Song: My Body
Music by: Alexandra Sarton

Notes: Singing this week brought me into my body in a joyful, appreciative way... our bodies, our existence are such miracles, and this song fully celebrates and owns this. For anyone who has ever felt ashamed of their body for any reason, this is a medicine song, a reclaiming, remembering song. Alexandra Sarton Love, who wrote it, has lived with alopecia since age 10, causing baldness. Maybe you're going through a medical treatment that makes it difficult to feel ownership of your own body? Maybe there's a relationship which leads to doubt about your body's beauty or validity? Maybe media or social gatherings has harmed your connection to your own body? Maybe you're a nursing mom? I don't know what you bring to this song... but I'm sooo glad you're bringing it!  Join me and you bring you, I'll bring me -- let's sing these words together!

Songwriter Info: In 2011, Alexandra Love was inspired to assemble a 12-woman chorus to sing the harmonies she had written for her solo project, In Curses. She created a festival, The Festival of Light and Sound (April 2012), to debut this project and to bring Beautiful Chorus together for a one-time performance. The ladies practiced each week leading up to the album release. The festival was a huge success and after that night, Love decided to keep the project going. She booked tours for Beautiful Chorus around the country, hosted crystal singing bowl meditations w/ the ladies, lead vocal workshops and more. It was then that BC wrote + recorded songs, and have since become the most successful independent group of their kind. Fusing elements of electronic, choral, deep bass, hip hop and jazz, Beautiful Chorus is unlike any other. They have albums that span from wordless symphonies to full rhythmic songs, w/ sound healing frequencies and love-centered messages. They even have a wordless holiday album, a lullaby album, and a multitude of singable hymns and mantras. Beautiful Chorus is currently residing in Orlando, FL where they are developing a new live experience, hosting spiritual conversations, and preparing for their upcoming full album release, High Frequency Love Music, due out 7/26. Beautiful Chorus is currently made of Alexandra Love and four other members (Patty, Anisha, Yuki and Veronica).

Sharing Info: When sharing in a money-making venture, like a workshop, class, or performance, please contact Beautiful Chorus for permission and rates.

Song Learning Time Stamps:
Start time of teaching: 00:02:31
Start time of reprise: 00:14:09

Links:
Beautiful Chorus website: https://www.beautifulchorus.com/ 
Alexandra Love website: https://www.alexandra.love/

Nuts & Bolts: 4:4, Mixolydian, unison with optional harmony

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Song: Heaven Above, Earth Below
Music by: Becky Graber

Notes: Becky Graber let her unconscious speak during our conversation, and when I asked what she knows about herself right now, she said, "I am a breath of air on the earth" -- and then laughed a little in surprise and delight. The song she teaches also came from delighted awareness of the place of the body between heaven and earth -- plus a little tai-chi. Becky and I share a wonderfully rambly conversation about shedding old identities and making space, wanting to allow things to bloom rather than push them, and threshold times. We also take a lot of time with this three verse song, including playing with harmonies. You'll hear me making mistakes as I learn and play with harmonies -- but hopefully you won't notice it too much, because you'll be singing right along, too! The goal of this podcast is to encourage you to keep stepping into the power and beauty of your own voice, something Becky Graber has many years of experience at helping people do...

Songwriter Info: Becky Graber has lived her life professionally centered around music and storytelling, teaching and performing, and a heart-drive towards healing and coming to centered generosity. She is the founder and director of the Brattleboro (VT) Women's Chorus.

Sharing Info: The song is free to share in oral tradition groups, but please contact Becky for recording and/or performing permission.

Song Learning Time Stamps:
Start time of teaching: 00:04:58
Start time of reprise: 01:15:20

Links:
Becky's website: www.beckygraber.com
Brattleboro Women's Chorus website: www.brattleborowomenschorus.org 
Psychospiritual paths like psychosynthesis – Roberto Assagioli: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Psychosynthesis 
The Diamond Approach – H.M. Almaas: https://www.diamondapproach.org/ 
Helen Yeomans: https://www.abreathofsong.com/episodes--show-notes/156-we-got-all-the-love
Natural Voices Network: https://www.naturalvoice.net/ 
Lisa Littlebird’s library: https://thebirdsings.com/song-library/ 
Velma Frye: https://www.velmafryemusic.com/ 
Song “Take Heart, Take Part, with lyrics “Participation is gonna save the human race” – Pete Seeger quote set by Becky Reardon: https://beckyreardonmusic.com/product/take-heart-take-part/
“Spes” by Mia Makaroff – Latin & Sami: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HKeikhsVynM 
Gaia Music Collective in NYC: https://www.eventbrite.com/o/gaia-music-collective-44369305153 
Choir! Choir! Choir!: https://choirchoirchoir.com/
Gareth Malone with “The Choir” on BBC: https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b008y125 
Ry Cooder “Jazz” album with red cover and black letters: https://open.spotify.com/album/3Z6RuwMcmDMgBJsZ01Ouhf 
Buena Vista Social Club: https://www.buenavistasocialclub.com/ 
Bobby McFerrin: https://bobbymcferrin.com/ 

Nuts & Bolts: 4:4, Major (Ionian), 3 verses

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Song: The Ambulance Song
Music by: Aimée Ringle
"Ooo Love" part by: Laurence Cole

Notes: We live on a busy road, not far from a fire station -- an ambulance is not an unusual sight -- and thanks to Aimée Ringle, I have the perfect song to wish the people involved well... and now you do, too! Next week, Aimée and I talk about the tender place music is able to open up, how someone with considerable musical skills and experience finds how they, too, can be included in community singing... how we are what we repeatedly do, and what that means for Aimée. She is generous, vulnerable, clear-sighted, and willing to name her own challenges. I hope you can join us... but before that, please enjoy adding this song to your personal repertoire!

Songwriter Info: Aimée Ringle is a singer, multi-instrumentalist, songwriter, song-leader, and storyteller. She has an invigorating teaching style that is enriched by her capable percussion and guitar skills. Aimée’s work as a song-leader and storyteller have woven her into an ever widening community of cultural shifters around the country in the realms of sustainable agriculture, alternative education, community living, healing, creativity, and spiritual exploration ~ all of which are reflected in the songs she carries. As a song-leader, Aimée’s work and example have become a valued part of several Ancestral skills gatherings including Winter Count, Spirit Weavers and Sharpening Stone.

Sharing Info: Yes -- The song is free to share in oral tradition groups, but please contact Aimée for recording and/or performing permission.

Song Learning Time Stamps:
Start time of teaching: 00:04:12
Start time of reprise: 00:17:38

Links:
Aimée's website: www.aimeeringlemusic.com 
Aimée's YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/c/AiméeRingle
The Ambulance Song video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7b6WxqtlIbo 
Aimée's Bandcamp: https://aimeeringle.bandcamp.com
Laurence Cole's website: https://www.laurencecole.com

Nuts & Bolts: 3:4, Aeolian, 4-part
​
Join this community of people who love to use song to help navigate life? Absolutely:
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​
Help us keep going: reviews, comments, encouragement, plus contributions... we float on your support.
https://www.abreathofsong.com/gratitude-jar.html

Song: Fear (Come to Me)
Music by: Joanna Laws Landis

Notes: Joanna and I explore the idea of inviting fear to come closer and be held, through song and word. We talk about how gifts of attention can come from wounds, and therefore be mixed blessings. Joanna describes the "field" she tends in a song circle, and what craves special notice when you live and work with the same person. This was recorded shortly before the political change in the USA when Biden chose not to run for office, so you won't hear us talking about the buoyancy that can come from feeling hopeful... but we do touch on navigating grief and fear! We also talk about one of the huge gifts a group singing can give a songcarrier....

Songwriter Info: Joanna Laws Landis (she/her) is a song-carrier and grief-tender with a deep trust in the transformational healing power of welcome and compassion. Joanna was steeped in song and harmony from her early years: in church, at school and in community choirs. In her late 20s, she discovered the community singing movement and felt a deep alignment with this simple and direct pathway to connection and healing. After collecting a wide library of songs from the midwest to the pacific coast, she has been leading community song circles regularly since 2020. Joanna has recently relocated to the land of her maternal grandmother’s people outside of Asheville, NC where in addition to leading singing & grief-tending, she is deepening her understanding of the body’s innate wisdom for healing with Somatic Experiencing International, and is studying collective trauma integration & facilitation with Thomas Hübl.

