Clint Goss Jam Tracks in G Minor

Clint Goss is busy doing the final mastering of his the second in his series of Jam Track CD's designed to enable you to play along with (jam) the tracks. This latest album is due out in January, and you can download two of the tracks now from his website, to give you a taste of the type of music which will be available in the final production.

The first title released was "Jam Tracks in A minor".

This new releases extends that to tunes written for a G minor flute. I applaud Clint for pulling together a compilation of tracks written for a specific flute key. This makes it a better investment for new players who may only have a single flute to chose the appropriate CD.

To download the two free tracks, click here:

• Samba of the Phoenix
• Powwow Sunrise

Scott August new release: Lost Canyons

[Updated Nov 9]

Scott August has a new release called Lost Canyons. I have my been listening to my copy the last couple weeks and it's yet another great release from Scott. I have to give kudos to Scott for his well executed composition and recording. It still amazes me that he records this stuff in his closet (although Scott's "closet" is something to envy if you desire to own a project studio). Scott has built his recording career from the ground up and orchestrates and records the majority of the backing instrumentation himself. I am not sure that you'll find a harder working musician in the business.

In this release, Lost Canyons, Scott introduces the Anasazi flute to his recording repertoire. The Anasazi flute is an rim blown or end blown flute, and it's not simple to play at all. Scott has been practicing and learning to play this flute the last couple years, before he attempted to record with it. Scott has posted several articles on his webpage about the Anasazi flute, there's good information on his flute history page and also on a blog entry he created. The Anasazi flute is making something of a come back now, and Coyote Oldman is one of the few flute makers who is producing this style flute now. You can check out Coyote Oldman's website if you're interested in buying one.

The first song on the album, Morning Star, is pure Anasazi flute. It's a wonderful melody that transports you to another place and time. It's a great opening track for the album.

The second song, Raven Dance, is one of my favorites on the album. It's a rich texture of flute, Udu, Kalimba, percussion, keyboards and guitar. If you close your eyes on this song, you can picture the Ravens dancing across the sky. I would say that this song is pure Scott August, it's everything he's evolved his music to be: lush, rhythmic and well balanced.

Desert Skies is the third song and this song is a richly textured soundscape. This song has an ambient feel to it without any flutes, but it moves you nicely.

On the song, Where Spirits Dwell, Scott again employs the Anasazi flute on top of a moving soundscape rich with percussion. Scott again demonstrates his mastery of this instrument.

Swallows and Nighthawks is pure Native American style flute, nothing else. It's nice break on this album from all of the other textures. The flute is bright and stands alone nicely.

The next song, Thunder on the Mesa, has a unique opening percussion on the Udu. On the first couple plays, I found it an odd beat to open the song with. But now, this song is also one of my favorites on the album. I also have to admit that I've heard this song develop over the last year during Scott's live performances. This song is unmistakably Scott August with his trademark kalimba and rhythm breaks.

Scott takes us in several new directions with this album. Textures is a song that dares to run it's ambient course but is masterfully overlaid with the Anasazi flute. The flute on this song dances around the textures as it swirls from speaker to speaker. Huukyanga is another track on the album which was inspired by similar ambient underpinnings and the Anasazi flute over top. On Huukyanga, Scott plays the Anasazi flute with a speed and technical ability that I've never heard before.

The namesake track for the album, Lost Canyons is the longest piece on the album at over 8 minutes. But it keeps you engrossed for the whole time. It also is one of my favorite tracks on the album.

On Chasing the Sun, a fast paced and highly articulated song, I have the feeling of racing down a desert highway with the scenery racing past my window. Scott plays a triple flute on this song while the instrumentation in the background carries you along. This is fun piece to listen to.

To close the album, Scott slows things down with Twilight Canyon and Evening Star. The bass flute on Twilight Star and crickets in the background remind me of evening at the campfire. Reflecting on the days adventure...

Evening Star is the last piece on the album and for it, Scott returns to the Anasazi flute one last time. It's sweet little melody that demonstrates the range of tones which the Anasazi flute is capable of.

