Join us at this week's meeting of the Philosophy Club virtually or in-person (Auerbach 320) this Wednesday, March 25 from 1 p.m.–2 p.m. as local musician David Weidenfeld shares some of his music with us as an impetus for a discussion on music as a form of dialogue.
What brought David to our Philosophy Club in the first place was a presentation a few years back on the war in Ukraine by Club member Maria Mykolenko, which David unfortunately was not able to attend, sending me the following note:
I wish I could take part in the upcoming presentation by Maria Mykolenko about the current crisis in Ukraine. I would actually like to do so vicariously in a certain manner. Below, please find a link to a video I recently made featuring a song I wrote and performed in solidarity with the people of Ukraine. The Bully on the Playground. It decries the senseless loss of human life along with the disruption of life and the destruction of cities, towns and infrastructure throughout much of the country.
Warm regards, David Weidenfeld.
P.S. The video filename is entitled "dad video" because my son Gabriel did the video work and that was how he labeled it in his video files: dad video final.mov (Control+Click for song.)
David’s Bio, in his own words:
After playing in a high school rock band which performed rock and roll of the day by bands such as the Rolling Stones, Aerosmith, Led Zeppelin among others I started at age 16 to focus more on writing original songs. I also had become politically active and gravitated to involvement in an annual conference weekend of politically and socially minded musicians known as "Songs of Freedom and Struggle." This very much put me more in touch with songs and performers who drew from both the past history of protest music as well as contemporary songs addressing various political and social concerns. Through this context I encountered the well known folk singer and activist, Pete Seeger. After hearing me perform one of my original tunes, he invited me to join him in an upcoming concert he was doing in Northampton, MA. I was not only honored by his invitation but also impressed that he took interest in my song because it was not really folk music at all. A talented guitar playing friend of my older brother's said it sounded "like Bob Dylan playing jazz chords." Can't argue with that, I'll take it!
In the ensuing years I played in a number of bands playing dance music both original as well as by popular artists like Stevie Wonder, Chaka Khan and Sade. I often wrote tunes which offered social and or political commentary for people to hopefully absorb in some way while they might be dancing. After all, Stevie Wonder was doing that in quite a few of his songs so it fit right in with the overall vibe of our performances.
I became a busy professional social worker/therapist and stopped playing in clubs but over time found different ways of incorporating music into my work which was at various times in elementary, middle and high schools over the years. My experience as a therapist for over 30 years has no doubt informed and inspired some of my songs as well.
Currently, as I continue to work as a therapist, I am about to launch a new band named The Unexpected this April doing original as well as some cover material. Two of the three songs which I will present today are now part of my band's repertoire.
The University of Hartford Philosophy Club has an informal, jovial atmosphere. It is a place where students, professors, and people from the community at large meet as peers. Sometimes presentations are given, followed by discussion. Other times, topics are hashed out by the whole group.
Presenters may be students, professors, or people from the community. Anyone can offer to present a topic. The mode of presentation may be as formal or informal as the presenter chooses.
Come and go as you wish. Bring friends. Suggest topics and activities. Take over the club! It belongs to you! Just show up! - Brian Skelly bskelly@hartford.edu | 413.273.2273