I received a CD in the mail from my friend Derwyn Holder, who lives in Califon, NJ. I read the CD title and thought it was a joke. It wasn’t. And when I played it, I got to know my friend a lot better.

Throughout his long career, Derwyn’s had one foot in jazz and the other in classical music, composing many large and smaller pieces in each style. A few years ago, after a heart attack and subsequent surgery, Derwyn wrote something special.

Now, I’ve learned of many male heart patients whose lives and personalities underwent drastic changes after surgery, resulting in careers lost and marriages ended. I wonder what made the difference in Derwyn’s life; he wrote a symphony --- and got married!  Derwyn was so thankful that his $400,000 surgery was covered by Medicare, his gratitude poured forth in Symphony No.1 Medicare.

He told me, “I wanted to show in a massive 31 minute work for large orchestra what Medicare meant to a musical artist whose life had been dedicated to making his best possible musical contribution to humanity. And there could be no better time in our history than now, for a well publicized, complete performance of this work.

“I had to use the capabilities of a very large orchestra with such instrumentation as contra bassoon, bass clarinet, vibraphone, English horn, gongs, chimes, and many more instruments to even touch on the significance of the medical care for such conditions as heart repair. I’ve been able to play and write for five more years now as a direct result. A spokesman at the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services told me, ‘This is music to our ears.’”

Derwyn’s love of jazz began in childhood with jazz sax. His wife Lia Di Stefano, a graphic artist, told me that, “When Derwyn decided to be a full-time musician and quit teaching music, he researched which instruments were most in demand. He totally gave up sax and taught himself bass. When he got tired of how most piano players played, he gave up the bass and focused on piano (also to play his own compositions the way he wanted them played.)”

A determined and positive person, Derwyn is still an active artist at age 78.

More than 35 of his compositions have been performed and recorded in the U.S. and Europe. Maestro/conductor Jung-Ho Pak says of Derwyn, “He belongs to a group of composers that helped usher in the ‘third stream’ style of music, combining the richness of the cool jazz era with the tradition of classical music.  His voice is distinctly American and should be recognized for his contribution as a bridge composer between the past and the present, as well as popular and high art music.”

Derwyn’s first performed classical work, String Quartet No.1, was included in the International Music Festival held in Washington, DC. His jazz performances have been in places like The Kennedy Center and Blues Alley in DC; and NY’s Blue Note, and Birdland. And he’s played with jazz notables including: Clark Terry,  Zoot Sims, Frank Wess, Cassandra Wilson and NJ’s Bucky and John Pizzarelli and Mack Goldsbury. 

To hear excerpts from the Symphony No.1, Medicare and Derwyn’s other classical and jazz compositions, spend some time at DerwynHolder.com. A live performance of Derwyn’s gorgeous Guitar Concerto - Movement 3, presented at The College of St. Elizabeth, NJ can be enjoyed at: http://tinyurl.com/m3lhxdj .  In the meantime, here is a live 1.55 min introduction to the symphony by Derwyn Holder himself.