Cathy DeWitt

The Traveler has arrived!

cathy — Thu, 01 Dec 2011 04:01:45 +0000

The Traveler

I’m so excited that The Traveler CD – the project that I’ve been working on for the last two years – has finally come to fruition. It’s been an amazing process, putting the words of James Dillet Freeman and other spiritual leaders to music, and I feel honored to have been involved in this collaboration across space and time.

The Traveler is also available as a Songbook, Performance Tracks (music minus the lead vocals), and as MP3 downloads.

Many wonderful musicians, arrangers and engineers from across the country have added their amazing talents to this new music. Please visit www.thetraveler.us to hear song samples, read more about the project, and get a free download. And let me know what you think!

Gainesville singer, songwriter lives for her music

cathydew — Fri, 22 Apr 2011 06:04:21 +0000

{Here’s a nice story about me that was published in the Alligator on Apr 4, 2011}.

By Meredith Rutland, Alligator Writer The Independent Florida Alligator | 0 comments

For Cathy DeWitt, music makes everything in life better.

It has brought her a husband, a career and a calling. It has sent her as far as London and as close as downtown Gainesville. The closer, the better, she said.

DeWitt, a UF alumna, will bring that music to Gainesville on Sunday when her band, Patchwork, performs at the Santa Fe College Spring Arts Festival in the downtown historic district.

Patchwork, a folk band that sings of its love of Florida and cowgirl icons, was woven from the pieces of other bands.

Over the years, the bands have changed, but DeWitt’s two loves, music and Gainesville, have remained.

Most of the band members had played with each other before. If they weren’t already friends, they became so.

“This whole Gainesville music scene, I have a name for it,” said DeWitt, who sings in the band and plays guitar and piano. “It’s platonic incest.”

DeWitt started Patchwork with Janet Rucker and Jolene Jones, two friends. They all sang doo-wop backup vocals in The Rhythm & Blues Revue, a popular local band in the 80’s.

She met her husband, Rob, through that band. He was a drummer, and he insisted that DeWitt audition for him before she could join.

She was single at the time, and found herself spending late nights at restaurants with Rob after the gigs.

“I started to like him,” she said.

They were together for eight years before they got married 17 years ago. He helps produce DeWitt’s CDs and prepare for her shows.

It’s an unexpected fringe benefit, she said jokingly.

She said she didn’t learn music at school.

As the daughter of a St. Petersburg Times employee and an English teacher, she grew up helping her mother grade creative writing papers. She graduated from UF in the 1970s with a journalism degree.

Music is in her blood. Her father was also a New Orleans jazz musician before DeWitt’s mom made him get “a real job,” she said.

And writing hasn’t strayed far from her heart. She writes song lyrics and has won awards for songwriting, including two from the 2006 Unisong International Songwriting Contest.

When she isn’t on stage, she’s singing at Shands at UF. She plays for the patients. She said it helps them.

On her first day at the Arts in Medicine program, DeWitt sang as her friend Janet strummed a banjo, unsure of what would happen.

Parents wheeled their children from the hospital rooms, IV poles in tow, following the sound of the twanging notes.

She said the kids laughed and danced as much as their bodies could manage.

She has worked there for 16 years and considers it the most positive way to use music.

Another time she went into a young boy’s room and found him in his bed, curled in pain.

His mother asked DeWitt to watch him so she could find a nurse to give him more pain medicine.

DeWitt went up to him with a handheld harp. She began to strum it for him.

“Would you like to try it?” she asked him.

He sat up and, without saying a word, strummed the harp slowly and softly for 10 minutes.

“He forgot about his pain,” she said.

Music in the Operating Room–What Should it Be?

cathy — Sat, 19 Mar 2011 16:08:48 +0000

I got involved in this dialog after reading an article by surgeon Rahul Parikh in Salon online (www.salon.com) March 7th, about the music he listens to while operating on patients. It made me want to ask this question. I hope you’ll join the discussion!

As a musician whose day job for sixteen years has been providing music at the hospital, from the lobby to the ICU to the bedside, I have given a lot of thought to this question. Even though there are generalizations in countless publications and many research projects about certain kinds of music having a specific effect on people, the truth is that music is subjective, and what one person finds beautiful, another may find annoying. While a masterpiece to most, Pachelbel’s Canon is just pabulum to some. Next to intuition and kindness, my most valuable skill in the hospital is having an eclectic repertoire.

