The Cricket and Seagull Fireside Chat

He does back flips onstage off the grand piano, plays while lying upside on the bench, has been known to wear wigs and hats onstage and even use a giant slingshot to shoot prizes into the audience. So naturally Jon Schmidt is doing -- a CD of hymns? "Hymns Without Words" is the latest from one-of-a-kind composer, pianist and showman, Jon Schmidt. This week he talks about hymns, why piano students drop out, why we're on the same team with good people throughout the world, and much more. That's this week on The Cricket and Seagull...

When Desirae and Deondra Brown left Alpine, Utah -- headed for Juillard to pursue their classical piano studies -- there was no way of knowing that their three piano-playing siblings and even their parents would soon follow suit, making New York City their temporary home base. Since the release of their self-titled first CD, The 5 Browns have been making news on the classical circuit, drawing audiences across the generations, including some more likely to be found at rock concerts. Today Desirae and Deondra talk about their musical beginnings, becoming a group, being known as Mormon musicians, and their contagious passion for classical music. That's this week on the Cricket and Seagull... - SKP

Every summer thousands of LDS teenagers descend on campuses around the world for EFY -- that's Especially For Youth -- a sort of youth conference on spiritual steroids. And one of the perks of attending is being the first on your block to hear the new CD, since it isn't even for sale until the last session of EFY is over.

Still, that doesn't mean we can't give you a sneak peek of the brand new 2006 CD with songwriters and producers Tyler Castleton and Staci Peters, the creative artists behind, "The Greatest Gift." They talk about the music, the songs, the singers, and putting on protective armor to improve your songwriting.

That's this week, on the The Cricket and Seagull...