Dave Beck

In the days before records were mass-produced, people learned about popular songs through sheet music.  The pop musician known as Beck (no relation to KUOW’s Dave Beck) was so intrigued by that idea that his latest album isn’t even a recording at all. 

Editors' Note: This story contains descriptions of suicide. If you or someone you know might be suicidal, visit the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline or call 800.273.8255 (800.273.TALK).  Support groups and grief counseling for survivors can be found throughout the Puget Sound region.

Portland writer Kim Stafford has struggled to make sense out of the suicide of his brother Bret for 25 years. Though Bret was just 14 months older, Kim always looked to his brother as a leader and teacher. When he shot himself at age 40 in 1988, nobody in Bret’s family knew how much he was struggling.

Members of the Stafford family, even their father and famous poet William Stafford, couldn’t bring themselves to speak or write about Bret's loss. It was largely up to Kim Stafford to break the family silence.  Kim’s new memoir, “100 Tricks Every Boy Can Do:  How My Brother Disappeared,” is the story of his brother’s life and death and its devastating and transformational effect on Kim and his family.

Forest Gibson is a Seattle-based video producer and filmmaker. Forest and the company that he works for, Cinesaurus, have a knack for producing videos that get shared on the web and social media. Cinesaurus' clients include GAP, YouTube and the online humor network Cheezburger. One of the company’s biggest successes was the parody video released in the summer of 2012, “We’re NASA and We Know It.”

Mina Miller is a Seattle pianist who founded the organization Music of Remembrance 15 years ago. Her passion for the organization springs in part from her family history. Mina comes from a Holocaust family.

Stuart Zobel is the guitarist in the Seattle-based band Choroloco. The band plays music from Brazil called “choro.” Stewart says the infectious rhythms and melodies of the music, and the spirit of community associated with the choro style is what draws him to the music. He says:

Seattle’s Tudor Choir is a 20 year-old institution founded by a University of Washington student with a passion for music and history. During his years at the University of Washington, Tudor Choir founder and artistic director Doug Fullington put together a group of fellow students to sing English Renaissance music associated with the Tudor Monarchy of the 15th and 16th centuries.

Seattle travel writer Crai Bower first came across Mount St. Helens when he was doing a census of the spotted owl population for the Washington State Department of Natural Resources in 1990. Crai was stunned by the vision of Mount St. Helens, which so famously and destructively erupted in 1980. Crai remembers seeing the mountain as he walked down a forest service road:

KUOW Swing Years Host Amanda Wilde digs into the history behind the songs that sound familiar. This time out, we explore Chopin's “Funeral March.” Since it first appeared in the early 19th century, the famous tune has found its way into movies, cartoons, and funk and hip–hop music.  Amanda Wilde traces the lineage of Chopin's “Funeral March” with KUOW's Dave Beck.