Podcasts about DADGAD

Gaea Star Crystal Radio Hour #611 is an hour of inspired, dynamic visionary acoustic improvised music and songs by Mariam Massaro played by The Gaea Star Band with Mariam on vocals, Native flute, 4- and 8-string ukulele, acoustic guitar and 12-string acoustic guitar, Bob Sherwood on piano and Craig Harris on congas and Native drum. Recorded live at Singing Brook Studio in Worthington, Massachusetts in early March of 2025, today's show begins with the whimsical, upbeat “Aloha Hey”, a fantastic island song by Mariam with the ensemble of ukulele, piano and Native drum firing on all cylinders. “Honor The Place Within” is a beautiful, stately raga performed with Mariam on DADGAD-tuned acoustic 12 string lending a rich, powerful drone and “Welcome To Spring” is a pensive folk song with a beautiful, questing melody from Mariam over chiming ukulele and anthemic piano. “Stay Strong (Even When You're All Alone)” is another rousing folk song with an inspiring lyric, featuring driving congas and tight acoustic guitar work from Mariam. “Twin Flame” and “Ryalia” are tracks from Mariam's “Gaea Star Crystal” and “Release” albums; the former is powerfully presented with a beautiful melody, the latter a mysterious, labyrinthine forest song with a compelling, rangey vocal from Mariam. “We Need A Brand-New Deck To Play This Game Of Life” is a rich, varied ballad featuring a lyrical conversation between Mariam's inspiring lyrics and soaring Native flute and we complete today's show with “Just Keep Showing Up For Peace”, another dynamic vocal-and-flute showcase with throbbing Native drum and rich, detailed piano. Learn more about Mariam here: http://www.mariammassaro.com

EVERY OTHER KREATIVE KONTROL EPISODE IS ONLY ACCESSIBLE TO MONTHLY $6 USD PATREON SUPPORTERS. Enjoy this excerpt and please subscribe now via this link to hear this full episode. Thanks!Owen Williams from the Tubs discusses their excellent album, Cotton Crown, DADGAD guitar tuning and affinities for artists like Big Star, Richard Thompson, and SZA, how the humour in his music can be overlooked for its sentimentality, his unique musical upbringing and penchant for misbehaviour as a young teen, processing his mother's suicide, his prose writing background, starting Perfect Angel Press, and updates about two of his novels, what Gob Nation is all about and spitting on people, Sonic Youth and Superchunk allusions, touring, working on a new album, other future plans, and much more.Support vish on Patreon!Support Y.E.S.S., Pride Centre of Edmonton, and Letters Charity. Follow vish online.Related episodes/links:Ep. #909: Jade HairpinsEp. #900: Fugazi and Jem CohenEp. #892: Fucked UpEp. #880: Guided By VoicesEp. #834: J MascisEp. #738: SuperchunkEp. #722: The BethsEp. #673: Sonic YouthEp. #634: Richard ThompsonEp. #578: Chris Rowley of Adulkt LifeSupport this show http://supporter.acast.com/kreative-kontrol. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

On a bitterly cold January the Gaea Star Band gathers around the stove in the studio at Singing Brook to record Gaea Star Crystal Radio Hour #605, an hour of emotional, compelling, powerful improvised music and songs by Mariam Massaro with Mariam on vocals, acoustic 6- and 12-string guitars, ukulele, dulcimer, Celtic harp, Native flute and mandolin, Bob Sherwood on piano and backing vocals towards the end and Craig Harris on Native low drum and congas. Recorded live, today's show begins with the rich, gentle-yet-powerful “So Many Veils”, a gorgeous folk song with a deeply powerful and affecting vocal from Mariam above tight acoustic guitar, imaginative piano and Ringo-esque conga work from Craig. “Here We Are Again” is a flowing raga based around Mariam's DADGAD tuned 12-string acoustic guitar, a meditation on circles and cycles and “The Snow Queen” is a beautifully classical-sounding winter song with lush, pillowy chording from Bob on piano and Mariam on ukulele and imaginative, range-y vocals and “I Am Bountiful” derives a powerful, rocking primitivism from Mariam's percussive mandolin, skipping congas and suspended, rhythmic piano. Mariam plugs in her crisp, rich-sounding dulcimer for the driving, throbbing “To The Glory”, a beautiful song with excellent ensemble work and a precise, virtuosic vocal that wraps evocatively and intuitively around the pretty, imaginative cadences. “Solare” continues the Gaea Star Band winter tradition of including a sunny, summery song during particularly cold spells and this version is driving, powerful and decorated in another fine vocal from Mariam. We conclude today's show with inspired takes on Mariam's “We Call In The Elements” and “Fire In Our Bellies” from her “Vision Quest” LP. Learn more about Mariam here: http://www.mariammassaro.com

DADGAD? Nashville Tuning? Open Fmaj7Add9? Heute beschäftigen sich unsere Caster mit verschiedenen Stimmungen. Vor und Nachteil verschiedener Stimmungen, was macht eigentlich das Jon Gomm Tuning so besonders und warum spielt Tom Quayle in Quarten? Dies und mehr erfahrt ihr in der heutigen Episode. Viel Spaß beim hören. Hier geht es zu unserem Discord Server: https://discord.gg/Upn7bkvt Und hier findet ihr die Saitenstärken: https://www.daddario.com/the-lesson-room/guitar/electric-guitar/shop/drop-tuning-guide/?srsltid=AfmBOorz0psja6aO9Ip1vy4XvGw_wv50-aWDssKI-sPkhVr-2bUkuTzH

Gaea Star Crystal Radio Hour #594 is an hour of improvised acoustic visionary music played by the Gaea Star Band with Mariam Massaro on vocals, Native flute, acoustic guitar, 12-string acoustic guitar, Celtic harp, mandolin and shruti box, Bob Sherwood on piano and Craig Harris on congas and Native drum. Recorded live in mid-October of 2024 at Singing Brook Studio in Worthington, Massacusetts, today's show begins with a spirited, uplifting take of Mariam's classic “Reborn” from her “Vision Quest” LP which yields to the blustery, unsettled weather of “Have Faith”, a dramatic piece with fine classical piano from Bob and a powerful vocal from Mariam. “Oh The Full Moon” is a uniquely gorgeous, simple ballad brought in by Mariam's sweeping, swirling Celtic harp and lush vocal and carried by Bob's granitic, deeply empotional piano motif. “Birch Grove” is a fantastical, magical forest song led by Mariam's mysterious vocal and chiming mandolin and “May We All Be In The Right Place” is another beautiful melody dressed in lush classical flourishes and swaths of sweeping, soaring Native flute and “Hello It's Been A While” is a somber, powerful raga based on Mariam's DADGAD-tuned 12-string acoustic guitar. In honor of World Indigenous Peoples Day we close today's show with “Honoring The Elders”, another stately raga propelled by Craig's fundamental pulse and Mariam's sitar-like 12-string guitar. Learn more about Mariam here: http://www.mariammassaro.com

Today we hear some music from Led Zeppelin playing San Diego, 5/28/73, on a soundboard recording remastered by DADGAD. This show has some towering highs and tumbling low points. I play two of the highlights. First is a smokin' Since I've Been Loving You with gorgeous, smooth cooooool jazz piano from Mr. Jones, and Jimmy delivers in spades. Then I play glorious Whole Lotta Love with a trillion medleys, played with abandon and joy, like it's 1971. Some magic here for real.

