Tonight I played music trivia with some colleagues. We get together every quarter, grab pizza and beer and spend a few hours trying to answer the most arcane questions possible. Sample questions from tonight: Who was the lead singer of Saxon and what day/month/year did Paul McCartney and Linda Eastman marry. Go ahead and google the answers. I’ll wait. 

I was total dead weight tonight on my team. I think the only answer I chimed in on faster (just barely) than anyone else was who was the guitarist for UltraVox.

Even though many of us like different kinds of music (for example, some of the people can name every song on every Jethro Tull album...in order), what we all have in common is the shared understanding that our relationship with music is probably the longest-lasting, most enduring, and satisfying bond we’ve ever had. That may sound sad to someone who is a casual music fan, but it’s actually quite gratifying and comforting. I talked to a friend of mine there whose girlfriend had broken up with him a few weeks ago and the first thing he did was ask us all for break-up songs so he could make a playlist while he wallowed in his heartbreak. (They got back together, but I still want that playlist —there’s always another heartbreak coming around the next corner). 

Today’s $10 goes to The Mr. Holland’s Opus Foundation. Named after the movie about a music teacher, the Foundation donates musical instruments to underfunded music programs. Each year, the organization provides thousands of instruments to students. Last year, it assisted close to 100 elementary, middle and high school music programs. 

I have a personal connection to Mr. Holland’s Opus Foundation in that I was friends with the organization’s founder, film composer Michael Kamen. After scoring the movie, he started the foundation in 1996. Sadly, he died in 2003. Michael was a passionate, energetic force and it’s nice that his legacy lives on not only through his own music, but in his dedication to help others create their own musical legacy.

And by the way, Biff Byford and March 12, 1969.

Jan. 16: Mr. Holland’s Opus Foundation http://www.mhopus.org/Home

Why I started this blog.