Above: Noel’s Holiday CD
To order his Holiday CD go to: www.neworldmultimedia.com ideas or stuff and I’ll keep them, and I’ll refer to them when I have a project coming up.”
Do you write your music first or the words first?
NORA’S QUILT
Top: Nora at her sewing machine Above: Nora’s work area
28 • MAINE SENIORS
Meet Nora Flanagan, the artisan who worked with Noel to design the cover of his Christmas CD. She then created a magnificent quilt using that design. Nora, who loves Maine, is a talented artist who uses the sewing machine to create quilts that are masterpieces. She delights in bringing the scenery of Maine to the cloth. You can find her creations on noraflanaganquilts.com She also displays and sells her artwork at the Blue Hills Farmers’ Market in the spring and summer.
“Sometimes, but quite often the words imply the rhythm with which they should be spoken. Sometimes it’s not very far behind, but I’d say that only happens a third of the time. The other third of the time the melody comes first and suggests what it wants to talk about or at least dictates to you the urgency with which it needs to be said. But the best songs, of course, the ones where it all arrives together, happen very infrequently.”
Do you think it’s a spiritual gift that’s been given to you? That’s an interesting question because I feel very privileged to have it as a talent, and even a privilege to be paid for it. I don’t think of it as a