So since the first one, I replaced the lever with a button so that it would automatically close (thinking about it now I probably could have just used pressure plates, but then again...they are ugly and click). The button pulse of redstone only lasts for about a second, meaning that it wasn't possible to cross.
To fix this, I had to find a way to extend button pulses...found through (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jjuyJflwpQI&feature=related) and then build it underneath the bridge bit. After a lot of fuddledudding around, it finally worked...and the sound of pistons extending and retracting never sounded sweeter.
The music is more from my Melody in D...
Sweet
BarnabyDuh 6 months ago