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    163. Radiate

    4:4 Determination Dreams Empower Journey Light Motion Ribbon Scale: Ionian (Major) Song Form: Unison Trust
    Song Learning Time Stamps:
    Start time of teaching: 00:02:03
    Start time of reprise: 00:13:57
    ​Lyrics:

    When I see me,
    I am standing in my light.
    I will be me
    when I’m standing in my light.

    And if it’s blinding,
    I’ll keep climbing
    ​oh so high
    and just keep going
    toward my knowing
    till I find:
    I radiate.
    Picture
    Song: Radiate
    Music by: Lisa Piccirillo

    Notes: Going epic this week -- we learn the chorus to Lisa Piccirillo's song, Radiate, with just me and the piano...and then when we're feeling solid, blow our socks off by singing along with her huge soundtrack! If you love the song, then there are links to find it in Bandcamp, etc, just below! I particularly love the way the word "radiate" is the most intimate in the entire chorus -- it feels like a world of confidence and self-connection right there... Enjoy -- I certainly did!!

    Songwriter Info: Lisa Piccirillo almost gave up on songwriting, but the muse wouldn’t let her. The inspiration for her latest record came to her as a vision: the silhouette of a woman, backlit by the sun, alongside the word RADIATE. Fueled by this idea and the desire to reclaim her creative identity, Lisa devoted herself to daily songwriting sessions at sunrise and the new record was born. An unapologetically loud follow-up to her mellow and folky 2008 debut (momentum), RADIATE chronicles Lisa’s vast emotional landscape with her signature blend of vulnerable songwriting and powerhouse vocals.

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

    Song Learning Time Stamps:
    Start time of teaching: 00:02:03
    Start time of reprise: 00:13:57

    Links:
    Website: www.lisapmusic.com
    Linktree: https://linktr.ee/lisapiccirillo
    Tickets for Radiate Release Event Oct 19th 2024: https://tinyurl.com/48t8dna7
    Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/7GJmGSN3Era6CJspcpMMY4?si=PFoGHPmUTQOVLYSJv0UlNg
    Apple Music: https://music.apple.com/us/artist/lisa-piccirillo/289758509
    Bandcamp: https://lisapiccirillo.bandcamp.com/
    Instagram: www.instagram.com/lisapiccirillo
    YouTube: www.youtube.com/lisapmusic
    Facebook: www.facebook.com/lisapmusic

    Nuts & Bolts: 4:4, major, unison

    Join this community of people who love to use song to help navigate life? Absolutely:
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    160. (O Spirit) Guide Me to Those I Need with guest Aimée Ringle

    4:4 Chant Hope Journey Listen Love Prayer Scale: Aeolian (minor) Song Form: Unison Songwriter Conversation Trust Wisdom
    Song Learning Time Stamps:
    Start time of teaching: 00:03:53
    Start time of reprise: 01:34:28

    ​Lyrics:

    O Spirit, guide me to those I need.
    Guide me to those who need me.
    I follow where You lead.
    Picture
    Song: (O Spirit) Guide Me to Those I Need
    Music by: Aimée Ringle

    Notes: If you've run across Aimée Ringle's work, you know her wicked musical skills, her exuberant, high-energy presence, her huge heart and desire to be of service... and you may not yet know how she grew into her voice, the questions she asks herself around how best to contribute to songcircles, her deep desire for village community, and questions about how to make that real in the here and now. We dig a little into one of the hard conversations in songcircles or any group situation where people bring varying skill levels -- how can people of varying skill levels feel welcome and find space and satisfaction as they are? We talk about what Aimée finds she needs to be able to let songs come through and more! Aimée shares the story of how O Spirit came through and we sing it both with guitar and in an up-close and personal way. It's a big episode because we let our conversation spread out, enjoying the end of summer and a sense of expansiveness. I hope you, too, find that pleasure of connection when you join us.

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

    Sharing Info: The song is free to share in oral tradition groups, but please contact Aimée for recording and/or performing permission. She says: "For now, the song is just the chorus, but I am paying attention to its evolution and leaving space for the possibility of verses, etc. But this will not be a group process and I'm not inviting unsolicited creative ideas in this process."

