Wherever you are on your life journey after 50, you’re in good hands as Jill gently guides you through the realities and challenges while opening the door to new creative possibilities. This book is for anyone who wants to awaken their creativity and ride that Third Wave with passion, presence, and meaning.
“Variations on Life After 50 is a siren’s call to those of us who are entering our ‘Third Wave’ and wondering, what now? This profound book, brimming with inspirational real-life stories, powerful metaphors, and practical advice, offers a field guide for how we can reach our full creative potential. In this truly transcendent work, Timmons offers a magical and timely gift to creatives everywhere who are seeking meaning, purpose, and an enduring legacy!”—Laura Dean, author of Music in the Westward Expansion
See my latest YouTube episode below: Gavotte and Variations by Rameau, inspired by The Hierophant.
You know the scene in Cinderella when the Fairy Godmother waves her wand and transforms a pumpkin into an elegant coach, mice into high-stepping horses, a horse into a coachman, and Cinderella’s tattered dress into a magnificent ball gown? If only bringing our wildest dreams to life were as easy as waving a magic wand.
In reality, manifesting our dreams involves a vision, a plan, and some heavy lifting. We may have magnificent ideas, and many of us have no problem coming up with a step-by-step plan for how we might approach something. But… where we may fall short is in doing the arduous daily work, believing in ourselves, investing the time and effort, and remaining disciplined enough to carry the dream out of our imaginations and into the real world. There’s no way around it. While the journey can be every bit as thrilling as the finished product, the path sometimes feels like a never-ending grind.
Take Serena Williams, for example. The tennis GOAT said, “Everything requires discipline, hard work and dedication, and, most importantly, self-belief.” Diana Nyad attempted to swim from Cuba to Florida five times over a 35-year span before finally succeeding at the age of 64. Talk about dedication—and the courage to keep believing when the dream still seems impossibly far away!
Through the years, people have often commented that I’m lucky to have a life in music. Indeed, I’m grateful every day for this 30-plus-year career, but luck has had very little to do with sustaining it. There’s daily practice, teaching, playing gigs, traveling, crafting programs, the never-ending hustle, administrative tasks, professional development, and, more often than not, seven-day workweeks. In other words, this vision of mine—to live a life in music—and the dreams I’ve brought into reality didn’t simply take flight on their own. There has been plenty of blood, sweat, and tears involved, along with faith, resilience, and a little creative magic.
Is it worth it? ABSOLUTELY.
For another take on the magic of bringing our dreams into the real world, I invite you to follow along with my current project, Piano for the Journey. Each week, I pair a piece of music with one Major Arcana card from the tarot as a way of exploring the universal archetypes, challenges, and possibilities that shape our lives.
You can watch The Magician video here and explore more videos in the series by clicking on the YouTube video below. And if the project speaks to you, please help me sprinkle a little more magic by liking the video and subscribing to the channel.
It’s winter! It’s dark and cold. Are you ready for a cozy indoor project that brings you joy while engaging your brain? How about a beginning piano course? You won’t even have to leave your cozy home. After months of frenzied content creation, I’m elated to announce that my new online piano course, Play Piano Today: An Introductory Piano Course is up and running on Teachable (a web platform dedicated to online learning). The course is available on-demand, meaning once you purchase the course, you work on it at your own pace. The curriculum includes a 42-page pdf book filled with lessons and sheet music along with 20 instructional videos. Hope to see you there! Below is a little sneak peak! Visit me on Teachable for more information and sample lessons.
I recently saw the beautiful movie, Florence Foster Jenkins starring Meryl Streep as Florence, Hugh Grant as her husband, and Simon Helberg as the brilliant pianist and gentle soul, Cosmé McMoon. This stylish movie, based on the real life FFJ, celebrates music, complex relationships, and the human spirit. Despite a sold out performance at Carnegie Hall, Florence is lacking in the musical ability. However, her spirit,enthusiasm, courage, and love for music are contagious. I laughed and cried my way through the film.
There are many touching scenes with the pianist Cosmé and Florence including Cosmé performing an audition for Florence with The Swan from Saint Saens. The Swan, originally for cello and two pianos, is from Carnival of the Animals. Here is an arrangement for piano I recorded this morning.
Boom! Summer is here and the living is busy! My recording blog is on a temporary hiatus as I’ve been very busy with the Seattle Opera in Schools (teaching in summer school), my private students, and preparing for my Cuba concert in the fall. I participated in an amazing piano master class in Portland over the weekend with the inspiring Dr. Jill Timmons, my mentor. What a thrill and humbling experience to play a concert hall sized Bosendorfer, valued at $300,000.00 (that’s a whole other story). Joe and I made a weekend of it and spent the next day at Mount st. Helens.
