The following was written by my late wife Elaine. She wrote a long book, a diary really, from which this is one passage:
Dave’s close connections to music began when he was a boy and grew up hearing classical records played by his father on an old acoustic Victrola. The records were made of hard wax and the steel needles that moved up and down (not sideways, as in later record players), wore out, and had to be replaced after a few playings.
Later, when we lived in Arlington, Virginia, he bought a Revok tape-playing machine and excellent speakers, and collected many tapes which he loved to play in the evenings after work, with the volume set high. He enjoyed listening to this music in the dark as a way to relax, after his day in the city at the Patent Office.
Dave taught himself to play a ukelele he bought at the PX when he was stationed at Fort Belvoir. It’s on the wall in our living room now, and there are two or three uke books in the music cabinet.
He has a very unique ukelele which he got in the Philippines, made from two coconut shells. Dave’s singing voice is very good, but it’s seldom exercised anymore; he used to sing and accompany himself on his uke.
After his Army duty, he sang two songs on a 78 rpm record at a Detroit recording studio, “Some Enchanted Evening” and “The Holy City,” to my piano accompaniment. I think there still might be a 78 rpm player somewhere around, to play them on.
Something from my collection of old music-theme calendars on the bookshelves: A message that was written to Thomas Edison from Sir Arthur Sullivan about the earliest recordings: “Mr. Edison, For myself, I can only say that I am astonished and somewhat terrified at the result of this evening’s experiment. Astonished at the wonderful form you have developed and terrified at the thought that so much hideous and bad music will be put on records forever.”
Dave and I joke that ours might fit his definition.
The Pump Organ
During our Arlington years we saw an ad for a used pump organ, for sale by a lady who needed $200 for a ticket home to England. We bought it for her price; she was happy, and we were happy.
I enjoyed practicing church music on that organ, perfecting my organ finger technique, which is not the same as piano finger technique. It went with us to Warrenton, and to Union, and it’s now in Jonathan’s home in Lewisburg.
We bought an excellent used Steiff upright piano for $75 while living in Arlington, and I loved having my own piano. We later sold the Steiff for $150 in the Washington area, after the purchase of my second piano; a Steinert grand piano, which came up for sale for $500 kitty-corner from our house in Arlington. This was a fine old piano, and Dave spent a long time removing its black lacquer and restoring its natural wood finish. It moved with us to Warrenton, Virginia, and then to Union, West Virginia, and it was in my studio in Union for six years. And then it was moved up the mountain to our house when I took the good job opportunity of homebound teacher.
To be continued…
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About the Author: RD Blakeslee (1931 – 2024) built his net worth by only investing in that which can be enjoyed during acquisition and throughout life, as opposed to papers in a drawer, like stocks and bonds. You can read more about him here.
Photos: Courtesy of the Blakeslee Family
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