The Value of Each Song

At The Bridge, guest artists offer one song (or reading, story, etc...) that relates to the monthly theme in some way.

Presenting only one song may seem counter-intuitive. Why bother playing just one song?

And yet, there is significant value in offering one song as opposed to two or more.

Audience members tell me that because each person plays only one song, they appreciate each artist, no matter what their level of performance experience or skill.

Listeners don't compare one song to another.

Instead of ranking each artist's songs, they value whatever contribution each person has chosen to offer.

In a culture that teaches us that we should always want more, and constantly be judging and evaluating, this can be a gift.

Anne Morrow Lindbergh wrote (in a passage from "Gift from the Sea," read during our December 2015 show): “One cannot collect all the beautiful shells on the beach.


One moon shell is more impressive than three.

There is only one moon in the sky."