One of my favorite quotes is from Dr. Concetta Tomaino, co-founder and Director of the Institute for Music and Neurologic Function, and faculty member at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine. When asked by aspiring music therapists, “What IS the best kind of music to play for the patient?” she replies “The kind the patient wants to hear.” And this, of course, may vary according to the situation the patient is in, and what the desired effect may be. Music can be used in physical therapy to motivate and improve motion. A weekly sing-along in the hallway of the Bone Marrow Transplant Unit creates community within that population of patients and family members. And certainly, when someone is anxiously awaiting surgery, the musical prescription would be for whatever music that patient finds calm and soothing.

This then begs the question: in the operating room, who should be hearing the music they like—the patient, or the doctor? Research shows that even while unconscious, your sense of hearing may remain intact. So, if you’re about to go under the knife, would you rather have your favorite music playing, or the music that makes your surgeon feel comfortable and at their best?

At a hospital in Houston, a classical harpist and an anesthesiologist teamed up for a research project where live harp music was played for patients in the O.R. This resulted in a decrease in the amount of anesthetic needed, a very positive effect for the patient. But, we don’t want to anesthetize the surgeon, now, do we?

Fortunately, our options for listening to our own favorite songs have changed, with the advent of personal listening devices. So, in theory, the patient could be listening to “their” music while the surgeon does also. But what about the rest of the medical team? They all have to communicate with each other, so each one can’t really be dancing to a separate iPod. Should the surgeon just blast his/her favorite music across the room on the O.R. speakers, even if it’s Nine Inch Nails? I think the delicate art of compromise, something which seems to have become a rare gift, may be called for in this situation. Any way you look at it (or listen to it,) it is tricky.

What do YOU think?

Cathy DeWitt, Musician in Residence, Shands Arts in Medicine, Gainesville, FL

P.S. Being a musician, I can’t just ignore or “tune out” music. I am annoyed by the ubiquitous pop music that plays everywhere I go. I can’t shop, eat out, go to the beach or even take off in an airplane without hearing a batch of pre-programmed pop radio assaulting my ears. I guess personal listening devices are one defense against this constant barrage of un-requested tunes. (Remember requests? You used to call them in when there were live deejays playing music on your local radio station. But, that’s another soapbox…)

Creating Community With Music at the Bedside in 10 Steps

cathydew — Sun, 27 Jun 2010 20:31:11 +0000

Recently I’ve had a lot of folks asking me about our Arts in Medicine program at Shands (www.shands.org/aim). With our Summer Intensive coming up in July, and the webinar I co-hosted last week for the Society for the Arts in Healthcare (www.theSAH.org), I’ve been collecting a lot of resource material. I thought I would post this simple guideline to entering a room as a musician in a hospital or healthcare setting. Hope you find it helpful!

MATERIALS NEEDED: A musical instrument such as a guitar, bowed psaltery, ukulele, dulcimer, or rolling keyboard, the book “Rise Up Singing” and your voice.

1. Carrying and perhaps playing the instrument, stop and look into the room.

2. If the patient looks interested, ask if they would like to hear a song.

3. Ask where they are from, what kind of music they like, whether they have a favorite song or artist.

4. Invite them to sing with you. You can either do this right away, or sing one first and then ask “Would you like to sing one with me?” Often if you start singing a song they like, they will join in without having to be asked.

5. If they can’t think of anything, give them the Rise Up Singing book to look at.

6. Pick a song from the book or a song of the patient’s choice and sing it with or for them. If family or friends are visiting, give them the opportunity to participate as well.

7. If there is another patient in the room who also seems to be enjoying the music, invite them into the process, perhaps opening the curtain between the beds if needed. ASK FIRST: “May I open this?”

8. Repeat the process with that patient and their visitors, if any. Nine times out of ten, there will be a connection of some sort discovered between the patients— the music, where they are from, what their illness is, the career of the family members, etc.

9. You have now created a small community within the room. Even if it’s just you and one patient, you have made a community by sharing the gift of music.

10. Music can also have personal therapeutic benefits for the patient, including: relaxation, distraction from their pain, alleviating their loneliness and/or depression, taking them temporarily out of their environment, serving as a memory trigger to remind them of and recapture a more pleasant experience. Music can be chosen for these specific reasons.

