No One Is Alone, from Into The Woods

When Sondheim passed, we were in the middle of our run of The Little Mermaid at the Walnut Street Theatre in Philadelphia. During breaks, I happened to have been reading through a few pieces from this amazing collection of Sondheim songs arranged to be played as solo piano concert pieces called Liaisons (spearheaded by a pianist called Anthony De Mare).

Fred Hersch did this arrangement of No One is Alone and it immediately became my go-to warmup piece before going under the sea each night.

This music gives me an upwelling of gratitude - for the fact that this legendary composer/lyricist lived and wrote material we can hold so close, for No One Is Alone and the entire Into the Woods production for just existing, for Fred Hersch and his oeuvre, and for the fact that theater is alive and happening in spite of so many hurdles.

Brother Martin

“Trust Me” - the title track from Brother Martin’s EP. Composed and recorded in collaboration with Maria Mirenzi and Miner Street Recordings, Philadelphia PA