This is an incredible recording from Saint Mike Millard on his blessed Nakamichi, of Led Zeppelin at the LA Forum on March 27, 1975. This is one of the legendary marathon shows, running more than 3 hours, in gorgeous full stereo. This is a fresh transfer made by JEMS and lightly mastered by DADGAD. It's a keeper for sure. I play a funky Over The Hills and Far Away and glorious improvisational No Quarter for us, as a taster for the full show, which is available below. Jonesy and Bonzo are perfectly synced in this amazing recording. You'll dig it.

Pro tip: please watch the short video version of this post that I link to www.GuitarSuccess4U.com/10AlternateTuningMyths. It will give you a much clearer grasp of what I'm sharing here.Abbreviated transcript and table included below…Have you always wanted to play in alternate tunings, but felt a little intimidated by the process? Not anymore.Let's dispel 10 myths together and find some hidden treasures when it comes to alternate tunings.The 6 machine heads on our guitars are like a 6-digit combination lock, and the alternate tunings we can access with them can be incredibly enjoyable. Here are 10 myths I'm going to dispel about alternate tunings.  You ready?Myth #1 – “Alternate tunings are too difficult to get into.”By definition, an alternate tuning is any tuning that's different from standard tuning, so even Drop-D can fall into this category. This is the best place to start. All you do is start with a standard-tuned guitar and then tune one string down – your 6th string, until the 12th fret harmonic matches the open 4th string D (watch the video to see how.)Myth #2 – “Alternate tunings can be achieved with a partial capo.” If were to take a standard tuned guitar and place a partial capo on strings 5, 4, and 3 on the second fret, and play those notes open, they would sound an Esus4.If I tune another guitar to DADGAD and place the capo on the second fret, I'll have access to the same open notes that sound an Esus4. And although some of the chords might sound similar on both guitars (see the video), that's where the similarity between the partial capo and the alternate tuning end.Look at this closed voicing A Major scale on a standard-tuned guitar with a partial capo, and contrast it to a DADGAD capo 2 guitar.Myth #3 – “You can figure out the tuning of a guitar from an audio recording.” Sometimes. Not always. I wrote a song in DADGAD and recorded it on an album with my capo on the 3rd fret. Later, a friend liked the song so much that he taught it to himself from the recording, and played it in standard tuning, but with a lot more fretted notes. Myth #4 – “The tuning dictates the key.” Not necessarily. I actually learned a beautiful fingerstyle song by Pierre Bensusan in DADGAD while studying with him in France called “L'Alchimiste,” and that song was in DADGAD but in the keys of C and F Major…without a capo. Pretty wild.Myth #5 – “Alternate tunings require a dedicated guitar.” I think it depend on how quickly you can re-tune. I caught Michael Hedges in concert a couple times and he had two 6-string guitars for the whole show – one he played onstage, while his technician re-tuned the other one offstage. He must have played in upwards of two dozen tunings with just those two guitars. At my concerts and when I lead worship, I use at most, three guitars. I try to keep my guitars in neighboring tunings as well, and to plan my sets accordingly.Myth #6 – “Each tuning takes a long time to learn to play in.” Actually, once you've re-tuned, you can be creating great music in minutes. There's something sweet about exploring a new tuning for the first time, and finding chord voicings that are just not possible in standard tuning or even partial capo positions.Myth #7 – “Once you re-tune, you have to re-learn the instrument.” As I mentioned, you don't have to re-learn everything in a new tuning. Some strings, if they remain in their original pitches, can allow for some of the same figures we know, like three-string chord voicings or melodic fragments. Some tunings are nice for specific textures, drones, or certain keys. But a new tuning doesn't necessitate re-learning the entire guitar from square one. Myth #8 – “Alternate tunings require special string gauges.” If we keep the same strings proprietary to their standard locations on the guitar, I recommend medium gauge – 13 to 56, from high to low, because a set of these strings splits the difference between the heavy gauge strings and light gauge strings.Myth #9 – “Your tunings drastically affect your collaborators' choices.”As long as you're in concert pitch and playing chords or melodies, this really doesn't affect your collaborators in a major way.You might have a little fun mystifying your bass player who thinks they know which notes you're playing, especially on your low strings, but no, tunings don't affect other musicians, at least not logistically. They may actually inspire your collaborators artistically, which could be really cool. Lastly…Myth #10 – “There are only a limited number of alternate tunings out there.”  Think about my analogy of a combination lock for a moment. There are lots of possibilities, especially if there are six digits on your lock. If we were to compute each string as having a combined range of an octave (in other words, each string could theoretically be tuned down a Perfect 5th and up a Major 3rd), how many alternate tuning possibilities could there be on a 6-string guitar?  Answer: 2,985,984 tunings! A six-string acoustic guitar in good shape is primed and ready for exploring alternate tunings, so I encourage you to step out and take the risk. Who knows? You might write an arrangement or a brand-new song in a new tuning…today. Maybe you'll find a way to arrange a worship song you love, in an alternate tuning, perhaps combined with a capo across all 6 strings for the key where it works best for your voice, your band, or both. I hope you do.As we wrap up, without going too deep into a discussion about gear, I will say that there are automated tuners, tuning levers and pegs that can be added to a guitar to customize the precision and speed with which someone can re-tune their guitar.  Guitarist Adrian Legg is a prime example of someone who has leveraged these kinds of tools. But a six-string acoustic guitar in good shape is primed and ready for exploring alternate tunings, so I encourage you to step out and take the risk.  Who knows?  You might write an arrangement or a brand new song in a new tuning…today.  Maybe you'll find a way to arrange a worship song you love, in an alternate tuning, perhaps combined with a capo across all 6 strings for the key where it works best for your song, your band, or both.  I hope you do.And if you're looking for more insights into discovering some hidden treasures that the guitar and music have to offer, I would be honored to be your guide in a one-of-a-kind online experience called GuitarSuccess4U.  I've never seen anything like what we have, therefore, I had to create it.  We have a 6-stage Success Path, proven strategies for multi-modal learning, a collection of hand-picked guest experts, and a community of like-minded Christian guitarists who just might be on a similar journey to you.  Will you discover what we've worked so diligently to create? Please take a moment to visit GuitarSuccess4U.com and see what we're up to. It could change your guitar world, and transform your musical world.I hope to see you inside GuitarSuccess4U. Keep showing up, have serious fun as you play your guitar, and I'll see you next time.Thanks for reading Guitar Serious Fun! Subscribe for free to receive new posts and support my work. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit guitarseriousfun.substack.com

This a brand new transfer from Mike Millard's master cassettes themselves (not the DAT tansfer) by the laudable JEMS tape group, remastered tastefully by DADGAD. June 27, 1977. Led Zeppelin's final night of a five night run at the LA Forum. I play Sick Again (which rocks), Since I've Been Loving You, which shines in its more mature 1977 arrangement, and an adventurous Ten Years Gone in which not every landing is stuck, but the attempts are noteworthy. This is a stellar recording of really good show. Lots of magic here. Zeppelin at the Forum is not to be missed.

