Category Archives: MUSIC

Phantom of the Opera

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“We never said
Our love was ever green
Or as unchanging as the sea
But if you can still remember
Stop and think of me”
Andrew Lloyd Webber

Recently on the TCM network, they highlighted the work of the great Lon Chaney. I am quite familiar with Chaney’s work but one movie I had not watched was the 1925 silent film, The Phantom of the Opera. This American silent horror film was an adaptation of Gaston Leroux’s 1910 novel of the same name. I was captivated by this movie and Chaney’s performance as the Phantom.

What surprised me as I watched the movie, was how it transported me back to a time when I was honored to see live performances of The Phantom of the Opera not only once but twice. Back then, I was obsessed with the music and for weeks I played nothing but the Broadway soundtrack in my house, in my car and even on my walkman. My 4-year-old son became familiar with all the music as well and learned the lyrics to every song just like mom.

Sarah Brightman sang the iconic title duet and played Christine Daaé alongside Michael Crawford in the Ahmanson Theatre production of The Phantom. After watching the silent film and craving to watch a musical version of the movie, I found a 2011 video production on line.

As I watched this updated performance, I found myself remembering all the lyrics to this iconic music by Andrew Lloyd Webber. But, the music hit this musical empath emotionally different after 35 years, especially the opening song, Think of Me.

Thirty-five years is a lifetime to some people who never make it to thirty-six. Webber’s poignant lyrics to his song, Think of Me hit home; remembering all the people I have lost the last three decades since my first experience listening to the music from The Phantom of the Opera.

Shine On

If you would like to watch the Royal Albert Hall, London England production of The Phantom of the Opera, click on the link below: https://archive.org/details/The_Phantom_of_The_Opera_Full_Stage_Show

Rachmaninoff

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“Music is enough for a lifetime
But a lifetime is not enough for music”
Sergei Vasilyevich Rachmaninoff

I listen to music daily. My music repertoire is extremely diverse and includes a great deal of classical music. Mostly because when I write it’s my background music of choice. The past months while working on my current novel, Without Warning, I only listened to Rachmaninoff.

The first time I heard his music was in the movie, The Seven Year Itch; where Richard Sherman (played by Tom Ewell) is a married man whose wife is away for the summer. He famously uses Rachmaninoff music as a cynical tool of seduction, while hosting his attractive upstairs neighbor, Marilyn Monroe in his apartment.

I was writing and half listening to Rachmaninoff Piano Concerto No. 2 when it completely stopped me in my tracks. I recognized this same tune from Eric Carmen’s 1975 hit song, “All By Myself”. Carmen died in 2024 but some of you might know him as the lead vocalist of the Raspberries, with whom he recorded the hit “Go All the Way”.

Anyway, I looked up information about Carmen and his song “All By Myself” and lo and behold, the verse melody comes from the second movement of Rachmaninoff’s Piano Concerto No. 2. Apparently, when Eric Carmen composed his song, he thought Rachmaninoff’s copyright had expired, but he was wrong and later had to share royalties with the composer’s estate.

If you’re not familiar with Sergei Vasilyevich Rachmaninoff, he was a Russian composer, virtuoso pianist, and conductor. He started playing the piano at the age of four. By the time he graduated from the Moscow Conservatory, Sergei was already the author of the First Piano Concerto, the one-act opera Aleko and a number of piano pieces and romances. 

Rachmaninoff is widely considered one of the finest pianists of his day and as a composer, one of the last great representatives of Romanticism in Russian classical music. “Composing music is as vital for me as breathing or eating: this is one of the essential functions of life,” I love this quote and must agree wholeheartedly with Rachmaninoff.

Shine On

Bittersweet Song

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“Bittersweet song
Memories gone
Bittersweet song
Remembering you”
J R Malmquist

The music and lyrics I create always come from the heart. This song I just wrote and created is no different.

I continue to add songs to my Dragonfly album and here’s one I just uploaded for your listening pleasure titled, Bittersweet Song.