Lost Canyons is yet another masterful release by Scott August. Having known Scott now for many years, I know the dedication and time that he spends on his composition and recording. Once again Lost Canyons won't disappoint and I especially recommend it if you want to explore the possibilities with the Anasazi flute. I am sure that this isn't the last time we'll hear the Anasazi flute on Scott's albums.

The only downside that I can find in this new album is the dang small font that Scott used to describe the instruments on each track! I guess it's time for me to buy some reading glasses for these 40 something eyes.

If you want to listen to excerpts from the tracks from the new album, click below:

1 Morning Star
2 Raven Dance
3 Desert Skies
4 Where Spirits Dwell
5 Swallow & Nighthawks
6 Thunder on the Mesa
7 Thermals
8 Lost Canyons
9 Huukyangw (Wind)
10 Chasing the Sun
11 Twilight Canyon
12 Evening Star

If you are interested in purchasing this album here's the link to Scott website: http://www.cedarmesa.com/lostcanyons/index.html

The Maui Xaphoon

Now for something completely different. I discovered this cool new pocket sax online. I know that many of the readers will be interested in this little musical invention. I haven't purchased one yet, but you can buy them online for $85-$200 or purchase the Pocket Xaphoon at Lark in the Morning store in San Francisco. Here's the link: http://xaphoon.com/

Autumns Child Christmas Album: The Greatest Gift Now Available

Mark Holland and Autumns Child have released their Christmas album. It's filled with your favorite Christmas tunes, as interpreted by Autumns Child. Mark plays the Native American Flute masterfully and has orchestrated the rest of the instruments for a perfect blend. Here is a listing of some of the instruments used on various tracks on this recording: Native American Flutes, Guitars, Cello, Harp, Bass, Piano, Pedal Steel Guitar, Hammered Dulcimer, Gourd Water Drum, Hang Drum, Udu, Darbukka, Doumbek, Duduk, Daf, Setar.

You can listen to samples on the Autumns Child website.

Here's a list of the songs on the album:

1 What Child Is This
2 O Come, O Come Emmanuel
3 Greatest Gift
4 Bring A Torch Jeanette Isabella / Conventry Carol
5 First Snowfall
6 Simeon & Anna's Song
7 Carol Of The Bells
8 God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen
9 O Come All Ye Faithful
10 Rejoicing
11 Silent Night
12 Sleigh Ridin'
13 Wind Of Heaven
14 We Will Exalt You

Available from Autumns Child or from CD Baby: http://cdbaby.com/cd/autumnschild072

Ordering instructions in PDF: http://autumnschild.com/Ordering_Instructions.pdf

Album Review: Michael Jacobs

A few days ago, I posted a article about the Nammy awards. In that article I briefly mentioned a new Native American artist, Michael Jacobs that I discovered after listening to all of the nominated artists for the Nammys. Well, I subsequently downloaded several of Michael Jacobs songs from iTunes and I've been listening to them for the last couple of days. I have to say that I am really hooked on his music.

He has a sort of Don Henley-isk feel to his singing and music, and his songs have a real spirituality to them. I would highly recommend his music if you like this sort of folksy, rock genre.

There are several tracks with Native American Flute on them, but since I didn't purchase the CD I don't have the liner notes, so I don't know who played the flute for these tracks. I am not sure if Michael is a flute player or not.

Here's a few of my favorite tracks:

• Tsiquaya - excellent flute track
  
  
• Stronger - An awesome love ballad. You have to listen for yourself to determine who the story is about.

• The Sacred Way - A great song about living your live in a sacred way

• Inside of you - A catchy tune with acoustic guitar and flute. About growing up.
  
  
• Heal the land - Michael sounds most like Don Henley on this song. The song is about the title.

• Sky Woman - a nice ballad about the myth of Sky Woman

New Flute Arrives!

I know that if you have the same disease that I have (chronic flute fever) then I can only imagine what the image above is doing to you at the moment. I apologize for this Pavlov's dog teaser, but I wanted to you experience the same anticipation that I had as I came home two weeks ago to this beautiful triagular shaped package on my doorstep...

