Notes: Patty Piotrowski, who creates the art for each episode after learning the song, wrote about painting for this song of Ahlay Blakely: "The word that jumped out for me was “breaking”. I have a plate, a whole pottery plate on my kitchen table, that holds broken porcelain shards of dishware from the late 1800’s when there was a fire that burned the hotel on Star Island and so much was lost at sea. This past summer when I had the opportunity to go to Star Island for two weeks of art making, I walked the shoreline, and found these remnants of past plates and bowls and cups. These pieces of porcelain from England were worn smooth on the edges from being tossed and turned in the ocean for over 100 years. Each one was a precious discovery for me, telling a bit of the story. The beauty of the brokenness. Back home now and months later I have them arranged on a plate with a candle, reminding me to understand and honor the past, and to heal what I can inside myself in the present."

As we navigate the rage and wounding and grief in ourselves and others, it can be so helpful to have a framework for understanding… the kind of understanding that leads to healing and compassion. When we break these cycles, it affects the future ones – and it also reaches back and in some way fills the aching dream of those in the past. I love this song for the conviction that my own ache for belonging ripples through time, breaks harmful cycles, and creates a fundamental healing. Don't miss Ahlay's upcoming project, Wails, and the chance to be part of the ripples of change it could create by supporting it.

Songwriter Info: Alexandra "Ahlay" Blakely (she/her) is a song carrier remembering that which was meant to be forgotten in her lineages: song technology as connective tissues of the communal body. She blends song, body percussion, dance, stillness, breath & silence with the deepest intention to support others in remembering their inherent birthright to singing and rhythm. Her ancient ancestors of Old Europe (Ashkenazi, Scandinavian, Finnish, English, Scottish, Irish) sang while building, creating, birthing, working & being in reciprocity and bring with the Land. She understands song to be fundamental in the expansion of ones internal capacity to participate in the collective shift towards life-affirming conditions. An underlying prayer in her song offerings is that they may contribute to the shared effort to transform white culture into being more connected with our bodies, emotions, Land & the animate world around us. ​ These songs are swirls of spells for cracking open, falling humbly to our knees and cultivating more access to the conversations our souls are aching to have with us about their most intimate longings. They are dedicated to the more than human world, the Waters and our Kin in both the seen and unseen realms. We sing to shame, courage, for breaking cycles of intergenerational trauma and for the preparation of being ready for these times we are living in, all while sending these song-beings in ripples through to the ancient and future ones. The songs sung have come directly through Ahlay.​ ​ Some of her mentors: Whale, Mycelium, Rue, Lightning, Rain, Oak, Redwood & Rosemary
​
Sharing Info: Yes -- The song is free to share but Ahlay always welcomes financial and/or networking support if/when folks are so moved.

Links: 
Wails: Songs for Grief Fundraiser:  https://www.gofundme.com/f/community-singing-album
Bandcamp digital album "SPELLS FROM THE UNKNOWN" https://ahlayblakely.bandcamp.com/album/spells-from-the-unknown
Ahlay's Website/Newsletter https://www.healingattheroots.com
Ahlay's Patreon - new music monthly, 1-3 songs per month https://www.patreon.com/alexandrablakely
Instagram @alexandra_blakely
Resmaa Menakem: My Grandmother's Hands - https://centralrecoverypress.com/product/my-grandmothers-hands-racialized-trauma-and-the-pathway-to-mending-our-hearts-and-bodies-paperback

Nuts & Bolts: 12:8, flat-7, both major & minor; 3-layer song

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Notes: I love the way this song takes me into completely different scope of time -- geologic, massive, unimaginable -- and therefore inescapably present. "Ïn the Land of Oden" has a murky history, both for lyrics and melody… it was recorded in the 1960s by many different folk artists, including Peter and Gordon, Barry McGuire and the New Christy Minstrels, and the Townsmen… but is credited to different composers on each recording. And they are all slightly different than the version I learned from Adam Podd (check out episode #82!). This particular melody has stayed with me, though, and it resonated in me with a Buddhist story Jack Kornfield tells about something lasting for 1000 kalpas – and each kalpa is as long as it takes for a bird dragging a silk scarf across a mountain to wear it away. In a Grimm’s Fairy Tale, recorded in 1812, the Shepherd’s Boy responds to the king’s third question about eternity with a description very similar to this, although the mountain is made of diamond and is in the land of Pomerania! So for this moment, welcome to fairy-tale time.
​
Sharing Info: As far as I know, this song is free to share.

Links: 
Grimm's Fairy Tale: http://www.pinkmonkey.com/dl/library1/story139.pdf

Nuts & Bolts: 4:4, Mixolydian, round

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Notes: This song floats and pulses, carrying me as singer into a spaciousness and warmth that feels like it could be a somatic knowledge of love. That's quite a statement to make for a song, no? And yet, it makes sense -- when we sing, we engage so much of our brains -- breathing, thinking, sensing vibration and sound -- that if we allow images and responses to come into our awareness, too, those images are rich and connected with all we have ever known.. Unusually for songs I share on this podcast, this one doesn't have a strict meter -- it is more fluid and shifting -- yet it has a stable, vibrant heart center. I'll be curious to know what this experience is like for you!

Songwriter Info:  Gabrielle is passionate about music and its transformative and healing powers. She grew up singing and surrounded by music, and has sung and performed in many contexts; indie rock, choirs, musical theater, Cabaret, yoga studios, and singing circles. Gabrielle has hosted singing circles, sound ceremonies, and new moon circles. She currently lives in Seattle, and likes to catch songs while walking through the beautiful Pacific NorthWest forests.

Sharing Info: The song is free to share, please contact Gabrielle if you're planning to use it simply because it would be such a delight to know about it.

Links: 
Follow @sound__witch on Instagram to see what Gabrielle's up to,
and/or check out her other songs at soundcloud.com/a_sound_witch.

