ALLURE OF SANCTUARY - Professionals:

‘Tip-Toe Dancer’... what an utterly enchanting 5:22...  A very finely crafted CD... thanks!
Al Santos, WJZW-FM/Smooth Jazz Brunch, Washington, DC

I received your CD and listened yesterday while in notorious Boston traffic.  I LOVE this CD. After a particularly stressful week, one filled with negativity strong enough to almost turn even ME into a pessimist, your music brought great relief and solace. I am one of those people who do look at the CD covers when browsing to purchase, and I must say that the kindness in your eyes pours through your hands into your music. Thank you for this lovely CD.  Anne Williams,  Nightscapes,  Boston, Massachusetts

I love your CD.  My show airs on Sunday morning and I am going to lead it off with your CD...”
Dianna Parks-Isam, Host/Producer, WINGS on WFCF radio, St. Augustine, Florida

I went to my office and just sat quietly and enjoyed your new album... I'll be sharing it with the audience tomorrow morning....my reaction to your music was "chills of wonder" as I listened.  After a hectic week, when I thought I was too burned out to listen to anything with a clear head, ALLURE OF SANCTUARY smoothed the jangled neuro eceptors and gave me a second wind.  I was lifted beyond my drama to pause and daydream.  What a gift.  Donna Jo Thornton, Music Director, Morning Breeze, Jazz! FM 88.5 KSBR, Mission Viejo, Orange County, California

I'm a classical music radio host in the Buffalo/Toronto market, also a composer, and think your music gorgeous!  Thank you for sharing it!  Marty Wimmer,  Buffalo, New York

I love your music, Karen.  Plan to use it during an upcoming seminar in Virginia.
Winter Robinson, Writer, Consultant, Therapist, and Intuitive, Bar Mills, Maine

Your music is the perfect calming force I need right now. It's been with me in the car since it arrived. Love the ambient feel of the whole thing -- it's like the music is coming in from somewhere other than the speakers. Very, very nice stuff, Karen!  The arrangement of Welcome B is amazing; you are able to tap into this vibe that's just surreal -- simultaneously calming and energizing. Don't know how you do it.  Will's Song, is another standout. Puts me right back in the control room at Skywalker Sound on a rainy January afternoon.  Blessings and congrats! 
Allen Clapp, Assistant Editor, Palo Alto Weekly,  San Francisco, California

Congratulations on a wonderful album from a very satisfied International Customer. I simply adore Tip-Toe Dancer... no matter if you are suffering from the blues, this is a soul-rejuvenating, happy piece of delightful piano music. I also love Welcome B, and Simple Things. A fantastic album.  I cannot wait to hear more music from you. May you have every success with this album.   Stephen Cairns,  England, UK
 

ALLURE OF SANCTUARY - Fans:

YUM!  Wonderful music--great to listen to ... over and over and over  ..... Love her work!
CD Universe Review, Abingdon, VA, USA

I heard a track from your album, Allure of Sanctuary, on DJ's Morning Breeze... I can't wait to get the CD so I can feel goose bumps all over my body again.   Steve, Laguna Niguel, California

I have a hard time keeping my eyes dry while listening to "Tip Toe Dancer". I heard your music on the "New Age" station Sky FM on Win amp Radio from the Internet.   Your music stands out among the music I have heard there and I must say you stand in good company on this station...... please know that there's not a lot in contemporary music that I find as moving as what I've heard so far from you.  Thank you.  Stephen, Atlanta, Georgia

I want to tell you what a pleasure it is to have your music fill our home.  It is as if you were in the living room playing our piano.  The name "Allure of Sanctuary" if very fitting because your music is a sanctuary from a very complicated world. 
I have a long list of E-mail friends and contacts.  I will send those whom I consider friends information about your website.  I will explain to them that I am not spaming them.  Actually, I will be doing them a favor.  Earle, Irvine, California

 
I was blown away by the simplistic beauty of your playing of TIP TOE DANCER, especially moving while the stars and moon dance over the Tucson Mountains in AZ. Thank you so very much!!  Karen,  Arizona

I was listening to The Spa Channel on my Sirius Satellite radio today.  And your song “Allure of Sanctuary” came up.  That is such a beautiful song. I just had to let you know. Great Job on that striking song. It’s one of those songs where you have to stop what your doing and say wow.  Martin, New Jersey

