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    117. September Round

    4:4 Autumn Beauty Celebrate Change Cycles Earth Gather Grow Harvest Journey Peace Release Scale: Dorian Song Form: Round Summer Trees
    Song: September Round
    Music: Catherine Young
    Lyrics:

    Summer’s over; it’s September
    Leaves turn to red and gold,
    Green leaves—remember
    Gather all your colors in a fine silk thread
    Weave all your colors in your leafy bed.
    Summer’s over
    ​Summer’s over
    Picture
    Notes: Catherine Young, a poet deeply rooted in the Driftless region of Wisconsin, USA, gives us a wistful melody in the ancient Dorian mode -- a minor scale that has a beautiful, lifted sixth degree that gives it a particular flavor you'll come to know well by singing this with me. In the northern hemisphere, fall is upon us -- the equinox approaching -- and this song carries with it the beauty of this time, and the grief of letting go of summer. I teach the melody first, just letting my mouth form shapes to really get to know this beautiful tune -- you can create your own shapes, and then round it with me, or on your own -- or stay with the original melody. So many options!

    Songwriter Info: Catherine Young is a writer and performing artist whose work is infused with a keen sense of place. She is author of the ecopoetry collection Geosmin and the environmental memoir Black Diamonds. Her weekly podcast Landward:Readings of Place and Season is available online from WDRT. Rooted in farm life, Catherine lives with her family in Wisconsin's Driftless Area where she is totally in love with meandering streams. She holds concern for water and deeply believes in the use of story and art as tools for transforming the world.

    ​Sharing Info: Yes -- The song is free to share but Catherine always welcome financial and/or networking support. Please contact her to purchase sheet music.

    Links: 
    "September Round" is from the song almanac Rounding the Year which can be purchased in print or as pdf from Catherine: catherineyoungwriter@gmail.com
    You can also request to be put on her mailing list.
    For writings and recordings, visit Catherine's website: http://www.catherineyoungwriter.com/
    Podcasts: https://wdrt.org/landward/
    Instagram:     https://www.instagram.com/catherineyoungwriter 

    Live online international book launch conversation for her book Black Diamonds: a Childhood Colored by Coal.
    Thursday, September 28, 2023 6 PM Central Time (7pm eastern).
    LINK FOR EVENT:     https://www.crowdcast.io/c/black-diamonds

    Song Learning Time Stamps:
    Start time of teaching: 00:03:53
    Start time of reprise: 00:17:53
    ​​
    Nuts & Bolts: 4:4, Dorian, 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

    113. Borrow Trouble with singer Seth Norton

    4:4 Accept Be Present Breathe Change Cycles Darkness Enough Flow Future Grieve Journey Release Scale: Aeolian (minor) Scale: Ionian (Major) Song Form: Layer Song Form: Unison Trust Water Waves
    Song: Borrow Trouble
    ​Music:     Patricia Norton
    Lyrics
    Let me not borrow this trouble
    ahead of time.
    Let me not carry this sorrow
    before it's mine.
    It will come when it comes, and go when it goes.
    I will know; I will know.
    It will come when it comes and go when it goes,
    I will know.

    My trust and love are banks on the river
    where grief and praise can find a flow.
    My tender heart, it floats on the ocean.
    The waves come. The waves go.
    Picture
    Notes: Sometimes I get so overwhelmed with the thought of death, I think I'm going to precipitate it by forgetting to breathe! And then somehow, something will help me back into the present, alive moment... and this song appeared just after one of those moments. I was absolutely delighted to record it with my son, Seth, who was visiting from Boston (you'll hear a little fangirl excitement in my voice)... and also surprised by how different it was for me to sing it with someone else rather than just my own voice on the looper! This voice music thing... it's always surprising me, delighting me, stretching me. And this particular song keeps coming back, insisting I sing it again.

    Songwriter Info: In addition to hosting this podcast and an online singing program, Pocket Songs, Patricia is excited to be developing an in-person community singing program in Burlington, Vermont. You can find more details about that at the Juneberry Music site. Patricia believes in singing as a part of vibrant well-being, experiencing wholeness, courage, connection and joy along with brokenness, fear, loneliness, and despair... trusting the whole messy catastrophe! She lives with her long-time beloved, Tom, in a single bedroom apartment close to their daughter's family (the better to play with their grand.) Patricia reads widely, and also spends time exploring the natural world on these Abenaki lands, knitting, and reluctantly strength-training.

    ​Sharing Info: You are welcome to share this song; please contact Patricia directly for sheet music or permission to record or perform. She always appreciates hearing about how the song travels.

