In memoriam: Djim Tio

[Sherry C]

Hi friends,

I think it would be most appropriate (and M.G. encouraged me) to post a couple of songs here that Djim enjoyed. Djim was, as MG says "a musical omnivore." Both of these were ones that are "found" .mid files and tweaked a bit, and that he enjoyed. They demonstrate, in microcosm, the breadth of his musical tastes.

The Beatles' "Birthday" was one that I had shared with Djim on the occasion of his birthday last year, and he was pleased to have something "to rock my old bones" as he put it. I've played it since I found out about Djim's passing as it somehow seemed appropriate.

Birthday.not

One of the first bass-related musical sharing sessions that Djim and I had was to chat about Bach's cello sonatas, a favorite of electric bass players for working on our chops. Djim was working on them on his fretless at that time, and I had just started getting into them on my five-string fretted. Here's one that we both had worked on - the prelude for Cello Suite no. 1 in G.

Bach-CelloSuite1-prelude.not


Grace,
Sherry

[mgj32]

Hello all,
One hardly knows what to say at such a time. Perhaps it is enough that all my memories are fond and I will miss him greatly. We had a long and fairly regular exchange of emails, in which we discussed just about everything from the best way to pill an unwilling cat to food and fine wines to Physics, but mostly music. He was a GP with a specialty in dermatology, of which department he became the head at one of Holland's ("Frogland" he liked to call it) leading medical institutions. When he retired he devoted as much time as possible to music, and probably never heard any decently done composition, in any genre, that he didn't like. A number of times he was a great help to me when I was indecisive or stuck in the middle of something I was writing, usually with a simple suggestion.

He was a gentleman and a gentle man who possessed a wit, used most often for fun and never that I can recall as a dagger, but sometimes as a prod, as when he wrote from Bali, after an afternoon on the beach, that the crowds sunning and visiting the food stands made it look as if the next generation of dermatologists and cardiologists would be well taken care of.

When, last fall, testing at his former hospital showed how ill he was, he decided to leave things to a higher will than ours, though his oncologist considered Chemo worth trying. His brother in law, a pharmacologist by specialty, added his recommendation, and mixed the weekly "potions" that he finally agreed to. Djim's comment on it all was to the effect that if the Lord Buddha had further plans for him in this life, He'd better get busy, but that his real hope was to be a great musician in the next life.

So with many fond memories, I will miss those that might have been yet to be made. And I hope with all my heart that his hope will be realized.

all best,
mgj

[dj]

Many exchanges of thoughts and philosophy with Djim over the years on this forum.

We must make music while we may. "If music be the food of love, play on!"