Tip Toe Dancer" ...... immediately garnered my attention.  I love the clarity of the music and the beautiful piano sounds which you bring to the album.  Dean,  Canandaigua, New York

I absolutely love your music.  Every time I hear it, no matter what I'm doing, I stop (like a trained rat!) and turn it up....   Wonderful music.  Bobbie,  San Antonio, TX

I am enjoying your... album. It is really excellent and I will make sure my friends are exposed to it!
Jean-Luc,  New York

I heard your song "Tip Toe Dancer" on my digital cable music channel, Soundscapes, and was captivated by the sound. It's beautiful!  And, after, listening to some of the samples on your website, I was "hooked".  I am looking forward to getting the CD's.... 

The albums came Friday and I have been listening ever since. "Tip Toe Dancer" has such visual imagery - if I close my eyes, I can just imagine a child or a ballerina dancing to this song.  Very few songs can do this. Thank you!   Jim, Slidell, LA

I very much enjoy listening to your music, Lake Ewok Muse (achingly beautiful) and Tip Toe Dancer being two of my favourite pieces and I am looking forward to your new release early next year. Catherine, England

 
Wow...I love piano and I heard Tip Toe Dancer this morning on a local radio station in Syracuse NY where I live. What a beautiful song!!! My daughter who is four and a half loves piano music and classical music and enjoyed listening as much as my husband and I. Thank you for inspiring me to sit down at my piano and play. I have two kids and sometimes don't play enough, but I love to hear new things because they always bring music to my finger tips. I should have learned how to write the music down that I play, back when I was younger and had the time. Thank you again your music is candy for my ears.  Emily, Syracuse, New York

Just as a little background, when I first heard your music (Tip-toe Dancer, specifically), I was a guest at a dinner party at a friend's home.  There was music in the background (Soundscapes channel of our local telecommunications company).  When I heard Tip-toe Dancer I excused myself from the dinner table to go see what it was and knew I had to have it.  For me, the music on the CD is the most beautiful music I have ever heard.  I cannot articulate exactly what it does to me, but can sum it up by saying that it literally quickens my pulse...  Thank you for beautiful music. “   Ann, Easley, SC

I am wild about your new CD and have nearly worn it out. I'll buy more for Christmas gifts.  Margi, Tacoma, Washington

My husband listened to some of your pieces on SOUNDSCAPES (one of our cable TV stations).  He loved them—so he had me search the WEB for your music.  I’m so glad he did  Thanks so much for your ‘gift’!  Nancy, Braintree, Massachusetts

I am a baby-boomer and my taste in music is varied but old Rock is most common on my stereo.  These days I care for my newborn grandson & have relaxing, continual music in the background as we go through our day, I frequently have Soundscapes on. One piece pretty much sounded like the next until a particular melody grabbed my attention.  It was TIP TOE DANCER. I Liked it so much that I wrote your name down & searched you out on the internet.  Since receiving the cd I have listened to nothing else!  What beautiful music! I am your new-best-fan!

Also worth mentioning - the Ghandi quote you include in your messages is one of my favorites & how true it is.  [See another favorite saying of mine in my signature block below.]  Additionally, I had a brief visit on your website & read the story of Tally - what a sweet and endearing story. I am a dog lover so I can relate to the heartache of loosing a beloved Lab and to how your music has served as a healing medium for Tally's family.  It must be a wonderful feeling to compose beautiful music that touches so many hearts. I will follow your career and purchase more of your music... THANK YOU!  Sincerely,  Melanie -Austin, Texas

I bought and downloaded your song entitled, “Welcome B” and must say it is one of the most beautiful piano pieces I've heard in a long time.  Absolutely beautiful!  Richard

I want to tell you that I listen to music almost constantly. Records, CDs or Music Choice are nearly always playing in my home. There have only been a handful of times where I felt I had to turn on the monitor so I could learn what the song was and who was playing. Tip Toe Dancer is one of those rare pieces of music that go straight to the soul and instantly become a favorite. It is beautiful and I had to get it! George, Bethel, Ohio

“Your music is beautiful and so soothing and relaxing.”   Sandy, Vancouver, Washington
 

I heard "Tip-Toe Dancer" on my cable music channel (Soundscapes) last night and knew I had to have the album immediately. Love your music!  Dean,  Platte City, Missouri

Last week I was in the William Traver Gallery in Seattle, your album “Allure of Sanctuary” was playing....  I love your music!  It added so much to the exhibit.  Sally, Whidbey Island, Washington