First a little history…

As many of you know, I have been enthralled with discovering all of the other scales which are present on the Native American Flute. In 1999, while on a trip to Monterey CA, I stopped by the farmers market and I saw and heard a fife made from hemlock root stock made by flutemaker and street vendor, Bo Bixler. Here's a picture of one of Bo's wonderful painted fifes:

Note, that I don't own the flute shown above, but I do own one of Bo's other fife's, and it’s a very cool flute. Not a Native American Flute, but a wonder flute none-the-less. The reason that I bring this story up is that Bo also had in his inventory a flute with a scale which he called “Spanish Gypsy Scale”. I was enthralled with the Spanish Gypsy scale, but chose to purchase a diatonically tuned flute instead that day. The Spanish Gypsy Scale, however had sparked my subconscious. The Spanish Gypsy scale is the sound of gypsy’s, of the middle eastern traditional music.

Anyhow, when I got home I became obsessed with the Spanish Gypsy Scale, I had to look up the Spanish gypsy scale on the web and the only sites where I found this scalte were on guitar scale sites. This suited me fine since I am guitar player, and I sat down to translate the Spanish Gypsy Scale from the guitar scale format to the Native American Flute. Unfortunately, I’ve lost contact with Bo. If anyone knows how to contact him, I’d love to find him again. He was a bit of nomad, living in the bay area on his boat.

You can click here to read my earlier NAF playing tip blog entry highlighting the Spanish Gypsy Scale for a typical, modern tuned NAF.

The Present

Fast forward to the INAFA convention last August. I ran into Leonard McGann and he had a few Native American Style flutes tuned with a straight Spanish Gypsy Scale fingering (no cross fingering required). I would have bought one of these flutes from Leonard, but I was out of cash and all he had left at the end of the event was a ‘regular fingered’ flute. I still have one of Leonard's Spanish Gypsy tuned flutes on my wish list.

The latest design from Stephen DeRuby…

Fast forward to last month. I was browsing the Zion Flute Festival and saw an ad flash up for Stephen DeRuby and his new “Gypsy Flute”. I was immediately hooked. Stephen is good friend of mine and one of my favorite flute makers, so I called him up and ordered one of his new “Gypsy flutes”.

Here’s the details on my new flute which arrived in the box pictured at the top of the blog entry, I have had two weeks to play around with it now and I really love the sound and the scale of this flute. The key difference in this flute (along with Leonards tuning as well) from the cross-fingered version which you can play on any modern-tuned NAF, is that the first note fo the Spanish Gypsy scale has been put into these flutes. The first interval of the true Spanish Gypsy Scale is a half step, and unfortunately this interval is not avialable on a modern pentatonic NAF, where the interval between the root/fundamental note and the first hole is one and half steps. (OK, before you flute techies send me nasty email, it IS possible to make a half step note if you 'quarter hole' the first hole of the flute, but I don't think that this is practical for most folks and it's really difficult to play fast...). The picture below shows the unique fingering of the Gypsy Flute design. Note that there are 7 finger holes on this flute:

Note that there are only two holes for the bottom hand (index and pinky) and there are five holes for the upper hand (all four fingers plus a thumb hole on the bottom):

I’ll admit that this flute fingering takes a little while to get used to, but once you get the hang of it, it works pretty well. On your bottom hand, you keep your thumb and middle and ring finger on the barrel of the flute and this provides the stability to remove all of the fingers and thumb of your top hand when you play the octave note.

Note also that the mouthpiece for this flute is designed like a recorder/whistle, rather than the traditional Native American Flute fipple design. I asked Stephen about this design change and he described the sound quality as much brighter and more stable for this scale than with a the NAF fipple design. I was skeptical, until I received the flute. I’ll admit now, that this is a very bright flute, and I’ve already played it with my Middle Eastern drum circle. I was able to play above the drumming with out amplification.

The only negative that I have found with this flute is that it tends to water out faster than any other flute I have in my collection. I am not sure why that is, but I attribute it to the different fipple design for now.

The wood on this flute is spalted maple, and it has a beautiful vein running through it (I don’t think that the pictures show it’s complete beauty). If you’re interested in owning one of these, contact Stephen directly or check them out at the upcoming NCFC/NoNahme Spring Festival on April 21, 2007. Stephen will be a vendor at this event. This flute is only available in the key of D.

I'll post an MP3 of this flute later, once I get a chance to get into my studio for some recording time.