    Song Learning Time Stamps:
    Start time of teaching: 00:03:53
    Start time of reprise: 01:34:28

    Links:
    Aimée's website: www.aimeeringlemusic.com 
    Aimée's YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/c/AiméeRingle
    Aimée's O Spirit video on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/p/C8wzISTpTsh
    Aimée's Bandcamp: https://aimeeringle.bandcamp.com
    Earth Practice: https://www.instagram.com/earthpracticemusic/
    Tone Home by Elijah Ray: https://soundcloud.com/entheo/tone-home?in=l29rjc61w9os/sets/the-upload-1
    I'm My Own Walkman by Bobby McFerrin: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u8DUi9RCTiQ
    Samara Jade: https://www.instagram.com/samara_jade_music/
    Three Wheels Turning: https://threewheelsturning.com/
    "We are what we repeatedly do." Aristotle interpreted by Will Durant: https://blogs.umb.edu/quoteunquote/2012/05/08/its-a-much-more-effective-quotation-to-attribute-it-to-aristotle-rather-than-to-will-durant/
    The Sharpening Stone: https://www.instagram.com/thesharpeningstone/
    Laurence Cole: https://www.laurencecole.com/
    Liz Rog: https://www.facebook.com/liz.rog1/
    Shireen Amini: https://shireenamini.com/music
    Song Village: https://www.songvillage.net/
    Emergent Strategy and Holding Change by Adrienne Maree Brown: https://adriennemareebrown.net/book/emergent-strategy/, https://adriennemareebrown.net/book/holding-change-2/
    Billie Eilish: https://www.instagram.com/billieeilish/
    Ganavya: https://www.instagram.com/ganavya 

    Nuts & Bolts: 4:4, Aeolian, unison chant

    Join this community of people who love to use song to help navigate life? Absolutely:
    https://dashboard.mailerlite.com/forms/335811/81227018071442567/share

    Help us keep going: reviews, comments, encouragement, plus contributions... we float on your support.
    https://www.abreathofsong.com/gratitude-jar.html
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    149. May My Tears Water a Sapling

    3:4 Breathe Change Earth Flow Grow Heal Moon Scale: Ionian (Major) Song Form: Unison Song Form: Unison With Separate Harmony Line Sun Trees Water
    Song Learning Time Stamps:
    Start time of teaching: 00:03:48
    Start time of reprise: 00:18:20

    ​Lyrics:

    May my tears water a sapling,
    May my life support its growth,
    May I walk with care and healing
    for new life upon the earth.

    May our breath move with the Spirit,
    flowing free around the earth,
    May we listen to the sunshine,
    and feel the moon reflect our worth.

    (based on the last line of a poem
    ​"Not Our Trees" by Laura Weber)
    Picture
    Song: May My Tears Water a Sapling
    Music by: Mary L. Cohen

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

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

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

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

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

    Exchange energy with A Breath of Song with dollars at the Gratitude Jar
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  • Published on

    146. Begin Again

    4:4 Accept Be Present Breathe Earth Flow Heal Home Journey Ribbon Scale: Ionian (Major) Song Form: Unison Song Form: Unison With Separate Harmony Line Tend
    Song Learning Time Stamps:
    Start time of teaching: 00:03:45
    Start time of reprise: 00:18:57

    Lyrics:
    ​
    I begin again with my breath,
    joining earth,
    earth and spirit.
    I return again to my breath,
    ​walking home the unknown path.
    Picture
    Song: Begin Again
    Music by: Jean Farmer

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

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

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

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

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

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

    145. Hold On with guest Aaron Johnson

    2:2 Calm Determination Empower Grieve Heal Hope Love Mantra Prayer Safe Scale: Aeolian (minor) Song Form: Unison Song Form: Unison With Separate Harmony Line Song Form: Zipper Songwriter Conversation Time Trust Wisdom
    Song Learning Time Stamps:
    Start time of teaching: 00:04:42
    Start time of reprise: 01:13:45

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

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

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

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

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

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

    144. I Hear

    4:4 Be Present Belonging Friendship Gather Grieve Heal Heart Listen Love Mantra Notice Scale: Ionian (Major) Song Form: Unison Song Form: Unison With Separate Harmony Line Wisdom
    Song Learning Time Stamps:
    Start time of teaching: 00:05:09
    Start time of reprise: 00:13:20

    Lyrics:
    ​
    I hear my voice
    from my heart to my soul;
    I hear your voice
    from your heart to your soul.
    Picture
    Song: I Hear
    Music by: Aaron Johnson

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

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

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

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

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

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