A Different Drum

"If a man does not keep pace with his companions, perhaps it is because he hears a different drummer. Let him step to the music which he hears, however measured or far away." - Henry David Thoreau

Today I played in a drum circle with a group of seniors and that was great fun.  There is something especially joyful about drumming with people.  A lot of things happen in a group while playing a rhythm over a period of time. We start to get louder at times, some of us take solos, we hear the beat morphing into a different cadence and then back again. Someone becomes the leader, then quiets down and another leads the beat. All this is done without speaking. Sometimes without eye contact, it just happens organically.

I brought my Native American flute and played a solo in the circle while everyone kept a heartbeat rhythm going. I walked around and looked into everyone's eyes.  It makes people smile and it is a good feeling, this wordless exchange that says so much.

My mom used to say about me that I marched to a different drum. I didn't quite understand what that meant then  but it is true.  I am so glad of that now as it has led me to places I ever have expected. These days as a freelancer, my days are so varied that I often wake up wondering what day it is and where will be today? It is a great feeling because for many years I had a stagnate routine driving to an office each day. I could not stand the same old same old. 

Now my life is like that rhythm that rises and falls, gets faster and slower and finds a way to blend with others who march to that different drum.

The drums pictured above are those the group plays. Cute, eh?

f a man does not keep pace with his companions, perhaps it is because he hears a different drummer. Let him step to the music which he hears, however measured or far away.

Henry David Thoreau

Read more at http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/quotes/h/henrydavid141463.html#PdHqxGGC5sDZ4l4k.99
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If a man does not keep pace with his companions, perhaps it is because he hears a different drummer. Let him step to the music which he hears, however measured or far away.

Henry David Thoreau

Read more at http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/quotes/h/henrydavid141463.html#PdHqxGGC5sDZ4l4k.99

If a man does not keep pace with his companions, perhaps it is because he hears a different drummer. Let him step to the music which he hears, however measured or far away.

Henry David Thoreau

Read more at http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/quotes/h/henrydavid141463.html#PdHqxGGC5sDZ4l4k.99

The Incomplete Folksinger

The world has lost one of the greatest heroes of all time: Pete Seeger. I was stunned and saddened today when I read that he had passed away last night. I remember my senior year of high school when got really into folk music. I began taking lessons at The Old Town School of Folk Music in Evanston, IL. I loved it so much I got a part time job working there on the weekends. I photo copied music, answered the phone and got to hang out with some of the teachers--one of them included Steve Goodman.

One of the things that inspired me most to pursue folk music was reading the book The Incomplete Folksinger by Pete Seeger. It was newly published (1977) and I remember being so swept away by it that I wrote Pete a letter telling him how much I loved the book. About 6 months later I got handmade card in the mail, thanking me for my letter. At first I didn't understand who it was from. It written with fountain pen ink was signed "Pete" with a drawing of a banjo. I remember saying outloud, "Pete". Then it hit me! Wow! A letter from Pete Seeger and I ran all the way back to the office where I worked as a receptionist to tell my coworker friends. Unfortunately, none of them had ever heard of him. One of them asked, 'Is he Bob Seger's brother?" Sigh.  Even so, my enthusiasm inspired a coworker to come to the concert with me to see Pete and Peter, Paul and Mary that following month. (and she loved it)

Sometimes I  people laugh at me for singing old songs all the time.  There are some people who feel that if it is not the newest and trendiest, cool and popular artist or song then it has no value. But here is a quote from Pete Seeger that explains where I am coming from and why I still love to lead group sing-alongs:

“Once upon a time, wasn’t singing a part of everyday life, as much as talking, physical exercise, and religion? Our distant ancestors, wherever they were in the world, sang while pounding grain and paddling canoes, or walking long journeys. Can we begin to make our lives, once more, all about peace? Finding the right song and singing it over and over is a great way to start.

And when one person taps out a beat while another leads into the melody, or when three people discover a new harmony they never knew existed, or a crowd joins in on a chorus as though to raise the ceiling a few feet higher, then they also know there is hope for the world.”
-- Pete Seeger – American Masters, PBS – broadcast June 13, 2010

A great man indeed. It is my hope that in his death, his work will regain more recognition and understanding among those who never "got"  what folk music is about.

Dhaa Dhaa! Experience my tabla

If you are a fan of Kirtan or Indian music, then you likely have heard the tabla drums (pictured above). I studied them in Chicago many years ago (mid 1980s) and really enjoyed it.  My favorite assignment was when my teacher had me record Tintal for a whole length of a cassette tape. (90 mins) He said, "You do this or you are wasting my time!"

Tintal is the most common tal (rhythm) in Indian classical music and here's what the notation looks like:

You can see how there are phonetic syllables written out which is because tabla have the capability of producing some melodic sounds that we say in our head as we play. I will never forget playing this for an hour and a half and how that made me feel to do it. Rhythm can really put you "in the zone" and back then I didn't know anything about altered states of consciousness, although people of Indian and Eastern cultures have long known of the mystical components of music. It was physically a challenge to do it too as my shoulders started to hurt after about 30 minutes but I was determined to complete the assignment without cheating.

I've played tabla off and on through the years but really haven't played in the last 7 years. I had a set of tabla sitting in the case and today I got them out and played my tintal.  Wow, that felt good! Like an old friend coming back to me.