The patient may have a story to share that’s brought on by the music. This may result in conversation among family members, visitors, roommates, etc. Sometimes even if the patient is asleep, or unconscious, it may be the family members who really want and need the music. It has benefits for them as well!

Get your Posi-Music Fix this month! In a Mega way…

cathy — Mon, 11 Jan 2010 20:57:33 +0000

If you’ve been at all curious about our conversations regarding Positive Music, what it is and what it does–there are a couple of special opportunities to find out more, coming up VERY SOON!

The Mega Posi Awards Show, produced by Empower Music and Arts (www.empowerma.com) is going to be held here in Florida for the first time, on January 18-20th at the Doubletree Resort in Orlando. David Roth, Sloan Wainwright, Harold Payne, Jan Garrett and J D Martin, Freebo, Daniel Nahmod, Jana Stanfield–these are just a few of the nominees for this year’s Posi-Awards.

In addition to the nominees concert on Monday night, and the Award winners concert Tuesday night, the late Monday night Pajama Jam is my favorite–a chance to get up close and personal as these musicians perform casual 20 minute slots in their hotel rooms. BIG FUN!

Most of these folks are taking advantage of being here in Florida by arranging other gigs while they are here, and we are fortunate to have one of the best–David Roth–right here in Gainesville FL this coming weekend!

(David Roth, David Beede and Cathy DeWitt at a previous concert in Gainesville)

David has performed in Gainesville before, but this weekend he will be doing a songwriting workshop Saturday afternoon (January 16th) from 2-5p.m., followed by a mini-concert at 7:00pm and a song sharing circle. Email elainemahon@mac.com to make reservations for the workshop and get directions to the concert. David will also play the music for the Sunday 11:00 service at Unity of Gainesville (www.unityofgainesvilleFL.org).

David’s talents as a songwriting teacher/workshop leader are superb; his is the most asked-for workshop at Summersongs camps throughout the country, and this time he will be doing something very special. In addition to helping folks with their individual songwriting process, David invites the attendees to participate in a collaborative composition for Songs of Love Foundation. This foundation sends custom-recorded original songs written for seriously ill children to their families, so this group piece will be completed, recorded, and used for a most rewarding cause. Visit www.davidrothmusic.com to hear David’s own amazing music.

Hope to see you at these affirming, inspiring events!

“Never doubt for a minute that music can’t change the hearts of men–or even of nations.” Arlo Guthrie

Patchwork Rides Again in 2010–and Jack Williams, and David Roth, and…

cathydew — Mon, 04 Jan 2010 06:28:24 +0000

Howdy, Friends of Florida folk and Girlgrass music!

I hope your holidays were happy. As this year draws to a close, we note with sadness the passing of Mem Semmes. Mem was a strong supporter of Florida folk music in partnership with Margaret Longhill and the Will McLean Foundation, a wonderful singer/songwriter herself, and the beloved mom of “Florida Man” Jon Semmes. She will be missed by many.

The good news is that their wonderful concert series, the Sunday Sampler in Dunnellon, will carry on. The Patchwork gals are honored to be playing at the first Sunday Sampler of this decade! Sunday, January 10th, at 2:30pm in the Historic Depot on Williams St (Route 41) in Dunnellon. This is one of our favorite venues, with a warm wooden feel and a terrific audience. Tickets are available at the door for $8.00–we’d love to see you at this legacy concert series.

All aboard! The historic Train Depot in Dunnellon

February, we’ll be at the Rally for the Rivers on the 13th and 14th–an annual event along the banks of the St. Johns River in Palatka. This 2-day festival has music, booths, boat rides, fun and festivities for the whole family. Patchwork will be performing Saturday, time TBA. Check our website for updates.

In March, the Will McLean Festival moves back to Sertoma Boys Ranch in Dade City. This is a beautiful location, especially when the orange blossoms are blooming; their heady fragrance provides an olfactory accompaniment to the music all weekend long. The festival will be from the 13th-15th–and again, our time slot will be announced later. But we know it won’t be on Saturday at 1:00, because at that time we’ll be playing the Quilting Festival in Trenton! This is our first time there, and we are really looking forward to playing at their historic train depot.