Nuts & Bolts: unmetered, major, echo

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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: Angela Gabriel's gospel-infused setting of Clarissa Pink Estés' fierce words is enough to lift me out of bed into the January cold! You'll hear me play with adding my voice in the looper with different tonal qualities so it sounds like we're singing with a crowd... and then at the end, I'll invite you to sing it simply with me, as a heartfelt duet. Patty said her art for this episode is inspired by the images of boats and wood from the Clarissa Estés letter... "and the idea of standing together, so here are the trees, rooted and strong in all weather."
* This song has had a significant evolution since I recorded it for this episode -- please catch the updates under the links with Angela's own recordings!

Songwriter Info:  Angela is a professional percussionist & pianist and community music/community singing facilitator. She lived in Santa Fe NM for the last 20 years, where she played with the opera, symphony, chamber music festival, as well as in African, Haitian, and samba gatherings, funk and ragtime bands.  
     She just moved to Bloomington, Indiana in the end of 2022.
Angela's mission in life is to facilitate expressive creative, musical, and vocal experiences and to encourage folks to replace judgement with curiosity and open themselves to their unique, creative flow.
    Part of how Angela does this is by singing and drumming online weekly with people living with Parkinson’s and other movement disorders.

This song is free to share but Angela always welcomes financial and/or networking support if/when folks are so moved.

Links: 
Learn the updated version with Angela herself: https://youtu.be/kZfD7YbZJew?feature=shared
Listen to the updated version: https://youtu.be/Rash_81HIhY?feature=shared
Letter to a Young Activist by Clarissa Pinkola Estés: https://www.mavenproductions.com/letter-to-a-young-activist
Angela's website: www.AngelaGabriel.me
Support Angela's work: find songs, rhythmic activities, and more at patreon.com/AngelaGabriel
Check out Hidden Whale, Angela's old band (she's the drummer): https://youtube.com/channel/UCpxdVqwSxzEBhgUilN3qQLg

Song Learning Time Stamps:
Start time of teaching: 00:02:55
Start time of reprise: 00:12:49

Nuts & Bolts: 12:8, major, harmonized 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: Singing this meditative mantra with Heather Pierson's butter-warm voice draws me right into the here and now, even when I'm dealing with tech glitches... it's powerful stuff, and I've been putting it to the test! Heather says, "Music is an invitation..." and in our conversation, she talks about the different ways that plays out during grieving, learning to sing solo, collaborating, choosing songs, giving permission. Have you ever thought about how the meditation concept of titration might apply to leading a circle? Well, we've got you covered!

Songwriter Info: Heather Pierson is a pianist, singer/songwriter, songleader, and performer based in the White Mountains of New Hampshire. She has released 14 albums, two songbooks, and several singles of her original music ranging in style from folk to jazz to vocal chants. Since 2018, she is the co-creator with fellow songleader Bernice Martin of Heart Songs & Circle Songs, a community singing project dedicated to the cultivation of harmony, wellness, connection, joy, and peace through music and song. When she isn’t making music, Heather enjoys her meditation practice, hiking, cooking, writing, reading, and watching the birds.

Links: 
Heather's album 'Wishes of Lovingkindness', available for free or by donation at her Bandcamp: https://heatherpierson.bandcamp.com/album/wishes-of-lovingkindness
For more information about Heather's community singing project with Bernice Martin, please visit https://www.heartsongsandcirclesongs.com.
For more information about all of Heather's musical offerings, please visit: https://www.heatherpierson.com.
Heather's growing community on Patreon enjoys early and exclusive access to new songs, videos, and poetry every week. Learn more at https://www.patreon.com/HeatherPierson
​Kansas: “The Spider”
Melanie DeMore... "These songs are like medicine." Here's Melanie leading two of her medicine songs: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v3D1U_Cmlxc
Leah Boyd/Leah Wolfsong ‎Leah Wolfsong on Apple Music
The early albums:
‎We All Have a Song by Heather Pierson on Apple Music
‎Honor The Light by Heather Pierson on Apple Music
Laurence Cole: “Attention is the healer of separation”
Gray catbird
Baked Beans recording (Alan Bean) Recording Studio | Baked Beans Recording Studio | United States
Peaceful Means (Leah Boyd & Heather Pierson) (3) Peaceful Means | Facebook
ALLMAN BROTHERS BAND - Live At Fillmore East (Deluxe Edition) - Amazon.com Music
The Wood Brothers The Wood Brothers (thewoodbros.com)

Song Learning Time Stamps:
Start time of teaching: 00:04:31
Start time of reprise: 01:03:53

Nuts & Bolts: 4:4, major, with a lovely minor final note; unison zipper 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: I love the way this song pulls me into the very present moment of right now, really right now, with concrete reminders of the breath and body... and then also lightens my spirit with the rhythmic play as I sing about the goodness that I carry. Heather has found ways through steady, attentive practices to help herself heal from childhood trauma, and she carries this intentional tending with clarity and care into her music. Next week, we can settle into a songwriter conversation with Heather about all this, and more!

Songwriter Info: Heather Pierson is a pianist, singer/songwriter, songleader, and performer based in the White Mountains of New Hampshire. She has released 14 albums, two songbooks, and several singles of her original music ranging in style from folk to jazz to vocal chants. Since 2018, she is the co-creator with fellow songleader Bernice Martin of Heart Songs & Circle Songs, a community singing project dedicated to the cultivation of harmony, wellness, connection, joy, and peace through music and song. When she isn’t making music, Heather enjoys her meditation practice, hiking, cooking, writing, reading, and watching the birds.

Links: 
'May I Be Open' is from Heather's album 'Wishes of Lovingkindness', available for free or by donation at her Bandcamp: https://heatherpierson.bandcamp.com/album/wishes-of-lovingkindness
For more information about Heather's community singing project with Bernice Martin, please visit https://www.heartsongsandcirclesongs.com.
For more information about all of Heather's musical offerings, please visit: https://www.heatherpierson.com.
Heather's growing community on Patreon enjoys early and exclusive access to new songs, videos, and poetry every week. Learn more at https://www.patreon.com/HeatherPierson

​Song Learning Time Stamps:
Start time of teaching: 00:03:00
Start time of reprise: 00:12:15​

Nuts & Bolts: 4:4, major, 2-part 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: I so completely get the need for these questions, so appealingly set by Hannah Jeffery, to notice our body's basic needs. I love singing the reminder to attend to my creature self, what Mary Oliver calls, "the soft animal of your body" -- to tune into what it loves, what it complains about, how it responds to what's going on. This time of coming into a new year, perhaps with a plethora of complex people interactions, seems a particularly appropriate time to reset and reconnect with the awareness and presence of our own creature selves.