    Links: 
    Patricia's Website: https://www.juneberrymusic.com

    ​Song Learning Time Stamps:
    Start time of teaching: 00:03:25
    Start time of reprise: 00:15:15
    ​​
    Nuts & Bolts: 4:4 Minor & Major, unison or 2-part 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!​
  • Published on

    112. Let Me Sing

    4:4 Be Grateful Be Present Beauty Cycles Dawn Earth Flow Light Moon Night Scale: Mixolydian Song Form: Harmonized Sun
    Song: Let Me Sing
    ​Music: Jane Lewis
    Lyrics

    Let me sing as the sun rises
    Let me sing as the day falls
    Let me offer this prayer to the moonlight
    Let me stand in the beauty of it all

    (Let me sing to the beauty)
    Picture
    Notes: A sweet short song like this brings me deep rewards -- the chance to drop into the joy, the preciousness, the abundance of simply being alive. For me to learn it, Jane sent me "a just rough off the looper" recording -- and it was so, so beautiful! Don't miss the links to Jane's recorded music -- her voice is like flavored butter -- smooth with an extra kick -- and the sense you get of her self that infuses her singing is generous and gentle and joystruck. My version doesn't sound nearly as good as her's to me -- and yet, it was such a pleasure to get to sing the song, and I think it'll work so you can learn the song and take it on into your own life, with your own voice. If Jane ever records it, or you get a chance to hear Jane live, maybe you can sing it along with her!

    Songwriter Info: Jane Lewis is a singer-songwriter, workshop facilitator, and community music instigator. She is a strong believer in the power of music to bring people together. When not performing with her folk/roots duo Gathering Sparks, she can be found leading vocal & harmony workshops, Circle Singing, Vocal Meditation, and Women's Music Weekend retreats.

    ​Sharing Info: Yes — The song is free to use/share, but Jane always welcomes networking support. A financial contribution when folks are able is also appreciated!

    Links: 
    Jane's Website: http://www.janelewis.ca
    Women's Music Weekend, facilitated by Jane: https://www.womensmusicweekend.com
    Jane's YouTube Channel: http://www.youtube.com/JaneLewisMusic
    Jane's duo with Eve Goldberg: Gathering Sparks YouTube Channel: http://www.youtube.com/GatheringSparksMusic

    ​Song Learning Time Stamps:
    Start time of teaching: 00:02:59
    Start time of reprise: 00:13:29
    ​​
    Nuts & Bolts: 4:4, Mixolydian with a twist, 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!​
  • Published on

    110. The Crow Calls with guest Maggie Wheeler

    4:4 Change Earth Empower Future Generations Grieve Grow Heal Ribbon Scale: Aeolian (minor) Sky Song Form: Call & Response Song Form: Layer Songwriter Conversation Sun Tend
    Song: The Crow Calls
    ​Music:     Maggie Wheeler
    Lyrics
    ​
    1. The crow calls
    The Sun falls
    They know the rhythm
    The rhythm of it all 

    2. Echo part 1

    3. We are the only ones
    Who have forgotten how to listen
    We’re the only ones
    Who have forgotten how to listen
    We’re the only ones
    Who have forgotten how to listen
    The earth is calling us to open up our ears

    4. Put your hands in the dirt
    Let’s heal the hurt
    The earth is waiting
    For us to do the work
    Do the work
    Picture
    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!​ 
  • Published on

    108. Can I stand Here For You?

    3 Layer 4:4 Be Present Belonging Breathe Empower Enough Friendship Generosity Heal Heart Scale: Ionian (Major) Trust
    Song: Can I Stand Here For You?
    ​Music:     Kate Munger
    Lyrics

    Can I stand here for you?
    May I use my heart as a gate?
    We may not need words.
    We may not need songs.
    ​We may only need our two hearts beating.
    Picture
    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!​
  • Published on

    107. As A Seal Upon Thy Heart

    4:4 Belonging Earth Farewell Friendship Future Grieve Heart Holy Journey Love Safe Scale: Ionian (Major) Song Form: Layer Song Form: Round Tend
    Song: As a Seal Upon Thy Heart
    ​Music: Alison Burns
    Text: from Song of Songs (Shir Hashirim) 8:6
    שִׁיר הַשִּׁירִים
    Lyrics

    Set me as a seal upon thy heart, as a seal upon thy arm.
    ​For love is strong, as strong as death

    שִׂימֵ֨נִי כַֽחוֹתָ֜ם עַל־לִבֶּ֗ךָ כַּֽחוֹתָם֙ עַל־זְרוֹעֶ֔ךָ כִּֽי־עַזָּ֤ה כַמָּ֨וֶת֙ אַֽהֲבָ֔ה קָשָׁ֥ה כִשְׁא֖וֹל
    Picture
    Notes: Ali Burns gives us a beautiful two-part song that can also be a round... it feels like very exposed singing to me, and there's a way in which committing to what feels vulnerable in my voice, both high and low, also feels powerful and affirming. The ancient words resonate with longing for connection beyond death with those whom we love... and to me, are a reminder that can't force anyone into accepting love -- we can only offer.

    Songwriter Info: Ali has built her reputation over the past 30 years as one of the UK’s prominent workshop leaders for community choirs. Many of her songs have found their way into the repertoire and hearts of singers across the UK, and increasingly, Canada, the USA and Australia. Her work is published by Faber, Sing Up! and Oxford University Press.
    ​
    Sharing Info: You can hear and buy a copy of the song for £5 from www.aliburns.co.uk 
    Please visit her online shop for information about permissions:     https://aliburns.co.uk/shop/licensing/song-licence/

    Links: 
    Ali's Website: www.aliburns.co.uk

    Song Learning Time Stamps:
    Start time of teaching: 00:03:08
    Start time of reprise: 00:14:38
    ​
    Nuts & Bolts: 4:4 major, 2-part layer, round optional

    ​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!