gone to the dogs A Lyrical Intermezzo.
Heartwarming Portraits And Stories.
Sixty-one dogs have been beautifully immortalized in a book by renowned watercolorist, Edie Fagan. In Adored Dogs, each portrait graces one page with an accompanying brief biography on the opposite page. The hardbound, 128 page book with dust cover is perfectly sized at eight by eight. Fagan, who resides in Winter Park, is a signature member of the National Watercolor Society and the Florida Watercolor Society. She has won great acclaim for her landscapes and wildlife, but it is her watercolor portraits of dogs that hold a special place in our hearts, here at The New Barker. Fagan was first inspired to paint dogs
by Jimmy, a Labrador Retriever. “A family commissioned me to paint
Jimmy. But for one reason or another, we could never arrange the right day for me to take his photos. One day, I happened to be driving through Jimmy’s neighbor- hood when he suddenly popped into my head. I took a chance, swung by his house and found both Jimmy and his “mom” at home. That evening, I emailed the photos I had taken, to his family so they could select their favorite from which I would paint Jimmy’s portrait. As it turned out, Jimmy collapsed the very next day and was diagnosed with an aggressive cancer. It became clear why I was drawn to Jimmy’s house that day. Nowadays, when people ask me to paint their dogs, I’m sometimes tempted to say “Sorry, but I’m too busy.” And then I remember Jimmy.” Visit
www.ediefagan.com to pur-
chase Adored Dogs. U
www.TheNewBarker.com
A Grateful Tail, composed and scored by Maestro Steven Mercurio, is a symphony in four movements featuring around 80 musicians, voice and chorus. While Beethoven, Hayden, and Gershwin have all written pieces about dogs, A Grateful Tail is the first-ever classical symphony dedicated to dogs and dog lovers. The powerfully inspiring music carries a mes- sage that is as big as the cycle of life, and unconditional love. The symphony has been described as perhaps Mercurio's liveliest work yet. It is an exploration of loss and longing, and the magical moments that dogs bring to our lives.
represented by the brass. Second Movement - Let Sleeping Dogs Lie, Peacefully, a moving string motif, charac- terizing our favorite dogs asleep at the end of a long day of play. Third Movement - The Last Will and
Testament, sung by F. Murray. (An excerpt of O’Neill’s touching letter is on page 58 of this issue of The New Barker.) Fourth Movement - Wagging The Tail:
Ossai Fido’s Lament is an uplifting final movement complete with samba rhythms and a gospel choir. Maestro Mercurio is an internation-
STEVEN MERCURIO’S A GRATEFUL TAIL.
In the third movement, Mercurio, a
dog lover, put to music the beautiful let- ter, The Last Will and Testament of Silverdene Emblem O'Neill, written by American playwright Eugene O'Neill. The comforting letter of love was written in 1940 to O'Neill's inconsolable wife, Carlotta O'Neill after the loss of the fam- ily's Dalmatian, Blemie. A Grateful Tail recently made its
world premier in the Czech Republic at Smetana Hall, featuring F. Murray Abraham as Blemie. Abraham actually performed throughout while holding the collar and leash of his own dog Wolfie. The United States premiere will take place in Philadelphia before heading to Columbia, Maryland. First Movement - Siriusly Dog Star,
owes its title to the brightest star in the sky, Sirius, and inspired by Mercurio's own dog, Ava, a Standard Poodle. Small dogs barking are represented by the wind instruments, while the bigger dogs are
ally acclaimed conductor and composer, having conducted more than 45 different operas in seven languages. After receiving his Masters degree from the Juilliard School, he became Music Director of the Spoleto Festival for five years and Principal Conductor of the Opera Company of Philadelphia. A sought after collaborator for many award-winning recordings, arrangements and film proj- ects, Mercurio has worked with the likes of Chick Correa, Sting, Placido Domingo and Andrea Bocelli.
Steven Mercurio and his dog, Ava. The New Barker is in touch with
Maestro Mercurio, with plans to bring A Grateful Tail to several Florida cities in 2014. Mercurio’s ultimate message to dog lovers, “Dogs may give us the gift of unconditional love, but our love is what sustains them, too.” U
Summer ~ 2013 THE NEW BARKER 57
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