UPDATE: 3/17/07 - Stephen emailed me to inform me that he is also producing this in the key of A now. He'll have a few with him at the NCFC Spring Festival...

For more information:

Love Flutes
Stephen Deruby
http://www.deruby.com/


Lone Crow Flutes

Leonard McGann

(540) 297-6077

email: caveratlc AT aol DOT net

REVIEW: Ancient Light DVD by Scott August

"This is one music DVD sure to mesmerize the listener with its stunning visuals of the southwest and extraordinary soundtrack." - Mike Oitzman, March 2007

Scott August sent me an early copy of his new DVD: Ancient Light to review last week. I have watched it several times and each time I find myself lost in all of the great images. This DVD combines Scott’s music and his collection of images from the southwest into a stunning multimedia experience.

I have loved Scott’s music since the release of his first album, Distant Spirits. In my view, Scott August is the consummate composer, and his CD’s always take me on a musical journey. I’ve known Scott for many years now and I’ve am excited to see one more imaginative and finely produced product come out of Cedar Mesa Music.

The one talent which I didn’t realize that Scott had, until now, is that of photographer. This disc shows this talent in spectacular detail. Although I imagine that it’s hard to take a bad picture of the many of scenes included in the visuals in this disc, Scott finds a way to make every image amazing. I know that he has taken many, many photo’s of the southwest (check out this link or this link for more pictures by Scott), and I would imagine that the hardest part of this project was editing the pictures down to the one’s included in the final version of the disc.

Probably the best recommendation for this DVD comes from my six year old son who sat down and watched the DVD with me for the first viewing. He was immediately drawn to the music and the visuals and sat on my lap mesmerized while the video played. You’ll find this a great DVD to play in the background for a party, flute circle or any event where you want to enhance the music experience beyond just listening to the CD. I see something new in the pictures every time that I’ve watched it.

If you don’t own any of Scott’s music, this is a great compilation of music from his previously recorded CD’s.

About the Music

The DVD features some of Scott's best music from his previously released CD's:
Here's a list of the song titles:

• Heart of the Sky (from New Fire)
• Earth & Sky (from Sacred Dreams)
• Ceremony (from Sacred Dreams)
• Mockingbird Canyon (from New Fire)
• Yellow Light of Dawn (new)
• Coyote Dance (from Distant Spirits)
• Desert Light (from Distant Spirits)
• Sombre de la Luna (from Sacred Dreams)
• Emergence (from Distant Spirits)

The DVD also includes the following special features:

Southwest Destinations, Commentary by Scott August - in this special feature, Scott shows some of his favorite pictures from the DVD and talks about the things which he likes about the different areas, parks and features of the Southwest. I was especially interested in this part of the DVD since we're planning our trip to Utah this summer.

Animal Dreams, Wildlife of the Southwest - in this special feature, scott includes some of his favorite pictures of animals he has encountered during his travels in the southwest. Each animal picture is accompanied by sound recordings of the animals.

About Scott August - this special feature provides some additional detail about Scott August and his recording career.

You can order your own copy now, by clicking here.

New Wind Vessels from Ron Kendall

I had the opportunity to play a song dedicated to Hawk Littlejohn with Mary Youngblood at the Winter Gathering hosted by the Loping Wolf clan this last weekend. For the song, I played drum while Mary played my Woodsong Flute. I ended the song by the playing the “sound of the wind” from the wind vessel that I bought from Rod Kendall at the INAFA convention this last fall. Mary was impressed with the wind vessel and asked where she could get one, so I wrote Rod an email earlier this week to ask him about his website (still under construction…). Dan Ricketts also mentioned at the winter gathering that he was buying a newer style wind vessel from Rod, so I asked Rod about that as well.