Songwriter Info: Hannah Jeffery (She/They) is a songstress, composer, song-leader and mama living in the Upper Valley of Vermont (Abenaki land). Her creative venture, Deep Well Song, is a gathering vessel for people to come together in song, prayer and playfulness, to turn toward and embrace all that it IS to be human on Earth. The songs Hannah carries, catches and teaches are songs of the heart and soul, that touch joy, grief, gratitude, heartbreak, righteous anger, beauty, love and praise and connect us to each other, ourselves and the Beloved Mystery. Hannah leads song at the UU church in Norwich, Vermont and in the newly forming Well Song Choir. To learn more and get involved please check out their website and Patreon and be in touch!

This song is free to share but Hannah always welcomes financial and/or networking support if/when folks are so moved.

Links: 
www.deepwellsong.org
[email protected]
www.patreon.com/deepwellsong
Hannah singing this song herself

Song Learning Time Stamps:
Start time of teaching: 00:03:09 
Start time of reprise: 00:14:17

Nuts & Bolts: 4:4, Aeolian, unison

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: I learned this song from Adam at the end of the summer at a group singing weekend workshop, and immediately decided to use it for my Pocket Songs welcome song during the fall, not only because of the generous, wide-open welcome of the words, but because of the way the music backs up the message. The lift and lightness of the rhythm, and the enjoyment of slightly surprising notes (I particularly love the first "are" of the tenor line, for example), the way we move from unison into connected harmonic diversity -- these musical things help me FEEL welcoming. Sometimes I shift the words to sing it to myself, as a reminder that whoever I am, whomever I love, wherever I am on this journey, I am welcome... and when I feel genuinely accepted as I am, it is so much easier to extend that welcome and acceptance to others.

Join the A Breath of Song mailing list by clicking here. You'll 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.

Songwriter Info: Adam Podd (he/him/his) is a Vermont-bred, Brooklyn-based music director, pianist, organist, bassist, composer, and arranger. As a pianist, Adam specializes in blues, jazz, and gospel. He plays regularly around NYC with his twin brother Matt, and their jazz and blues band Mimi and the Podd Brothers. He also plays keys, bass and music directs for singer/songwriter Dan Mills. I met Adam as he co-led a workshop on Star Island, off the coast of New Hampshire. I was struck by his unassuming, gentle manner and musical generosity. He welcomes sharing of this song.
​
Links: 
learn about Adam himself: ABOUT — Adam Podd
check out the choral music Adam and his brother arrange: The Podd Brothers
to read more of the writings of Ana Levy-Lyons: Home - Ana Levy-Lyons (analevylyons.com)

Nuts & Bolts: 3:4, Major, harmonized

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: I love the way Emma's song ushers in the darkness and turning of the seasons with a lilt that includes a trust that the light will return. There's a softness and acceptance to the song that makes it easier to be present with the turning. Emma says the song "was born on a winter walk during Covid restrictions in the UK. I was finding some comfort in the unruffled flow of the seasons - 'time's soft unfolding'. 21st December is my late father's birthday as well as winter solstice, so this song is dedicated to him - I think he would have liked the words and the structure." 

Songwriter Info: Emma has been singing all her life and enjoys all styles of song and ensemble! When her daughter was born in 2018, she began an acapella singing group for local mums, and after joining the Singing Mamas network in 2020, was inspired to start writing her own songs, for herself, for her groups and songsharing colleagues. 

Links: 
Find Emma's album 'Light Returning' on Bandcamp https://emmamutter.bandcamp.com/album/light-returning
You can also find newer songs on her Facebook page www.facebook.com/emmamuttermusic
Contact Emma by email [email protected] to buy the score (suggested contribution up to £5) and/or purchase the song on Bandcamp if you'd like to share this song as a songleader. Please contact Emma directly for recording or performing permissions.

Song Learning Time Stamps:
Start time of teaching: 00:00:47 
Start time of reprise: 00:15:38 ​

Nuts & Bolts: 2:2, Aeolian (minor), harmonized melody with option of a round.

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: You get to hear Kate and I in deep conversation -- complete with creaky chair, and me messing up as Kate teaches me her beautiful song, Go Dark. Do you ever have the experience of being solid on a part, as long as the leader is singing it, but then when they leave to teach another part, you lose it? You'll hear me doing just that! :) We talk about building a bank of nourishing words for hard times -- and Kate shares a story about something that shook her certainty and ease with life, and how that made her vow not to judge people. She observes how giving time and a safe place to make mistakes makes it possible for most people to learn to sing, like almost all people learn to drive eventually. And then there's the handpan, and learning Arabic, and... I guess you'll just need to listen in!

Songwriter Info: Kate Thomas is a singer, song leader, songwriter and instrumentalist (guitar, piano and handpan) and has been leading singing groups in Sheffield for over 20 years. She has produced two songbooks, 'Honey and Salt' (from which 'Be Yourself' and 'Scattered Seeds'. If you are interested in contacting her about these resources, her email is [email protected]. 