I circle back to this amazing show, because in episode 249 I had the raw recording not the DADGAD remaster as I'd thought. This show fixes that and highlights this great show in all its glory. My absolute favorite performance of In My Time of Dying, along with Nobody's Fault But Mine, and Over the Hills. This show is so so so good.

In today's episode we're discussing open tunings and alternate tunings for guitar. What artist do you think of when someone mentions "Open G"? Which song do you most associate DADGAD with? Have you ever heard of "Celtic C"? Double-drop D? Sit back & relax as Maury & Spoon get their open tuning chat on. This podcast features the conversation and opinions of musician T Spoon Phillips. A writer by trade, Spoon's longtime association with professional musicians, luthiers, and music historians affords him a richly unique perspective on all things acoustic guitar. This includes decades of close friendship with executives and employee at C. F. Martin & Company, past and present, and the host of this podcast, Maury Rutch of Maury's Music.     Visit Spoon at http://TSPguitar.com AND at http://onemanz.com/  Check out Maury's Music at https://www.maurysmusic.com  We're proud to be a certified online dealer for Martin Guitar, and we'd love the chance to earn your business. Have a suggestion or request? E-mail us today at Support@MaurysMusic.com  #martinguitar #tspoonphillips #opentunings

An accordionist with a bag of pocket-sized instruments & a dedication to cultural ecology, Mary Beth Carty fuses traditional songs, instrumental tunes, & songwriting. With a live show that runs the gamut of emotions, transporting us from the heights of dance-paced ecstasy to the calm of contemplative airs, she has had the opportunity to tour in North America, Europe, and Africa. Most recently, Mary Beth has performed at the Celtic Colours International Festival, FrancoFest Halifax, and Festivals Acadiens et Créoles in Lafayette, Louisiana. “She got the crowd singing along. It was something else!” - Bill Roach, CBC.Mary Beth released her second solo album, “Crossing the Causeway” in November 2022. Since then the album has made several appearances on the Earshot! College Radio Charts in Canada has reached No. 1 on Richard Gilman's Folk Radio DJ Chart, and No. 3 on the Folk Alliance International radio play chart. It has also been nominated for two 2024 Canadian Folk Music Awards.Mary Beth's debut solo album, 2017's Les biens-nommés, earned nominations at the Nova Scotia Music Awards and the ECMA's. It features original, accordion-fueled songs in French and English, with Donald MacLennan on violin and the Melchin brothers on double bass and percussion.As a member of the former duo Bette & Wallet, Mary Beth was nominated Traditional Singer of the Year at the 2009 Canadian Folk Music Awards. The duo toured extensively and released two albums, Voici… and Électrique. Their most popular song, “Squeegees,” transforms a public domain French-Canadian song into a humorous, bilingual anthem about urban winter hardships.In addition to her work as a solo artist, Mary Beth is in demand as a guitar accompanist for Celtic fiddlers and has performed with many of the best, including Cape Breton's Ashley MacIsaac, Colin Grant, and Chrissy Crowley. She is known for her distinct, rhythmic style, keen ear, and mastery of the unusual DADGAD tuning. Mary Beth is also a square dance caller and dance instructor and has done extensive research on dances from communities all over Eastern Canada.Learn more @stompinmary

This show is amazing. The sound quality is bassy with some distortion but DADGAD does a great job balancing this into a paradoxically well balanced/bass heavy recording. The music is magical and the band are locked and playing well. Jimmy's control and technique are in top form and all the musicians are listening, and responding, to each other as they jam. Magic is a word that applies here. I play a fun and tight In My Time of Dying and the longest No Quarter on record (33 minutes!), and it's amazing!

Welcome to Get Up in the Cool: Old Time Music with Cameron DeWhitt and Friends! This week's friends are Alex Sturbaum and Brian Lindsay of Countercurrent. We recorded this a couple weeks ago at my home in Portland, OR. Tune in this episode: * Cats in the Henhouse / Free Little Bird / Fair Wind (0:31) * Whiteface (14:06) * The Margaret Keene (from Mile 12) (28:10) * Little Pine Siskin (41:51) * Her Bright Smile / Skating on the Harbourfront (46:59) * Fiddler's Prerogative (57:00) * Bonus Track: Benton's Dream Buy Countercurrent's new album Not So But Far Otherwise on Bandcamp (https://countercurrentmusic.bandcamp.com/album/not-so-but-far-otherwise) Follow them on Instagram (https://www.instagram.com/countercurrentmusic/) and Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/countercurrentband/) Visit their website (https://countercurrentmusic.com/) Support Get Up in the Cool on Patreon (https://www.patreon.com/getupinthecool) Sign up at Pitchfork Banjo for my clawhammer instructional series! (https://www.pitchforkbanjo.com/) Schedule a banjo lesson with Cameron (https://www.camerondewhitt.com/banjolessons) Visit Tall Poppy String Band's website (https://www.tallpoppystringband.com/) and follow us on Instagram (https://www.instagram.com/tallpoppystringband/)

