NEWSLETTER | Maria Duhova Trevor, Harpist

March 2021

March 2021 Newsletter

Dear friends of harp music, I hope you have enjoyed the beautiful spring weather. I personally can't wait to get outside more after the long winter. I enjoy working in the garden, planting flowers and vegetables and of course going to many of Columbia parks with my kids and State parks for hikes. With a new month, I would like to mention to you some of the events that my harp gets to go to! For those of you struggling with grief, illness, loss or simply looking to pause and feel spiritually uplifted, please watch our Harp and Healing service. While we can't meet in person yet, I am so grateful for technology and the ability to record these services and have them available for you to watch anytime. I know in my own life, I really appreciate this monthly time of solitude, music and meditations. Big thank you to Pastor Terry Overfelt for inspiring us with meaningful readings and Taby Lane, who sets up the "stage" and records the services. Click here to watch it on Youtube. As the wedding season is starting now in March, I am looking forward to playing wedding ceremonies again. The pandemic is still preventing us from big gatherings, but live music helps create a special atmosphere for any wedding ceremony, big or micro! If you know of anyone who might enjoy live harp music on their big day, please send them to www.mariaharp.com Talking about love and weddings - my friend, harpist Ruth Acuff and...

March 11, 2021

February 2021

February 2021 Newsletter

Dear friends of harp music, I have been silent last month since my husband and I were still recovering from Covid in early January. We had the illness over Christmas and I wouldn't wish it on anybody. My husband initially tested positive after a confirmed exposure, I followed a few days later. Our children remained negative, so we had to isolate from them in our own home. Our church really helped us by delivering meals at the time when I couldn't cook. Our doctor and the health department were also amazing frequently checking on us. My husband had a strong course of illness with 10 days of high fevers and all the symptoms in the book, mine was lighter, but fatigue and headaches would sneak in even days later. My son eventually also tested positive just as we were coming out of isolation, the other two kids continued to remain negative. We recovered though and we are grateful for friends and family who helped us through. I am back to performing and teaching and would like to share and invite you to the following events this month: Tonight at 7.30pm I will playing therapeutic music for "A Peaceful Pause" It's the first event in a series of three on February 11th, 18th and 25th on Zoom. Join us for 45 minutes of harp music, deep breathing and essential oils. This is a collaboration with Kindred Collective, each session will have a theme based on the 3 groups of essential oils. 2/11 Grounding (tree oil), 2/18 Soothing (floral oil),...

February 11, 2021

January 2021

January 2021 Newsletter

Happy New Year friends! Hoping that it will be better than 2020 and live music will return full force to our lives! Wishing you all happy, healthy and prosperous New Year!

January 1, 2021

December 2020

December 2020 Newsletter

Dear friends of harp music, I want to wish you a beautiful Advent season and hope that my harp music can help you create festive atmosphere in your homes. It has been a year since I released my third album - Christmas Harp. Christmas music is special. Just like treasured family ornaments come out of the boxes and are carefully placed on the Christmas tree, mom's best china placed on the dinning table, treasured recipes past from generation to generation, Christmas music comes out as well. There is something magical about it that helps us get into the festive spirit year after year! So if you don't have my CD yet or you already lost it, I have a few! If you are interested in a physical copy, let me know and I am happy to mail it to you or have it available for pick up. It makes for a great present too! My CDs are also available for sale at the Music Suite on Providence. If you prefer a digital version, all my CDs are on Spotify, iTunes, Apple Music, YouTube, Deezer, just search for my name. Thank you for listening! I am excited to say that I will play a live concert tomorrow night ( Friday Dec.4th ), which is a rare occasion right now! It's part of Odyssey Chamber Music Series. Audience is very limited and by invitation only, so don't head out just yet, but watch it at home! The concert premiers tomorrow at 7pm, but the video will be available...

December 4, 2020

November 2020

November 2020 Newsletter

Dear friends of harp music, I hope you are well! I am much of the same - my kids learning virtually, I am teaching online, concert halls closed... I was excited last week to vote in the US Presidential Election as this was my first time voting since becoming an American citizen! I know there is not much live music I can invite you to these days, but we continue to produce Harp and Healing services, generally on first Tuesday of each month, this month was an exception due to the election. Also it's too cold for us to gather outside anymore, so we prerecorded the music and the word and it will be published on Youtube tonight at 5.30pm. Healing is so needed in these difficult times and we try to reflect it through meditations, readings and harp music. This month we have a number of special guests! Please tune in at 5.30 here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VM1KEZfGZrM&feature=youtu.be Of course, just like in the previous months, the recording will be available on YouTube for you to view after the premiere date as well. Next, I would like to talk to you about the possibility of learning to the harp! I am often surprised that people seem to think that playing harp is inaccessible when in fact the opposite is true! I love teaching my young and my adult students and hope to spread the word that anybody can learn how to play the harp! So what if you or your child considered taking harp lessons? What do you...

