Back to it

I am back from holiday! I appologize for the lack of content the last few weeks, but the holidays had my mind elsewhere. I hope that you've had a wonderful holiday season.

-Mike

Pictures from the Bay Clan Holiday Concert

Here's a few pictures from the Bay Clan Holiday Concert at Stanford Childrens Hospital. From the reports that I heard, the kids had a great time and the parents and staff really appreciated the music. Kudos to the bay clan members for their inspiration to give back to the community during this holiday season. In the first picture, Scott is playing flute while Bob sits and listens for a moment.















In this second picture, Martin is playing flute while Tess drums and Frankie gets ready to play the didj.

Doc Tate Nevaquaya: Comanche Flute Music

If you are looking for a sample of some of the earliest recorded "modern" Native American Flute music, I highly recommend this recording by Doc Tate Nevaquaya. I purchased a copy of the record on eBay a few years ago and I love it. But it's not digital and so I can put it in my iPod. However, you can purchase a CD from Smithsonian Folkways recordings. This album was recorded in 1977 and the best part (I think) is the introductions which Doc Tate does for each track. He tells a story about the song or learning to play the flute and then plays the song.
His style is unlike anything which you will hear in today's recording/performing Native American Flute artists, but it's like stepping back into the past and hearing what the original songs must have been stylized like.

SOLSTICE DRUM CIRCLE & RITUAL. WED. 12/21. 7:30-9 PM.

SOLSTICE SACRED DRUM CIRCLE & RITUAL!
Wed., Dec. 21. 7:30 - 9 PM.with Barbara Druker.

Oakland, CA (near Rockridge). Easy freeway access.
7:15 PM doors open.
7:30 Opening Ceremony begins promptly.
$15.00 contribution.

Join us in sacred circle to honor the birthing of the New Solar Year, on this shortest day and longest night of 2005. Through drumming, chanting, andritual, we will celebrate the return of the Sun, and the rebirth of Light,Hope and Renewal within ourselves and the world. We will drum away what needs to be released, and drum in what needs to be reborn for empowerment and joy in 2006.

NO DRUMMING EXPERIENCE NECESSARY. Small block drums and rattles provided, or bring yours. Optional: bring floor cushion or small chair.

RSVP for location and driving directions.
Please note: cats live here. Shoes left inside door; wear warm socks.

BARBARA DRUKER, MSW, LCSW is a drum circle facilitator, ritual leader,Certified Professional Life Coach and Licensed Psychotherapist. Her work empowers people to live their true rhythms, reduce stress, restore balance and zest, and renew creativity. She presents programs in organizations, wellness centers, educational settings, conferences, retreats, and is available for your special event.

FOR MORE INFORMATION, see http://www.rhythmzest.org, or contact Barbara at: rhythmzest AT earthlink DOT net

Comments now enabled

I've enabled the "comments" feature on the blog. That means that you get to participate in the discussion now! It took a little bit of HTML crafting to get it working, it probably would have been easier to enable comments in the template before I started adding all the customization to the left column, but I learned a bit more in the process so all is well.

To use the comments feature, you simply need to click on "Post a Comment" after any of the posts and leave a comment (including historical posts). You can comment anonymously, but I'd appreciate it if you leave at least a pseudonym. I'll delete any comments that have inappropriate language (this is PG rated blog), so keep it clean...

I also added a new feature in the left column "what's in my CD player" which I'll change as I listen to new music/CD's.

Native American Indian Traditional Code of Ethics

I discovered a very well organized overview of Native American Indian Tradition Code of Ethics on the website of Sakoieta' Widrick. You can see the complete list by clicking on the link above. I printed out the page and put it up on the wall in my office, but the one item on the list that spoke to me today was:
"Listen to and follow the guidance given to your heart. Expect guidance to come in many forms; in prayer, in dreams, in times of quiet solitude, and in the words and deeds of wise Elders and friends.