Links: 
Wendell Berry – Farming (counterpointpress.com) (Kate mentioned "Soul Food", but I think this ends up being the book with the poem in it.)
Barbara Brown Taylor – Learning to Walk in the Dark
Wanting Memories - Sweet Honey in the Rock
Handpan playing -- Kate suggests thishandpan duo, Mea
Raffi
The Singing Kettle
Tapestry – Carole King -- I'm pretty sure you can find the album, so here's an article that quotes many artists talking about the influence of the album on them... Talking about 'Tapestry': Musicians discuss the influence of Carole King's masterpiece - NJArts.net
Karine Polwart – Scottish Songbook, The Lost Words: Spell Songs -- and here's a bonus interview with Karine about the Spellsongs project
Youtube recordings of Kate’s songs -- here's her channel, where you can find all 10: Kate Thomas - YouTube
   And here are just a few links for specific songs:
  We Were Seeds: Kate's bold setting of the Dinos Christianopoulos quote, "They thought they could bury us; they did not know we were seeds.
  A Thousand Ways (with handpan! -- a beautiful meditation)
Kate's profile and choirs: Member profile - Natural Voice Network
Information about Honey and Salt (and Scattered Seeds is searchable there, too): Honey and Salt - Natural Voice Network

Song Learning Time Stamps:
Start time of teaching: 00:04:44 
Start time of reprise: 00:57:07​

Nuts & Bolts: 6:8, major, 2-parts here, (SATB in the Honey & Salt book) or works beautifully unison, too
​
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: "Be Yourself" was written for 'Body of Sound', a women's group that Kate Thomas leads, for a residential at Laurieston Hall in Scotland which has a lovely open fire. Can you imagine joining with friends around a fire and singing this to each other? And sometimes, I swear, I find myself singing it to just myself (or my many selves???), welcoming all of them around the fire -- the part of me that's anxious, the part that's grouchy, the part that is confident, the part that's flamboyant -- shall I go on? I definitely have enough for a campfire gathering of my own -- but I'll grant you that it's even better if you're gathering with others!

Songwriter Info: Kate Thomas is a singer, song leader, songwriter and instrumentalist (guitar, piano and handpan) and has been leading singing groups in Sheffield for over 20 years. She has produced two songbooks, 'Honey and Salt' (from which 'Be Yourself' is taken) and 'Scattered Seeds'. If you are interested in contacting her about these resources, her email is [email protected]. 

Links: 
email: [email protected]
Kate's profile and choirs: Member profile - Natural Voice Network
Information about Honey and Salt: Honey and Salt - Natural Voice Network

Nuts & Bolts: 4:4, major, 4-parts
​
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: Barbara says about the song: "I wrote it while driving up to Lake Superior to share Thanksgiving with friends. Some of it was composed while standing in the Brule River in a light rain. Ecstasy...." Here we are, getting close to Thanksgiving in the United States -- a reminder of the great harm humans can do to each other through greed, ignorance, and fear -- and also a reminder of the ecstasy of gratitude. Talk about an example of "both-and". I'm fortunate in that this holiday brings my husband's family all together in one place for many days... and I love the way this song can rumble along underneath my day, whether or not I'm observing a holiday!

Songwriter Info: Barbara lives on the wild and scenic St Croix River about an hour from Minneapolis/St Paul. She is a master voice coach, songwriter, song leader, hospice choir director, long distance swimmer, poet, and author of Full Voice. She feels so lucky to be alive on planet Earth. 

Links: 
www.barbaramcafee.com -
The song is available on iTunes and similar platforms, but also on her website under "Community Songs", which is a wonderful library of originals that any songleader will feel delight in finding!

Nuts & Bolts: ​4:4, minor, 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: I'd like to highlight the custom art created for each episode by Patty Piotrowski. If you're following this on a podcast app that shows only the A Breath of Song logo, and not the artwork, then please go here to feast your eyes! Patty sang in a chorus with me for several years before the pandemic and included me in the friends with whom she shared an Advent calendar of one painting a day via email -- and I loved the experience of opening my email to see something beautiful. During the pandemic, she sang Pocket Songs with me, and we both leaned into song as resource. When I decided to start sharing songs that were making it easier for me to navigate life through this podcast, I wondered if Patty would be willing to share this creative process with me. For each song, she listens ahead of time, sings with it, lets it soak in... and then waits for an image to appear. She emails me a photo of the custom art, which delights me, and makes the process of preparing the podcast for release exponentially more pleasurable.
About this piece, she said:
   "Here is a tree for all of the seasons of this song
   I’ve been passing this tree along I91 and talking with it for two years
   It looks different depending on your orientation:
   when I approach it from the north on the highway, I see it whole and round with branches,
   but as I pass it, I see then actually there are no branches on the south side."

Dirk says about the song: "Winter Song was written for amateur groups to sing at the winter solstice. I chose the traditional English round form so the repetition can have a meditative effect and people can sing it for as long or short a time as they wish... It was my late wife Adrienne who suggested to me ten years ago that there was a need for new songs to celebrate the eight-fold year celebrations of solstices, equinoxes and cross-quarters that Druids traditionally observe. I did write some others but they were not as good as Winter Song and have passed deservedly into obscurity! 2012 was the last year of Adrienne’s life. She heard the song performed for her birthday in July that year. She was pleased with it. My awareness of her impending death is probably what gives the song its emotional charge."

Songwriter Info: Dirk Campbell has put this song into the public domain, so we are welcome to share it. Dirk was born in 1950 in the British military hospital in Ismailia, Egypt, and lived in Kenya till 1962, so was exposed to indigenous Arab and African music before its acculturation by western influence. He went on to a successful career as a composer for films, radio, stage, etc, His website is a fascinating dive (and I mean HOURS worth!!!) into many instruments from a wide variety of cultures around the world on which he has gained skill. He teaches musicians about ways of incorporating ancient and non-western music into contemporary composition.

Links: 
Dirk Campbell

Song Learning Time Stamps:
Start time of teaching: 00:03:43
Start time of reprise: 00:16:39

Nuts & Bolts: 4:4, Dorian, 2-part layer song with optional drone.
​
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 being sick for several weeks, I was lying in bed and trying to come to terms with the fact that I still felt crummy. I was trying to listen to my body, and this is the song that came into my head. The melody is pretty closely related to a Happy Birthday song which I learned from Liz Rog, but I don't know the origin of the song, and neither did Liz at that point. If anybody happens to know it, I'd love to learn! The song can be sung just as the first part, in which case I think "needing to be known" is more satisfying to sing, but when I added the second part it suddenly made sense to me to use the word "dying." It feels to me like a song that spans caregiving from infancy to deathbed. I'm moved by what a powerful feeling it is to be heard and seen.

