Matt and Pia: 2014

Dear Whoville friends,

Come to Whoville to hear us sing, sing, sing!

At 5 pm on December the 14.

Bring your blankets, bring your chairs

Come in singles or in pairs!

On the lawn of the second Whoville house

At 115 on Adams Park in Fayetteville

A grinchy Grinch will be a Klaus

While all the Whos, big and small,

Sing their songs despite this louse.

And, if by chance, to come you can’t

Watch the story and the chant

On a channel on the web

At TheUgarteStudio/Broadcasts

Where you can see and hear what was meant.

We’ll have Whoville munchies to be munched

-- after you hear us sing, sing, sing! --

That all the Whos happily bring

So you can meet the Whos and say hello

In Whoville town after the Christmas show down!

So come along and bring your friends

Bring your besties and all those possible Who gems.

Sound the news to all around!

Come and share the songs of Whoville town

And may the Holiday Spirit in your heart abound!

A Christmas in Whoville

The Ugarte Studio

Sunday, December 14, 2014

5:00 pm

Matt, Pia & Sapphie

Hello everybody!

So, as the new year has begun, we are in full swing of things.

As many know, Atlanta got hit by a winter storm that paralyzed the city for a few days. Many still do not have power. We had no electricity for two days. I must say we were very happy to have a firewood fireplace! It was a bit of a challenge 'cause the wood Matt was able to get was wet, but we certainly had it better than many. And, since I had done the appropriate shopping before, we were in good shape regarding food. We camped in the living room for a couple of days, slept on the air mattress, and watched movies on our laptops.

Matt started a new job at the end of last year with one of the fastest investment building growing companies in the US. The interview process was highly detailed and included personality/psychological/skills testing. Few pass it -- much less enjoy the process as he really did 😮. I am so proud of my honey! He is in charge of remodeling an apartment complex of 480 units and he's kicking ass! The amount of information his brain can store and recall at will is really incredible; it never stops to amaze me.

The studio keeps on growing. The kids -- well kids to me regardless of the age 😛 -- are doing great; winning competitions from local to international levels, being cast in lead and main roles left and right, being awarded scholarships, composing, recording, making a name for themselves professionally, but first and foremost doing beautiful music and developing healthy, intonated, beautiful voices and growing as artists and individuals.

This is my second term as adjudicator for the Shuler Hensley Awards, the Tony's for high school musical theater...quite a rewarding experience. I have also been working on a recording project, a cycle of art songs for children, Songs for Ely, composed by a Lithuanian pianist friend of mine.

In addition, I have been writing a column for Examiner.com for a little more than a year now. Below are links to the articles. Hope you enjoy them! And, it would be great if you can spread the word as clicks count!

Matt and I sent wishes of health, love, prosperity and happiness for 2014. May your hearts be full and may you share your happiness, with others as you pay it forward...

Love,,

Pia

VALENTINE'S DAY MUSIC: A Playlist You Won't Find Anywhere Else

February 14, 2014

This is a Valentine's Day music playlist you will not find anywhere else. It could have kept on going endlessly, but there are only so many hours...It covers many styles of music; classical, classical crossover, instrumental...

Pages

Monday, December 8, 2014

Monday, December 1, 2014

Thursday, November 27, 2014

Thursday, May 15, 2014

Saturday, February 15, 2014