 
I heard 'Allure of Sanctuary' on digital cable TV. I fell in love with your number 'Tip Toe Dancer'.  I received your album today and what a lovely piece of work. I love your styling. .. Your album is now among my top favorites in my collection.  Ernest, Redmond, Oregon

I have to tell you that I am flattered and grateful beyond words… for somehow capturing a bit of life’s essence and reproducing it in your work.  I was reading last night listening to hours of music and then two of your songs came on, Tiptoe Dancer and Welcome B.  I was so taken with your music that I had to put the book down, literally could not continue reading; I simply had to stop reading and just listen.  Then of course, I had to find out who the artist was that was creating such “joyfully haunting” music.  It was absolutely beautiful!  You must be so very proud to have created a work so emotionally moving and enduring. George Winston’s music.... holds a very special place for me because of the emotion and the feelings I get when I listen to this caliber of artist/music.  Artists such as you serve as the “high water mark” against which I compare all music.  I must tell you that I received chills from listening to your music for the first time, so reminiscent of the first few times I had ever listened to Winston. I have never previously tried to write to a musician and describe how much I was moved by their work.  I now know why.  I am incapable of expressing in any meaningful way what your music did for me and to me, last night.   All I can really say is how fortunate I feel for having experienced a part of your genius and sensitivity. My sincerest thanks and deepest regards.     Ron, Edwardsburg, Michigan

I heard your piece, Tip-Toe Dancer, on MusicChioce's Soundscapes cable channel.  I though you might like to know what I saw as I was listening:

A WHITE BACKGROUND, WITH A CONTINUOUS LINE DRAWING THAT EVOLVES THROUGHOUT THE SONG.  IN THE BEGINNING, A MOTHER IS HELPING HER INFANT DAUGHTER TO TAKE HER FIRST STEPS.  THE IMAGE UNRAVELS AND REFORMS TO SHOW THE GIRL AS A TODDLER, TWIRLING AROUND IN CIRCLES ON HER TOES AND THEN FALLING DOWN LAUGHING, TO GET BACK UP AND DO IT AGAIN.  UNRAVEL AND REFORM, AND THE GIRL IS 'DANCING' WITH HER FATHER WHILE STANDING ON HIS SHOES.  UNRAVEL AND REFORM, AND THE GIRL NOW IS IN A BALLET OUTFIT, PRACTICING IN TOE SHOES.  UNRAVEL AND REFORM, AND THE YOUNG WOMAN IS STANDING ON TIP-TOES TO KISS A BOYFRIEND’S CHEEK.  UNRAVEL AND REFORM, AND THE YOUNG WOMAN IS KISSING HER HUSBAND AT THEIR WEDDING.  UNRAVEL AND REFORM, AND THE WOMAN IS HELPING HER OWN BABY TO TAKE HER FIRST STEPS.   Meg, Texas

I feel compelled to write, as I almost never do in response to great music. The album is so totally enchanting and calming that I bought it for me, then bought another copy for my mother (who used to play piano at night when I was a child, drifting off to sleep, and who tells me she loves it) and have just bought another copy for my massage therapist.  I look forward to your next album with great anticipation and only wish I could hear you play in person.  Perhaps some day.  May your recording work be filled with light and inspiration.  It will certainly provide inspiration to me once it has been released.  With gratitude and appreciation.  Peter,  San Diego, CA
 

TIP TOE DANCER takes flight for me, wonderfully simplistic, hauntingly beautiful, deep in it's meaning, it takes me to a place where my partner and i would dance, love, share... she passed away in 2000 (we were together twenty years).  I could not capture the essense of our time together until I heard this song you so beautifully played.  Many thanks for giving me such a beautiful closure to our time together, she would dance as a ballerina. Karen, Tucson, AZ

 
Your CD arrived this morning and it is great!  My wife and I were visiting in Northern Virginia, outside DC, about a month ago and found a "smooth jazz" station on the radio.  Unlike most, they named the song and artist after every 3-4 songs.  They played Tip-toe Dancer and we were hooked.  When we got back home here in Venice, we found you on the Internet.  We will enjoy this album and look forward to more in the future.  Dick, Venice, Florida

You are a wonderful writer and artist and I look forward to more of your works in the future. Dale, Shell Beach, CA