A couple of other things I thought you might like to know about–Saturday, January 9th, Jack Williams plays at Unity of Gainesville at 7:00pm. Call 352-373-1030 for reservations. The following Saturday the 16th, singer/songwriter David Roth will be here, doing a songwriting workshop at 2:00, a covered-dish at 5:30, a mini-concert and participatory song circle at 7pm. Call Elaine at 352-262-6008 for information. Then on Wednesday, January 20th, David Beede presents songwriter David Mallet in concert at Melanie Grogan’s Melrose house concert series. Dinner at 5:30, followed by music at 7:00. Call 352-494-2287 for reservations and directions.

Patchwork promises to do their part to ring in the New Year with peace, productivity, prosperity — and pickin’! Hope to see you out and about in 2010–Happy New Year!

***Our gig at the Williston Library on January 14th has been canceled.

Retailers

CD Baby Patchwork Store

UPCOMING SHOWS
Sunday Sampler Concert Series	Dunnellon, FL	Sun Jan 10 10	02:30 PM	Tickets
Trenton Historic Railroad Depot	Trenton, FL	Sat Feb 13 10	01:00 PM
St. Johns River amphitheatre	Palatka, FL	Sat Feb 13 10	08:00 PM
> See More / Details

PRESS CLIPPINGS

“A Florida favorite, full of great energy, outstanding musicianship, and just plain fun!” — Donna Green-Townsend, WUFT-FM Radio

“Stunning, soaring vocals…” — Bill Hutchinson, City of Gainesville Dept. of Cultural Affairs

“Patchwork is a regional treasure of no small magnitude…” — Scott Barnes, Satellite Magazine

December Musin's

cathydew — Sat, 05 Dec 2009 03:35:20 +0000

December is a busy month, and I’ll be traveling around Florida for several gigs, but my favorite things are happening right here at home. Friday, December 11th, is the annual AIM for the Holidays concert at the hospital presented by Shands Arts in Medicine. It’s been my privilege to put on this concert for fifteen years, featuring all kinds of acts doing holiday music and music of many cultures. This year we’ve added the new South Tower Cancer Center location, and some new acts including the Ed Milla Jazz group and Silver & Ivory, along with “regulars” like the Gainesville Flute Ensemble and Rabbi Shaya Isenberg.

We also started a new AIM program today, Tunes in the Tunnel! My fellow musicians and I played bowed psaltery, recorder, guitar and silver flutes in the new Tunnel that people walk through to cross Archer Road. It’s kind of like buskers in the subways–but it’s a nice walk, and you don’t even have to put money in the guitar case! The acoustics are great, and the sound carries almost all the way through. We’re still experimenting with where to set up, whether to stay in one place or walk, having people start from each end and walk to the middle–we’re open to suggestion. Come join us for Tunes in the Tunnel at 2:00 every Friday in December.

In the past few weeks I’ve spent a lot of time in Melrose, and what a happenin’ place it is! Art, nature, and fun all converge to keep this unique, cozy community cookin’…and Saturday, December 12th should be no exception as the Patchwork girls perform at Bellamy Road for the art gallery’s bonfire and marshmallow roast. Music starts at 5:00 on the outdoor stage, near the bonfire, right after the Audobon birdwalk and before the 7:00 gallerytalk.

Then on Monday the 14th–I’m REALLY looking forward to singing jazz again right here in Gainesville! I’ll be part of Marty Liquori’s Jazztet band, along with the versatile Vic Donnell on keys and the amazing Mr. P. on drums. Hope you can make it out to Gainesville’s favorite jazz scene at Leonardo’s 706, where we’ll be scattin’ and swingin’, starting at 6:30!

One of the most beloved community events of the year is our annual Vets for Peace Winter Solstice concert on Saturday, December 19th, hosted by the inimitable Bill Hutchinson. This is a magical gathering, on the longest night of the year when the world starts “turning toward the morning”. A truly transcendental evening of music and mystery, unity and harmony–Come sing along with your annual favorites, enjoy new surprises, and get into the Solstice spirit.

I hope to see you out and about! Thanks for visiting my blog. If you have a moment, please visit my website www.cathydewitt.com where we’ve got 2-for-1 CDs, and check out Empower’s online newsletter, which is featuring my video and interview this month! http://www.empowerma.com/interview_cathydew.