Transcript included below…Today, we're going to talk about how someone can still enjoy playing the guitar even if they have arthritis.Now, I myself don't have arthritis (yet), and fortunately, I've been blessed so far to have continuous use of my hands and arms throughout nearly 30 years of guitar playing, without incident.But we are not bound for this earth, and there may come a time when our hands may weaken, thereby limiting our ability to play some of the songs we can currently play.In my travels, I've had a few people ask me about what to do if a guitarist has arthritis.I don't want to claim to be able to dispense medical wisdom, because I don't have the background; nevertheless, I have a few things I could offer as suggestions.  Remember, everyone's body and hands are different, so what may be effective for one person may not be effective for another.Also, what may come easily to one person may cause another person to run the risk of injury, re-injury, or exasperating an existing injury.  So please be your own advocate and consider what I'm sharing here merely as an opinion, not a medical recommendation.  Cool?Here are a few thoughts that might encourage and empower a guitarist who has arthritic hands.1. Stretch your hands intentionally and gently before and even after you play. If you've been experiencing these episodes at Guitar Serious Fun for a while, you may have heard the story I shared about how I almost injured my hands due to overusing them with guitar and other instruments.For a refresher on this story, check out Guitar Serious Fun Episode 34: “Can Practicing the Guitar Be Harmful?”, as well as Guitar Serious Fun Episode 77: “Rhythms of Rest for Guitar.”In these episodes, I talked about how I read a couple books about Carpal Tunnel Syndrome and Repetitive Strain Injury and also worked closely with a physical therapist to strengthen my hands. The stretches I've learned through those experiences are ones I share in the early lessons of GuitarSuccess4U with our members.  So, if you want access to those (and so much more), please consider joining our membership.  It could change the game for you.Now I'm under no illusion that Carpal Tunnel Syndrome, Repetitive Strain Injury and Arthritis are all the same.  They are most certainly not.  But they all have something to do with the hands having weakness or fragility, so I think it's worth doing a bit of research and learning more about how to attend well to our hands.One of our guest experts in GuitarSuccess4U is Dr. Gordon Myco, a Chiropractor and health coach.  Dr. Myco said in one of our lessons, “Take better care of your body than you do your guitar…because you can always get a new guitar.”  Right?2. Take breaks and always be conservative with hand use, not just while playing guitar, but while doing anything repetitive.This includes yardwork, crafts, or anything mechanical, especially something that requires some strength.  We do need to keep our hands moving, but we don't want to strain the muscles and joints.Breaks are super helpful, as we also talked about in “Rhythms of Rest for Guitar.”Speaking of rest, the Lord does some wonderful things to repair muscles, joints and even vocal fatigue as we sleep.  But if your hands are in any way compromised in their mobility and agility, it might be worth evaluating your sleep posture. I don't yet require them, but I am familiar with wrist guards that keep a person's wrist in neutral position as they sleep, so that they don't hyperextend them unwittingly. But again, I'm not even confident to speak intelligently on the physiological definition of “hyperextension,” so I'll step back from over-speaking here.  Just think, “Wrist guards may eventually be worth considering.”Now let's get into the practical aspects of playing the guitar if you have arthritis.3. Pray before you play.This may sound familiar, because it is actually a past episode.  It's Guitar Serious Fun Episode 47, by the same title: “Pray Before You Play”.  I encourage you to spin through that.  Is praying practical?  Absolutely.  Even offer a simple prayer like, “Lord, you've made my hands.  I'm fearfully and wonderfully made, and I sense a calling from you to use my hands and the guitar for your glory, in this season.  So please provide a way for me to do this, even if it's a way I can't yet see.”4. If you're an acoustic guitarist, make sure your action is low enough.I've been an acoustic guitarist my whole career.  And I've crossed paths with thousands of acoustic guitarists.  Unfortunately, a significant number of them have guitars that have unnecessarily high action.This could be because their instruments are in a lower pricing tier.  They could have also just come from the store and haven't been set up yet.Mike Lull's Guitar Works, the only shop I trust for repair and all the care of my guitars, was gracious enough to host me at their shop for one of our GuitarSuccess4U Expert Interviews.  They took me on a special tour of their workbenches, showed me their Plek Pro machine, and talked about how “Guitar Repair and Care” can be essential to our success.  I was even granted permission to provide to my members a special additional short video interview with the late founder, Mike Lull, about his story, process and philosophy of guitar repair.During the interview I conducted with the guys at the shop, Spencer Lull, Mike's son and the President of Mike Lull's Guitar Works, said that even a high-end guitar may still need to be set up by their shop.  He said that the vast majority of the work they do is to set up guitars.What does this entail?  It could mean re-setting or replacing the nut or the saddle.  Incidentally, this is the critical location where the strings are attached to the instrument.  If either the nut, the saddle or both are too high, the action will be too high.The truss rod may also need to be adjusted.Ironically, there are guitarists out there trying to play music on guitars that have not yet been set up, or that have been improperly set up, and without exaggerating, this is severely hindering their progress. It would be analogous to driving a car with tires that have very low air pressure.You can still drive a car with really low pressure in the tires, but it's not sustainable, and it's much more difficult.A well set up guitar increases morale. I taught several workshops recently at the Christian Musician Summit in Tacoma, Washington, and as I spoke about the importance of having a guitar properly set up, I allowed my guitar to make its way around the room.Each student present tried playing my guitar and handed it off to the next person.  And the overwhelming response I heard back from many of them about my guitar was “This is much easier to play on.  I think I really need to get my guitar set up properly.”So in GuitarSuccess4U, one of the 5 instant bonuses my members get access to is a short video I put together called “10 Tips for Proper Guitar Setup.”  Getting your guitar set up properly, especially by Mike Lull's Guitar Works, could be a game-changer, especially if you have arthritis. It could literally change the action to the point where you can play your acoustic with much greater ease.  Notes you couldn't access before could become more accessible.Mike Lull's Guitar Works repairs and sets up the guitars of Bob Dylan and Eric Clapton. I mean, if their shop is good enough for those two well-known guitarists, it's good enough for me.  Look them up at MikeLull.com.  Follow the menu to “repairs” where you'll discover that they currently offer a free instrument assessment. And please tell them David Harsh at GuitarSuccess4U sent you.  I don't currently get any sort of referral fee, but I do get the satisfaction of knowing that they are taking care of my people!5. Try lighter gauge strings.I use Elixir Nanoweb Medium Gauge Strings – from gauges 13 to 56.  These have a bit of low end for a fuller sound, and they also allow me to tune to the many alternate tunings I like to play in.I've played guitars that require light gauge strings because of how they are manufactured.  Medium strings on those guitars would literally strain the neck.But light gauge strings on a properly balanced and set up guitar neck could be another solution that would allow for more playability with less exertion by arthritic fingers.6. If you haven't already, try playing a classical nylon-string guitar. These guitars provide several benefits, including the fact that the strings take less effort to fret because the strings are made of nylon, not steel.  Also, because classical guitar necks are wider, the strings are further apart, so some chords are easier to form.Now, I'm not a classical guitarist, so I don't approach that guitar with the posture and hand angles that a classical guitarist would use.  