Taking my brain
Back to memory lane 
Thinking about you 
Warms me to my core

Once every minute with you 
Was never too long
Every kiss from you 
Was like a bittersweet song

Once every embrace with you 
Was like a blanket of love
Warming my heart
To the depths of my soul 

Bittersweet song
Memories gone
Bittersweet song
Remembering you 

Once you said 
I will never hurt you
But now you say I’m sorry 
I never meant to harm you

I forgave you 
For what happened
But I will never forget 
What you did

People that are hurt
Well they hurt people
I understand that 
Perfectly now

Bittersweet song
Memories gone
Bittersweet song
Remembering you 

Bittersweet song

Wrote and created by J R Malmquist
September 20, 2026

Shine On

Dolly Parton, We’ll Always Love You

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“Songwriting is my way of channeling
My feelings and my thoughts.
Not just mine, but the things I see
But also the people I care about.
My head would explode if
I didn’t get some of that stuff out.”
Dolly Parton

Today is just not as sparkly. It’s a sad day for the entire World. We lost a woman who gave us joy and happiness beyond belief. Dolly Parton died at age 80 and in those 80 years, she gave so much of herself to the World. 

She gave us beautiful music. Music is the only art form that has the capacity to touch everyone and Dolly truly touched everyone with her lyrics and songs. Parton composed over 3,000 songs, including one of my all time favorites, “I Will Always Love You”, a two-time U.S. country chart-topper and an international hit. She made over $10M in royalties from the 1992 Whitney Houston hit. She generously used that money to invest in a Nashville strip mall in a historic Black community, affectionately referring to the property as, “the house that Whitney built”.

She gave us wonderful movies to remember her by. She gave us literature for young readers who didn’t have the means to buy books, donating over 300 million books to children. She contributed millions of dollars to charity including the development of the COVID vaccine during the pandemic. 

In August 1974, I was just a teenager when I heard on the radio, Dolly Parton’s song, Love Is Like a Butterfly. The song was written and recorded by Dolly and was the first single and title track from her album, “Love Is Like a Butterfly”. It was her fourth number one hit on the country charts as a solo artist.

Her Butterfly song stayed with me all these years because of my love of butterflies. Point of fact, it touched me so much that on March 14, 2026, I created a video for my Instagram account highlighting this song. National Learn About Butterflies Day is celebrated every March 14th encouraging us to look for a blur of color as butterflies begin migrating across the country.

Her music and movies I have loved and enjoyed all my life. My poetry and music I’ve created is highly influenced by her own music and style of singing.

She always wrote from the heart. I admired her most for her strength, honesty, humor, free spirit, humbleness, dedication to her husband for over 60 years, her beauty, and her classiness. Not to mention, she was tenacious when it came to her beliefs and dreams.

Too often we don’t realize what we have until it’s gone. Today around the world, millions of people will no doubt be grieving from the loss of a true iconic treasure, Dolly Parton. We’ll always love you.

Shine On

Here’s my favorite Dolly YouTube video from September 19, 1979 Tonight Show.

Shine A Light on Knowledge

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“It is in knowledge that man has found
his greatness and his happiness.”
James Smithson

The Smithsonian Institution is the world’s largest museum, education, and research complex, encompassing 21 museums, 21 libraries, and the National Zoological Park. Founded on August 10, 1846, through a bequest by British scientist James Smithson, it operates as a federal trust instrumentality dedicated to the “increase and diffusion of knowledge”.

Congress authorized acceptance of the Smithson bequest on July 1, 1836, but it took another ten years of debate before the Smithsonian was founded. Once established, the Smithsonian became part of the process of developing an American national identity; an identity rooted in exploration, innovation, and a unique American style.

James Smithson, the illegitimate child of a wealthy Englishman, had traveled much during his life, but had never once set foot on American soil. Yet, he decided to give the entirety of his sizable estate, which totaled half a million dollars, or 1/66 of the United States’ entire federal budget at the time, to a country that was foreign to him.

Some speculate it was because he was denied his father’s legacy. Others argue that he was inspired by the United States’ experiment with democracy. Some attribute his philanthropy to ideals inspired by such organizations as the Royal Institution, which was dedicated to using scientific knowledge to improve human conditions. Smithson never wrote about or discussed his bequest with friends or colleagues, so we are left to speculate on the ideals and motivations of a gift that has had such significant impact on the arts, humanities, and sciences in the United States.

Smithson died in 1829, and six years later, President Andrew Jackson announced the bequest to Congress. On July 1, 1836, Congress accepted the legacy bequeathed to the nation and pledged the faith of the United States to the charitable trust. In September 1838, Smithson’s legacy, which amounted to more than 100,000 gold sovereigns, was delivered to the mint at Philadelphia. Recoined in U.S. currency, the gift amounted to more than $500,000.

Now, in the 21st century, thanks to the work of Smithson and his vision for the world 180 years later, the Smithsonian is still a beacon to shine a light on knowledge.

Shine On