Songwriter Info: That would be me, so both of the websites below have stuff...

Links: 
abreathofsong.com
juneberrymusic.com

Nuts & Bolts: 4:4, Major (Ionian), call and echo with second harmonized 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!

Notes: Heather says, “I love so easily," and “What’s next? And I just open up…” and “Silence is a part of the singing.” Trust me, this is a person you'd like to get to know a little better -- how can we all access that kind of love and openness? In our conversation, Heather and I dig into how she actually works with singers privately and in groups, finding the heart voice, ways back in when you've dropped your chanting/meditation practice, why to love humming... and more, including, of course, her favorite soup! Heather shares this beautiful song which warms up the voice and invites us into physical awareness and connection with a released sound.... and her love of the act of singing is contagious.

Songwriter Info: Heather Houston is passionate about uplifting hearts, freeing voices, transforming lives, and building strong, loving communities through the power of singing. She spreads her magic through her 20+years of international song circle leading, private vocal coaching, and her online offerings - The Art of Mindful Singing, S.H.E. Sings, Singing as Sanctuary, and Sisters in Harmony Song and Chant Leader Training. You can now join her every Monday night on Zoom for a 2-hour Sisters in Harmony Global community song circle with guest artists!

Heather recently released her second solo album, Sisters of the Moon, which features the ethereal voices of her 40-voice women’s choir Yala Lati. Her first solo album, Prayers for the Water is a ZMR Top 10 album. You can find Heather’s music and her a cappella group SIRENZ on all of the streaming platforms and for download on her website.

Links: 
Website: https://heatherhoustonmusic.com
Albums
    Download: https://heatherhoustonmusic.com/recordings/
    Streaming on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/4gw79r7NGOw6WF2bytPW5a?si=E0mvdKMpQ9ObjpRnhViDYQ
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/heatherhoustonmusic
IG: HeatherHoustonMusic
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCPr_m3bi0-TqhBFvJlD4pFA
​
Kitka (Balkan music) – women's vocal ensemble in Oakland Kitka Women's Vocal Ensemble
Heather’s songleader training starting in Jan Sisters in Harmony Song Leader Training – Heather Houston Music
Paul Simon Rhythm of the Saints – here’s the title track: The Rhythm of the Saints - YouTube
Sound of Great Horned Owls -- What does a Great Horned Owl sound like? 
Lyndsey Scott -- Well Held | Lyndsey Scott (bandcamp.com) (as well as A Breath of Song episodes #69 & 70)
Samantha Keller and Tamar Fogel -- here with Heather as the trio Dis Moi: Dis Moi – Between Us – Heather Houston Music
the first song Heather wrote -- Lumin Solare Fiat - Heather Houston (Sirenz) - YouTube
Sirenz -- the four voice group of Heather, Samantha, Molly Hartwell and Sage Mendez: Sirenz – Heather Houston Music

Nuts & Bolts: 4:4, Mixolydian, chant
​
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: This is song is a taste of Heather Houston's creative, connecting powers -- Episode #75 will feature an intimate conversation with Heather. After she shares another of her songs, we'll delve into why song matters, why voices matter... and a really good soup! Meanwhile, I love this song for noticing the balance of shadow and light -- to me, it's a beautiful song to sing on cusps, like dawn or dusk. Recently, as I've been healing from tick-borne illness, I've hummed it to myself as I watch the shadows and light cross my bedroom wall, encouraging my body to find its way into balance.

Songwriter Info: Heather Houston is passionate about uplifting hearts, freeing voices, transforming lives, and building strong, loving communities through the power of singing. She spreads her magic through her 20+years of international song circle leading, private vocal coaching, and her online offerings - The Art of Mindful Singing, S.H.E. Sings, Singing as Sanctuary, and Sisters in Harmony Song and Chant Leader Training. You can now join her every Monday night on Zoom for a 2-hour Sisters in Harmony Global community song circle with guest artists!

Heather recently released her second solo album, Sisters of the Moon, which features the ethereal voices of her 40-voice women’s choir Yala Lati. Her first solo album, Prayers for the Water is a ZMR Top 10 album. You can find Heather’s music and her a cappella group SIRENZ on all of the streaming platforms and for download on her website.

Links: 
Website: https://heatherhoustonmusic.com
Albums
    Download: https://heatherhoustonmusic.com/recordings/
    Streaming on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/4gw79r7NGOw6WF2bytPW5a?si=E0mvdKMpQ9ObjpRnhViDYQ
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/heatherhoustonmusic
IG: HeatherHoustonMusic
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCPr_m3bi0-TqhBFvJlD4pFA

Nuts & Bolts: 4:4, Dorian, 5-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: I love that after I sing this a few times, I begin to feel more fluid inside -- as though everything under my skin is softening into a tidal pulse of flow. It's a beautiful song to sing with a drone... the words "the mind", or the "in" from "flows in" join the drone note -- a way of subverting any annoying repeated note into becoming accompaniment for your singing. This podcast isn't about me producing a polished recording -- it's about you singing, you playing, and you having a new song that you can invite into your life... and knowing that hundreds of other people are singing this song, too. Maybe they're on the melody, or the harmony, or maybe they're experimenting like I did today? And when they finish singing, everyone may feel different than when they started to sing... a little more settled, a little more flow, a little more love?

Songwriter Info: Roberta Kirn is a song leader, percussionist, and dancer who has been living, working, and raising a family on the island of Martha’s Vineyard off the coast of Massachusetts since 1989. She is the founder of BeWellSing and The Song Exchange Project, through which she brings singing in community to as many people as she can. Inspired by the teaching of Dr Ysaye Maria Barnwell, Roberta has been leading community singing for over 25 years. She believes, and has experienced, that singing together brings us into deeper connection with ourselves and each other. Raising our voices, having a communal experience of rhythm, melody, and harmony is a deeply healing experience that can be shared across age, gender, race, class, and culture.