Nevertheless, I do find that classical guitars are much more responsive and require less hand strength, which might be a good next step with someone who has arthritic hands.It all depends on what your fingers are capable of.I've met guitarists who have arthritis who are able to navigate a 12-string acoustic guitar.  That, to me, is surprising, because there are literally twice as many strings; each finger has to fret two strings simultaneously for every note. But hey, if the instrument is responsive, and the guitarist has the strength and is enjoying playing the instrument, I say, make some great music!7. Try an electric guitar.Although I'm not an electric guitarist, I will readily admit that electric guitars typically have much more responsive string action, sometimes requiring even less pressure than a classical guitar would.  Of the few times I've played a friend's electric, I've observed this feature right away.Depending on which type of electric (Stratocaster, Telecaster, etc.) you may discover variations in the guitar neck shape, and how the manufacturer has fashioned the instrument. With this in mind, you may want to try playing a few different electric guitars, whether at a friend's house or even in a guitar store showroom.  Your hands will tell you what's working…but remember, as I've mentioned, some of the guitars in that showroom – even the electric guitars – may not have been properly set up yet.8. Experiment with some open / alternate tunings.There are more possibilities for alternate tunings than you can imagine.  But the ones that tend to require less fingers are ones that contain drones and low notes for an actual chord to be played open.  Drones like low D A D on the three lowest strings, for example, can be foundational for an open D-based tuning. DAD (on strings 6, 5 and 4)  could be the basis for DADGAD (perhaps one of the most famous and well-loved tunings), but also DADF#AD (which is open D Major), or even DADFAD (open D minor, which actually allows for more versatility, as songs I've composed in that tuning have revealed.)But if someone re-tunes a few of their strings (down, typically), entire worlds can open up where they can let a lot of the strings ring open, unfretted, to the relief of their fretting hand. Side note: tuning strings down allows for lower tension and easier “fretability.”  Is that a word?  Nope, but you get it.  Some tunings I've experimented with involve tuning some strings up.  So try down-tuning first.In some tunings, a single note can be fretted and slid up and down the neck, and it can still sound interesting.  Some chords in alternate tunings require fewer fingers, which can be a relief.Another side note: if you're going to collaborate with someone else, it's a nice gesture if you can know what some of the basic chords are in the alternate tuning in which you find yourself, because when they observe your hands on the frets, if they've got guitar or bass background, they'll be confused to see you in unconventional locations playing “new” notes or shapes.9. Experiment with some partial capos.There are multiple partial capos on the market, some of which fret all but a single string, or just half of the strings.  Note that a partial capo does not place a guitar in an alternate tuning; this is confirmed by playing a bar chord or a closed voicing scale in position above the capo, where the notes remain from where they were before the capo was applied to the guitar.But a partial capo can allow for some fingerings with the use of fewer fingers.  These can also allow for drone notes. There was a capo manufactured years ago called the Third Hand, and fingerstyle guitarist Harvey Reid was super helpful about spreading the word about what this capo was capable of. It has since been surpassed by the SpiderCapo, which basically fulfills the same function: six spinning tumblers that allow for 63 combinations of fretted notes per fret.  It is the “Cadillac” of partial capos, because it allows for all possible options.  The current model of the SpiderCapo that I have is not super rugged.  It doesn't feel like it's been very well manufactured, so I kind of have to baby it on my guitar neck.Through Harvey Reid, I was made aware of Liberty Guitar, a new method of playing guitar using a slightly altered tuning and a tool called a “flip capo.”  Some of this method only uses the two middle fingers of the fretting hand, which may provide considerable relief for someone with arthritic hands and allows guitarist to get faster traction if their hands are not as strong.As demonstrated by this concept, you can combine an alternate tuning with a capo, whether complete or partial.  But do some experimenting and discover what's possible.10. Experiment with a bottleneck slide.There are a few tunings, specifically DADF#AD (open D Major) and DGDGBD (open G Major) that have been fairly easy for me to tune to.  Once there, I've tried using a slide up and down the neck, so as to facilitate the basic open I, then 5th fret IV and 7th fret V chords, for slide guitar.This is an entire genre, and it definitely places the guitarist in a certain style of playing.  But the “win” here is that he or she can play slide guitar with very little strain or stress of the fretting hand, because the reality is, they aren't fretting.  They're placing the bottleneck or slide just against the strings, not even pressing down much, and they're still making music.11. Take a break from the guitar.I don't encourage someone to quit playing their guitar simply because they have arthritis.  Hopefully, today's discussion has shown my hope, to the contrary, that they stick with it.But if someone's hands are weak or tired, it might be nice for them to enjoy a short season of music on another instrument that's less demanding.  Instruments that come to mind are: harmonica, autoharp, hammered dulcimer, or even singing.  Each of these are instruments where we can enjoy music without a lot of exertion of the hands.  Lastly…12. Place yourself in the path of a guitar teacher or guitar community.The road to musical proficiency can sometimes be lonely.  And even after we've made significant progress, we can still experience moments of discouragement for one reason or another.For this reason, I highly recommend GuitarSuccess4U.  It's a tribe of like-minded guitarists who are all accessing the same premium, curated collection of tools.It's not a support group per se, but it does provide tremendous support.  For some of our members, these are their people.  Guitar is not something everyone in the world speaks or understands, so when we gather for our weekly Zoom calls, there's a level of empathy and understanding that isn't found in other places.Members experience accountability, encouragement, and an incredibly in-depth, yet accessible approach to the instrument.Proverbs 15:22 says, “Plans fail for lack of counsel, but with many advisors, they succeed.” I can think of two of our members currently who are on the journey of an arthritic guitarist.What if you, as a guitarist who is struggling with arthritis, were to join us, become known in our community, and then discovered some collective wisdom from the group?  It could be a game-changer for you. All it takes is a tiny change in our trajectory to send us in a whole new direction.I invite you to check out our website if you haven't already – at GuitarSuccess4U.com. We have a list of Frequently Asked Questions, and some sample lessons as well.  Re-capIn closing, you might appreciate knowing that today's episode came to life as a result of an e-mail exchange I had with someone asking for wisdom for a guitarist with arthritis.  They asked the question, and here, in this episode, was my answer.  Can you see what a single question has produced in today's episode?  If this discussion directly relates to you, I hope these strategies are in some way helpful to you as you persevere through the season of arthritis and still desire to make music on some level with your guitar.So, if you have a question or a topic you think we might be able to tackle here at Guitar Serious Fun, let your thoughts be known in the comments for today's episode.  As you may recall from Guitar Serious Fun Episode 22: “I Don't Know…But Let's Find Out,” I will intentionally avoid speaking about something I'm not familiar with, or pretend to know something I don't.  That's just not how I roll.But if the topic is in my wheelhouse, I'd be glad to share my thoughts here.  So please continue to experience my offerings here and to share Guitar Serious Fun with others in your circles.  We've got more great stuff coming up.Thanks for experiencing my thoughts. I'll see you next time.Thanks for reading Guitar Serious Fun! Subscribe for free to receive new posts and support my work. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit guitarseriousfun.substack.com