After an overnight at a Super 8 along I5, we headed toward Mount St. Helens. In all, we spent about 4 hours at Johnston’s Ridge, the highest visitor’s center. We took in the exhibits, lectures, and movies and also took a short hike on a very pleasant trail with great views. There were two really interesting films about the eruption and the geology of the mountain which is still, by the way, active! The rangers also do a great job with their talks. It wasn’t an entirely clear day, but it was still spectacular. What a bonus, that the area was alive with wild flowers at their peak bloom! You can see by the pictures, the side of the mountain blown out with the landslide still looks quite barren.
The eruption was in May of 1980, 57 people died, you can see the memorial below. The explosion could be heard as far away as Missoula, Montana. I still remember waking up to an ash covered Choteau, Montana when I was about 10 years old, everything was covered with the grey dust including cars, steps, sidewalks, etc.
On our way down from the mountain, we stopped at an adorable road side cafe overlooking the Toutle River- picture of Joe drinking coffee.
The last few weeks, in addition to teaching my private students, I’ve been working as a teaching artist for the Seattle Opera in their Opera in Schools Program. The opera work includes composing mini operas with 3rd graders. I’ve also been teaching general music at Wedgwood Montessori Preschool. I am inspired, energized and humbled by the fearlessness and creativity of children in the schools and in my private studio.
How Can I Keep From Singing is an American song dating as far back as the mid 1800’s, possibly written by Robert Lawry. The melody is sweet and simple while the text is beautiful and timeless.
My life goes on in endless song above earth’s lamentations,
I hear the real, though far-off hymn
That hails a new creation.
No storm can shake my inmost calm,
While to that rock I’m clinging.
It sounds an echo in my soul
How can I keep from singing?
Silly Laura and her mom, Gail Dean at Rancho la Puerta
Romances Sans Paroles translates to Songs Without Words. Below I play #3 by Gabriel Fauré (played on my digital keyboard and mixed on my Macbook as a harp/guitar duo). What a perfect piece for Mother’s Day. No words can describe how grateful I am for my mother, Gail Dean. She’s a woman of steel who raised two kids on her own with courage and grace after losing my dad in a highway accident when we were all very young.
Thanks, Mom, for all of the hours of music lessons, for driving across the state of Montana for camps and concerts, for sewing all of those costumes and dresses, for giving me a great education, and for giving me the courage, independence, and grit to pursue a life in music. I owe it all to you!
To all of the Mamas our there! You know who you are and I know how hard you work to make it all look easy! Here’s to our Moms and here’s to us, the Mamas!
Don’t Advertise Your Man piano and singing by Laura
Here’s my awesome guy, Joe Sweeney! He does laundry and helps my daughter with her math, he also is an amazing bird photographer, very funny, extremely handsome, and the love of my life. I could go on and on, but before I do, I think I’ll take the advice of Clara Smith who first wrote this old blues tune back in the 1920’s, Don’t Advertise Your Man. Sippie Wallace came our with her version in the 1960’s. Bonnie Raitt has also recorded a sassy version.
Be sure to check out these recordings, and remember, girls, Don’t Advertise your Man!
Raspberry Beret music and lyricsby Prince, piano solo by Laura
Growing up in beautiful Choteau, Montana (population 1800), we had one movie theatre, the Roxy, open only on the weekends. To my delight, in 1984, the Roxy showed Purple Rain, starring Prince. As a young high school desperate to explore places and faces outside of my hometown, I was mesmerized by the music, the story, and of course, the romantic vision of Prince cruising down the open road on his motor bike! Vroom!
Today, and homage to Prince, an amazing talent and unique artist! Oh how I long to be as cool as the elusive girl in Raspberry Beret.
Still dreaming of adventures in Cuba. Today, a post featuring Lágrimas Negras (black tears), a traditional Cuban Bolero written by Miguel Matamoros. My group learned this piece under the instruction of a wonderful voice teacher at the havana music school.
The bolero, in two parts, opens with a slow lament. The singer has been abandoned and suffers immense pain. She sobs black tears over her lover’s transgressions. The second half picks up as she decides to suffer no more. Above, my recording, a piano arrangement of Lágrimas Negras.
Don’t miss these three different takes on Lágrima Negras:
