What happens when two working moms get together and follow their dream? Perfect harmony. And the growing number of fans of Maureen Rush-Bogutz of Cherry Hill and Kristin King of Voorhees, who make up the dynamic group called Dichroic Glass (pronounced ‘die-krow-ick’) along with their husbands Al Bogutz and Greg King, will tell you that their music touches them in a very special way.  Their upbeat edgy-folk style with lots of interwoven harmonies is both soothing and stirring. Maybe because their story goes deeper than the average musical collaboration or maybe because the women themselves have a real story to tell, whatever it is, when they play, something magical happens.

By day, Maureen is a College Counselor, and Kristin is a Systems Delivery Services Leader, as well as two moms of young children. They started playing and singing together just a few years ago.  They met in a church folk group, where they continue to play and sing today. About 2 years ago, they decided to branch out of their church mold and play at local open mic nights.  They also started dabbling in writing and recording together. 

In the summer of 2006, at the age of 37, Kristin was diagnosed with a rare, aggressive form of breast cancer (HER2/neu-positive), and music became an all important outlet for both of them.  They started meeting regularly, every Friday, while the kids were in school, for coffee and ‘music therapy’, as they called it.  Their style and sound really started to gel, and they decided to launch a project to make a CD. 

One song in particular really got them noticed. ‘Mother’s Day’, which Maureen wrote a couple of days before Mother’s Day when her twin boys were just 4 years old and driving her bonkers.  She just wanted a little time to herself.  She stole away for some peace and quiet and the song just emerged...and with Kristin’s wonderful harmony, the song has been gaining popularity ever since.  It’s a funny song about motherhood, and a tribute to moms everywhere, who just need a day off!

Another noteworthy song on the CD is ‘No Surrender’, which is known by many women at BreastCancer.org (a website where survivors network and share support with each other), as the ‘Breast Cancer Warrior Song’.  It was written by Kristin, with a little help from Maureen.

Now that the CD is complete, they are looking to make a positive impact by donating the proceeds of their performances and CD sales to breast cancer research. 

Maureen and Kristin are currently exploring different venues for performing and continuing their efforts to raise money for breast cancer research, from private parties to coffeehouses to pub settings.  To check out their performance schedule, book a performance or to purchase a copy of their CD, send an email to dichroicglass@dichroicglassmusic.com, or visit their website at www.dichroicglassmusic.com.  

Friday, December 12th, 2008