I heard your CD on the Soundscape TV station and I fell in love with it.  Miriam, Venice, California

I work at home and keep my cable company music stations playing through my work day.  Occasionally, tunes will break through my work concentration and I have to look at the TV screen to see who created such a lovely tune.  “Tip-Toe Dancer” is one such tune.  Today for the second time, I had cause to stop and listen to the beautifully haunting melody.  Thank you for sharing your gift.  Kathy

I'm excited to have found you online to place the order.  Often I work from home and when I do, I usually have the Music Choice channel on....Tip Toe Dancer just lifted me right up off my chair when I first heard it.  Please, keep on doing what you are doing.  It's a great gift to the world you can offer!   Jerry, Atlanta, Georgia

I really enjoy your playing and your interpretations. I retire to your music every night and awake to it every morning. I've been playing for over 50 years now, and I wish I could emulate your style. It’s wonderful.  Cliff, Saint Louis, Missouri

We have to do something about Mom.  I can't get the CD away from her.  She's been playing it everyday since it arrived.  She wants to buy three more copies for gifts.   Karen A.,  Washington

My dear Karen –  keep playing – don’t ever stop.  I can’t tell you how much you have endeared yourself to me.... 
(Mom) Deloris, Washington

I just wanted you to know that I have been listening to Allure of Sanctuary every weekend when I am home gardening and doing other things and become so pleasantly lost in your music.  There are words for which I am at a loss to describe the ways your music reaches me...but the best way I can describe it...no other music has reached me and given me the gentlest experience, put feelings at ease, thoughts to rest, and a secret happiness.  The most important is a renewed sense of spiritual peace.. that experience alone is worth so much. I am looking forward to your next album. Too simply expressed...thank you.  Carole, Los Bandos, California

I dance, alone in my living room, or with anyone who happens to be there, each time I hear "Tip toe Dancer". Your music touches something deep inside my spirit. Even when I am not consciously listening, one of your songs captures my attention--every time.... I heard your music CD played a number of times thru Time Warner Cable Music and through Direct Satellite TV. Each has a music channel called Soundscapes. I most recently heard a lovely piece with cello accompaniment. Haunting; I'm grateful for your talent.  Des, New York, New York

Just can't wait until the release of "It's About the Rose".  These titles selected for your CD's, while I would not presume to know you...is every part of the kind of person and artist we see in your photo...the titles suit who you seem to be on the inside as well as outside.  CONGRATULATIONS!!”  Carole, Los Banos, CA

I listened to your music for the first time today and I have to tell you that it brought me to tears, particularly Tip Toe Dancer. I've been a single mom of a 21 year old young man and 16 year old young man for almost 10 years. We live in Oregon and it's been a roller coater of custody battles and surviving ever since my divorce. I have had to put on a tough face and work hard just to keep up with everything. In these years I guess I lost sight of who I am and I've struggled to find my own peaceful escape. When I listened to just the small part of Tip Toe Dancer on your space I found myself sobbing for the first time in a long time. It's a good, joyful sob, the kind you need to let yourself have in order to stay in touch with who you really are. Years ago before my divorce, I listened to alot of Windham Hill and George Winston whenever I felt weak or defeated or just when I needed to escape. Your music gave me that escape today, if only for a moment. It was good to let myself go and remember that I'm not just a mom or someones girlfriend or an employee, kind of going through life like a robot, just trying to survive. Your music helped me to remember who I am as an individual soul, apart from everyone and everything else. That's very powerful and such a gift that you are able to give to some gal living in Oregon that really needed a flicker of magic to get back to herself. Thank you for your magic.    Yolonda, Oregon 

Karen, your CD arrived today, and I've been listening to it nonstop ever since. I absolutely love it!  I work at home, in front of the computer all day, so I'm always looking for good instrumental music I can work by; except that I can't listen to two of your pieces -- "Tip-Toe Dancer" and "Welcome B"-- without crying. I'm so glad to hear you're working on a new project!  Thank you for such soul-filling music!   Mickey, San Luis Obispo County, California

I'm from Romania .... I just want to tell you that Allure of Sanctuary is wonderful !!!  My favorite song is Tip-toe Dancer...the first 48 hours it was impossible to listen other songs...I was playing Tip-toe dancer over and over...it's a very beautiful song. I put you on my favorite’s list of artists along with Maria Callas, Van Morrison and Laura Pausini. I'm very happy to discover an artist like you and look forward to buy all your albums. I will tell all my friends about you.  Lucian,  Romania

