GLEN VECCHIONE
Poet. Author. Performer.
“The city of San Diego was fortunate to have Glen Vecchione’s sly poem ‘Wondrous Machine’ to set as a choir and organ paean, the Spreckels Organ Society’s commission for this event. With a nonchalant tone that brought to mind the avid narrator of Thornton Wilder’s Our Town, Vecchione wove together the names of all the city’s civic organists, some of the organ’s notable stops, as well as names of the current organ curators, into astutely rhymed, heroic verse.”
—Ken Herman, San Diego Story Magazine
About
Life is an adventure. I’ve wandered the world and slept under bridges. I drank vodka with Russian students in a swamp near St. Petersburg. I climbed a volcano, chased a twister, and chatted with Bill Gates while he filled his Porsche in Indian Wells.
These days, I live in Palm Desert with my collection of rare and antique books. But my last day job was with a telecom company that helped land the first robotic explorer, Pathfinder, on Mars. What did I do there? I forget.
Because what I mostly remember is my more vivid life as an artist: at first a TV and film
composer for CBS and AEF, then a Broadway lyricist and composer, then a science and math book author for middle readers.
Now – God help me – a poet.
A clarification. I’ve been writing and publishing poetry for over forty years. Throughout my life, The Poem functioned as muse, steadfast companion, pro-bono therapist. But our moments together were stolen, like illicit lovers. When, in 2018, I left my office for the
last time, I asked The Poem to marry me. Now we spend all our time together
and it’s glorious.
Poetry
A sampling of recent work
The Angelus Bells
Audio poem published by The Gentian Journal, narration and
sound effects recorded on my iPhone in Italy (2022).
Twister
Audio poem published by Split Rock Review, narration and
sound effects recorded on my iPhone in Italy (2022).
Poet’s Prayer
Rhymed poem in light verse, read by the poet.
CLAS Photo, 1958
Memory poem in free verse, published by The Gentian Journal,
read by the poet.
CLAS Photo, 1958
Printed poem with photo, published by The Gentian Journal (2023)
Wildflowers
Audio poem published by Split Rock Review, narration and
sound effects recorded on my iPhone in Italy (2019).
Glen Vecchione Author Spotlight
My essay about writing poetry, published by Split Rock Review.
Postcards to James
Printed poem published by The Gentian Journal (2021)
Three Poems
Printed poems published by The Writing Disorder and
nominated for a Pushcart Prize (2022).
In the Potter’s Studio
Published by The Timberline Review (2021)
and read by the poet at 32:21
Lobster Divers at La Jolla Cove
Published by ZYZZYVA (1999)
and read by the poet
Swimming Through the Plague
Published by The Comstock Review (2020)
Big Bands
Published by Jacaranda Review (1997)
Eclipse
Published by The Missouri Review (1998)
Books
Booklist on Amazon
Books published by Sterling, Scholastic, and several of their imprints for European and Asian distribution.
A Place at the Table
A cross-genre cookbook published by Elevated Lab Press in two editions and written with the cooperation of the “Immaculate Heart Center of Spiritual Renewal” of Santa Barbara, California. The book received a great review in the Los Angeles Times by the food critic Emily Dwass.
The Dream Box
Speculative Fiction novel published by Amazon KDP.
Videos
We’re Coming Back
Short promotional piece I created for the City of Escondido as the pandemic cooled (2021).
Interview with Glen Vecchione
Brief, comic faux-autobiography in the form
of an interview of me, by me.
Commissions
Centennial Anniversary Celebration for the Spreckels Organ
Commissioned by San Diego’s Spreckels Organ Society to write a celebratory poem for the Centennial Anniversary of the Spreckels Organ in Balboa Park. The poem “Wondrous Machine” was set to music and premiered in the park on New Year’s Eve, 2014, by the Civic Organist Carol Williams and the San Diego Master Chorale. The work and performance was reviewed by Ken Herman of San Diego Story Magazine.
Opening of the Wentz Concert Hall, Naperville, Illinois
Commissioned by North Central College of Naperville, Illinois to write an original poem for the opening of the Wentz Concert Hall and Fine Arts Center on October 18, 2008. Working with composer Stephen Sturk, my poem “Joyful Noise” set to music, evoked images of the 150-year-old college’s history and midwestern location. The premiere performance featured more than 120 musicians, including SATB chorus, women’s chorus and concert band.
Performances
Excerpt
From the Jazz Ballet The Legend of Frankie and Johnny. Music and lyrics by Glen Vecchione, produced by the
Nat Horne Theatre, New York, NY.