Sharing Info: You are welcome to share/teach the song in community settings, and Joanna always welcome financial support when it is available. Please contact her for recording and/or performing permission.
​
Links: 
Listen on Soundcloud: www.soundcloud.com/joannalawslandis
Email Joanna at [email protected] 
Follow Joanna's Grief Tending offerings on Eventbrite: www.eventbrite.com/o/joanna-laws-landis-amp-will-rogers-30189070512
Donations gratefully received on PayPal or Venmo @joannalawslandis

Thomas Huebl trauma integration: Academy of Inner Science https://thomashuebl.com/courses/training-programs/
Robert Frost - 'Writing free verse is like playing tennis with the net down.' https://quoteinvestigator.com/2021/05/24/poem-tennis/
Bliss Is Ordinary podcast – the 4th & 5th episodes are with Laurence Cole: https://www.buzzsprout.com/1939735
Laurence Cole: https://www.laurencecole.com/
Laurence Cole and Ahlay Blakely are also hostingonline grief circles:: https://www.healingattheroots.com/onlinemonthlygriefcircles
The Cranberries Everyone Else is Doing it So Why Can’t We?
Soup: Jook…  A Chinese rice porridge with ginger and garlic & maybe chicken. Here’s a Mark Bittman recipe: https://cooking.nytimes.com/recipes/1839-jook
Lianne La Havas artist – Paper Thin: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ug3Q9RmFywc

Nuts & Bolts: 6:8, harmonic minor, 2-part​

Join the A Breath of Song Mailing list to receive a heads up as a new episode is released, plus a large version of the artwork, brief thoughts from my slightly peculiar brain... and occasional extras when they seem vitally important! No junk -- I will never sell your address. I read out all your names into my living room when I send new mailings... I appreciate the connection to you who are listening and singing these songs with me.

Exchange energy with A Breath of Song with dollars at the Gratitude Jar (whoo-hoo!!!!), or by making comments, leaving reviews, suggesting songs or songwriters (including yourself) ..... your participation matters!

Song: May My Tears Water a Sapling
Music by: Mary L. Cohen

​Notes: Mary Cohen's huge heart and willingness to do big work in the world shines through in this song, with lyrics sparked by the 2020 midwestern derecho with devastated so many trees. When we talk in next week's songwriter conversation, the depth of Mary's passion for how singing can support and feed change is evident. I hope you can join us as we explore the US prison-industrial complex and music, the role of mentorship, and how self-care can adapt. In this episode, I invite you to experiment a bit, finding musical touchstones as a way into harmonizing. In the links, you'll find several different arrangement/performances you can listen to for other harmonizing ideas, if that's up your alley.

Songwriter Info: Mary L. Cohen, Associate Professor of Music Education at the University of Iowa, is lead author of Music-Making in U.S. Prisons: Listening to Incarcerated Voices (2022). She co-founded the International Music and Justice Network: IMAJIN Caring Communities, a group of researchers from 18 countries who study music-making in prisons, and you are welcome to join by contacting Mary to get on the group email list ([email protected]). From 2009 to 2020 she led the Oakdale Community Choir with incarcerated and non-incarcerated participants where participants have written over 150 songs, and the Oakdale Choir performed over 75 of these songs, available with the Creative Commons License. To continue working toward the choir’s goals of building communities of caring through singing and songwriting, she founded the Inside Outside Songwriting Collaboration Project where partnerships between incarcerated and non-incarcerated songwriters create original songs, build relationships, and learn about transformative and generative justice. She has been a keynote for conferences in Germany, Canada, and Portugal, interviewed by the BBC3 Music Matters, and has over 40 publications in journal articles, book chapters, and conference proceedings. She leads weekly music groups inside the Juvenile Detention Center of Linn County.
​
Sharing Info: The song is free to share, and Mary welcomes networking support and invites you to further your education and activism regarding environmental justice, restorative/transformative/generative justice, and simply acting with kindness to all you encounter.
​
Song Learning Time Stamps:
Start time of teaching: 00:03:48
Start time of reprise: 00:18:20

Links: 
Oakdale Community Choir website: https://oakdalechoir.lib.uiowa.edu/
"Not Our Trees" by Laura Weber: https://prairiewoods.org/not-our-trees/
Outside singers (non-incarcerated choir members) from the Oakdale Community Choir (now disbanded because the current warden will not allow it to restart) performed "May My Tears Water a Sapling" at the Anne Frank Tree Planting Ceremony from April 29, 2022, on the University of Iowa Pentacrest. You can see this performance that begins with a powerful spoken word piece by Jhe Russell at 1:14 on this YouTube video.

Nuts & Bolts: 3:4, Major, unison with optional harmonies

Join the A Breath of Song Mailing list
(https://dashboard.mailerlite.com/forms/335811/81227018071442567/share)  to receive a heads up as a new episode is released, plus a large version of the artwork, brief thoughts from my slightly peculiar brain... and occasional extras when they seem vitally important! No junk -- I will never sell your address. I read out all your names into my living room when I send new mailings... I appreciate the connection to you who are listening and singing these songs with me.

Exchange energy with A Breath of Song with dollars at the Gratitude Jar
(https://www.abreathofsong.com/gratitude-jar.html) (whoo-hoo!!!!), or by making comments, leaving reviews, suggesting songs or songwriters (including yourself) ..... your participation matters!

Song: Walk On Through
Music by: Samara Jade

​Notes: Samara's song sings powerfully inside me about how we accompany each other... and are accompanied by the natural world. It gives me words to say and feel when someone I care for is going through pain and there is nothing I can "do" to help... and that I am not the only source of companionship. This episode is a little unusual -- instead of just voice, I decided to play piano, including time for you to sing while I accompany you. Patty's artwork was in my mind's eye as I was singing -- I am so grateful for her accompanying vision as we create this library of songs.

Songwriter Info: Samara Jade is a multi-instrumentalist folk troubadour - a writer, crafter, performer and producer of memorable soul-centered songs. Coming from a diverse musical background, Samara stitches together a unique tapestry of sounds with a sophisticated quality of musicianship distinctly her own. Born in the Hudson Valley of New York state, and shaped by the mountains and rivers of the Blue Ridge Mountains of North Carolina and the Olympic Peninsula of Washington state, Samara has been a grass-roots style touring folk musician for over a decade, spreading her songs all across this country and weaving and widening the webs of community. To Samara, music is a primarily a healing and spiritual practice - with many of her songs born out of and made for her own journeys of grief, underworld spelunking, connection with the natural world & transformation - and she derives great joy and fulfillment when her songs turn out to provide good medicine for others as well.
​
Sharing Info: The song is free to share but Samara always welcomes financial and/or networking support if/when folks are so moved.
​
Song Learning Time Stamps:
Start time of teaching: 00:04:30
Start time of reprise: 00:13:57

Links: 
Samara's Patreon: www.patreon.com/samarajade

Nuts & Bolts: Mixed meter; major, verse & chorus

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(https://dashboard.mailerlite.com/forms/335811/81227018071442567/share)  to receive a heads up as a new episode is released, plus a large version of the artwork, brief thoughts from my slightly peculiar brain... and occasional extras when they seem vitally important! No junk -- I will never sell your address. I read out all your names into my living room when I send new mailings... I appreciate the connection to you who are listening and singing these songs with me.

Exchange energy with A Breath of Song with dollars at the Gratitude Jar
(https://www.abreathofsong.com/gratitude-jar.html) (whoo-hoo!!!!), or by making comments, leaving reviews, suggesting songs or songwriters (including yourself) ..... your participation matters!

Song: Begin Again
Music by: Jean Farmer

​Notes: Jean Farmer's song was just right for me this week, as some old wounds were reopened. I was frustrated with myself -- I didn't want to have to heal again. This song helped me find the kindness and willingness to start over, connecting with this breath and the earth. Jean said I could harmonize at will -- so I give you four different ways -- a simple echo, a descant, and then a 3-part harmony with part above and below and some different sounds, and of course, the unadorned song so you can play or enjoy joining your voice with mine. I'm so glad we're singing together!

