For over a year, Nahum Chandler has been planning to bring Cecil to John Hopkins for the Spring seminar and concert.  His dream came true, and the whole experience was mind boggling.

Cecil had modest accommodations at Broadview Apartments, one bedroom, kitchen, bath, and very cozy.  Mine was a smaller efficiency, roomy, airy, with kitchen and bath.,

Around the corner was One World where we had many happy hours in a warm atmosphere.  Each morning I had breakfast,  a special easy chair, coffee table arrangement for my daily bagle and coffee; and newspaper.

Our evening meals sometimes were still going strong after 3 AM, with our family, Tony Oxley, Tutta, Nahum Chandler, Sheri D'Orio, Chris Power, Bill Scott.

On other evenings, students from the seminars joined us for parties around 12 to 15, for another long evening.

At the seminars on architecture, composition, improvision, Cecil held us all spellbound as his memories of Miles Davis, Betty Carter, Billie Holiday wove in and out of his lectures for hours and hours.

His memory for dates and who played with whom, his favorite drummers through the years, most of whom have all died: Art Blakey, Billie Higgins, Steve McCall, Dennis Charles.

Stories about Max Roach, Elvin Jones, Andrew Cyrille, Sonny Murray, Ronald Shannon Jackson, Rashid Bakr, Han Bennink, Gregg Bendian, Jackson Krall... he's played with them all.

Right now, the most joy and well acclaimed by the critics is Tony Oxley who lives in Germany and came in to perform in duo with Cecil. Affable and full of humor and joy Tony adds a certain sparkle and grace to the performance.

For Cecil, it was a time to exchange ideas with brilliant young students and fans who came in from all over to attend the seminars and be with him.

He awoke usually at 6 AM, did an hour of exercise, had a full breakfast of fruit, cereal, and was ready for some four to six hours of composition at the piano and practice.

The campus was a short walk from the hotel, which gave him more exercise, which keeps Cecil trim and youthful in appearance.

I do want to give my impression of the Friday PM concert with Tony Oxley.  Given in Mattin Center, in a small auditorium booked solid, there were special lighting, with Cecil at his best dancing, playing with the piano, and reading his poetry.  There was sheer  magic in the evening.

With Tony Oxley, there was a woven tapestry spreading over the entire audience. We were enmeshed in the sound, enthralled and mesmerized by the sounds.  It was if there were a large orchestra performing, instead of two gifted performers, Cecil Taylor at the piano, and Tony Oxley with his home made drums.

Nahum Chandler, Cecil Taylor, Tony Oxley and Trudy Morse

With the following concert on Saturday, and the goodbye speaches and flowers, I staggered off stage, backstage, as we all floated in space, embracing each other, crying and laughing at the same time.

"We did it, we did it", we all exclaimed.  So many months of dreaming, so many hours handling all the details to make possible this extraordinary event.  

There were standing ovations for Cecil and Tony Oxley, as well as Nahum Chandler who planned the event with his staff, Bill Scott, Chris Powers, and Bettina Ng'weno.

Sheri DiOrio, Cecil, Bill Scott & Trudy