Excerpt
From my children’s play in verse Cowboy BO and the Train Whistle, performed at the Lyceum Theatre in San Diego as part of the Actors Alliance Festival.
Film
Anti-Matter (A film score I wrote way back for
American Educational Films).
The Metric Film
Earthquake!
CBS Fall Lineup promos
recorded in their studio on Sunset Blvd.
Design
Assorted graphic design projects
For professional book- and media-related events.
Outreach
Having fun at the Hamilton Alexander Junior High School, Long Beach CA.
Performer and advocate for poetry by reading to young adults
in libraries throughout San Diego County
Meet the Author visits, with presentations and Q&A, to city schools in the
City of Long Beach and Signal Hill
Between 2005 and 2007, I participated in the Long Beach Public Library and Long Beach Unified School District “Authors Festival” that arranged author visits to schools throughout the City of Long Beach. Each Spring, I toured over 18 middle and junior high schools – from inner city to affluent suburb – to talk about writing, read poetry, demonstrate experiments in my science books, and take questions from some of the most talented and astonishing kids I’d ever met. For years, I continued to mentor some of the special young friends I made during these visits.
Literacy advocate for disadvantaged youth, City of Escondido
In late 2019, I submitted a proposal in response to an RFP issued by the City Planning Commission. The 20-page proposal, thoroughly annotated, researched, and diagrammed, suggested converting a commercial space in an underserved neighborhood into a Digital Library and Community Center. In early 2020, growing concerns about the pandemic suspended RFP responses.
Literacy volunteer for local communities
Through the former Escondido Public Library, I participated in a literary
program that assisted Hispanic residents to improve their proficiency in
English. The weekly sessions consisted of helping to fill out forms,
understand instructions, read newspapers, and use the computer.
Foreign travel with a focus on literacy
For three weeks in 2022, I was invited to Ancona, Italy, as a guest teacher for
beginning English language students at a public school. The class contained
many Tunisian and Afghani immigrants as well as local students and even a
few adults who wished to learn. It was one of the most rewarding
experiences of my life that I hope to repeat some day.
Honors & Awards
Grand Prize winner of the National Kidney Foundation Poetry Competition
that attracted over 5,000 applicants, nationally. (“Wildflowers.”)
First Prize winner in Crazy Horse Journal Poetry Competition.
(“Portrait of Dr. Gachet.”)
First Prize winner in Southern Poetry Review Competition.
(“Moon on Tower Clock.”)
Finalist in Sewanee Review Poetry Competition.
(“Three Poems.”)
Finalist in CoverFly Media’s Best Short Story to Film Contest.
(To Fly Like Superman.)
Nine-time bronze medal winner at the downtown San Diego Library’s
Local Author Awards Ceremony.
Pushcart Prize nomination by The Writing Disorder.
(“Walmart.”)
Qualstar Volunteer Awards (15) for outstanding volunteer efforts
throughout the San Diego area.
My first of nine to follow.
Professional Affiliations
- Writers Guild member, San Diego/Palm Springs CA
- ASCAP member (hiatus)
- Member and contributor, Historical Society of Palm Desert, Palm Desert CA
- Member and contributor, Palm Desert Library, Palm Desert CA
- Member and contributor, Artists Center at the Galen, Palm Desert CA
- Contributor (Friends Circle), McCallum Theatre, Palm Desert CA
- Poetry Master Class participant, Dorothea Bisbas, Poet Laureate of Rancho Mirage
- Poetry Performer, Writers Festival at the Rancho Mirage Library
- Poetry Critique Group participant, Writers Guild, Palm Springs
- Non-Fiction Critique Group participant, Writers Guild, Palm Springs
- Member and contributor, Dezart Performing Arts, Palm Springs CA
- Founder and Moderator, Center Writers, LGBTQ Center, Palm Springs CA
- Board Member and contributor, Cappella Gloriana, Encinitas CA
- Poetry Performer, Spoken Word Café Worldwide (online)
- Zoom Moderator, Curley’s Poetry Cafe, Stamford CT
- Zoom Moderator, Poet Renegades, Beaufort NC
- Alumnus of Wildacres Writers Retreat, Ron Rash, Asheville NC
- Member of the U.C.L.A. Summa Cum Laude Society, Los Angeles CA
Contact
poetauthor9275@gmail.com
© 2023 Glen Vecchione. All rights reserved.
GLEN VECCHIONE 