NAF Playing Tip #5: A Note’s Life

Before we can talk about ornamentation, it’s important to understand the dynamics of a note as it comes out of the flute. Starting from this point will allow us to better understand how the various ornamentation techniques work to modify the life of a note.
Just like our lives have a beginning, middle and an end, each note lives its life in the same way. There are some simple terms that describe the different periods of a note’s life (see Figure 1). The initial part of a note’s life is called the Attack; this period is from the point at which you start blowing until the note reaches full volume. The middle part of the note’s life is called the Sustain and this lasts from the end of the attack, until the beginning of the last part of the note that is called the Decay. The Decay is the period in which the note drops in volume until the sound stops. The Decay can anything from a long, slow decrease in volume to a very quick drop (or stopping) of the sound. Many times, the Sustain and Decay will overlap and it may be difficult to define the exact transition from Sustain to the Decay. We'll use these terms to help define the different ornamentation techniques that make this instrument produce such beautiful music.












Figure 1 - Life of a Note (Envelope)

Sustaining a note
The length of the note is simply controlled by how long you blow the note. It starts from the beginning of the attack until the end of the decay. Blow for a short time and you have a short note, blow for a long time and you have long note. Don’t forget that the length of the note is the one of the most important variables that you have in composing interesting music.

Volume Control
The volume of the note is controlled by how hard you blow into the flute. Blow hard and the note will be loud. Blow soft and the note will be quiet. If you blow too hard, you will likely produce a high-pitched squeal, this is called overblowing (we'll take about Overblowing in a future post) and is not desirable unless you do it on purpose.



This Playing Tip is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 2.5 License.

Holiday Gift Guide: Winter Dreams CD

If you're looking for a great 'classic' Native American Flute Christmas CD, I highly recommend Winter Dreams by R. Carlos Nakai and William Eaton. I just pulled out my holiday music collection to get into the holiday spirit and I always love this CD. The CD features some classic Christmas melodies arranged for the Native American flute and stringed instruments. I would say guitar, except that William Eaton doesn't play your average guitar. He is one of the world's greatest designers and builders of unique stringed instruments. Many of his instuments have 30+ strings on them which makes it sound like there is more than one guitarist playing. Of course I don't need to say anything about Nakai's skill on the Native American Flute, it's pure magic. This is an instrumental CD, and it's one that I am sure will remain at the top of your holiday music hitlist (or even year round).

New Peter Mayer Christmas CD Coming

I just heard from Mark Holland that the new Peter Mayer Christmas CD will be available within the the next week. The name of the new CD is "Echos of the Season" and features the following folks: Jim Mayer on bass, R. Scott Bryan on percussion, Mark Holland on flute, Emily Randle on violin, Melissa Streuli on violin, Gary Hodges on cello, as well as guest appearances from Mac McAnally on vocals and guitar, Roger Guth on drums, Chris Walters on piano, Jon Nellen on tabla, as well as Tina Gullickson and Nadirah Shakoor on vocals. You can find more information, including a complete track listing on Peter's Website.
Mark and Peter collaborate on each others music, in fact Mark is on tour through December 18th with Peter's Stars and Promises tour. Mark plays Native American flute on Peter's CD's and Peter plays guitar on Mark's CD's. Peter is a member of August Child. Mark had mentioned the upcoming Christmas CD when he was out on tour this fall.

To get a taste of Peter's music you can download the track "Faith in Angels" off of Peter's latest album Musicbox from Peter's website . Faith in Angels is a great tune, with a rock feel with acoustic and electric guitar, bass and drums. I can't admit to listening to much of Peter's music outside of Autumn's Child, but I sure love his guitar playing on Authumn's Child albums.

FREE: Stanford Lectures and music on iTunes

I discovered some very cool content on iTunes, published by Stanford University. Stanford is experimenting with the idea of publishing content on iTunes, since the majority of the student population has iPods or other MP3 music players. You do need to have iTunes installed on your PC or MAC, but you don't need an iPod to listen to the content, you can listen to the content through iTunes on you computer. Stanford is publishing faculty lectures, featrured speakers, keynote presentations, school sporting events and student produced music on iTunes. And the best part is that it's all free!!
In the music department, Stanford Chamber Chorale and Orchestra is featured this month with a Christmas music theme. There are 12 tracks of Christmas songs that you can download for free. You can also download and listen to student produced tracks.
Check it out here.

On the Red Road at the Marin Museum

This is a fundraiser for the Marin Museum of the American Indian. $25 donation requested. It is a photographic essay depicting the cultural expression of America's first people. I haven't attended it yet, but I thought that I would post this for others who may happen through Marin this holiday season. If you get a chance to visit the exhibit, drop me a line telling me about your experience. More info here.