Links: 
Roberta's Website: https://www.bewellsing.com

Song Learning Time Stamps:
Start time of teaching: 00:03:35
Start time of reprise: 00:15:13

Nuts & Bolts: 2:2, Major, harmonized
​
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: This song, about settling into the unknown and experiencing that as home, is one that has been singing in my head throughout this last year of transition for me. The delight of letting my voice slide helps me physically experience the release, and the complex harmonies keep my sense of focus and unsettledness... as though I'm practicing finding that home in the middle of the unknown. I think this is a great song for becoming very aware of how your voice feels in your body as you sing, because you'll get used to the words fairly quickly -- and then you can shift the focus to the sensations as you sing. (A sneaky form of somatic meditation, but you don't need to notice that, unless you want to!)

Songwriter Info: (Snitched directly from Anni's website) Anni Zylstra (she/they) is a folk singer, basketmaker, farmer, and weaver of community based in the traditional homelands of the Oceti Sakowin and Ho-chunk in SW so-called Wisconsin. She has been teaching, writing, and collecting new and old polyphonic songs in the aural tradition for a decade. In the spirit of folk, they believe that everyone can sing, and that using our voices to make beauty together is one of most pleasurable, accessible, and world building activities people can do together. Anni's facilitation is rooted in anticapitalist values, play, a queer nature-based lens, and more than a decade of classical musical training, ethnomusicology, and community leadership. They currently farm on the West Fork of the Kickapoo River, where they grow basket willow, perennial food crops, raise ducks, host events and classes folk education style, and lead Ember, a community choir that sings Balkan, Georgian, and polyphonic English music in La Farge, WI.

Links: 
Heartland Harmony | Singing for Joy and Connection
Here is a 45-minute interview with Annie, hosted by Kate Valentine of Singing Mama's choirs, all about song writing and sharing. Meet Annie Zylstra - Choir composer extraordinaire! - YouTube
@zestinferna -- Anni on Instagram

Song Learning Time Stamps:
Start time of teaching: 00:03:15
Start time of reprise: 00:13:24

Nuts & Bolts: 2:2, Dorian, harmonized paired melodies
​
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: I am thrilled to announce a 3-generational podcast!!! Our daughter, Rebecca Csuy (pronounced, "Soo-ee"), was kind enough to join me to record this lullaby I started singing to myself a few months ago.... and then Rebecca managed to catch Claire, their almost 3-year-old daughter, singing it to herself the next day! (If you wanted to skip ahead to that, it's at the very, very end of the podcast, as a bonus, and of course, I would completely understand!) Do you ever sing with someone who makes you feel better about your own voice just by the way they sing with you? That's how I feel about singing with Rebecca -- her voice is so true and released -- it helps me find the center in my own in some way. I wrote this song because I'm not always an easy sleeper... so one day after a rough night, I was trying to sing to myself to unwind and relax -- and this is what came. The white birds were seagulls, making a racket outside our apartment window... and just before I fall asleep, it feels like my thoughts turn white and begin to float -- and so the white thoughts.

Songwriter Info: That would be me, so both of the websites below have stuff...

Links: 
abreathofsong.com
juneberrymusic.com

Song Learning Time Stamps:
Start time of teaching: 00:02:43
Start time of reprise: 00:15:43

Nuts & Bolts: 3:4, Ionian, melody with 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: I've shared this song with my pocket song singers online group, meaning I was live-looping it... and the layers are intricate! The different lines interweave closely, creating a dense, beautiful texture. Lyndsey and I enjoy our conversation -- hear her talk about dropping root to choose what to do in the morning and set an intention, about how grief can be a healer, and wealth of teachers and mentors she draws on. Learn which voices still niggle at her, even with all the wisdom she has steeped herself in, and how she includes and cares for those parts, too. When we recorded this, I was in a particularly fragile place, feeling a little unmoored -- I felt better after this time spent talking and singing... more connected, more hopeful. As usual, I left with more questions than I started with... but it feels like a big door has opened and is welcoming me through. Following the links will keep me learning for a good long time!

Songwriter Info: Lyndsey Scott is an artist-goofball-yintennae devoted to priestesSing the Heartland, (literal and figurative).  She weaves community singing to empower earth-based spiritual consciousness, and gathers soul circles that, through Song and sacred listening, decompose oppressive scripts that get in the way of freely living the Love we are. With jams that get you skipping easily between the sacred, sexy, and sssssilly : your inner child, exiled banshee, and wise elder are all very invited to the circle. 

Song Learning Time Stamps:
Start time of teaching: 00:06:40
Start time of reprise: 01:14:35​​

Links: Are you ready??? Lyndsey had so many resources to share, so this is the longest set of links yet!

Let's start with links for Lyndsey and As I Relax:
The song is free to share but Lyndsey always welcomes financial and/or networking support if/when folks are so moved.
​Lyndsey's website: lyndseyscott.earth
Everything Lyndsey! https://linktr.ee/lila.gaia
We Belong Community of Song: https://www.facebook.com/webelongcommunityofsong
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/lyndseyscott
Lyndsey's album on Bandcamp: https://lyndseyscott.bandcamp.com/album/well-held

And now links to things that came up during the conversation -- starting with some of the quotations.