November 10, 2020

October 2020

October 2020 Newsletter

Dear friends of harp music, I hope this finds you well and healthy! We enjoyed a beautiful weather this past weekend hiking in Arkansas. What a gift of making memories with my kids. Nature has always been my solace, so I am happy that we can bring Harp and Healing outdoors instead of virtually. Weather for tomorrow, Tuesday October 6th looks perfect. So if you would like to relax with live harp music, bring your foldable chair, face mask and join at Broadway Christian Church at 5.30pm! Our minister Terry Overfelt will be back from her sabbatical and will join me with inspirational readings. This service is meant for those who are in need of healing, but at the moment it's all of us! It's free and open for all. More info can be found on my Facebook page or Broadway Christian Church website. November Harp and Healing will be postponed due to Election Day to second Tuesday - November 10th. Weather permitting we might still hold it outdoors. If it's too cold, we will have a virtual one. My symphony playing is still on hold due to Covid - 19, as there is hardly any live music going on right now. I am enjoying performing for wedding ceremonies throughout the Midwest and teaching my harp students, children and adults. For current pictures and videos, please follow me on social media My Facebook page can be found here https://www.facebook.com/search/top/?q=maria%20duhova%20trevor%20-%20harpist&epa=SEARCH_BOX Instagram https://www.instagram.com/maria_duhova_trevor_harp/?hl=en YouTube channel https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCJc3dL-8XO7hY89QSMZipCA?view_as=subscriber Thank you and stay safe and healthy, Maria

October 5, 2020

September 2020

September 2020 Newsletter

Dear friends of harp music, Harp and Healing is back! After the hiatus this spring, virtual event in May and summer break, we are ready to start again! We will hold a live event on the church lawn - to the north side of BCC. You will need to bring your own fold up chair, but there is plenty of space to physically distance and a wonderful shade under the trees! Come and listen to soothing harp music and prayers and meditations of our lead minister Mark Briley. Special treat - my husband will be joining me on cello on several songs. Our country and the world needs healing and we are trying to contribute in a way we know in our community. Please join us! If you do not feel comfortable coming to this live event, we will record it and release it a week later on BCC YouTube channel. You can view the last H&H in May online here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gFTMA3-Klpo In my orchestra world there is not much Live music happening right now as we navigate these unprecedented times in the modern history and try to keep the musicians and our audiences safe. I am happy to say though that both Missouri Symphony and the Springfield Symphony are not silent! The Missouri symphony curated a virtual summer festival put together from the favorite performances of last 10 years. The festival was released online in June and July. The concerts are still available to view anytime now on YouTube here:

September 1, 2020

June 2020

Summer 2020 Newsletter

Dear friends of Harp music, The summer is here and what a weird summer it is! Normally I would be juggling being a harpist and music librarian for the Hot Summer Night festival, playing wedding ceremonies on Saturday afternoons, solo recital for Missouri Scholars Academy, chamber music recitals and soon enough packing our family for a visit to Slovakia. None of that is happening. Covid - 19 pandemic put a break on all big gatherings, that are essential to all aspects of my job. Our state and Boone county are slowly reopening, but that doesn't mean that these events start happening right away. If you are missing live music, please note that the Missouri Symphony, that annually holds Hot Summer Nights festival is doing something special. Even-though we can not bring our musicians from all over USA to live and perform in Columbia this summer, we have a virtual festival for you! The festival is comprised from concerts over last 10 years, beautifully captured by Mediacom. The season is aptly named Greatest Hits and was curated by my husband/MOSY Artistic Director Kirk. The schedule of concert releases can be found here: https://themosy.org/mosy-at-home/ The concerts stay on MOSY Youtube Channel even past the release date, so you can watch them anytime. Here is a link directly to MOSY channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCPvM8ehdLoUZ2SC8GT4hueg I hope you enjoy these concerts! The MOSY staff put a lot of effort into retaining our presence with our audiences even if it's just in the...

June 22, 2020

May 2020

May 2020 Newsletter

Dear friends of harp music, I hope this finds you well and healthy. We are all dealing with changes in our families, in our community and society. For some, perhaps life hasn’t changed so much, but for most of us life has been altered dramatically with full time child care, loss of work and perhaps even with loss of a family member or a friend. We have to have faith and hope that this too shall pass. Ever since the pandemic started, I have to admit, it was hard to focus on playing my harp. That changed last month as Pastor Terry Overfelt and I decided to hold a special virtual Harp and Healing (after we had to cancel in March and April). We dedicate it to all of you dealing with Corona virus pandemic as we all need a little bit of healing of our souls and hope for the future. I hope it will bring you clarity, faith, hope and peace. Here is the YouTube link to May Harp and Healing, the nice thing is that now you can watch it anytime it suits you! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gFTMA3-Klpo&list=PLh7AdlEyIfW_JgT16kKcdaKaWnBUyApCY A little look behind the scenes of this project if you are interested... Text: My brother emailed me this Covid - 19 related prose from Slovakia back in late March and it really spoke to me the way it looked at our current predicament and the way we can learn from it and become better humans. I emailed it to Pastor Terry and to my surprise and delight she...

May 12, 2020

April 2020

April 2020 Newsletter

Dear friends of harp music, first of all I hope this finds you healthy. So much has happened globally, nationally, locally and in our own lives since Covid-19 crises started. How are you coping? As you can imagine, my life - like many of us are experiencing - has been heavily impacted by the Corona virus. First let me say, everyone in my family is healthy and I am grateful for that. We are passed the initial shock of the magnitude of this crises and the effect it has on our lives. I think I am also past the initial stage of grief for the loss of the life as we know it, for the lost performances, for the loss of daily face to face human interaction, for the loss of my kids' traditional school, loss of playdates and team sports. I have to say this article really helped me identify my feelings, put a name on them and move forward. https://hbr.org/2020/03/that-discomfort-youre-feeling-is-grief?utm_source=facebook&utm_campaign=hbr&utm_medium=social&fbclid=IwAR2cHhOAypXS3WiibkPzEs7pmZ-XR80ktpEOk5T7TabdQyxadL2wsq1EuMs I am still working on moving forward. Mainly by identifying things that I am deeply grateful for and appreciative about. So here is my list, what's yours? My family is healthy, everyone of them, in USA, in Slovakia, in England, in Canada and Switzerland. My friends are healthy and keep reaching out and checking on each other My kids are doing well considering the situation I am grateful for out city's leadership recognizing the dangers and taking action early I am grateful for our teachers and CPS for acting quickly and then being flexible and reevaluating their...

April 16, 2020