I thought for a time of calling this CD "Sound and Fury," because so much of it is a reflection of music on a pure emotional level, but it's more than just that.

"The Place Beneath the Silence" is that place where you don't expect to find things but massive amounts of energy and activity occur. It's the chaos that occurs on microscopic levels. It's the fire hidden within nearly extinguished embers. It's the moments of revelation that come in times of quiet meditation.

Every piece on this album is the product of quiet and solitude, though the product itself might not sound so. It's anger, rage, hope & love. It's life and joy. It's music I love to share and perform, and now it's ready for me to share with all of you. 

The Penguin Dance

One of the side effects of diabetes is that my fingernails have become brittle and easy to break. For a classically trained guitarist, this is a serious problem. I had to relearn my old skills from a new perspective. I took what I knew about classical music, theory, jazz, blues, improvisation, rhythm and dynamics and developed a new style of flatpicking which incorporated an unusual capo configuration into something which I'd never heard on a solo guitar before.

This CD is my celebration. It's my celebration of finding something new and beautiful out of tragedy. It's my celebration of music as art. It's my celebration of creative exploration into new territory. It's my celebration of survival.

It's my dance of joy. 

Goodbye

Whispers (Reprise)

A series of experiments with virtual music

Nebraska

The speed of the guitar solo on this reminds me of falling rain.

Rain

This piece feels like closing time to me-- packing up for the day and heading home.

Sunset

This piece feels like kind of a map to me, covering multiple points of view and perspectives, walking through multiple instruments trading parts.

Landscape

A series of experiments with virtual music.  This may or may not become an album, and if it does, I may not chose to use all the tracks here.  Please feel free to give feedback-- this is new territory for me.  I'm used to doing everything acoustic and feel as though I've come up with some very nice tunes, but I'm not convinced that all are as nice as I'd like.

HIgh Tide

Canyons

Simplify

A series of experiments in virtual music.  This project has been a real delight for me, allowing me to focus on music that is much more structured than my usual approaches of raw improvisation, but with real moments of power and cadence.

Downtown

Julie is a folk artist in the truest tradition, weaving stories, motion and rhythm, creating lyrical poetry through the strings of her guitar. This is more than simply a creative approach to music. This is performance which turns on a dime, first evoking ancient modal melodies, and then suddenly sliding into a rock and roll beat which takes you straight into the 21st century.

Julie Waters

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