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    92. I'm Coming Home

    4:4 Belonging Heal Home Journey Listen Scale: Ionian (Major) Song Form: Call & Response Song Form: Harmonized Song Form: Unison Trust
    ​​Song: I'm Coming Home
    Music & Words: Marv Zauderer
    ​Lyrics
    ​
    I long for home
    A clear way home
    I hear my voice
    I'm not alone
    I search inside
    I see I'm known
    My own heart waits
    I'm coming home
    Picture

    Notes    :     I often gather richness from the way different art forms play off each other – and I love the combination of the Rilke poem I read at the beginning of this episode, and Marv’s song. Honestly, I end up spending a lot of time looking for that tower of strength inside myself – the ancient heart core that is rooted in the earth and stretches to the sky, that connects to my ancestors, both past and future. When I catch glimpses of it, I sense a way-finding clarity; when I circle around it I feel the enticement of belonging; when I inhabit it, I am at home, whether as falcon, storm, or song. I love the way Marv’s song quests, circles, and settles back at home.

    ​Songwriter Info: Marv loves community singing, songleading, and bringing people together. At a time when so many of us feel a need to return more resonance and community to our lives, Marv is passionate about the unique power of singing together to connect us more deeply within, to each other, and to something larger than ourselves. He is a graduate of Littlebird Songleader Flight School, a member of The Living Room Choir, a proud alum of the West Marin Choir/Common Voice, and the chief cook and bottle-washer of SingOnline.org and the online SingOnline.org Song Circle, where, unlike on Zoom, through the miracle of free software everyone can see and hear every word from everyone. Later this year he’ll complete the Community Choir Leadership Training, following past graduates (and heroes!) like Maggie Wheeler, Laurence Cole, and MaMuse. In his previous careers he was Founder & CEO of a hunger relief organization; a psychotherapist & executive coach; and a technology executive at such companies as Apple. He has also restarted his psychotherapy and executive coaching practices; you can find details at TherapyWithMarv.com and CoachingWithMarv.com.​

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

    Links:
    Marv's Website: http://singwithmarv.com
    Marv's Instagram: http://instagram.com/singwithmarv
    Marv's Facebook: http://facebook.com/singwithmarv
    Rilke poem with translations:     https://docs.google.com/document/d/1NYYMoFQ_78C5u4Ql6OyjpZEXD3TGJuuxAX1b8T1C07U/edit?usp=sharing
    Hear Marv singing the song himself with Heather Stevenson on piano & harmony: I'm Coming Home on Soundcloud

    Song Learning Time Stamps:
    Start time of teaching: 00:03:19
    Start time of reprise: 00:12:01

    ​Nuts & Bolts: 4:4, Major, Call & response or unison or 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!
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    91. You Are Enough

    4:4 Belonging Earth Enough Generosity Gentle Heal Scale: Aeolian (minor) Song Form: Call & Response
    ​​Song: You Are Enough
    Music & Words: Louise Blackburn ​

    ​Lyrics
    You are enough
    Go gentle on the earth
    Go gentle on yourself
    You are enough
    Picture
    Notes: It was amazingly fortuitous -- Louise Blackburn and I had agreed on releasing her song as episode #91, and then it turned out that recording episode #91 live would be just the right time to celebrate 25,000 downloads -- and we had the perfect song in place. In June of 2021, I had searched long and hard for a podcast I could listen to from which I could learn songs for well being and more about the people who shared these songs. I couldn't find it, so I started A Breath of Song together with Patty Piotrowski, constantly reminding myself that who I am, what I bring to the table, is enough. I love the way Louise's song embeds that idea in my brain with gentleness and persistence. The spacious, simple harmonies create an elegant call, while the response feel like it's tugged out of my heart. Recording live in front of a full gallery Zoom audience was a novel way to create an episode, and I believe you can feel the connection I felt with the group and we all felt with you who listens now across the space/time continuum.

    ​Songwriter Info: Louise feels incredibly lucky to run choirs, workshops, festivals, singing for wellbeing groups and yoga and voice sessions across Birmingham, Walsall, Sutton Coldfield and Sandwell in the United Kingdom. Her songs are an absolute joy of creation for her and have been sung all over the world including New Zealand and America. It makes her very emotional to think of them being sung and enjoyed by other people.
    ​
    Sharing Info: The song is free to share but Louise always welcomes financial and/or networking support if/when folks are so moved.

    Links:
    Louise's website: www.voicesentwined.co.uk
    Louise's Spotify:     https://open.spotify.com/artist/4oTIDDsibmihC771Wvy1Mh

    ​Nuts & Bolts: 4:4, Aeolian, 3-part harmonized call with 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!
  • Published on

    88. The Land of Oden

    4:4 Be Present Change Earth Farewell Journey Round Scale: Mixolydian Time
    Song: A Land of Oden
    Music & Words: Unknown

    Lyrics
    In the land of Oden,
    there stands a mountain,
    ten thousand miles in the air.
    A little bird comes winging once every million years 
    and sharpens its beak on the mountain,
    then quickly disappears.
    And when that mountain has worn away,
    this til eternity will be one single day.
    Picture
    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

    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!
  • Published on

    85. This Body with Guest Heather Pierson

    4:4 Accept Be Present Calm Change Grieve Grow Heal Listen Notice Rest Scale: Ionian (Major) Song Form: Unison Song Form: Zipper Trust
    Song: This Body
    Words & Music by Heather Pierson
    Lyrics
    This body *breathing*.
    This body *breathing*.
    This body is here,
    This body is now.

    "breathing" can be replaced by other words,
    like singing, dreaming, healing, grieving, living, smiling, loving, etc.
    Picture
    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!
  • Published on

    84. May I Be Open

    4:4 Accept Be Present Flex Grow Heal Notice Open Ribbon Scale: Ionian (Major) Song Form: Layer Tend
    Song: May I Be Open
    Words & Music ​by Heather Pierson
    Lyrics
    May I be open to things as they are right now,
    because this is how things are right now.

    Remember the breath, remember the body,
    ​remember the goodness that you carry.
    Picture
    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!
  • Published on

    83. Creature Teacher

    4:4 Accept Be Present Listen Notice Rest Scale: Aeolian (minor) Song Form: Unison Tend
    Song: Creature Teacher
    Words & Music ​by Hannah Jeffery
    Lyrics
    Am I tired, am I hungry?
    Do I need to take a break now
    And rest?
    Am I tired, am I hungry?
    ​Do I need to take a breath?

    We are responsible for tending these creatures
    Let the growls and the howls and the cries and the whines
    ​Be our teachers.
    Picture
    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
    deepwellsong@gmail.com
    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!