I received your CD in the mail and could not wait to play the entire CD to hear the other compositions.  I was so moved by the music that I wrote a poem inspired by listening to your music.  I sat at my computer listening over and over, and the words just came out!  I hope you like it, and it expresses to you..... how much your music affected this listener.  I'm so glad I heard your song on Sirius Satellite, and then did a google seach to find your website!! ... I would be honored for you to use my name, poem, and comments as a testament for your music. Becky Ann Dowda, Texas

MUSIC OF MEMORIES - February 24, 2006 – Becky Ann Dowda

EYES CLOSED, I RELAX HEARING NOTE AFTER NOTE,
MUSIC OFF THE PAGES THE COMPOSER WROTE.
A JOURNEY WITH A BEGINNING AND AN END…
PLACES IN MY MIND THE SONGS WILL SEND:
MEMORIES OF PASSION, SWEET EMBRACE,
THOUGHTS OF SADNESS, A QUIET PLACE,
SOUNDS OF HEAVEN REST IN MY EAR;
THINGS I REMEMBER, AND HOLD NEAR.
A MOTHER’S LOVE OF MUSIC TO TEACH,
A CHILD’S PATIENCE COULDN’T REACH.
NOTE AFTER NOTE, RENDERS A FINGER BALLET,
AND GROWN IS THE CHILD WHO CANNOT PLAY.
LISTEN I MUST TO EACH CHORD AND STRAIN,
CAPTURED BY THE MELODY AND REFRAIN;
BOUND BY ANOTHER’S DILIGENCE AND GRACE,
CONTINUES MY JOURNEY, PLACE TO PLACE.
A TOUCH OF HEALING, A NOD OF SLEEP,
FEELINGS AND MOMENTS, MINE TO KEEP;
UNTIL THE SONGS THEY CAME TO AN END,
PLACES IN MY MIND, THEY NO LONGER SEND.
I SIT UP, NOW OPEN MY EYES,
TO WORK, TO PLAY OR OTHER DISGUISE;
I TAKE THE MUSIC NESTLED IN MY EAR,
HOLD THE MEMORIES, MY HEART SO NEAR.”

We have enjoyed our CD “Allure of Sanctuary” and have played it probably hundreds of times.  The most memorable time was while driving through Glacier National Park (a semi annual trek for us).  The grandness of the music and the order of the music matched the grandness and magnificence of the park. It was a great experience for us. We are ordering the new CD “It’s About the Rose” and are looking forward to more great music.  Glenn & Elaine,  Great Falls, Montana

When I say, I love your music, that is an understatement? I can’t tell you the number of times that I’ve listened to “Allure of Sanctuary”. It is one of the most, if not the most beautiful CD’s that I’ve ever heard. Thanks for making the world a more beautiful place with your music.  Christopher, Portland, Oregon

Tip Toe Dancer is the most beautiful piano piece we've ever heard!  Bill and Joyce,  Shawnee, Kansas

I listen to Audio Visions on XM Radio nightly and your music made me stop reading and listen... I bought your cd... need I say more?   William, Fresno, California

I listen to Soundscapes; music has always been important to me, a source of guidance and inspiration.
My spiritual path (Eckankar) has music as its very source.  And one day "Tip-Toe Dancer" was playing and it immediately struck a chord within.  Describing it would be very difficult, however buying all of your albums was a very easy decision after hearing that piece.   Raymond, Sunrise, Florida

I saw ballerinas toeing across the stage in Budapest and Vienna, I saw the symphony in the Vienna Woods.  The thunder came loud and clear and I could hear the strafing on the airstrip by a Yak 19 (North Korean).  Then I saw myself and all the women and children scrambling up the rope ladders to escape the war in Korea.  War being a big black dragon throwing fire and shooting bullets at us, and we struggled to get away and I heard the wailing and the cries mingled with the fighter jets (from Japan) that came to cover our departure.  After that I saw Ann riding her dressage horse and beating out the time to a Musial Kur.  I saw a single bluebird flying and then a flock of birds followed by and eagle soaring into the wind.   It is a beautiful album I said to my daughter Ann, and then I read your notes for each musical melody.  There is a theme to each segment and they are extraordinaire.  Thank you so much for such beautiful music.  I love it.  Freda,  Washington