answers a basic need and so we can as well through helping MSF.

The music at this event was nothing short of transcendental: I could close my eyes and see my Mother playing Bach at Grandmother’s fine Chickering upright, though you could just wait for the errors in her finely felt playing. Here, there WERE no apparent errors! Even when Richard Heinberg, yes, the Post Carbon Institute founder, I heard no errors as he played Bach on violin and I was transported by the music and its performance. Clarinetist and Pianist, Paul Alexander and Sonia Tubridy were known to us as part of Jubilee Klezmer Ensemble, Jewish Gypsy music of celebration we’ve been able to share in the now-defunct Jungle Vibes store.

Recall Jubliee Klezmer Ensemble performing in the store and everyone dancing about, shyness set aside. Quite wonderful and expect we’ll share this music again and again, partly through the CD’s we’ve bought but, hopefully, also in real time.

For this Sunday, the compositions began with our host, D’Arcy Reynolds, playing her own creations with two women who perform with San Francisco Opera followed by a Brahms piece for Clarinet and Piano, a piece by Darius Milhaud and a piece by Witold Lutoslawski, these last two new to us and quite wonderful.

So thanks to D’Arcy Reynolds, organization by Bev and Paul Alexander, and great appreciation to Doctors Without Borders who YOU TWO can support at

“Thank you for supporting our lifesaving work.

For Doctors Without Borders, the ability to respond quickly to medical humanitarian emergencies is crucial to saving more lives. Unrestricted funds allow us to allocate our resources most efficiently and where the needs are greatest.

If you do wish to restrict your gift, please contact us at (212) 763-5779 or email donations@newyork.msf.org to find out if the specific project you wish to support is able to accept earmarked funding.” – from the Doctors Without Borders site.

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