Music with a Mission

HERO unveils Gerónimo Lluberas CD as fundraising tool to aid Haiti

The nonprofit Health & Education Relief Organization (HERO) has launched the distribution and sale of the new CD BUTTERFLIES IN THE RAIN FOREST/MUSIC FOR MEDITATION & CELEBRATION to raise money to build clinics, schools and basic infrastructure in Haiti.

The CD showcases music and lyrics by the late Gerónimo (Dr. Gerry) Lluberas, the medical doctor and missionary whose pioneering work and humanitarian vision for Haiti inspired the creation of HERO.

"Dr. Gerry would be delighted that his compositions, including songs that reflect his deep faith in God and his love for Haiti, are generating funds to help provide hope for Haiti's most needy children," HERO President Ted Waldbart said. “This is music with a mission.”

Dr. Gerry's long-time musical partner and HERO Board Member Christopher Crommett, who sings on and produced the recording, described the music on the CD as "eclectic, vibrant, melodic and uplifting. It reflects Gerry's myriad musical influences and interests." Crommett added that, "the CD encompasses various genres including inspiring songs of Praise & Worship, beautiful Operetta and Musical Theatre numbers, infectious Caribbean dance tunes –salsa and merengue–, exciting Latin Jazz, and even funk."

The 2-part CD opens with selections from Butterflies in the Rain Forest, A Christian Musical, inspired by Dr. Gerry's missionary trips to Haiti, his daughter Cristina's fascination with butterflies, and Puccini's opera Madama Butterfly.

Butterflies tells the story of Sara Gardner, played by the acclaimed soprano J.J. Hobbs, who must choose between a glamorous international career as an opera diva or a humble yet fulfilling life as an educator on "Isla del Sol" in the Caribbean. The cast also includes Christopher Crommett, Victor Robertson, W. Rufus Massey, Jr., Julie Ann Crommett and Dr. Gloria Singleton Gaston (one of Dr. Gerry's fellow rheumatologists).

Butterflies was arranged for a Broadway-style orchestra by Gary Anderson, a Grammy Award winner, Woody Herman Band alumnus, and leading TV music composer, who is also featured on saxophone.

Forrest Buchtel, whose credits range from Duke Ellington, Count Basie and Woody Herman to Blood, Sweat and Tears, and Malo, plays trumpet and flügelhorn.

A Broadway and Alliance Theatre veteran, the pianist and arranger Michael Fauss, is a featured performer, along with other leading Atlanta-area studio musicians and several of Dr. Gerry’s musical friends....

Part 2: Music CD