REMINDER: Elysium Calling at Borders

Just a reminder that Garth and Kenneth of Elysium Calling will be playing live at several Borders Bookstores tonight and tomorrow. If you're anywhere near Stockton or Modesto, it's worth the drive to hear these guys live.

Friday, December 2nd, 2005
Borders Books and Music
8-10 PM
10776 Trinity Parkway, Stockton CA 95219 209-951-2226
Price: Free

Saturday, December 3rd, 2005
Borders Books and Music
8-10 PM
3900 Sisk Rd., Modesto CA 95656 209-543-6095
Price: Free

Boycott SONY for Christmas...

I am adding my voice to the boycott of SONY products this year after their debacle with the CD Digital Rights Management software (which I discussed in a previous blog). This has been an example were the "blogsphere" influenced the corporate world and has made a real difference in the consumer experience. So I am urging you to forgo the purchases of SONY products this season.

NAF Playing Tip #4: Whisper don't Shout into the flute

I realized that it's been a while since I posted a playing tip, and it's one of the key features that I wanted to keep up with posting on this this blog. So with this post, I am going to get back to the plan of posting a new playing tip every Thursday...

For new players, one of the first things to learn is how to control your breath for every note on the flute. You quickly learn that the least forgiving note on any flute is the fundamental, the note played with all the holes covered. In other words, the fundamental note is the easiest note to squeak or overblow when playing it. The key to not squeaking the fundamental is in controlling the amount of air that you blow when playing the fundamental note. I've found that the simplest trick for beginners to quickly get over this is to think "Whisper" don't "Shout" when playing the fundamental note (or any note that's being overblown). Most folks get this idea right away and are quickly on the road to controlling their breath on the fundamental.

As an exercise, you should find the 'squeaking point' for every note on your flute (and do it for each of the flute that you own). Some notes will squeak (or overblow) easier than others. Some won't overblow at all. Once you've mastered the breath control to play the scale without squeaking, you can go on to the next step of learning to use the overblow (the squeak) as an ornamentation technique. More on that in a future posting.




This Playing Tip is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 2.5 License.

REGISTER NOW FOR PLAYSHOP WITH RUTHIE NEILAN

My good friend RuthiE Neilan is presenting a 3 day workshop in February. Signups are open now:

Playshop for Native American Flute: Focus on Healing February 1-3, 2006 with RuthiE Neilan RN, MA, at Franciscan Renewal Center, Scottsdale, Arizona. This "Playshop" is for those with at least basic skill and technique in playing the Native American flute who wish to take their playing to a deeper and more personal creative level. The first thing we do in life is take a breath, the last thing we do in life is take a breath, in between all we do is breathe. Come share breath through playing the Native American flute with a focus on healing with RuthiE Neilan. All healing begins with self-healing. Healing = wholeness.

"We are told to play from our hearts. No one tells us how to get there, RuthiE shows us." (C.T. participant in 2003 Native American Flute: Focus on Healing retreat, Costa Rica).

Check in at the Renewal Center mid afternoon on Wednesday, February1, 2006. The opening session will be held in the Ventura Room ofPiper Hall at 4 PM. With an evening session following dinner. OnThursday the 2nd, there will be morning, afternoon and eveningsessions. Room check out is 10 AM on Friday, however we will haveclosing session in the Ventura room and depart after lunch.

Sessions will include meditation, art making, journaling, labyrinthwalk and yes all this pertains to playing the flute. We will play,play and play. No experience in creative arts necessary beyond basicskills in playing the Native American flute, just have a willingnessto be open to new experiences and trust your creative Spirit inprocess. Bring your Native flute in key of G for class sessions.

For more informaition contact RuthiE: ruthieneilan AT comcast DOT net

New Magazine: Fretboard Journal

I just heard about the publication of a new magazine called "The Fretboard Journal". Yeah, yeah, I know that this isn't really a flute or drum related topic, but hey it sure looks like a cool magazine for those of you who play stringed instruments and it's my quest to bring interesting new music topics up here. This is the premier copy and it looks like a high quality magazine (er, Journal). You might pass this on to your guitar or mandolin playing friends.

NAFFAQ: Can I clean the mouthpiece on my flute?