We hear a tasty DADGAD remaster of the classic TMOQ vinyl of Led Zeppelin in Seattle July 17, 1973. This is a truly enjoyable audience recording and I play Since I've Been Loving You, No Quarter, and The Rain Song. Beautiful.

Gaea Star Crystal Radio Hour #550 is an hour of visionary acoustic improvisational music played by the Gaea Star Band with Mariam Massaro on vocals, Native flute, 6- and 12-string acoustic guitars, mandolin and ukulele, Bob Sherwood on piano and Craig Harris on congas and Native drums.  Recorded live at Singing Brook Studio in Worthington, Massachusetts in late October of 2023, today's show included many “reimaginings” of Mariam's recorded songs from several of her albums.  The challenge of recasting a song in a completely new framework is an interesting challenge, and today's first candidate is the folk song “Freedom”.  Far from open folk chords and a major, uplifting melody, today the band recreate the song as a subcontinental drone piece built around Mariam's chiming DADGAD-tuned 12-string acoustic Martin.  “Full Moon's Light” continues as a “second chapter” of the D drone with engaging modal piano work from Bob and a mystical, dynamic vocal from Mariam and “Gather Together” reimagines one of Mariam's folk songs as a driving, powerful minor rock song with fiery piano and a powerful vocal from Mariam.  “I'm Walking” is a hip, bepop-influenced jazz tune with kinetic piano from Bob over Craig's driving congas supporting a fluid, drifting, poetic lyric from Mariam.  “Sing Down The Walls” from Mariam's 2009 CD “Gaea Star Crystal:  Awakening The Tribes Of Light” is presented faithfully as a powerful, melodic folk song with a strolling, Verdian opera rhythm.  “Oh Holy Ground” from the “Vision Quest” is dressed up as a powerful, driving folk rock song that medleys seamlessly with “Many Seeds Have Fallen” from the same record and we conclude the show today with “Underneath It All” a beautiful, affecting peace song supported with a deep pulse from Craig and Mariam's stately ukulele. Learn more about Mariam here: http://www.mariammassaro.com

Bruce Springsteen and Thurston Moore adore his work and rightly so...Wizz Jones is a lynchpin of the UK folk blues guitar scene and has been since the early 1960s. When London was an epicenter for artists from the USA such as Big Bill Broonzy, Sonny Terry and Brownie McGhee, Paul Simon, James Taylor, Jackson C. Frank, and Bob Dylan - Wizz was right there. Wizz was also there to hear some of the first notes Davey Graham played in DADGAD tuning, to witness the impact of a young Bert Jansch on the UK guitar scene, and to run sessions at the legendary Les Cousins club in Soho's Greek Street. It's not there anymore, of course. That end of Soho is now a preponderance of private members clubs and bijoux eateries but back in the day things were a lot less salubrious and, judging from how Wizz tells it, a hell of a lot more fun. Wizz talks about the early days of his life on the fretboard: When he was a young bohemian, the influence of Jack Kerouac on his generation, London's Soho in the sixties when you could bump into everyone from Cat Stevens to Quentin Crisp, his travels around Morocco and France, and offers the benefit of his experience and wisdom with one important caveat. Now in his 80s, Wizz can still be seen playing around London with his trademark 1963 Epiphone Texan. I caught up with him at RMS recording studios in London where Wizz has made several albums in the past. He was in characteristically fine form (the conversation is somewhat peppered with adult language). To my everlasting disgrace, I may have joined in, too. But that can happen when you're hanging out with the cool kids. You can support this podcast here: https://michaelwattsguitar.com/tip-jars/4745 Donate to Maui Strong here: https://www.hawaiicommunityfoundation.org/maui-strong Thank you to my sponsors for this episode: Microtech Gefell Microphones https://www.microtechgefell.de and, you, the listener! 

