The first design for this album began in a Portsmouth NH recording studio in 199. I belabored on an instrumental track then discarded it for another project called Piper's Dream. Thirteen years later, driving down River Road by a branch of the Potomac on the outskirts of Shepherdstown, West Virginia, the inspiration returned with clarity. As a kid I listened to Beethoven, Rossini, Tchaikowsky. I hummed fuges in my head. When I was 19, and living in Miami, Bossa nova and jazz influenced me as well as folk songs. I took some guitar lessons from Vincent Bredice who wrote theory books for Mel Bay. Bredice was an early teacher of jazz great Joe Diorio. I didn't stay with it. Poetry became my passion and the dynamics of Bob Dylan. But, I made arrangements of Malaquania, Carnival, Romanza, the Beatles Michelle, Classical Gas by Mason Williams, and my own tunes. I listened to the albums of Charlie Byrd, Laurendo Almeda, Julian Bream, Carlos Montoya, Segovia. I was mostly an ear musician with nimble fingers. This was before dexterity gave way to middle age arthritis. Still, many melodies in my head could not be contained or restrained by a lyric line. I wrote instrumental pieces as part of my profile. River of Strings reflects much of that period. It merges melodies from some of my songs along with those I wrote strictly as instrumentals. There are pepperings of popular, folk, celtic, classical, and jazz influence. The lyrics are invisible so the melodies can make their own statement like a sound track in a movie. The songs span a few decades. I put them in an order like a novelist would place chapters in a book. It begins with Love's in the Offing, written in 1973. I thought of romance in less complicated terms then. There is melancholy and joy downstream like the river of life itself. The last piece or coda, is called Retreat. It was written in 2005, at a time of reflection and contemplation from the hard lessons learned. It is my hope that River of Strings will take you on a gentle journey. Lester Hirsh (10/26/05)