Today I follow up the Carpenters with something a little less complex, Simple Gifts. This is an old Shaker song from the mid-1800s, written by Joseph Brackett Jr. It was used in Shaker worship services and has an American folk music sound to it.

In more recent times, there have been arrangements by Aaron Copland and John Williams. Simple Gifts was also played in the presidential inaugurations of Ronald Reagan, Bill Clinton, and Barack Obama. The arrangement I’m performing is from my teacher, Trevor Fischer.

The whole song is played on the A string with movement up and down the fretboard. I’ve recently tackled classical repertoire, and this is Trevor’s attempt to get me something much easier to play between complex pieces, as well as music that can be used as a warm-up exercise. My young daughter loves this song and comments how pretty and peaceful it sounds every time she hears it:

By the way, that canvas art to the right in the video was painted by my little girl. It was a beautiful and simple gift for Father’s Day. Up next, a jazz-pop song from the 1940s!