Positive Music Movement–not exactly new, but full of new opportunities!

cathy — Tue, 29 Sep 2009 05:37:53 +0000

In talking about the Posipalooza! concerts going on in Florida and other parts of the country right now, I’ve had some interesting conversations. It’s obvious that “positive music” has been around for a long, long time. And the music that we now hold under the umbrella of “posi” isn’t just all songs about sunshine and happiness. The songs that become beloved in the Posi camp are songs that put us in touch with deeper truths, that speak to our higher selves and the human need to make the world a better place, sometimes in the midst of great peril or despair.

A fellow musician and I were talking the other day about some of the older songs that purveyed positive messages. Both of us have been musicians for a long time, so we’ve seen a lot of powerful results, from all kinds of music! Some of the songs that made our long term list include ”Put a Little Love in Your Heart”, “What the World Needs Now is Love”, “He ain’t Heavy, He’s my Brother”, “Love Train”, the entire Abbey Road album–most anything from Woodstock–the list goes on and on. What are some of YOUR favorite commercially popular positive songs?

For centuries, music has been used to heal, to educate, to move people, to transform and bring about change. And, it is subjective. In my work playing music in the hospital I have seen a song I wouldn’t necessarily think of as “positive” change a patient’s mood from sorrow to joy. A personal memory associated with a song gives it added emotional impact. Pete Seeger gave the song “We Shall Overcome” a whole new meaning when he led civil rights marchers in singing it.

Pete Seeger singing with grandson Tao Rodriguez

What is different for the current movement of musicians spreading messages of peace, truth, unity, forgiveness and love, is really the result of social networking and modern communication. Online groups, social networks, and organizations like Empower Music and Arts (www.empowerma.com) and the Positive Music Association (www.positivemusicassociation.com) give us ways to raise public awareness of what we all do, allowing us to meet, share ideas, unify our goals and mission, and celebrate and reward each other.

Empower Music and Arts produces the PosiPalooza! Music Awards and mini-Posi concerts throughout the country, with an eclectic, talented array of performers sharing the stage. Empower co-directors Richard Mekdeci and Sue K Riley also host the annual Sound Connections conference at Unity Village. This year’s conference was exceptional, ending with one of the most inspired and inspiring concerts I’ve ever seen. Sometimes singing solo and sometimes supporting each other’s songs, David Roth, Sloane Wainwright, Harold Payne, and Daniel Nahmod each gave an extraordinary performance, moving people easily between laughter and tears. These are just a few of the many successful artists from different genres who’ve stepped forward to participate more fully in purveying positive messages through music. It is an amazing and powerful use of their talents.

(David Roth, David Beede and Cathy DeWitt, Gainesville FL)

If you go to the Empower website, you will find a schedule of the mini Posi concerts, and if you’re lucky you may find one in your area! You will also find out about the 2010 Posipalooza! festival and Awards ceremony, which takes place in Orlando, Florida on January 18-20th. You won’t want to miss this rare opportunity to experience firsthand the music of so many of these amazing artists at one time–Jana Stanfield, Harold Payne, David Roth, Jan Garrett and J. D. Martin, Devotion, Freebo, and many others.

One of my favorite quotes about music comes from Arlo Guthrie. “Never doubt for a minute,” he said, “that music can’t change the hearts of men–or even of nations.” At the very least, I know that your own heart will be changed from the Posipalooza! experience.

PosiPalooza September 25 – Guaranteed to Lift Your Spirits!

cathy — Tue, 22 Sep 2009 01:11:54 +0000

For several years now, I’ve been involved in a movement of musicians using their music to spread messages of peace, truth, unity, inclusiveness, forgiveness and love. One way they do this is to host the PosiPalooza Music Awards and concerts throughout the country featuring an eclectic, talented array of performers sharing the stage in a sort of song circle/round robin format.

This Friday Sept 25 at 7 pm Unity of Gainesville is proud to host the first Posi-concert in our community, featuring Nashville Grammy nominated songwriter Karen Taylor-Good, Motown recording artist Eddie Watkins Jr. (shown above), and Richard Mekdeci and Sue K Riley, music leaders for the national Unity movement and co-founders of Empower Music and Arts (www.empowerma.com).