“He who sings, prays twice.” ― St. Augustine
“I arise in the morning torn between a desire to improve (or save) the world and a desire to enjoy (or savor) the world. This makes it hard to plan the day.” ― E. B. White
“Don’t ask what the world needs. Ask what makes you come alive, and go do it. Because what the world needs is people who have come alive.” ― Howard Thurman

Orland Bishop: Orland Bishop (presswarehouse.com)
adrienne maree brown: adrienne maree brown – 'The only way to deal with an unfree world is to become so absolutely free that your very existence is an act of rebellion.' – camus…documenting my liberation
San Francisco mural by Susan O’Malley: SusanOMalley_Mural_2009-2048x1536.jpg (2048×1536) (rootdivision.org)
​Starhawk, “The Fifth Sacred Thing” The Fifth Sacred Thing by Starhawk « Starhawk's Website
Marianne Williamson: Marianne Williamson – #1 New York Times Best-Selling Author
A Course in Miracles: Combined Volume: Foundation For Inner Peace: 8601421955508: Amazon.com: Books
Shireen Amini: Shireen Amini Music Medicine and Shireen Amini
Shelley Tochluk: Living in the Tension & Workshop Series (shellytochluk.com)
Emerald Podcast: https://podcasts.apple.com/jm/podcast/how-trance-states-shape-the-world/id1465445746?i=1000512752303
Chubby Cree: https://www.instagram.com/p/CbTonaZJL2d/
Laurence Cole: Can’t Do It Wrong / My Life Is So Cuckoo — Laurence Cole
Love Poems from God, translated by Daniel Ladinsky: Love Poems from God: Twelve Sacred Voices from the East and West (Compass) - Stillness Speaks
Grace Lee Boggs: Grace Lee Boggs - Wikipedia
Malidoma Somé and grief ritual: Dr. Malidoma Somé, Phd. | The Legacy of Elder Malidoma Somé
Sibomfu Somé and grief ritual: http://www.sobonfu.com/  Embracing Grief | Sobonfu Somé
Enneagrams – here’s one summary set: Integrative Enneagram Solutions (integrative9.com)
Aretha movie: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gkKOIQwTiKE
Characteristics of White Supremacy by Tema Okun: Microsoft Word - Okun - white sup culture.doc (whitesupremacyculture.info)
Francis Weller/ five gates: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MBfagOEkMi4   Home (francisweller.net)
Liz Rog/Center for Belonging:  https://www.centerforbelonging.earth/
Earthkeeper Wisdom School: https://www.earthkeeperwisdomschool.com/
Grief to Action: https://www.holisticresistance.com/grief
Influential album: MC HAMMER - Please Hammer Don't Hurt Em - Amazon.com Music
Lynn O'Brien: https://www.lynnobrien.love/
Artist Lyndsey wishes more people listened to: Briony Greenhill. Album: https://www.brionygreenhill.com/crossing-the-ocean

Nuts & Bolts: 2:2, Minor; 4 layers, one echoed/harmonized
​
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: I love this song for the both-and-ness... both joy and grief; both broken and mending; both hurt and healing, lost-found, hidden-revealed. The song appeared in an including way, too... Lyndsey was tasked with finding or creating moments of beauty and surprise at 2017 Village Fire, and as she sat at a table with the youth, creating art and words to decorate the port-a-potties, she saw what 10-year-old Livian had written -- "Sing upon joy". Lyndsey heard it as a song, and sang the first phrase... then the folk at the table created the interlocking part together. Both music and art, both words and song, both older and younger, both-and, both-and. Next week's episode is a songwriter conversation with Lyndsey -- not only does she share one of the amazing songs from her new album, but we get to talk and explore. My heart feels wider, my brain click-ier, my spirit lighter after every interaction with Lyndsey -- I hope you can join us!

Songwriter Info: Lyndsey Scott is an artist-goofball-yintennae devoted to priestesSing the Heartland, (literal and figurative).  She weaves community singing to empower earth-based spiritual consciousness, and gathers soul circles that, through Song and sacred listening, decompose oppressive scripts that get in the way of freely living the Love we are. With jams that get you skipping easily between the sacred, sexy, and sssssilly : your inner child, exiled banshee, and wise elder are all very invited to the circle. ​

Song Learning Time Stamps:
Start time of teaching: 00:03:11
Start time of reprise: 00:14:30​

Links: 
The song is free to share but Lyndsey always welcomes financial and/or networking support if/when folks are so moved.
Lyndsey's website: lyndseyscott.earth
Everything Lyndsey! https://linktr.ee/lila.gaia
We Belong Community of Song: https://www.facebook.com/webelongcommunityofsong
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/lyndseyscott
Lyndsey's album on Bandcamp: https://lyndseyscott.bandcamp.com/album/well-held

Nuts & Bolts: 4:4, Major, 2 harmonized layers
​
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: For most of these episodes, I pick the song many months in advance, because what with artwork & permissions, not to mention my own anxiety levels(!), it helps to have things lined up before.... which sometimes means I haven't listened to the song much until I'm ready to record. Then I wonder -- will I still love it? Will I still want to learn and spend time with it, or was it a temporary infatuation? I can tell you unequivocally, I loved coming back to this song! Katie Sontag's "Share the Journey" felt like reconnecting with a wise, deeply beloved friend who loves me back.., you know that feeling of mutual warmth and trust that you can relax into, and at the same time feel empowered and energized by? Ahhhh.

Songwriter Info: Katie Sontag writes songs that are honest and vulnerable for her own healing and transformation and seeks to inspire the same in others. Based in Eugene, OR, but working on touring the world, Katie's songs will touch your heart and leave you feeling better then when you came. Listening to her music has been described as receiving "a big hug". She is also the lead vocalist and songwriter for her band, "Katie Sontag and the Love Notes" and half of the duo, "smalltime". She is a group song leader and aspiring choral director. Her songs have been adapted for choirs in Portland, Boulder, Austin, and Big Sur.

Links: 
Website: katiesontag.com
email for contact: [email protected]
Patreon: patreon.com/katiesontag
Facebook: facebook.com/katiesontagmusickatiesontag.com
Soundcloud: soundcloud.com/katiesontag
Bandcamp: https://katiesontag.bandcamp.com/
Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/c/KatieSontag
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/17B4xx4loeNl48GXD6oyBB?si=9p7YgO6FQQ6s-WjBS1VhOg&nd=1

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!