There has been a lot of discussion about spreading germs by sharing flutes at flute circles or when trying out new flutes from a flute maker. There are also many opinions about this. My opinion is just one of the many. It is tempting to try other folks flutes at a flute circle, especially when someone gets a new flute from a flutemaker that you may be interested in buying from. All I can tell you is that you should use your own judgement about sharing your flutes as well as playing others flutes. Definately don't play others flutes if you are feeling the least bit ill.
With respect to new flutes, there are a variety of methods that flute makers and resellers use to allow clients to tryout their flutes. For the flutes which I sell to my students in class, I use Purell hand sanitizer to clean/santize the flutes. Purell is a great product for this purpose (IMHO) because it includes moisturizers that help prevent the wood from dryings out and it minimizes and damage to the finish on the flute. Plus it has a nice smell.

A NEW MUSIC SÉANCE

OTHER MINDS in collaboration with Swedenborgian Church and Piedmont Piano Company presents three concerts -- Saturday, December 3, 2005, at 2pm, 5:30pm, and 8pm
Hypnotic, spiritual music to be performed on Piano, Violin, and Disklavier in candlelight concerts at San Francisco's Swedenborgian Church

WHAT: Other Minds presents a New Music Séance, in three mesmerizing candlelight concerts
WHO: Pianist Sarah Cahill, and the violin-piano duo of Kate Stenberg and Eva-Maria Zimmermann
WHERE: Swedenborgian Church, 2107 Lyon Street, San Francisco
WHEN: Saturday, December 3, 2005, at 2pm, 5:30pm, and 8pm
2pm, Concert No. 1, Walk in Beauty - works by Henry Cowell, Daniel David Feinsmith, Peter Garland, Janice Giteck, Bunita Marcus, Leo Ornstein, Dane Rudhyar, Eric Satie, Charles Ives
5:30pm, Concert No. 2, Nude Rolling Down an Escalator - works by Ruth Crawford, Alvin Curran, Kyle Gann, Andrea Morricone, Terry Riley, Henning Christiansen
8pm, Concert No. 3, Toward the Flame - works by John Adams, Johanna Beyer, William Bolcom, John Cage, Henry Cowell, Daniel David Feinsmith, Mamoru Fujeida, Lou Harrison, Gary Noland, Alexander Scriabin, Ronald Bruce Smith
HOW MUCH: Each concert $20-$50, sliding scale; Series tickets$50-$150, sliding scale
TICKETS: (415) 934-8134, www.brownpapertickets.com/event/2301
INFO: (415) 934-8134, www.otherminds.org

MORE: The intimate candlelit surroundings of Bernard Maybeck's Swedenborgian Church, built in 1895, will be the scene of America's first-ever New Music Séance, presented by Other Minds. Pianist Sarah Cahill and the violin-piano duo of Kate Stenberg and Eva-Maria Zimmermann will perform hypnotic, spiritual and rarely-heard contemporary music in a meditative mode. The music spans the period from Erik Satie's Gnossienne No. 5 (1889), to Charles Ives' Sonata No. 2 for Violin and Piano (1907), and through the 20th century to the present, including Self (2005) by Bay Area composer Daniel David Feinsmith.
Produced by Other Minds Artistic Director Charles Amirkhanian, the three concerts in the New Music Séance feature five hours of solopiano music performed by Sarah Cahill, with additional performances by Kate Stenberg, violin, and Swiss pianist Eva-Maria Zimmermann. Audiences will be treated to performances of Alexander Scriabin's Vers la flamme (Toward the Flame, 1914) and the world premiere of Three Fantasy Pieces, from the early 1960s, by Russian-born American composer Leo Ornstein. Further highlights will be the American premieres of Andrea Morricone's Studio I and of Danish artist-composer Henning Christiansen's Den Arkadiske for violin and piano (1966), a Fluxus gloss on folk fiddling. Humanly unplayable music by Kyle Gann, Daniel David Feinsmith, and Gary Noland will be self-performed on a Yamaha Disklavier grand piano, including the world premiere of Feinsmith's Amalek.
For more information contact Other Minds at (415) 934-8134, www.otherminds.org

Join Elysium Calling at Border Bookstores!

Garth and Kenneth are starting out the busy holiday season with some concerts at select Borders bookstores. If you happen to be in the area, stop by and say hi and support Garth and Kenneth.

