Good morning…
“When songwriting team Burt Bacharach and Hal David released the song ‘What the World Needs Now Is Love’ (originally sung by Jackie DeShannon) in 1965, the United States was deeply divided over the war in Vietnam,” explains the Berklee Now publication from March 23rd. “Bacharach was initially nervous about the song’s reception given the fragile cultural environment, but the song became a top ten hit and brought people together under its call for unity.”
“Fifty-five years later, many around the world are experiencing a time of unprecedented physical separation due to the rise and spread of the COVID-19,” continues the article. “As students shift into online classes for the rest of the semester, Boston Conservatory at Berklee student Shelbie Rassler kicked things off with her own version of Bacharach’s anthem of connection, joined by a virtual orchestra of 74 of her peers, 60 of whom are a mix of students and alumni from the Conservatory and the College. Rassler, a senior majoring in composition and a 2019 Presser Scholar, came up with the idea on her plane journey home to Florida, and produced, arranged, and edited the video herself.”
I loved watching the incredibly creative video below. Teenagers and twenty-somethings have gotten a really bad wrap in recent weeks with the spring break footage of crowded beaches of kids ignoring the plea for social distancing. This version of Bacharach’s bonding song shows the flip side of “kids these days,” an innovative generation holding in their hands our evolving future.
My child, eat honey, for it is good,
and the honeycomb is sweet to the taste.
In the same way, wisdom is sweet to your soul.
If you find it, you will have a bright future,
and your hopes will not be cut short (Proverbs 24:13-15, NLT).
…Sue…