Watkins, who as a teenager played bass for all the early Motown hits by the Temptations, Diana Ross and others, has recently become a music leader for spiritual life centers in California, and brings his unique soul/gospel style to the mix. Taylor-Good, whose music is sometimes poignant, sometimes hilarious, but always heart-opening, is an amazing songwriter and performer. Riley’s vocal/piano stylings are reminiscent of Carole King and Melissa Manchester, and Mekdeci holds it all together with his gentle wry humor, emceeing as well as performing.

I just got back from an incredible week with them at the Sound Connections conference at Unity Village, which ended with one of the most inspired and inspiring concerts I’ve ever seen. In a round-robin format where they sometimes supported each other’s songs David Roth, Sloane Wainwright, Harold Payne, and Daniel Nahmod gave an extraordinary performance. These are just a few of the many successful artists from different genres who’ve taken a step out of their commercial success box in order to participate more fully in purveying positive messages through music. It is an amazing and powerful use of their talents.

I hope you can join us this Friday Sept 25 at Unity of Gainesville, 8801 NW 39th Avenue, at 7 pm for a rousing, uplifting and delightful musical evening. Call 352-373-1030 or email cathydew@aol.com for tickets and reservations.

Like the Beauty in Alaska…

cathy — Thu, 06 Aug 2009 06:16:14 +0000

I finally got to experience my lifelong dream of visiting Alaska–what an amazing place! Flying into Anchorage, it was a beautiful clear day and as we began to see rivers of ice in the mountains below, everyone moved over to the windows on the airplane and started looking out. Window seat passengers offered to take pictures for those who were seated in the middle. I took a couple of them up on it, and got some very nice shots taken by a boy about ten.

It was kind of like a party on board, and when the plane landed, everyone cheered and clapped.

We rented a car and started our beautiful drive, along the Turnagain bay down to the Kenai Peninsula, where we had plans to meet up with a harpist friend of mine in the town of Homer. Stopped for a delicious Alaskan brew and some incredible halibut cerviche at the Double Muskie, right near Girdwood.

By the time we got to Homer it was about 1:00 a.m., but we had only been driving in the dark for about an hour, as it is after all the land of the midnight sun! We got to my friend Julie’s house and fell into bed, being as how it was 5 in the morning back home. The next day we drove into town to meet a friend of our friend Lennie Kesl. We had to stop at the infamous Salty Dog Saloon, where we met up with Findlay Abbot, who took us by boat to Yukon Island!

Yukon Island was very laid-back and peaceful, a perfect place to decompress and commune with nature. We had a great time staying in a little rustic beach hut with no electricity, kayaking out to Elephant Rock with a companionable sea otter, and exploring the island with families of eagles scolding at us from the trees above.

Elephant Rock from the kayak…

In the evening we walked over to Gretchen Abbot’s house to deliver some books we had brought from Lennie. Gretchen was hosting a group for an educational retreat experience, and after I played piano and got the group started on a singalong, she gave us a hunk of salmon to take back to the beach house; we cooked it on the gas stove–Delicious!

Later Gretchen gave us a ride around the island on her ATV–the first time I’d ever been on one!

The next day we went back to Homer and met up with Julie and John, for salmon dinner # 2! They had been fishing the whole previous week, and caught about 200 pounds of wild salmon! She fed us a fabulous dinner with smoked salmon and roe for the appetizer, and king salmon steaks for the main course. The next day she gave us a parcel of smoked strips and a jar of the roe to take with us on the next leg of our trip–the cruise ship! We ate that salmon for the whole week of the cruise, enjoying our own Happy Hour in our cabin.

Rob and Julie before our departure…

We took a leisurely drive back up the coast to get to where we’d start our cruise. The weather was cold and rainy, so the visibility wasn’t great, but we took some nice hikes and saw some amazing animals at the wildlife refuge.

We returned our car, took the shuttle and came out of a very long tunnel where our cruise ship, the Coral Princess was waiting. Here would be the start of a very different part of our journey, including the first two nights and days which were spent at sea!

NEXT UP: Fiords, Glaciers, and Whales, oh my!

College Fiords…

They sure come close in that big cruise ship!

Mendenhall Glacier with its stunning blue icebergs…

Whale waving bye-bye…!

Part II coming soon