EMPTY DWELLING for piano—in memoriam Marianne Ruth Noland (1927-2022) by Gary Lloyd Noland, composer published on 2022-04-15T21:27:32Z I began composing this work around the time I learned that my 94-year old mother (who was fully vaccinated and boosted and had kept herself in isolation for two years)had contracted Covid 19 from one of her care-givers. I learned this horrific news on February 14th, 2022. Kaiser Hospital in Oakland was sluggish in its response when I called for a doctor and asked the powers that be to expedite treating her for Covid. Had Kaiser been sufficiently quick in its response to the immediate crisis, my mother may very well have survived another few years and avoided an absolutely horrible death. In the day or two before she died I heard her calling out for her grandmother in German over the telephone. Suffice it to say, I will be haunted by the sound of her anguished voice for the rest of my life. She passed away from Covid on February 24th, 2022 (the day Russia invaded Ukraine) at Kaiser Hospital in Oakland, California. She was born Marianne Ruth Neustädter in Berlin, Germany on August 20th, 1927. Her family (mother, father, and brother) was forced into exile by the Nazis. Other branches of the family were not as fortunate. Her uncle's family (including his wife and two very young children)were all murdered in Auschwitz in March, 1943. I just turned 65 yesterday (April 14th, 2022) and remember my mother as an omnipresent presence in my life. She was a force of nature, to be sure. Her absence is deeply felt and she will be sorely missed. Pictured here is her empty house after my brother and I finished cleaning it out a couple of weeks ago. We had no choice but to virtually obliterate her identity in the process. I knew it would be bad but it was actually much worse than I ever expected it to be. This is the house on Russell Street (near College Avenue) in Berkeley where my mother resided for 55 years (since 1967) after selling the home where I spent much of my early childhood (from 1960-67) that was located on Haste Street (near Telegraph Avenue) on a block now famously known as "People's Park." At the time of this writing I have not yet received the photo albums from her estate, for I would otherwise have provided a photograph of my mother instead of one of her empty house. Nevertheless, I have titled the piece after the vacant feeling of being inside her home in my final days in Berkeley (for 62 years)—a town to which I am unlikely ever to return. I composed this piece while distracted by all the work that had to be done after my mother's passing. I have finally been able to focus on completing it. It seems a fitting tribute to her. I hope she has found a happier place. May she rest in peace! For more information on me and my music, please feel free to visit my website at: www.composergarynoland.com Genre Classical Comment by Mark Dowding My heart-felt condolences for the loss of your mother, Gary. This piece is a beautiful tribute. 2023-02-26T13:08:38Z Comment by rockyleplin I like it. 2022-08-25T00:44:04Z Comment by rockyleplin I like this one. First and foremost, it's music. 2022-08-25T00:43:01Z Comment by Trent William Hanna Very moving piece. I feel the depth of emotion. 2022-08-24T15:27:18Z Comment by David Victor Feldman Not sure this is the right place to say it, but I am so sorry both for your loss and the way in which it came about. 2022-05-23T06:53:26Z