Songwriter Info: Jean Farmer has experienced the joy of singing in community from her earliest days, often singing with her sisters as a child and later leading songs around the campfire. She was a registered nurse for 35 years. Since retiring from Nursing, songs have been coming through her, often in the middle of the night. This opening to welcome the songs is a spiritual practice: a path to centering, a form of self-expression, and a way to create and build community. She often sings at labyrinth walks and other contemplative gatherings in Northern California with her singing partner Robin O'Brien in a group called Notan.
​
Sharing Info: The song is free to share in oral tradition groups. Please credit Jean Farmer as the author. Please contact Jean for recording and or performing permission. ([email protected])
​
Song Learning Time Stamps:
Start time of teaching: 00:03:45
Start time of reprise: 00:18:57

Links: 
Notan Bandcamp: https://notan.bandcamp.com/album/mother-tree
Notan website: https://notan.org/

Nuts & Bolts: 4:4, major, unison with optional harmonies

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(https://dashboard.mailerlite.com/forms/335811/81227018071442567/share)  to receive a heads up as a new episode is released, plus a large version of the artwork, brief thoughts from my slightly peculiar brain... and occasional extras when they seem vitally important! No junk -- I will never sell your address. I read out all your names into my living room when I send new mailings... I appreciate the connection to you who are listening and singing these songs with me.

Exchange energy with A Breath of Song with dollars at the Gratitude Jar
(https://www.abreathofsong.com/gratitude-jar.html) (whoo-hoo!!!!), or by making comments, leaving reviews, suggesting songs or songwriters (including yourself) ..... your participation matters!

Song: Hold On
Music by: Rev. Cleophus Robinson, Jr.
Composed in: 1980
​
​Notes: Aaron shares his close personal connection with this song: after the horrible accidental death of his father, "“It was the first inkling, the first kind of hint that this kind of grief might be bearable.” We dove into how to bring anti-oppression work right into songcircles, or any other kind of work you might do. Aaron helped me consider how I, as a white person with financial stability, could practice persistence in anti-racism work... looking for ways to move beyond the crash-and-boom cycle of support that's triggered by a disaster. How do you hold grief and joy at the same time? Aaron invites us into an exploratory "jamming out" section into the song, and talks about touch and connection as self-care. Lots to celebrate, lots to grieve... and while I was sick at the time of recording, (I don't have Aaron's robust immune system!), I'm so grateful to have had the chance to listen.

Songwriter Info: Aaron Johnson (he/him) is a facilitator, public speaker, and touch specialist working to identify and interrupt barriers between people. As co-founder of both Holistic Resistance and Grief to Action, Aaron takes the time to hold the stories of black people around homophobia, transphobia, internalized racism, and those that are Chronically UnderTouched. Because oppression is a part of historical and present American culture, the long-term impact of those trauma stories should be acknowledged and held as a map for our collective healing. Aaron Johnson practices and invites various methods of moving through these stories, such as the communal listening ear, sound healing, meditation, and closeness to the earth.
​
Sharing Info: When sharing in a money-making venture, like a workshop, class, or performance, please contact Aaron for permission and rates.
​
Song Learning Time Stamps:
Start time of teaching: 00:04:42
Start time of reprise: 01:13:45

Links: 
Bliss is Ordinary podcast episode with Yam and Jessi: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/aaron-johnson-invites-you-to-risk-something/id1614727245?i=1000641691263
Holistic Resistance podcast with Lisa Littlebird: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/holistic-resistance/id1368705035
Rev. Cleophus Robinson, Jr.’s recording of Hold On : https://youtu.be/awyHHZ44YDU?feature=shared
Aaron's link tree: https://linktr.ee/HolisticResistance
Holistic Resistance website: https://www.holisticresistance.com/
Holistic Resistance Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/holistic_resistance
Grief to Action fund: https://www.grieftoaction.com/
Chronically Under Touched (CUT) project: https://www.cutproject.org/
CUT Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/cut.project/
Rescue (album by Acappella Company): https://store.acappella.org/acappella/rescue/
Alillia Johnson's Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/alillia.sound/
and Bandcamp: https://alillia.bandcamp.com/album/fragments-2
Fivacious, Aaron’s family group: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xvh0HKHo5jE

Nuts & Bolts: 2:2, Minor, unison with opportunities to harmonize, zipper

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Exchange energy with A Breath of Song with dollars at the Gratitude Jar
(https://www.abreathofsong.com/gratitude-jar.html) (whoo-hoo!!!!), or by making comments, leaving reviews, suggesting songs or songwriters (including yourself) ..... your participation matters!

Song: I Hear
Music by: Aaron Johnson

​Notes: What I love about Aaron's song is how it is quick to learn, and then can be taken in many directions -- it can stay simple, giving a chance to listen deeply to one's own voice or the voices of surrounding people. It can be explored in many ways -- growing, soft, harmonies, rhythmic intense or free -- and for this recording, I had the privilege of listening to five friends learn it for the first time, and then let themselves take risks and explore. When making a studio recording, anything that didn't ring perfectly would be taken out -- but I've left the exploration in, to encourage you to do some of your own. Your voice from your heart to your soul. Listening to what it's saying. What a beautiful practice.

Songwriter Info: Aaron Johnson (he/him) is a facilitator, public speaker, and touch specialist working to identify and interrupt barriers between people. As co-founder of both Holistic Resistance and Grief to Action, Aaron takes the time to hold the stories of black people around homophobia, transphobia, internalized racism, and those that are Chronically UnderTouched. Because oppression is a part of historical and present American culture, the long-term impact of those trauma stories should be acknowledged and held as a map for our collective healing. Aaron Johnson practices and invites various methods of moving through these stories, such as the communal listening ear, sound healing, meditation, and closeness to the earth.
​
Sharing Info: When sharing in a money-making venture, like a workshop, class, or performance, please contact Aaron for permission and rates.
​
Song Learning Time Stamps:
Start time of teaching: 00:05:09
Start time of reprise: 00:13:20

Links: 
Link tree: https://linktr.ee/HolisticResistance
Grief to Action: https://www.grieftoaction.com/
The Chronically UnderTouched Project:
https://www.cutproject.org/
https://bio.site/cut.project
TEDx on Youtube: https://youtu.be/zi_hm0-zrgk

Nuts & Bolts: 4:4, major, unison with option of adding harmonies

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(https://dashboard.mailerlite.com/forms/335811/81227018071442567/share)  to receive a heads up as a new episode is released, plus a large version of the artwork, brief thoughts from my slightly peculiar brain... and occasional extras when they seem vitally important! No junk -- I will never sell your address. I read out all your names into my living room when I send new mailings... I appreciate the connection to you who are listening and singing these songs with me.

Exchange energy with A Breath of Song with dollars at the Gratitude Jar
(https://www.abreathofsong.com/gratitude-jar.html) (whoo-hoo!!!!), or by making comments, leaving reviews, suggesting songs or songwriters (including yourself) ..... your participation matters!

Song: Roadblock
Music by: Debbie Nargi-Brown

​Notes: Debbie Nargi-Brown has written a powerhouse of a song, beloved by anyone who has gotten to sing it with her... it builds the energy to get up again, and again, no matter what the fall. Sometimes I need to temper this with the reminder to myself to be attentive to what I need as I'm getting up -- it can be done slowly, and that's still a getting up worth celebrating. At the same time, the sheer tenacity of this song, combined with the acceptance that life is unpredictable, unknowable, and our job is to stay in the arena -- I love this for all of that! This song has a potent backstory, as Debbie caught it shortly after her life partner had received a very frightening diagnosis, and they began the unpredictable, unknowable path of treatment.

Songwriter Info: Debbie Nargi-Brown is a gifted community song leader, an award-winning dance teacher, and a talented songwriter, who resides in the Santa Cruz Mountains in CA. She offers her songs with love, compassion, and the hope of bringing joy and healing to others. Debbie’s lyrics and melodies are sung all over the world. She writes songs for the heart, healing, transformation, love, grief, and all that connects us as human beings. Bringing people together in dance and song is one of her greatest joys in life!
​
Sharing Info: The song is free to share in oral tradition groups, but please contact Debbie for recording and/or performing permission.
​
Song Learning Time Stamps:
Start time of teaching: 00:03:33
Start time of reprise: 00:15:05

Links: 
To listen or purchase her music: https://www.debbienargi-brown.com/albums/
You can also sign up for her newsletter through her website to find out about upcoming retreats or follow her on facebook: https://www.facebook.com/debbie.nargibrown​
There is a great live version of Roadblock on her soundcloud page: https://on.soundcloud.com/gSDc2
Debbie's music is also available on all streaming platforms now.
Debbie also offers a great opportunity: Private lessons online!
She says: Schedule a session with me if you would like help with: writing a song (this could be your very first song), finishing a song you are working on, adding harmonies or parts to one of your songs, strengthening your song leading abilities, teaching harmonies or multiple parts, connecting to your voice and feeling good about your singing, using garageband as a songwriting tool and/or to record your song. You can schedule a single session or we can work together multiple times. Each session will be tailored to what you want to accomplish.
Email me if you have any questions or to book a session: [email protected]

Nuts & Bolts: 4:4, Aeolian, 3-layer

Join the A Breath of Song Mailing list
(https://dashboard.mailerlite.com/forms/335811/81227018071442567/share)  to receive a heads up as a new episode is released, plus a large version of the artwork, brief thoughts from my slightly peculiar brain... and occasional extras when they seem vitally important! No junk -- I will never sell your address. I read out all your names into my living room when I send new mailings... I appreciate the connection to you who are listening and singing these songs with me.

