Wow, sorry guys, I just saw the date of my last blog entry...14 months ago!  I'm afraid I just don't have the time or energy to devote to blogging/updating/etc. between all of the social networking sites I'm on...oh well...

Either way, not only am I working two jobs (still) and helping raise our two boys, I've finally embarked on recording my first studio album.  It will encompass about 26 or so never-before-heard (at least by modern ears) piano ragtime numbers published in the Greater Cincinnati area at the turn of the twentieth century.  All pieces are extremely rare, have never been recorded, and have been painstakingly culled from my humongous collection of over 400 ragtime pieces from Cincinnati that I've collected over the last eight years or so.  I've spent about 14 hours in the studio so far, and that's only for TWO pieces.  It's very tedious work, and my wrists and thumb tendons are paying a price.  But it's all for the greater good, preserving local and musical history (not to mention my playing).

I expect the recording to be done over the next few months and then the final disc, ready to be sold, in about a year or so.  Liner notes (which will require a lot of research), cover art, etc. all go into this project, something I've dreamed of doing for quite a while.  It's quite exciting, and very cool to hear pieces that haven't seen the light of day in over 100 years.  They sound as fresh and exciting today as they did when they were initially rolled off the press.

More to come!

Hey all,

Sorry I've been somewhat out of touch lately.  What with the birth of our second boy a couple of months ago, Elena's car unexpectedly dying, and two jobs, life has been hectic.

But not hectic enough for me to take up a new hobby:  photographing locations throughout rural Ohio that have been abandoned...

This may sound odd, but it all stems back to my a) Love of local history, and b) Historic preservation.  As some of you know, I'm like this with music as well.  I've always loved going on long drives in the country and taking in the sights.  It's quite easy to NOT notice an old farmhouse that's falling apart, or a one-room schoolhouse where children were educated over a hundred years ago.  We zoom down the State Route at 60 mph without really taking in what we're passing by.  So I've taken it upon myself to capture the forgotten and abandoned places people have let slip from their memories.  (By the way, I'm far from alone in this new hobby...MANY amateur photographers here in Ohio do the exact same thing.)

Simply go to my photoset:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/cincystevenson/sets/72157604303795642/

If you have a Yahoo account you can comment.

Some of these structures may not even be standing within a year, so I hope to preserve the memories of their existence in my photoset.  I'm adding to it almost on an every-other-day basis.  The newest pictures are at the end of the set...I added a LOT of pictures from our travels on Saturday.

Enjoy!

Jeremy, the pianist and rural photographer

Hi gang!

Once again, sorry I haven't been on here much, but here's the reason...go to our photoset here on AnD "Roland Hyun" or go to http://www.flickr.com/photos/cincystevenson/sets/72157603978761726/ to view a bunch more pictures!  Mommy and new baby boy are doing well.

Hope to talk to you soon!

Jeremy

Hello everyone!

Sorry I've been MIA...thanks for all the birthday wishes!  33 years old...yes, I guess I'm firmly entrenched in my thirties now...weird.  I don't feel a day over 19 though.

And thank you ALL especially for supporting Elena's new website, www.hapasmama.com!  It's a labor of love, and we look forward to hearing from you all in the various thought-provoking forums and blog comments.  Keep on spreading the word!  It will get better as time goes on...

It's brrrr-ass cold up here in Cincinnati now, and the wind is howling as I type this.  Hopefully it doesn't knock out the electricity!  I promise to be on here a bit more as time permits.  Actually, to be quite truthful, I've been on Facebook lately playing Scrabble with a few friends  :)  If you look up "Jeremy Stevenson" from Cincinnati, I'll even add you as a friend.  Then maybe WE could play Scrabble (or should I say "Scrabulous" which is the online version).

Seacrest out,

Jeremy