Below is a picture of the style of wind vessel which I own. It’s about 2.5 inches in diameter and about 5 inches long:

The newer style of wind vessel now includes a rotating “resonating chamber” which makes the instrument capable of changing the sound it produces, by rotating the lever. Here are a couple of pictures which Rod sent me to help you understand how this works:

Notice the little copper lever on the side this is used to rotate the ball-like inner resonating chamber. According to Rod:

“The decorative surface treatment is called saggar firing, kelp, little bits of copper wire, and oyster shells are placed around the bisqued piece and fired in a gas kiln. The random fuming gives each piece a patina that reminds me of an ancient artifact! They are all priced individually and range from $85 for a basic model to $150 for the deluxe professional model. The professional series is brand new and consists of an adjustable resonator, some are clay and some are hand made copper. You turn a little lever and it turns the hollow ball inside. This gives you a wider range of wind sounds, all the way from raging storm to a whistling breeze!

To contact Rod Kendall: rodkendall AT msn DOT com

Review of "World of Drumming" Event

It's been a couple of days since the World of Drumming event which was held on Friday night (12/1) in Grass Valley, and I am still recovering from memories of the event. It turned out to be a wonderful evening with a completely sold out house. It exceeded everyone's expectations.
All of the performers were wonderful and included the following groups or individuals:

• GRASS VALLEY TAIKO JAPANESE-STYLE DRUMMING
• CONGA BYA WITH BOB SCARLETT
• GARY GREENBERG Afro-Cuban Bata Group Ome Ache
• JOE FAZEN TABLA NORTH INDIAN CLASSICAL DRUMS
• CAPOEIRA RACA EM MOVIMENTO BRAZILIAN CAPOEIRA
• DA' OWAGA with AWENDES and the \ FEATHER RIVER SINGERS
• DRUMMERS CEILI CELTIC GATHERING
• TYNOWYEN MIDDLE EASTERN DRUMMING

The evening went off without a hitch and the finale was awesome, with over 70 musicians on stage, playing in sync. The amazing thing about the finale was that we only practiced twice prior to the event, so it speaks volumes about the skills of those involved that it came off as well as it did.

I enjoyed everyone's performance, beginning to end. Everyone had fifteen minutes to perform a set of 2-3 songs, and every performance left you wanting to hear more. It was a whirlwind tour of music traditions from around the planet.

I especially enjoyed the gals (form Da'Owaga, Awendes & Feather River Singers) singing and playing the mother drum. This was the first time that members of the various groups had come together to perform and it included folks from Tahoe to the Bay Area. They kicked off the performance with grace, and even though they we stressing back stage beforehand that the singing wouldn't be heard (since we didn't mic the singers), the performance was amazing.

It's hard for me to write about all of the other wonderful performers, as they were all awesome. I enjoyed each of the performances and I'll cherish the opportunity which we all had to experience the variety of music presented. I am thankful to Saul, Mitzi and Mel for letting be a part of this rare and wonderful experience. The bar was set high, but everyone involved had a great time, so I expect that this won't be the last time we present an event like this. BUT - make sure that you attend the next one!

You can still donate:

If you were unable to attend the evening, but would still like to donate to this cause you can find out more on this weblink: http://www.tibetech.org/Appeal.html

Tibetech.org is the 501C3 Non Profit founded by Melanie Sullivan of Sierra Friends of Tibet. Sullivan will be traveling to a remote refugee camp in India in January-February to purchase computers and establish the Sierra Friends of Tibet Computer Learning Lab at the Jangchup Choeling nunnery. Tibetech.org will eventually open web-portals between the camp (which is also home to the visiting monks) and Sierra Friends of Tibet, for telemedicine support, distance learning programs and an entire world of opportunity to move the camp towards sustainability. "Just last month we learned yet again, of another Tibetan nun and children who were shot trying to cross the Himalaya to freedom. Along with compassion, Technology is the weapon of choice in fighting these injustices and we are committed to bringing this project to fruition. "

New R Carlos Nakai Album: Reconnections

I just noticed that R Carlos Nakai has released a new album titled Reconnections, this fall with Cliff Sarde, Randy Wood and William Eaton. You can preview a few tracks on the Cayon Records website, but it's a bit different that you may have heard in the past from R Carlos Nakai. I love William Eaton and the all of the collaboration he has had with R Carlos in the past. You can hear a few elements of William Eaton's rich strings on the track previews. Otherwise, the album lists it as 'electronica' which I think really means that there are sythesizers in the background and some strong electronic drum beats.
I haven't purchased the album yet, but please post a comment if you have heard more of this album.