Many years ago back in Chicago I played  guitar like a tambura in a Hindi band. Tambura  is an Indian stringed instrument that plays the drone.  I still remember that night in that hot and crowded room. I think I was the only non-Indian person there. So while the band was tuning up, a man in the audience asked me for a glass of water. I was puzzled by his request but I did as he asked. When I returned with the water, his wife scolded him saying, "She's not a waitress! She's in the band!"  I think he was quite surprised and embarrassed too.

I wonder where my tabla will take me next in my life? Stay tuned... dhaa dhaa dhin dhin ......

Learning to walk again

Today at the hospital I was playing for some patients who were in isolation. This means that for infection control, people who enter their room have to gown up and wear a mask and gloves.   I can't play guitar inside such rooms because it would expose my guitar (and I can't play with gloves on)  and spread viruses' around. So  I sit in the hallway outside their rooms.

I was sitting in a hall playing my guitar when a man was being helped to walk by a physical therapist. As he approached me,  he suddenly got an expression like he was overwhelmed and I thought he might cry. He shook his head and said to me, "that is so beautiful!" Then he and the physical therapist stood next to me while I played Shenandoah. It occurred to me that he didn't look American born and so this piece would have no meaning to him. But his eyes grew misty and he said again, "it is so beautiful." (yes music is the universal language) He seemed quite overcome with gratitude for the music.

I was struck by the sight of this man struggling to learn to walk again--something I take for granted.   And here I was playing my guitar--something that I don't really take for granted but something that has become second nature to me.  Wow life is amazing, isn't it? All the things we can do if we just take the time to really take it all in and notice.

Do you ever have those kinds of experiences where you are suddenly overcome by a feeling that life is a miracle?  Maybe a beautiful sunset does this. Or the laughter of a child. A smile from a stranger.
Today I was grateful all over again for the work I love to do.

MLK, civil rights songs and beyond

Yesterday was Martin Luther King, Jr day and so I celebrated by singing songs from the civil rights movement with one of my groups. Some of the songs were: "We Shall Overcome, " "If I had a Hammer," "Imagine,"What's going on," "People Get Ready."  I grew up during this tumultuous time though I was pretty young to understand the everything that was going on politically. Still, it was a good time for music.

What I loved about our sing along yesterday was,  like free association, one song led to another and not all of them were serious songs. Somehow we landed onto the Flintstones and Addams Family theme songs. Motown and the Monkees too. And "Happy Together" by the Turtles was a big hit.

We shared stories from our childhoods when we used to sing these songs. Do you remember learning songs in school? One of the things I love about what I do is I feel I am preserving a part of our heritage. Group singing has always been a big part of life and  many public schools have eliminated teaching the old songs. They have value and purpose in our lives and I never grow tired of singing them.

Lastly, I've been sharing with you some of the songs I'm working on for my weddings. Here is one of my favorite songs, "Moon River." I do hope you enjoy!

You Are the Sunshine of My Life

I've been thinking about how certain songs contain memories that tell the story of the soundtrack of our lives. I can remember the first time I heard this song "You Are the Sunshine of My Life" by Stevie Wonder. I was walking 40 miles for a "Hike for Hunger" charity in Chicago with a few friends. I was in 7th grade and we went door to door asking for donations.  Many gave a penny a mile and I raised about $400 total that year. (Those pennies add up!)

One of my follow hikers brought a portable 8-Track tape player (remember those?!) and Stevie Wonder's "Talking Book" was one of a few tapes we listened to all day. (Others included Carole King "Tapestry", Jethro Tull "Thick As a Brick," Moody Blues "Days of Future Passed.")

I still love Stevie Wonder, his music is so full of heart and soul. I've been busy recording samples for weddings and "You Are the Sunshine of My Life" is one I include. If you are old enough to remember when this song came out, do you have memories associated with it?

Here's my take of You Are the Sunshine of My Life.

Like a dozen red roses, I sing

Sometimes I think that singing for people is the equivalent of bringing them some flowers. It always seems to surprise them as if I sing for them the first time.  It has been feeling this way lately at one of the nursing homes I play at each Wednesday evening. There are a few new residents who have blended in so well and now there is a nice group that gathers each Wed. to sing with me. They are in the hallways at this time waiting to be given their nightly medicine and put to bed.  It is such a good feeling for me when I walk in and I see them start to push themselves in their wheelchairs to come meet me.

Each week there is news to share of visits from daughters from out of state, stories of sweaters shrinking in the dryer, lost items, visits from their dogs in pet therapy, craft projects they worked on. These stories and more get shared in between singing.

I usually don't go into their rooms but on two occasions I was invited to do so last night. There was Ms. Lucille who could not get her TV remote to work and she asked me to come look at it. (I don't have a TV, so I could not help her)  Then when I got in her room, she ended up asking me to play for her roommate, Ms. Jensen. I sang her a few songs as she smiled and drifted to sleep.

Then on my way down the hall,  another woman who cares for her ailing husband came to ask me if I would come in his room to sing for him. When I did go to his bedside, I saw he appeared to be completely paralyzed and unable to respond or speak. His wife confirmed this as she stroked his arm  and kissed his cheek. She looked at him with such a loving expression and said, "He can feel pain! This is a good thing because I know his mind is waking up and he is improving!" She seemed so happy to be by his side. She asked me to sing anything, "It does not need to be religious" . (their room was full of Catholic symbols and it is a Catholic nursing home) I sang, "Let Me Call You Sweetheart" as she held his hand and smiled. Then I sang, "You Are my Sunshine" and other songs. She was so appreciative.

what a night it was!