Notes: Ever feel stuck in a really bad place? The hobbits got stuck, and Gandalf blesses the eagles who rescue them. I chose to start this episode with a quote by Cynewulf (9?th century), one of the four Old English poets whose works survive today, because that was a time period J.R.R. Tolkien, (20th century) was deeply influenced by -- and here's Joshua Blaine setting this blessing in the 21st century. This makes for a great "setting-off" song -- and also a song of trust in that wind carrying. As I sing this, I love to feel a connection with something ancient in my own bones. I played with it as I shared it with you, making up extra parts at the end -- please, explore -- let the wind bear you! -- as you sing with me.

Songwriter Info: Joshua Blaine (he/him) is a community songleader, Jewish ritualist & storyteller, and resonant healing facilitator & coach. His work as a songleader began as an inquiry into the state of protest songs after the 2016 election, which sent him out on the road to interview dozens of musicians and song leaders for a project called “Finding Our Voice.” Since then, he’s been a humble servant of song, singing in capitol rotundas, at meetings & marches and around dinner tables across the country. Whether as a songleader, organizer, or resonant healing facilitator, he draws upon the rich tradition of both his recent and ancient Jewish ancestors of seeding resistance and resilience through song. After spending eight years in the heart of Texas, Joshua now resides in Providence on the oceanic lands of the Narragansett and Wampanoag, also known as Rhode Island.

Links: 
The song is free to share but Josh always welcomes financial and/or networking support if/when folks are so moved.
http://linktr.ee/joshuahblaine
Joshua's live recording with a group (and his own Gandalf voice!)

Nuts & Bolts: 4:4, Minor (Dorian implied), 3 layers
​
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: This is the determined, comforting chorus of Shireen Amini's song, "We're Not Walking Alone". I love 'walking music' -- and this is one of my go-to's when I'm looking for an up-tempo walk. I'll sing the different parts consecutively, and if I can rope a co-walker into singing one of the parts, even better! Shireen says nature is the "enwrapping companion" that lets her own answers arise. The first verse of this song is, "When we stop trying to force all the answers -- 'cause they never will come from the mind -- they will come from a place that is peaceful; take a walk on the land, they will arise." I love the sense that the land itself is willing to care and tend us, and is, in the deepest sense, our home.
​
Songwriter Info: Shireen Amini (non-binary human using she in English / elle in Spanish) is a queer, Puerto Rican-Iranian, Earth-loving singer-songwriter, performer, percussionist and teaching artist. With a BA in Ethnomusicology from UCLA and a certificate in Sound, Voice, and Music Healing from CIIS in San Francisco, Shireen has also come to believe strongly in music as a tool for personal and collective transformation. As a songleader, Shireen loves to share medicine songs with healing and empowering messages, infectious grooves, and soulful melodies, often engaging her participants in rhythmic play and movement while singing. She also offers music classes, facilitation, and coaching for her local and virtual communities through her project Shireen Amini Music Medicine.

Links: 
Listen to Shireen's recording of the whole song from her album, "Break Myself Free": https://youtu.be/UWlLZ_36iVI
Shireen's website
Shireen's community singing website
Shireen on facebook
Shireen on Instagram (@shireenaminimusic)

Nuts & Bolts: 4:4, Mixolydian, 3 layers

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: Wendy Luella Perkins sings to telemarketers, tells of her brother choosing her for his show-and-tell, and why she has a tik-tok channel. She talks about auditory memory, singing as refuge, and the reclamation of her voice. She describes the transition from singer/songwriter work into the Soulful Singing in 2002, and the challenges unique to this kind of therapeutic singing which is not professional therapy. We have the awkward conversation about money -- is it possible to make a living as a songwriter without commodifying song, which is a birthright? Patty Piotrowski has created the most appropriate beautiful art in my mind because of the generosity and openness of the bloom.

Songwriter Info: Wendy Luella Perkins has been singing and making up songs since she was a very young child. When she was three years old, her older brother, Tim, took her to school as his Show+Tell item saying, “this is my sister Wendy Lu, listen to her sing!” She's been going strong ever since. As a singer-songwriter, Unitarian Universalist community minister, and founder, in 2002 of Soulful Singing (singing meditation for all) Wendy Luella leverages the power of song to build authentic, healing and joyful communities.

A prolific writer of folk songs and meditative chants and supportive guide who helps others to create their own songs, Wendy Luella's greatest joy is to bring friends and strangers together in the transformational circle of song. Wendy Luella has produced three CDs of original music, which you can find on her website. As a response to pandemic restrictions and recognizing the need to keep on singing in community, especially in difficult times, Wendy Luella transitioned Soulful Singing to online sessions in March 2020. Soulful Singers from all over have been gathering online EVERY SINGLE DAY since then and once a week on THURSDAY evenings.
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Everyone is welcome to join Soulful Singing via Zoom. Singing daily over the last 875+ days with wonderful folks from Kingston and around the world has encouraged Wendy Luella to share her original songs more broadly in what she calls her “Song Liberation Project” (The SLiP). She has written hundreds of songs and with The SLiP is sharing them one by one on TikTok. Wendy Luella grew up in rural Nova Scotia, and has lived in Kingston Ontario for over 25 years with her sweetheart and fellow musician, Charlie Walker. She loves waking early, walking daily, eating communally, crafting publicly, sharing deeply, gardening bountifully, laughing abundantly and of course, singing soulfully!

Links: 
Wendy Luella's website: https://www.wendyluellaperkins.com
and tiktok page: https://www.tiktok.com/@wendyluellaperkins
To email Wendy Luella: [email protected]
To join Soulful Singing every day from 9:00-9:45 a.m. Eastern Time, please click here for information: Wendy Luella Perkins | SoulfulSinging
(notice you'll need to email ahead of time to receive a link for joining, so don't leave it to the very last minute!)
Album that mattered: Joni Mitchell, Blue
Songwriter Wendy Lu wishes more people would listen to: Coco Love Alcorn

Nuts & Bolts: 
​Loving-Kindness: 3:4, major, zipper.
When All Is Swirling: 2:2, minor, zipper.
We're All Connected: 4:4, major, unison.
Trust In the Power: 4:4, major, zipper.
It's Good to Have a Song or Two: 4:4, major, unison.
To Love I Do Return: 3:4, major, zipper.

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!