LED ZEPPELIN III might just be one of the most perfectly ideal albums for fall as it contains all of the essential components of fall: subtle stoner vibes, a folksy, medieval, Tolkien-esque feel, and a general all around magical and mystical nature. It's a vastly unique album and is (sonically speaking) more radically different than anything else in their catalog.   Led Zeppelin's sonic palette has always been about the utilization of various textures, whether through Robert Plant's lyrical imagery and vocal delivery, Jimmy Page's guitar and string arrangements, or the sheer sonic weight of the mighty rhythm section that is “The Two Johns”, there is no other album that perfectly captures the spirit and energy of autumn quite like LED ZEPPELIN III. When's the last time you learned a new word that you've never ever heard of or read before? Well, this episode is chock full of ‘em!  Prepare to learn about a “blue-eyed merle”, a magical place where the white stuff falls called “Snowdonia”, and perhaps the best word ever invented in the history of the English language:  VOLVELLE!  Go find yourself a “four-eyed girl” who's willing to go in on a “2 for 1” and be sure to stay away from any “haunted oysters” while always remembering that the secret ingredient is Volvelle when you JOIN US for a perfect sonic representation of the autumn harvest season as we dive into the mystical magical genius that is LED ZEPPELIN III.   Visit www.metalnerdery.com/podcast for more on this episode Leave us a Voicemail to be played on a future episode: 980-666-8182 Metal Nerdery Tees and Hoodies – metalnerdery.com/merch and kindly leave us a review and/or rating on the iTunes/Apple Podcasts - Spotify or your favorite Podcast app Listen on iTunes, Spotify, Podbean, Google Podcasts or wherever you get your Podcasts. Follow us on the Socials: Facebook - Instagram - Twitter   Email: metalnerdery@gmail.com Can't be LOUD Enough Playlist on Spotify Metal Nerdery Munchies on YouTube @metalnerderypodcast Show Notes: (00:01): “…unless they're meaty…” / #facetits and #meatballs / #SoberOctober (“I fucked it up, I'm sorry…”) / #jackeduponthemonster / ***WARNING: #listenerdiscretionisadvised *** / #monsteroftheepisode #USFDA and #sugar / ***WELCOME BACK TO THE METAL NERDERY PODCAST: SOBER OCTOBER, ZERO RELAXERS EDITION!!!*** / #plantbasedwater / “It's fall…” / #fartjacket / ***Go to metalnerdery.com/merch and get yourself a #MetalNerderyPodcastHoodie #MetalNerderyHoodie *** / “No bottoms…”/ “They LOVE it!” / #bitch vs #cunt (which one do the ladies like better?) / “They like neither equally…” / “Ladies, if you'd like to email us you can do so at metalnerdery@gmail.com or hit us up on #facetits and #instafuck and #YouBoobs or LEAVE US A VOICEMAIL AT 980-666-8182!!!” / “All I'm missing is the tremor…that comes later…” / ***#TopSecretStuff #TheTriangleUnredacted #Unredacted #Triangle on #YouTube*** / “Did you see the #facetitscenterfold?” / “#Penthouse…is way better…” / #FrenchDip / #ConstanzaStyle / “I don't know if I have anything…” / #CLevel and #Seafood / The culinary rules of a #beachvacation / “When I go to the sea…” / #fraesh / “I won't eat ‘em raw anymore…” / #rawoysters are #hauntedoysters (“I tasted those oysters for two weeks…”) / #insertvomitnoisehere / “I've got an exciting story…” / #markthetime / #beachythings / #RussellsReflectionsBeachEdition / #womendriversASMR / “That's a yes…” / “I slide in between ‘em…” / #CletusASMR (“A lot of people probably would have done that…”) / “Violence solves nothing…it's an unnecessary expense.” / #Ahem (“I explained to Cletus…and Juaniquisha…”) / “It's gonna be like 8th grade all over again, bro!” / “That sounds like where you buy #racism …” / #chirpin / “That's about 12 minutes of your lives that you'll never get back…”   (15:32): “That's from the chair…” / #TheDocket METAL NERDERY PODCAST PRESENTS:  LED ZEPPELIN III / Released October 5th, 1970 / #HappyFiftyThird / “It is but it isn't…” / #unplugged and #acoustic / The first two #LedZeppelin albums vs 3 & 4 / #MysticalMagical / “If I had a kid, I think I would name it #BronYAur …” / #Snowdonia and #TheBlackDog / “When you look at it like that…it gets in your head…” / 8 months after #BlackSabbath / “The most #Viking song they ever wrote in their life…” / #alternatetunings / “That's the DADFAD tuning…you need the DADGAD tuning…” / #DADBOD / #Volvelle (it's this episode's #wordoftheepisode) / #wheelchart #educational #instructional #thirdshowenergy / “You think it was like Zeppelin's Load?” / “When's the last time you learned a new word?” / #killeropener (1,2,3,4…) IMMIGRANT SONG (“A whole new level of balls…”) / “Your volvelle smells amazing…” / “It smells like new music…” / #everyday / “Two for one…sounds pretty awesome!” / “Hey barkeep…” / “A left turn…” FRIENDS (“There's some #flahns in there…”) / “It does sound like fall…”/ #organwork #MoogASMR #stringsandthings / “Is that an actual dude?” / “That's what makes #LedZeppelin so awesome…” / “It's the best word…   (30:27): CELEBRATION DAY (“That's a Moog…”) / “Platform shoes and bellbottoms…” / The weight of #TheTwoJohns / “It's not a volvelle but it's pretty cool…” / “Might be the best song on the album…” / SINCE I'VE BEEN LOVING YOU (Can you hear the kick drum pedal squeak?) / “I don't think that's right…”/ “I've been working from 7 to 11 every night…it's kinda makin' life a drag…”/ “Oh my tears they fell like rain…” / “Just one more…”/ “Totally worth it…”    (40:35): “It's no volvelle, but it's perfect…” / OUT ON THE TILES / “Stop!” / “I wonder if that was accidentally left in there…” / #PreProTools / “Maybe his volvelle was showing…” / The uniqueness of Jimmy Page's guitar sound, not only from album to album, but from song to song as well / “Who's gonna clean the house if you don't do that?” / “I don't care about his ass, dude…” / GALLOWS POLE (Banjo?) / “She's got a fine sister…” / “She's got those big hangy roast beef volvelles…” / The difference between other drummers in the early 70's vs #JohnHenryBonham / TANGERINE (“Sounds like fall…”) / “Thinking how it used to be…does she still remember times like these?  To think of us again…and I do.” / “He did, and he do.” / Led Zeppelin is all about texture (51:37): “That's a weird name for a city…” / #weirdcitynames / THAT'S THE WAY (“I can't play with you no more…”) / #RobertPlantActionFigurePoses / “What are we gonna call this place?” / #Snowdonia (Um, what?) / #TonyKochEngland / “You ready to get your Bron Yar on?” / BRON-Y-AUR STOMP (#danglingvolvelle) / Written about RP's dog, Strider / #BlueEyedMerle / #BootsAndCats / #EarlyTechno / Bass drum and…spoons? / “Ain't no companion like a blue-eyed merle…” / #foureyedgirl / “They've got great big volvelles too!” / #monsterenergyASMR / HATS OFF TO (ROY) HARPER (“Shake ‘em on down…”) / #CharlesObscure / #BlackMetalNerdery #ThrashMetalNerdery / “You can take your volvelle and go somewhere else…” / “No changes tracking wise…you've gotta leave that one alone.”/ #mysticalplace / “It's not the same when you try…” / ***THANK YOU FOR JOINING US FOR THIS EPISODE OF METAL NERDERY PODCAST!!!*** / “Let's say it at the same time…cool, let's fist.” / ***COME ON DOWN TO THE BUNKERPOON GIFT SHOPPE AND PURCHANDISE SOME METAL NERDERY PODCAST MERCHANDISE AT metalnerdery.com/merch *** / #outroreel  

Gaea Star Crystal Radio Hour #533 is an hour of visionary acoustic improv music played live by The Gaea Star Band with Mariam Massaro on vocals, mandolin, ukulele, acoustic 6- and 12- string guitars, Celtic harp and Native flute, Bob Sherwood on piano and Craig Harris on congas and Native drums.  Recorded at Singing Brook Studio in Worthington, Massachusetts in mid-June of 2023, today's show begins with shimmering, underwater textures of “Alive In The Beauty”, an exploration of the sea depths built around Mariam's caressing Celtic harp.  “If You Knew”, led by Mariam on mandolin, is a dancing gypsy ballad with beautiful piano figurations from Bob duetting with Mariam's compelling vocal and “Oh May We Meet, Oh May We Greet”, another number featuring Mariam's chiming mandolin, is a driving, compelling folk song with another fine vocal from Mariam.  “Pacha Mama”, a classic track from Mariam's “Gaea Star Goddesses” album in dusted off today for an energized run through and “Thistle In The Wind” from the “For The Children” album is a bluesy jam with a fine conga track from Craig supporting Mariam's whimsical ukulele.  We finish today's show with the mysterious, evocative raga “Nurture Every Moment” an exploration of the Hindustani mode built on the rich, fiery drone of Mariam's Martin 12-string acoustic tuned in DADGAD. Learn more about Mariam here: http://www.mariammassaro.com