Exchange energy with A Breath of Song with dollars at the Gratitude Jar
(https://www.abreathofsong.com/gratitude-jar.html) (whoo-hoo!!!!), or by making comments, leaving reviews, suggesting songs or songwriters (including yourself) ..... your participation matters!

Song: Bend and Rebound
Music by: Heidi Wilson

​Notes: Heidi is an incredible resource for songs connected with the natural world -- and this one turns to willows, with their ability to give and spring, bend and rebound. Next week, Heidi and I get to talk about how she accesses her own rebound during winter and other times. We ponder the urge to help, the balance of local and travel, and Heidi describes what she is "on a rampage" about... including a request for listeners regarding a cave! I hope you can join us...

Songwriter Info: Heidi Wilson has a passion for sharing songs in service to community and the wild world; songs that celebrate the seasons, bring groups together, offer thanks, muster courage, and make room for healing. She is drawn to the potent and surprising journey of deep-listening and collaborative emergent music making. Heidi has been leading community singing groups in Vermont for the last 15 years and currently sings with the vocal trio Heartwood.

Sharing Info: Heidi says: "I’m on an ongoing journey figuring out how to share songs (that feel like generous gifts from the world) while also making a living as a songweaver. I am happy for the songs coming through me to be shared! If people are singing them in informal, community, or ritual settings that’s awesome, sing away! If people are sharing them in a setting where they are making a bunch of money or there is a budget for educational/repertoire materials and they are able to pass some of those resources my way I appreciate that. I would feel good about that reciprocity coming in the form of a one time donation, or by joining me on Patreon and supporting my songweaving work at any monthly level. And if you are interested in recording any of these songs let’s talk!

Looking for recordings of more songs? I mostly share music through Patreon, an online platform to support artists. On my Patreon site I’ve posted 80+ songs. Each post has downloadable practice recordings of the harmony parts. And through Patreon I also link to a spreadsheet where the songs are organized into categories, so you can listen through and find just the right song for Spring, or Gratitude, or Trees."
​
Song Learning Time Stamps:
Start time of teaching: 00:03:38
Start time of reprise: 00:11:42

Links: 
Heidi's Website: www.heidiannwilson.com
Heidi's Patreon: www.patreon.com/HeidiWilson
Heartwood Trio's Website: www.Heartwoodtrio.com

Nuts & Bolts: 4:4, Ionian (major), 2-part round with harmony

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Exchange energy with A Breath of Song with dollars at the Gratitude Jar
(https://www.abreathofsong.com/gratitude-jar.html) (whoo-hoo!!!!), or by making comments, leaving reviews, suggesting songs or songwriters (including yourself) ..... your participation matters!

Song: My Thoughts Make A Difference
Music by: Chandler Yorkhall

​Notes: The energy and determination that this song funnels into me can be formidable. It steps from naming that our individual thoughts, feelings, words, and healing matters; next stop is a determination to pay attention to the struggle, because time is short; and then the question -- what can I do for this broken world? It's a vital progression and gathering of force. I sing it at two very different tempos (well, the second, faster one I don't QUITE manage, but, you know, I'll get better at it!) One of the things that stopped me from singing for a long time was feeling like I wasn't good enough, even to sing to myself, because I didn't sound like the albums I had. That's why I leave mistakes in this podcast -- I'm reclaiming my right to not be perfect, and the playfulness and energy that comes from that... and I hope hearing me mess up frees space for you, too.

Songwriter Info: Chandler grew up singing with his family and can’t remember a time when singing wasn’t part of his daily life. He has been writing, leading, and getting inspired by songs since he was a teen, and songs have saved his sanity more times than he can remember. He is so pleased to be able to share his joy through sharing his songs. Chandler lives in Minneapolis with his wife and 4 children, who also love to sing! He's never really settled on a parenting “philosophy” per se, until his two teen daughters returned from their first Village Harmony camp, singing lustily in praise of everything good. At that point he said to himself, “Well, if my children leave my home knowing how to sing, I guess I’ll have done them, and the world, a great service.”

Sharing Info: Yes - The song is free to share in oral tradition groups, but please contact Chandler for recording, performing, or publication permission.
​
Song Learning Time Stamps:
Start time of teaching: 00:03:07
Start time of reprise: 00:12:50

Nuts & Bolts: 4:4, Aeolian, 3 layer

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(https://dashboard.mailerlite.com/forms/335811/81227018071442567/share)  to receive a heads up as a new episode is released, plus a large version of the artwork, brief thoughts from my slightly peculiar brain... and occasional extras when they seem vitally important! No junk -- I will never sell your address. I read out all your names into my living room when I send new mailings... I appreciate the connection to you who are listening and singing these songs with me.

Exchange energy with A Breath of Song with dollars at the Gratitude Jar
(https://www.abreathofsong.com/gratitude-jar.html) (whoo-hoo!!!!), or by making comments, leaving reviews, suggesting songs or songwriters (including yourself) ..... your participation matters!

Notes: Even though I had a runny nose while recording, I practiced showing up with my voice where it is, feeling into the body, noticing the breath... it felt beautiful to be "calling us in," following Meg O'Dell's guidance "home to ourselves." I love the way this melody rocks and rolls through so many comforting words -- I come away with the sense of "true-ing" myself, "whole-ing." I wonder what you will notice as you sing? Make ample use of the rewind button to give yourself a chance to learn some things that I breeze through pretty quickly -- and you can easily find the words at abreathofsong.com if they aren't in front of you here! Enjoy...

Songwriter Info: Meg loves helping people access their innate capacity for healing, connection, and joy. She is a somatic coach, supporting individuals and couples in growth, transformation, and healing. Because she's always found the voice, and especially singing in harmony with others, to be a particularly powerful pathway for connection with ourselves and the world around us, she delights in serving as a music teacher, song leader, and vocal mentor. She hosts an annual adult and family singing retreat on the coast of Maine called SongWeavers. In addition, Meg is an Adjunct Professor for Antioch University's Graduate Program for Waldorf Teachers and for the Center for Anthroposophy's Waldorf High School Teacher Education Program. Her sources of inspiration include the small, misty mountain that overlooks her home and singing with her children, Clancy and Celia.

Links: Meg's Website: www.singwaldorf.com

Song Learning Time Stamps:
Start time of teaching: 00:03:45
Start time of reprise: 00:19:30

Nuts & Bolts: 4:4, Ionian, 3-part harmony

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(https://dashboard.mailerlite.com/forms/335811/81227018071442567/share)  to receive a heads up as a new episode is released, plus a large version of the artwork, brief thoughts from my slightly peculiar brain... and occasional extras when they seem vitally important! No junk -- I will never sell your address. I read out all your names into my living room when I send new mailings... I appreciate the connection to you who are listening and singing these songs with me.

Exchange energy with A Breath of Song with dollars at the Gratitude Jar
(https://www.abreathofsong.com/gratitude-jar.html) (whoo-hoo!!!!), or by making comments, leaving reviews, suggesting songs or songwriters (including yourself) ..... your participation matters!

Notes: We play a little with the harmonies over and under this very singable melody Paulette wrote to set part of a letter written in 1675 by George Fox (it's been a minute!) He was writing during troubled times to a persecuted people. As I was recording, I kept wondering how it could feel to be both "sure and steadfast" and "float above"... the invitation is open to you to explore!

Songwriter Info: Paulette Meier is a Quaker singer/songwriter from Cincinnati, Ohio, where her strong voice has led crowds in song at many a gathering for peace, justice and an earth restored. As a peace educator in schools, she produced an award-winning album, Come Join the Circle: LessonSongs for Peacemaking, now used in classrooms across the country to help children learn the skills of peacemaking. As Artist in Residence for 9 months at Pendle Hill, a Quaker Center for Study and Contemplation, her appreciation for Quaker history and spirituality deepened, leading to a practice of setting inspiring quotations of 17th century Quaker founding leaders to chant-like song. She leads chanting at the Wisdom retreats of Cynthia Bourgeault, author, mystic, and teacher of the contemplative Christian Wisdom tradition. This on-going collaboration led to a second album of Quaker chants composed by Paulette, Wellsprings of Life: Quaker Wisdom in Chant, on which this song can be found.

