LAST CALL
Arny Spielberg
musician and Without a Net cofounder
A
rny Spielberg told his fellow musicians to “bring the funk” while recording his original song, “Doin’ the Best I Can.” Spielberg hopes the positive message will inspire donations for UMass Cancer Center. The recording includes contributions from Duke Levine, Mike Ladd, Rob Coltun, Nicole Sutka, Erik Cohen, Michael Harmon, Brooks Milgate, Fernando Perez and Spielberg himself. Both the track and the video were produced by Michael Harmon, owner of Wachusett Recording Company in Princeton.
began as strictly a music event. It was a fundraising concert, but the whole idea was based on a metaphor for dealing with cancer. Nobody ever plans to have cancer. Nobody ever rehearses having cancer. There’s never any promises for the way things are going to turn out. We created a musical event similar to that. We got great musicians together and we agreed on a setlist. Everybody knew what songs we
were going to play and in what keys, but we purposefully did not rehearse. Everybody went off and learned the songs on their own. And we came to that moment on the stage and somebody counted it in. It worked because of the caliber of musicians that took part. Some of these events had 25 musicians from around the region. But, there was always that element of chance baked into the event. My wife is a graphic designer and last year she decided she wanted to introduce an art element. We invited artists from around the region to hand paint umbrellas.
What does the future look like for Without a Net? That’s a great question. I like to believe that next year we’ll be able to hold another live event, but, like everyone else right now, we’re just making it up as we go. You have to leave yourself open to opportunities and collaborate with really great people. Without all the musicians in Central Mass, there is no Without a Net. Nearly every one of the individuals that make up our community of musicians has been personally impacted by cancer. They’ve either had it themselves or a member of their family or a friend or a loved one has had it or died from it. A couple of years ago at one of the live events, I was on the stage to welcome the audience. I asked everybody who had a personal experience with cancer to raise their hands. I am not lying when I tell you every single person in the room raised their hands. The statistics are pretty stark. Sooner or later, someone in your circle is going to have cancer. Those are the hard, cold facts. I feel like everybody has a stake in supporting cancer research and they’re doing amazing work at the molecular level here in Worcester. To hear Arny Spielberg’s “Doin’ the Best I Can,” visit https://www. youtube.com/watch?v=P7QXnvTt aZc&feature=youtu.be. To make a donation to UMass Cancer Center, visit https://support.umasscancerwalk.org/fundraiser/2793700.
– Sarah Connell Sanders
23
How did you find yourself in Worcester? Are you from here originally? I moved to Worcester in ’82 for a job. It’s kind of weird. I was born in Clinton, Massachusetts, but brought up in Brooklyn,
Can I ask what your day job is? I’m a writer and an editor at Commonwealth Medicine, which is a division of UMass Medical School.
WORCESTERMAGAZINE.COM
What is the significance of the umbrella? The umbrella symbolizes shelter, but also it’s a tool to help us keep our balance. We invited these artists to hand-paint umbrellas, and last year we raffled them off. This year, the pandemic precluded us from having a live event. We did a web-based auction of the umbrellas that went really well. Over the last month, we also worked on creating a song. I wrote the lyrics in 2009, one night at the dining room table after Pam went to bed. It’s been kicking around for a while. I thought this was an especially timely and appropriate tune, not just for folks who were involved in the cancer fight, but more generally in the middle of this pandemic. I like to think the song has a very affirmative, positive and encouraging message.
New York. So, when I eventually moved back to Worcester, it really felt like moving home in a lot of respects. I’ve lived in the area ever since.
O CT O B E R 8 - 14, 2020
How did you become involved with the UMass Cancer Center? In 2009, my wife, Pam, was diagnosed with esophageal cancer. Individuals don’t get cancer, families get cancer. It really shook us, obviously. We found tremendous clinical and caregiver resources at the UMass Cancer Center where Pam received her chemo and radiation. She
also had surgery at the Brigham and Women’s Hospital. She was diagnosed in February of 2009, and eight months later, after chemoradiation and surgery, she was given the all-clear signal. Like a lot of families, we felt deeply indebted to the UMass Cancer Center and we took part in the annual UMass Cancer Center Walk. That year, we formed Team Pam and we took part in every walk for the next five years. But, on the fifth anniversary, we said, “Let’s do something different.” We pushed around several ideas and where we landed was on this idea of Without a Net. Without a Net