Enjoy live music from Elysium Calling while you get a little holiday shopping done, find your next good book, or simply relax with a cup of coffee. Elysium Calling will be performing this December, at Borders in Modesto, Stockton, and two Roseville locations.

Here are the latest dates:

Friday, December 2nd, 2005
Borders Books and Music
8-10
10776 Trinity Parkway, Stockton CA 95219 209-951-2226
Price: Free!

Saturday, December 3rd, 2005
Borders Books and Music
8-10
3900 Sisk Rd., Modesto CA 95656 209-543-6095
Price: Free

Friday, December 9th, 2005
Borders Books and Music
8-10
2030 Douglas Blvd, Roseville CA 95661 916-768-3461
Price: Free


For additional dates, times, and locations, follow this link to their calendar.

Bear's Thanksgiving Prayer for Friends and Family, 2005

This prayer touched my heart. It was written by Bear Limvere, if you decide to pass it on, just make sure that you give Bear credit. You can contact him at:
matotanka AT yahoo DOT com

"Grandfather, whose voice I hear in the winds, and in the stillness of
my spirit; whose breath gives life to all the world. Lean close to
the earth and hear our prayers, both those spoken aloud, and those
spoken in our hearts.

We gather with our relations to celebrate the gifts we have received.
Help us remember the gifts and blessings we have. We all have many
things to be grateful for, even if sometimes we have to search for
the reasons behind the gifts, or we feel overwhelmed by the pressures
of this world. We are thankful to be alive; to have the ability to
raise our voices in songs and prayers.

We pray for our elders and teachers; for our brothers and sisters;
for our children. We pray that children will honor and respect their
elders, and that elders will deserve that respect. We pray that
children will honor and respect themselves. These values encourage
our youth to become leaders and contributors in society. We pray for
our children and their children yet to come; for they are our future;
help them stand and be courageous.

We remember those who have gone before us. As we sing their songs,
and tell their stories, their memories are honored, and their ways
passed on. We mourn those that have left us, and pray for them as
they make their new journeys. Help us to remember them in a good way.


We pray for the people that come to the circle, and for those that
cannot, or will not. We pray for peace, and an end to wars. We pray
for our warriors that serve in the military, and for those that serve
the people at home. We pray for those who travel; for those who
cannot be with family; for those who are sick, or dying; and for
those who are hungry, cold, or alone. We pray for those who are
prisoners of war, crime, politics, and religion. Guide us to remember
and help them. We are all related. We all share the future.

We pray for commitment and responsible behavior to help those in
need. Help us be examples in life that others may follow. Let us
serve all people, our communities and country. Help us strive to be
leaders and contributors. Let us unite together so that we may have
the strength to protect our future. We pray to learn ways to settle
differences peacefully. Help us learn respect for each other's ideas.
Help us to value honesty and open-mindedness on all levels, from
children to parents to community to politicians to governments. We
will be happy when we create peace with each other. Remind us to live
what we teach. Spiritual values, honesty, and integrity start in the
heart.

We pray for those whose minds are closed; who believe that fear,
deceit, war, hate, bigotry, and repression are the way to success.
For those who are so insecure that they feel they must impose their
beliefs on all others. For those who must tear down others to make
themselves seem better or stronger. For those who are afraid to
accept responsibility. We pray for them, that their eyes and minds
may be opened, and the hearts of those around them to lessen their
impact on our country and the world.

We pray to learn and use the wisdom of all that have come before us.
Only when we all learn respect for all things can we truly succeed.
Help us remember that we are related to all things. The earth is our
Mother. All two-legged, four-legged, creatures of the air and water,
and the standing people are our brothers and sisters. What happens to
them also happens to us. Help us to be strong and gentle and
compassionate. Help us to always live in a good way. Help us respect
all of creation in our decisions and actions. Help us remember that
while we have the ability to change our environment and affect all
things, we must be sure that we should do this.

We are thankful for our families, those that we have chosen, and
those that have chosen us. Family is important and precious. Help us
always let them know that we love them; that we are always there to
support them, and that they mean the world to us. We pray that our
children will not repeat our mistakes.

We pray for these things, not for ourselves, but for all our
relations. Hear our prayers. Aho Mitakuye Oyasin. ? All my Relations.

Blessings to all, Bear Limvere