Sharing Info: The song is free to share in oral tradition groups, but please contact Paulette for recording and/or performing permission. When sharing this song, please credit the source: w: George Fox, 1675; m: Paulette Meier, on the album Wellsprings of Life, Quaker Wisdom in Chant.

Links: Paulette's Website (order downloads or CD here) - www.paulettemeier.com

Song Learning Time Stamps:
Start time of teaching: 00:03:04
Start time of reprise: 00:13:31

Nuts & Bolts: 4:4, major, unison with harmonies

Join the A Breath of Song mailing list (https://dashboard.mailerlite.com/forms/335811/81227018071442567/share)  to receive a heads up as a new episode is released, plus a large version of the artwork, brief thoughts from my slightly peculiar brain... and occasional extras when they seem vitally important! No junk -- I will never sell your address. I read out all your names into my living room when I send new mailings... I appreciate the connection to you who are listening and singing these songs with me.

Exchange energy with A Breath of Song with dollars at the Gratitude Jar (https://www.abreathofsong.com/gratitude-jar.html)
 (whoo-hoo!!!!), or by making comments, leaving reviews, suggesting songs or songwriters (including yourself) ..... your participation matters!

​Notes: Even though Kate wanted a resolution, the song insisted on being what it is -- a way to stay in the storm. She talks with me about how that felt, and what happened as she kept listening. We explore further -- how do you become a songleader when that's not how you view yourself? How do you write songs, when that feels scary-impossible? What is it about singing together that offers healing, and why is Kate herself drawn to doing things that help people in difficult moments? Where do songs live? I left this conversation with respect and excitement tumbling over each other... I hope you, too, enjoy hearing Kate's perspective.

Songwriter Info: Kate Valentine is a registered nurse and founder of Singing Mamas - a national non-profit for maternal well-being, bringing singing groups across the UK and the globe to women and mothers. Kate started with one group in 2011 and while struggling as a single mum to 3 sons and working nights shifts, she set about to get singing mamas free and referred to all new and expectant mums across the UK. There are now more than 200 leaders across 8 countries, with Singing Mamas programmes being delivered in over 50 local authorities, either as community groups or on-prescription through the national health service (NHS).

Kate is most passionate about bringing the 'untrained' musician into the work of song sharing, and is driven by a determination to re-normalise a singing culture, where it has been lost.

Sharing Info: Yes -- The song is free to share but Kate always welcomes financial and/or networking support if/when folks are so moved.

Links:
Ashdown Forest - Winnie the Pooh: https://ashdownforest.org/explore/winnie-the-pooh/
Natural Voice Network: https://www.naturalvoice.net/
Nick Prater: https://www.susiero.com/nick-prater.html
Singing Mamas: www.singingmamas.org
You Are My Sunshine: https://www.wideopencountry.com/you-are-my-sunshine/
DYCP Award Arts Council: https://www.artscouncil.org.uk/dycp
Monkey Mind: https://www.pocketmindfulness.com/understanding-monkey-mind-live-harmony-mental-companion/
Episode 129: "Inner Peace" by Kate Valentine: https://www.abreathofsong.com/episodes--show-notes/129-inner-peace
National Health Service UK: https://www.nhs.uk/
Empowering women and addressing poverty: https://givingcompass.org/article/how-women-empowerment-can-help-address-poverty
​German Melodic Minimal Techno: https://www.chosic.com/genre-chart/minimal-melodic-techno/
Royal college of Music, Dave Camlin: https://www.rcm.ac.uk/research/people/details/?id=94812
Sound waves made visible…
https://www.sciencelearn.org.nz/resources/2814-sound-visualising-sound-waves
Cymatics: https://journeyofcuriosity.net/pages/what-is-cymatics-how-to-explained
Fire: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zSQP0D4p8Xo
Sand: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wvJAgrUBF4w
Jagged Little Pill by Alanis Morisette: https://genius.com/albums/Alanis-morissette/Jagged-little-pill
Anohni and the Johnsons (previously known as Antony and the Johnsons): https://www.anohni.com/
Victor Ruiz: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eVT_81WihTA
Sama’ Abdulhadi: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V4lH-KzsQi0
Singing Mamas on Instagram: @singing_mamas_org
Singing Mamas on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/singingmamas

Song Learning Time Stamps:
Start time of teaching: 00:04:52
Start time of reprise: 01:23:00

Nuts & Bolts: 2:2, major, 4-layer

Join the A Breath of Song mailing list (https://dashboard.mailerlite.com/forms/335811/81227018071442567/share) to receive a heads up as a new episode is released, plus a large version of the artwork, brief thoughts from my slightly peculiar brain... and occasional extras when they seem vitally important! No junk -- I will never sell your address. I read out all your names into my living room when I send new mailings... I appreciate the connection to you who are listening and singing these songs with me.

​Exchange energy with A Breath of Song with dollars at the Gratitude Jar https://www.abreathofsong.com/gratitude-jar.html (whoo-hoo!!!!), or by making comments, leaving reviews, suggesting songs or songwriters (including yourself) ..... your participation matters!

Notes: I love the way this song by Kate Valentine has both motion and deep stillness. It carries acceptance and conviction, and I simply love having it in my head. How did she do this??? Next week, in conversation with Kate, she tells how she wrote this specific song, as well as how she managed to convince herself to write music in the first place, which felt like a near-impossible stretch.

Songwriter Info: Kate Valentine is a registered nurse and founder of Singing Mamas - a national non-profit for maternal well-being, bringing singing groups across the UK and the globe to women and mothers. Kate started with one group in 2011 and while struggling as a single mum to 3 sons and working nights shifts, she set about to get singing mamas free and referred to all new and expectant mums across the UK. There are now more than 200 leaders across 8 countries, with Singing Mamas programmes being delivered in over 50 local authorities, either as community groups or on-prescription through the national health service (NHS).

Kate is most passionate about bringing the 'untrained' musician into the work of song sharing, and is driven by a determination to re-normalise a singing culture, where it has been lost.

Sharing Info: Yes -- The song is free to share but Kate always welcomes financial and/or networking support if/when folks are so moved.

Links:
Singing Mamas Website: www.singingmamas.org
Singing Mamas on Instagram: @singing_mamas_org

Song Learning Time Stamps:
Start time of teaching: 00:03:34
Start time of reprise: 00:14:47

Nuts & Bolts: 2:2, major, harmonized 2 layers

Join the A Breath of Song mailing list (https://dashboard.mailerlite.com/forms/335811/81227018071442567/share) to receive a heads up as a new episode is released, plus a large version of the artwork, brief thoughts from my slightly peculiar brain... and occasional extras when they seem vitally important! No junk -- I will never sell your address. I read out all your names into my living room when I send new mailings... I appreciate the connection to you who are listening and singing these songs with me.

​Exchange energy with A Breath of Song with dollars at the Gratitude Jar https://www.abreathofsong.com/gratitude-jar.html (whoo-hoo!!!!), or by making comments, leaving reviews, suggesting songs or songwriters (including yourself) ..... your participation matters!

Notes: A generous song to let us both receive and release -- I deeply respect Lynn O'Brien's way of moving through the world. I love singing this song of hers so these words, this wisdom of taking and dropping, yes and no, can sift into my being and start to feel natural, like something I believe in my very core. Patty says, "I connected this song with the micro rhizomes and roots of trees -- what they have within them to give and what is given to them from others." Yes, yes, yes!!!

Songwriter Info: Described as a "musical force of nature," Lynn O'Brien is an award-winning vocalist, songwriter, performer and recording artist with a soulful, dynamic voice. She has captivated thousands of audiences with her healing original songs, well-loved covers and compelling vocal improvisation - seamlessly blending genres like folk, jazz, soul, blues and R&B. ​Lynn has collaborated with artists across all mediums (from book authors to belly dancers to Bobby McFerrin himself) and also soars as a solo artist; she accompanies her vocals on guitar, ukulele, piano and occasional loop station to create an a cappella "one woman choir" effect. Drawing on her background as a board-certified music therapist, women's empowerment coach and speaker, Lynn brings a deep sense of presence, authenticity and inventiveness to every performance.
​
In a moment of deep presence, Lynn spontaneously composed this tune as a self-prayer and intention-setting of radical openness. Influenced by Tosha Silver's writings and many other spiritual teachers, she finds that her core work is often about opening - opening to receive and release - opening to being an easy, open conduit for Life to come through. Singing and improvisation is where this openness is most accessible for her, but she tries to practice in all areas of life. Thanks for listening, and please use this freely.

