Mindfulness and music
The Eye Can Pod (EyeCanPod) podcast helps educate others about blindness and supports youth with seeing challenges - created by various youth, my friend Lisa and her children, in part. I really loved the podcast on braille literacy, and the podcast is really well done (including the music)! Check it out: https://eyecanpod.podbean.com/
Image by Irfan RInaldie from Pixabay We might never consider it, but the natural world has a soundscape - a sound signature of what species are within (like the forest sounds, and even trees singing!)), and how they communicate with one another. This TED talk gives a great audio version and examples. Can you hear... Continue Reading →
Image by Stefan Keller from Pixabay After a rain, mosquitoes can show up unannounced - I've heard people wonder why they exist and why not get rid of them all? But mosquitoes have surprising benefits: https://endmosquitoes.com/10-benefits-of-mosquitoes-how-are-they-helpful-to-humans/ Like other parasites, their destruction is a real problem for species diversity in the face of climate change (many... Continue Reading →
Image by Benjamin Balazs from Pixabay Music can help us bring an attitude of kindness to others. Take the beauty of single the simple lullaby - a sense of loving kindness and compassion can be here. Here is some loving kindness music from Mettavolution, or this "music meditation." Sutras and Ashoka's edicts have also been... Continue Reading →
I started teaching even younger children, and puppets are a great way to engage them. It's like having another teacher handy! The puppet can dance and sing, and teach concepts, too. I had been wanting to use a cardboard cone leftover from some yarn, and the time and materials came into my life just as... Continue Reading →
John Henry is a lovely person who brings kindness to sustainability and music. Check out his music and more on the website and on Facebook.
Image by PublicDomainArchive from Pixabay The whole tone scale uses only whole steps to get from one note to the next. In Carnatic music, this results in the raga "gopriya" which has some very interesting characteristics. A song in this raga is here but you can hear it here. More about whole tone scales here:... Continue Reading →
Image by Katherine Gomez from Pixabay TAoN 80 brought me this: Weird spotify playlists. They are very funny, and also make fun games (check out Russian Roulette), a twist on the standard mix-tape playlist. I love that these playlists are for very specific situations - I know that in my own life, certain situations are... Continue Reading →
Image by Chrom72 from Pixabay Watch/listen to this Youtube video of the COVID Cello Project #10, Samuel Barber's Adagio for Strings played via zoom by 278 cellists in 29 countries, with love and memories for departed loved ones of theirs. Worth repeating even if you've already seen it. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0ly61HpQ3mU As a former cello player, I... Continue Reading →
Tiny Desk Concerts from NPR give you a lovely taste of various styles of music. This one, the Crossing, brings "Titration," which is about emotional regulation and awareness: https://www.npr.org/2022/10/24/1130240753/the-crossing-tiny-desk-concert See all concerts here: https://www.npr.org/series/tiny-desk-concerts/
Okachiko - Sit There 