Some gifts are so perfect they’re a real pleasure to give. I may never again make a manuscript this interesting.

I peeled this bark 12 years ago from a cedar birch tree in New Hampshire. I have been waiting 12 years for the right time, the right recipient, and the right piece of music. All three had to align for it to be worthy of this one-of-a-kind creation.

My decades of music engraving, my many years of working with Stewart Copeland, his love for craftsmanship and detail in all forms of art, and the big success of the Ben Hur live shows created the perfect storm for me to finally create the old-world manuscript I envisioned.

This is a new piece of art which is also a backwards-looking homage to the art of a time past, just like the Ben Hur show itself. It’s perfect!

I wanted to keep it, but it will have a much more meaningful life in Stewart’s studio…