Sharing Info: Yes -- The song is free to share but Lynn always welcome financial and/or networking support if/when folks are so moved. To request the original recording from Lynn O'Brien, please contact her through her website, www.LynnOBrien.love

Links:
Website: https://www.lynnobrien.love/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lynnobrienlove/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/lynnobrienlove
Listen/buy on Bandcamp: https://lynnobrienmusic.bandcamp.com/album/rising
Listen/stream on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/album/4yMCG3V8FNV7JbkGR6FPTc
Listen/follow on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@LynnOBrienLove
​
Support via Virtual Tip Jar (you know, "willingness to receive" and all that!)
Venmo: https://account.venmo.com/u/lynn-Obrien 
Paypal: https://www.paypal.com/paypalme/lynnobrienmusic

Song Learning Time Stamps:
Start time of teaching: 00:03:51
Start time of reprise: 00:15:40

Nuts & Bolts: 4:4 minor; call and response, harmonized

Join the A Breath of Song mailing list (https://dashboard.mailerlite.com/forms/335811/81227018071442567/share) to receive a heads up as a new episode is released, plus a large version of the artwork, brief thoughts from my slightly peculiar brain... and occasional extras when they seem vitally important! No junk -- I will never sell your address. I read out all your names into my living room when I send new mailings... I appreciate the connection to you who are listening and singing these songs with me.

​Exchange energy with A Breath of Song with dollars at the Gratitude Jar https://www.abreathofsong.com/gratitude-jar.html (whoo-hoo!!!!), or by making comments, leaving reviews, suggesting songs or songwriters (including yourself) ..... your participation matters!

​Notes: It's magic to sing a song of presence in a language unfamiliar to me -- this one from the Phillipines -- it magnifies the focus, the awareness. Also I experience great comfort singing this particular set of sounds. Songwriter Gérone Pascal talks next week about what is special about Tagalog, why song creating feels natural to her, and her #1 self care tactic... all things which play out in this song. I added a few harmonies, but you might choose to play the melody section on repeat and add your own!

Songwriter Info: Gérone is a thirty something movement and meditation teacher from the Philippines, now living in France. Her work is mostly about helping people get to know and love their bodies so much that they'd want to take care of them through yoga postures, mindful consumption, regulated breathing, and rest. When she's not in the yoga studio or the health center, she's happy singing Filipino folksongs while hiking, belting out karaoke hits in the kitchen while cooking or baking delicious vegan fare, or meditating while sewing or knitting clothes for her friends and family.

​Sharing Info: Yes -- The song is free to share in oral tradition groups, but please contact Gérone for recording and/or performing permission.

Links:
Gérone's Website: https://gerone.yoga/fr
Gérone's Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/gerone.gentlewarrior

Song Learning Time Stamps:
Start time of teaching (text): 00:04:00
Start time of teaching (singing): 00:06:10
Start time of reprise: 00:14:30
​​​
Nuts & Bolts: 3:4, major, harmonized melody

​Join the A Breath of Song mailing list (https://dashboard.mailerlite.com/forms/335811/81227018071442567/share) to receive a heads up as a new episode is released, plus a large version of the artwork, brief thoughts from my slightly peculiar brain... and occasional extras when they seem vitally important! No junk -- I will never sell your address. I read out all your names into my living room when I send new mailings... I appreciate the connection to you who are listening and singing these songs with me.

Exchange energy with A Breath of Song with dollars at the Gratitude Jar https://www.abreathofsong.com/gratitude-jar.html (whoo-hoo!!!!), or by making comments, leaving reviews, suggesting songs or songwriters (including yourself) ..... your participation matters!​

Notes: Every time I sing one of Alexa Sunshine Rose's songs with a group, people immediately want to sing it again -- they simply feel that good. I give a little extra help picking out the harmonies that are on the recording of this that Alexa Sunshine Rose released (buying it on Bandcamp is a great way to support her artistry)... and then I play around with making up harmonies of my own, as I hope you will if it appeals. There's also something very beautiful about centering in the melody of this song, and letting the harmonies develop around you.

Songwriter Info: Alexa Sunshine Rose is a singer-songwriter, mother and artist who has dedicated herself and her life's work to being a clear channel for peace on earth. Alexa plays in the tuning frequency of A=432 Hz to promote inner peace and deep sound absorption. Listeners worldwide utilize her music during pregnancy and birth, hospice, yoga and massage, community song circles, and inner-transformational journeys.

​Sharing Info: Yes -- The song is free to share in oral tradition groups, but please contact Alexa for recording and/or performing permission.

Links:
Website: www.alexasunshinerose.com
Instagram: @Alexasunshinerose
Facebook: www.facebook.com/alexasunshinerose
Support on Patreon: www.patreon.com/alexasunshinerose

Song Learning Time Stamps:
Start time of teaching: 00:03:25
Start time of reprise: 00:13:35
​​​
Nuts & Bolts: 3:4 minor, 4-part harmony

​Join the A Breath of Song mailing list to receive a heads up as a new episode is released, plus a large version of the artwork, brief thoughts from my slightly peculiar brain... and occasional extras when they seem vitally important! No junk -- I will never sell your address. I read out all your names into my living room when I send new mailings... I appreciate the connection to you who are listening and singing these songs with me.

Exchange energy with A Breath of Song with dollars at the Gratitude Jar (whoo-hoo!!!!), or by making comments, leaving reviews, suggesting songs or songwriters (including yourself) ..... your participation matters!​

​Notes: Te Martin describes this song as an exhale... I experience it like that, too... a relaxation, a release. It's so very welcome to me as I'm coming into a busy time of life, with lots of commitments lined up -- I need ways to let go quickly, in the middle of all the flurry. Having this song in my mind lets me do that... and if I happen to be with someone else who's willing to sing, it's so easy to echo it back to each other. Next week is a songwriter conversation with Te... bicycles, miso, and the natural world all come into play!

Songwriter Info: Te Martin is a song-keeper and ritual artist. They were born on Ramaytush Ohlone land in San Francisco and have been shaped by Ocean, Redwoods, circus arts, and theater games. They facilitate oral tradition singing classes and workshops that focus on song as a tool for collective liberation, somatic regulation, and ancestral connection. Te served as co-organizer of Thrive Street Choir in the San Francisco bay area for six years, is a student of Gaelic song, and released their first professional music video and EP of original songs, "Water & Bones," in 2021.

​Sharing Info: Yes -- The song is free to share in oral tradition groups, but please contact Te for recording and/or performing permission

Links: 
EP, "Water & Bones": https://temartin.bandcamp.com/album/water-bones
"May This Body Be a Bridge" Music Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J3Mn_2BSNAg
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/temartin
Mailing List: https://mailchi.mp/1debadd3ebb3/sos 
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/te.martin/

Song Learning Time Stamps:
Start time of teaching: 00:03:53
Start time of reprise: 00:12:10
​​
Nuts & Bolts: 4:4, major, call & response

​Join the A Breath of Song mailing list to receive a heads up as a new episode is released, plus a large version of the artwork, brief thoughts from my slightly peculiar brain... and occasional extras when they seem vitally important! No junk -- I will never sell your address. I read out all your names into my living room when I send new mailings... I appreciate the connection to you who are listening and singing these songs with me.

Exchange energy with A Breath of Song with dollars at the Gratitude Jar (whoo-hoo!!!!), or by making comments, leaving reviews, suggesting songs or songwriters (including yourself) ..... your participation matters!​

Notes: Trying something different here -- lots of space for you to experiment. Jennie Pearl's song was a technique to help her be more open to listening after she had hurt someone -- a way to change her own patterned response to what to do after realizing you've caused harm. I love this song for that chance to change a pattern by intensely listening -- both to myself and the person I've hurt. So I've recorded it with lots of time and space for you discover how it sits in you. If you find you want to rush through it, try singing a harmony, or creating a melody you need to hear to help you stay with it. Eventually, I harmonize it my way and mash everything together -- may feel good to you, or you might like an earlier, more spacious moment? Enjoy listening in...

Songwriter Info: Jennie Pearl (she/her) is a facilitator, singer, and bodyworker who leads from emotion and embodiment in liberation work. She is committed to bridging the gap between racial justice/gender justice and healing work. Alongside her team at Holistic Resistance and Transintimate, she offers a myriad of programming to cultivate ongoing relationships that dream up a more anti-racist, anti-oppressive, and liberatory future.

​Sharing Info: Yes -- The song is free to share but Jennie always welcome financial and/or networking support if/when folks are so moved.

Links: Jennie's Venmo: https://account.venmo.com/u/Jennie-Pearl-1 -- if you are sharing the song on in a situation where you receive financial compensation, or if you have resources to support Jennie's work in the world, please consider sending support.
Holistic Resistance: https://www.holisticresistance.com/about -- get inspired by what Jennie and others are dreaming!
Reach for Life! Song Playlist: https://thebirdsings.com/reach/ -- with Listen In arranged by Lisa Littlebird

Song Learning Time Stamps:
Start time of teaching: 00:04:15
Start time of reprise: 00:18:47
​​
Nuts & Bolts: 4:4, major, 3-layer

​Join the A Breath of Song mailing list to receive a heads up as a new episode is released, plus a large version of the artwork, brief thoughts from my slightly peculiar brain... and occasional extras when they seem vitally important! No junk -- I will never sell your address. I read out all your names into my living room when I send new mailings... I appreciate the connection to you who are listening and singing these songs with me.

Exchange energy with A Breath of Song with dollars at the Gratitude Jar (whoo-hoo!!!!), or by making comments, leaving reviews, suggesting songs or songwriters (including yourself) ..... your participation matters!​

Notes: Hands down favorite moment of this conversation? When I asked Pam a question that made her tense, and she started to sing to help herself through the challenging moment. Pam says she often has to say difficult things to people in power, and this was an example of how she uses improvised song to root and empower herself. We caught Pam at a transitional point, and I deeply appreciate her reflections about how song has stayed consistent across her life and how it has changed, the evolving role of relationships, what singing in community actually does or can do, what self care might look like. Oh, but then there was another favorite moment, when she tells a story about her relationship with her father.... hmmm. Lots to love here, not least of which is the song, Reciprocity -- after singing this song, you'll be ever more keenly aware of trees and our breath exchange with them.

Songwriter Info: Pam Blevins Hinkle–song leader, composer, arts administrator, tree-lover, and kazoo fanatic–has devoted her life to projects that blend creativity, community-building, and spirituality. With over 30 years experience leading community, college, and congregational choirs, she currently facilitates spontaneous group singing for conferences and events, co-leads SongSquad Indianapolis with her brother Adam, co-produces the annual Indy Winter Solstice Celebration, and more. Pam has received numerous awards including the Inspirational Woman Award from IUPUI and the Creative Renewal Arts Fellowship from the Indy Arts Council. Since 2006, she has served as director of Spirit & Place, which sparks civic change through a one-of-kind, 11-day festival and through year-round initiatives that leverage the power of the arts, humanities, and religion to catalyze creativity and conversation.

​Sharing Info: Yes -- The song is free to share in oral tradition groups, but please contact Pam for recording and/or performing permission

Links: 
Indianapolis, Indiana Indigenous Peoples: Miami, Kickapu, Shawnee, Delaware: https://www.ala.org/aboutala/diversity/land-acknowledgement/indgenous-tribes-indiana
Trees as communal creatures: https://www.npr.org/sections/health-shots/2021/05/04/993430007/trees-talk-to-each-other-mother-tree-ecologist-hears-lessons-for-people-too
Laurence Cole, singing as “the oldest technology of belonging” https://www.laurencecole.com/
Indianapolis Women’s Chorus: https://www.indianapoliswomenschorus.org/
Winter Solstice Singing Ritual by Julie Forest Middleton, Stasa Morgan-Appel- published by Emerald Earth: https://www.allbookstores.com/Winter-Solstice-Singing-Ritual-Julie/9780966371550
Indiana Forest Alliance: https://indianaforestalliance.org/
Forests for Indy: Reciprocity (YouTube): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8rdj65H67Ww
Lyndsey Scott: https://linktr.ee/lila.gaia
Rhiannon: https://www.rhiannonmusic.com/
Emergent Strategy- Adrienne Maree Brown: https://adriennemareebrown.net/book/emergent-strategy/
Peter, Paul, and Mary “In The Wind” https://www.allmusic.com/album/in-the-wind-mw0000315197
Hush-a-bye: ​​https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dM2VN2Hn-Z0
Puff the Magic Dragon: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0Y0ABZ0AJXY
Very Last Day: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dmk6cf32HH4
Episode 69: Sing Upon Joy (Livian's Song) Lyndsey Scott & Livian & helpers
https://www.abreathofsong.com/episodes--show-notes/69-sing-upon-joy-livians-song
Episode 70: “As I Relax” Lyndsey Scott
https://www.abreathofsong.com/episodes--show-notes/70-as-i-relax-with-guest-lyndsey-scott
Song Squad Indianapolis Website: songsquadindy.com
Indy Winter Solstice Celebration Website: indysolstice.com
Pam's Website: pamblevinshinkle.com

Song Learning Time Stamps:
Start time of teaching: 00:03:51
Start time of reprise: 00:55:44
​​
Nuts & Bolts: 3:4, Dorian, 3-layers with a harmonized ending

​Join the A Breath of Song mailing list to receive a heads up as a new episode is released, plus a large version of the artwork, brief thoughts from my slightly peculiar brain... and occasional extras when they seem vitally important! No junk -- I will never sell your address. I read out all your names into my living room when I send new mailings... I appreciate the connection to you who are listening and singing these songs with me.

Exchange energy with A Breath of Song with dollars at the Gratitude Jar (whoo-hoo!!!!), or by making comments, leaving reviews, suggesting songs or songwriters (including yourself) ..... your participation matters!​

Notes: After singing this song, I keep questioning myself, "What if this is true???" If all motion is love, Patricia, what does that look like, right now? If I follow love, what does that even mean? Do I know what love looks like? I'm so often in unthinking motion — what happens when that motion becomes love? Pam Blevins Hinkle is not messing around here! In the next episode, we get to talk, and hear about how she got backed into community singing through a health crisis. The changes it has precipitated. What swung into motion, and how that's leading her now. Following love. Is this any part of your life? Mm-hmmm.

Songwriter Info: Pam Blevins Hinkle–song leader, composer, arts administrator, tree-lover, and kazoo fanatic–has devoted her life to projects that blend creativity, community-building, and spirituality. With over 30 years experience leading community, college, and congregational choirs, she currently facilitates spontaneous group singing for conferences and events, co-leads SongSquad Indianapolis with her brother Adam, co-produces the annual Indy Winter Solstice Celebration, and more. Pam has received numerous awards including the Inspirational Woman Award from IUPUI and the Creative Renewal Arts Fellowship from the Indy Arts Council. Since 2006, she has served as director of Spirit & Place, which sparks civic change through a one-of-kind, 11-day festival and through year-round initiatives that leverage the power of the arts, humanities, and religion to catalyze creativity and conversation.

​Sharing Info: Yes -- The song is free to share in oral tradition groups, but please contact Pam for recording and/or performing permission

Links: 
Song Squad Indianapolis Website: songsquadindy.com
Indy Winter Solstice Celebration Website: indysolstice.com
Pam's Website: pamblevinshinkle.com

​Song Learning Time Stamps:
Start time of teaching: 00:04:09
Start time of reprise: 00:12:45
​​
Nuts & Bolts: 3:4 Mixolydian; unison chant with optional harmonies

​Join the A Breath of Song mailing list to receive a heads up as a new episode is released, plus a large version of the artwork, brief thoughts from my slightly peculiar brain... and occasional extras when they seem vitally important! No junk -- I will never sell your address. I read out all your names into my living room when I send new mailings... I appreciate the connection to you who are listening and singing these songs with me.

Exchange energy with A Breath of Song with dollars at the Gratitude Jar (whoo-hoo!!!!), or by making comments, leaving reviews, suggesting songs or songwriters (including yourself) ..... your participation matters!​

Notes: It's been two years since Maggie Wheeler and I last talked on A Breath of Song. No one doubts these times are difficult. Maggie and I get into the grit here... how do you stave off despair? How do you show up in love? How can we, collectively, change the energy? How do we soothe hearts and souls so we are sustained to do the work? Can we give ourselves the same grace of forgiveness we give others? What happens after exhaustion? How can we stay longer in the space of not knowing? How can we stay longer in a song moment and let it develop? Can staying longer be its own practice?

This song Maggie shares, The Crow Calls, is an opening to the rhythm, the connection of the natural world, and how that can nurture and change us. This song is a reminder, a call, a resource, and incredibly satisfying to sing. As we talked, Maggie described her heart as "cracked open" from two intense back-to-back experiences that had just happened. I was feeling a lot of pressure, with looming deadlines and large to-do lists, preparing for a big trip. Editing the episode, I was struck by how we practiced showing up as we are, releasing expectations, and paying attention to what is present in the moment... and I came away from our conversation with a welcome sense of clarity and commitment about the next right thing -- and huge gratitude for Maggie's generous, genuine way of moving through the world. I wonder what you will hear that resonates or challenges or invites you?

Songwriter Info: Maggie Wheeler is best known in the U.S and internationally for her work as an actress in film, television and voice-over and most notably as the character of Janice on NBC’s hit series Friends. Maggie is a passionate singer, songwriter, choir director and workshop facilitator. She has been teaching her vocal workshop "Singing In The Stream" for over 30 years at retreat centers, universities, communities and schools to provide the experience of creating interpersonal harmony and internal harmony through the powerful act of creating vocal harmony. Maggie directs the 100-voice Golden Bridge Community Choir in Hollywood, an inter-generational, non-auditioned choir now in its 17th year. She is a prolific songwriter with a catalog of powerful and timely songs that have been sung by choirs worldwide. Maggie’s original music for choirs and communities is available on Apple Music and other music platforms. To accompany her CD entitled 'Walk With Me’, Maggie created a songbook available by request through her website www.goldenbridgechoir.com Throughout this time of change Maggie continued the Golden Bridge Choir online producing virtual concerts and videos as well as hosting a weekly online community gathering called Together In Song, bringing together over 4000 people from around the world to join in the healing power of singing. 

​Sharing Info: Yes -- The song is free to share but Maggie always welcomes financial and/or networking support if/when folks are so moved.

Links: 
Find Your Way Home, ABoS Ep 5: https://www.abreathofsong.com/episodes--show-notes/5-find-our-way-home
Rising Appalachia: https://www.risingappalachia.com/
Song Village: https://www.songvillage.net/
Emile Hassan Dyer: https://www.eomega.org/workshops/teachers/emile-hassan-dyer
Song Village Collaborators: https://www.songvillage.net/collaborators/
Yam and Jessi: Bliss is Ordinary podcast: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/bliss-is-ordinary/id1614727245
Ebeneezer Finds a Reason children’s Book: https://ebeneezersneezer.com/
Meredith Scott Lynn & Write Brain Books: https://writebrainbooks.com/view_page.php?pageid=3/
M. Kyle Hollingsworth: https://www.kylecreativeart.com/
Diary of a Wimpy Kid by Jeff Kinney: https://wimpykid.com/
Karly Loveling: https://eugeneweekly.com/2019/01/17/karly-loveling/​
Together in Song: https://www.goldenbridgechoir.com/together-in-song-video-archive
Flow Singing with Juneberry Music: https://www.juneberrymusic.com/sing-to-connect.html
Rhiannon: https://rhiannonmusic.com/circlesing 
Omega Workshop: 
https://www.eomega.org/workshops/singing-stream?itm_source_h=search&itm_source_s=search&itm_medium_h=tile&itm_medium_s=tile&itm_campaign_h=searchcr&itm_campaign_s=searchcr
Arnaé Batson: https://sivanandabahamas.org/presenter/arnae-batson/
Sivananda Ashram Retreat: https://sivanandabahamas.org/course/songs-of-sustenance-february-2023/
Aimée Ringle: http://www.aimeeringlemusic.com/
Heather Houston: https://heatherhoustonmusic.com/
Sweet Honey in the Rock, Live at Carnegie Hall: https://www.allmusic.com/album/live-at-carnegie-hall-mw0000652837
Aimée Ringle Human and Tender: https://aimeeringle.bandcamp.com/album/human-and-tender
Olivia Barton & Corook - “If I Were a Fish” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dx_vMONe3tM
Ahlay Blakely: https://www.healingattheroots.com/about
Golden Bridge Choir: https://www.goldenbridgechoir.com/
Maggie’s Instagram: ​​https://www.instagram.com/maggiewheeler_official/?hl=en
Maggie’s latest album that she was about to record after our interview: https://maggiewheeler.bandcamp.com/album/the-crow-calls
Go​​lden Bridge Choir’s Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/goldenbridgechoir/?hl=en
Maggie's Website: maggiewheeler.net

Song Learning Time Stamps:
Start time of teaching: 00:04:15
Start time of reprise: 00:54:54
​​​
Nuts & Bolts: 4:4, harmonic minor scale, call & echo and 3 or 4 layer song

​Join the A Breath of Song mailing list to receive a heads up as a new episode is released, plus a large version of the artwork, brief thoughts from my slightly peculiar brain... and occasional extras when they seem vitally important! No junk -- I will never sell your address. I read out all your names into my living room when I send new mailings... I appreciate the connection to you who are listening and singing these songs with me.

Exchange energy with A Breath of Song with dollars at the Gratitude Jar (whoo-hoo!!!!), or by making comments, leaving reviews, suggesting songs or songwriters (including yourself) ..... your participation matters!​ 

Notes: Kate wrote "Can I Stand Here For You" after watching an Oprah show about two injured women Iraq veterans. Juanita Wilson (who had lost her hand) saw Tammy Duckworth come in (she had lost one hand and both feet). Juanita had committed herself to “standing for” any injured female veteran. She asked Tammy "Can I stand here for you?" Then she washed Tammy's hair which still contained dust from Iraq. She used her one hand and asked an orderly to help her with his two hands. Tammy was comatose, in terrible pain and Juanita stood beside her bed for 5 days. Now Tammy is a tri-athlete and was Undersecretary of Veterans Affairs for President Barack Obama, the U.S. Representative for Illinois's 8th congressional district. And was then elected to the Senate from the State of Illinois.

Knowing the backstory behind some songs makes the songs even richer. As I'm thinking about how we can work toward easing loneliness, this example of two women connecting, then Kate allowing herself to be touched by the story, gives an example... and gives me a way to remember how to make the offering of standing by someone. Don't miss the chance to sing with Melanie DeMore once you've learned the song -- she sings lower, which may give you a chance to experiment with the high harmony if you found it too high in this podcast -- or maybe the melody will feel super comfortable in Melanie's range? Keep finding what feels good in your voice!

Songwriter Info: From Inverness CA, Kate Munger has devoted herself for over 40 years to creating non-hierarchical, collaborative models for spirited group singing, joyful community building, and deep fellowship through rounds and parts singing. Kate has written hundreds of singable, swinging, deep songs that remind us of our best inclinations and intentions, and are sung accompaniment to and medicine for our lives.

She has loved returning home to Inverness after 9 singing trips to Bali, 6 to Thailand (and the Elephant Sanctuary where singing to and with Elephants was the highlight), and one each to Russia and Spain in the past three decades. Just as the Pandemic arrived, Kate returned from a month in New Zealand with 13 singers where they offered their sung prayers to the community of Christchurch as they remembered the devastating earthquake of 2011 and healed from the horrific shooting at the Muslim Mosque in March 2019. She deeply believes that singers are the best ambassadors of peace on our planet; we show our neighbors our best selves when we travel in their land and appreciate their people, their culture, and their tragedies and show that appreciation through our singing.

In 2000 she founded the first of now 220 Threshold Choirs worldwide for choral singers who are called to sing at the bedsides of people who are dying, in a coma, newborns, children in hospital, and with folks who are grieving and who are incarcerated. In honoring its innovative mission, the Threshold Choir has re-imagined what true service can look like; healing the giver as it offers comfort, presence, and ease for the receiver. Now retired from running the business of the Threshold Choir, Kate lives, swims, works, and sings along the shores of Tomales Bay, for 16 years at the Lama Foundation in New Mexico and wherever she can.
​
Sharing Info: Please sing this with loved ones freely -- when sharing in a money-making venture, like a workshop, class, or performance, please contact Kate for permission and rates.

Links: A beautiful recording by Melanie DeMore, highly recommended by Kate: https://youtu.be/iDMFt9d5NaM
Threshold Choir: https://thresholdchoir.org/

Song Learning Time Stamps:
Start time of teaching: 00:03:28
Start time of reprise: 00:15:52
​
Nuts & Bolts: 4:4 major 3-part harmony

​Join the A Breath of Song mailing list to receive a heads up as a new episode is released, plus a large version of the artwork, brief thoughts from my slightly peculiar brain... and occasional extras when they seem vitally important! No junk -- I will never sell your address. I read out all your names into my living room when I send new mailings... I appreciate the connection to you who are listening and singing these songs with me.

Exchange energy with A Breath of Song with dollars at the Gratitude Jar (whoo-hoo!!!!), or by making comments, leaving reviews, suggesting songs or songwriters (including yourself) ..... your participation matters!​