Welcome to Gorilla Radio, recorded January 7th, 2023. It's been almost thirty-one years since UNPROFOR, the UN Protection Forces' mission to the Former Yugoslavia. Canada's military, then famed for peacekeeping, played a role in standing between the warring parties in hopes of a brokered truce. That mission failed, but not for the reasons believed then. In fact, according to records recently declassified, little about the conflict that led to the destruction of thousands of lives and ultimately redrew the political map of the Balkans occurred either why or how we were told. Tom Secker is a UK-based private researcher, journalist, and frequently featured commentator on security and intelligence issues. He's the host of the podcast, ClandesTime, principal behind Spyculture.com, “the world's premier online archive about government involvement in the entertainment industry”, and author, with Matthew Alford, of the book, 'National Security Cinema: The Shocking New Evidence of Government Control in Hollywood'. Tom recently collaborated with Kit Klarenberg of the Grayzone on the article, 'Declassified Intelligence Files Expose Inconvenient Truths of Bosnian War'. Tom Secker in the first half. And, though it may be difficult to imagine now, back in the day people came out en masse to give voice to the notion of a World without war. They marched and sang, colourfully costumed and carrying clever signs, while massive puppets, designed to attract the attention of a media more normalized to war footage, danced along the boulevards and in the High Street. They were then called "The Left", now they're simply known as departed. David Rovics' frequent essays on political issues and societal observation are featured at CounterPunch and Dissident Voice.org among other places. He's a broadcaster, musician, blogger, and author of the novel, ‘A Busker's Adventures'. His weekly program, This Week with David Rovics can be found through his website, DavidRovics.com - and on Substack - where you can read his essays, listen to his hundreds of original songs, and catch some of his hundreds of interviews. His recent article, 'An Autopsy on the US Left' verifies what many of us have known but may not have admitted, the fact that "that parrot is dead!" David Rovics and 'An Autopsy on the US Left in the second half. But first, Tom Secker and "CIA black ops, illegal weapon shipments, imported jihadist fighters, potential false flags, and stage-managed atrocities" revealed in Canada's declassified Yugoslavia cables. Song: At the End of World War III Artist: Chet Gardiner David sez: "If you've never heard of a musician named Chet Gardiner, here's a fine introduction. This is his solo acoustic version of a song I wrote a few months ago, which he recorded at his home studio in Hawaii. "Both the bassy resonance of Chet's voice and his delivery reminds me very much of the last recordings Johnny Cash made, which I think were brilliant. Chet's fingerstyle DADGAD guitar playing is so evocative as well."   Chris Cook hosts Gorilla Radio, broad/webcasting since 1999. Check out the Archive at Gorilla-Radio.com, GRadio.Substack.com, and the GR blog at: https://gorillaradioblog.blogspot.com/

Transcript included below…Today, we're going to consider the idea that practicing the guitar can sometimes be harmful. Don't worry – this isn't meant to discourage or scare you – it's actually meant to free you up to enjoy your guitar in a more intentional way.As guitarists, I believe we need to be intentional.  This includes many aspects of our enjoyment of this incredible instrument, especially how we play our guitars, and for how long.It's also important for us to consider what people say to us about our guitar playing, and reconcile it with what is true, even if advice is offered with the hope of encouraging us.I've taught guitar workshops for almost two decades at regional worship conferences.  In a class setting like that, I've encountered people with varying levels of experience. Sometimes, people will offer their thoughts in class, and often, their statements are met with nods of agreement.  However, there are things I've heard that I've felt prompted to gently disagree with.One of those statements, offered by a student in my workshop on practicing, was this: “The more you practice, the happier you'll be.”I think this individual was trying to say, “Practicing diligently leads to progress, and therefore to fulfillment.”  But what I heard her say was that happiness was in direct proportion to the amount of practicing we do.It's certainly legitimate to argue that practicing is an essential part of our guitar journeys, but are there things we can do as we practice that can actually cause harm? I believe there are.  Track with me here.  I don't want to live in fear, nor do I want to discourage you from practicing. Our ability to play well is directly related to our approach to practicing.  And what bridges the gap between hearing a song on the guitar and being able to play that song well in its entirety, is…you guessed it…practice.But there are three things I believe we need to be on the lookout for, so that we can know when it's time to “stop” practicing.  And by stop, I actually mean “pause.” Please consider these thoughts I have for you today.Hand StrengthThe Lord has blessed me with good hands for the guitar.  He has given me what I need to be able to play a lot of different chords, melodies and articulations.There are chords, though, especially in alternate tunings, that can span multiple frets.  I recall attending a guitar workshop at the studio of Pierre Bensusan in France, where he played a chord in DADGAD that spanned nine frets from the 3rd to the 11th fret, which I was not able to replicate (and still cannot).Pierre, as well as many guitarists I've come across, has strong hands with long fingers.  Some guitar players my age literally have the length of an entire digit beyond my hands.  So, these guitarists are able to accomplish more than I am.  But I'm still confident that the Lord's creation of my hands is exactly what He wanted for me, so I am grateful.But what I'm keenly aware of, in addition to my hand size, is my hand strength. Over time, I've become more aware of what I'm capable of, and what my limits are.I see great value in playing enough guitar to keep my hands strong.  In addition, I rotate through several hand strengtheners that allow me to fortify different parts of my hands.  The main one I like is a squeezy spring I bought on eBay for about $10.  I'm including several photos of this particular tool here.I actually bought a dozen of these on eBay from a vendor in China, because I didn't know how long they would be available, and I've broken a few of these by using them so much.  I've also misplaced some of them.As of this episode, a few of these are available from a vendor in the U.S. for $20 with free 4-day shipping.  I'm not linking to it because these kinds of items come and go quickly.But a search on eBay with words like “hand strengthener,” “grip exerciser,” and so on will yield dozens of different products like this that are on the market, averaging $10-$20 or so.Now, I'm not a hand specialist, so I'm not prepared to dispense wisdom on the care and treatment of our hands in the arena of physical therapy. Please remember that everyone's hands are unique, and that each of us needs to be aware of our limits in all that we do. If there are tools or techniques you've used to enhance the strength of your hands as a guitarist, I welcome them in the comments.But I will say that practice, especially in healthy doses, along with the squeezing of these kinds of “toys” when I don't have my guitar with me, has really led to my stamina and longevity as I fret chords of many kinds.And I am an acoustic guitarist.  Which means I have to work harder for my notes.  But they are worth it, I assure you.On the subject of hand strength, if you find that you're just starting out as a guitarist, give yourself grace, and limit your time on the instrument. In GuitarSuccess4U, I start off the early lessons by teaching several helpful stretches that have been game changers for me.  Let me explain what I mean by game changers.Around the time I became a father, I was practicing so much that I actually overdid it.  I knew I was in trouble because my hands hurt too much for me to be able to pick up my infant daughter.  That's a problem on multiple fronts.So, I sought a remedy – I went to a physical therapist, and I brought my guitar with me.  He observed how I was playing, evaluated my posture, examined my hands, and helped me get back on track.  Fortunately, I had not done damage of a lasting nature, and the stretches I began to learn (which I still use to this day, over 15 years later), have kept my hands and arms limber and ready for when the strenuous guitar passages come.These stretches changed the game for me.Unfortunately, I have personally met two guitarists who are world-class professionals, and whose stories did not turn out so well. Because of the demanding guitar playing that each of them was embarking on for a prolonged period of time (perhaps without adequate stretches), they injured themselves.Each of them had to undergo wrist surgery for carpal tunnel syndrome, and had to take off at least a year from playing the guitar.Can you imagine having your musical voice on the guitar go silent for a season like that, knowing you could have prevented it?  So, these kinds of stretches are the “ounce” of prevention that are worth the “pound” of cure.  More, of course, at GuitarSuccess4U.com.But beyond stretches, what about a level of awareness of how our hands and arms are doing over the course of a practice session? The person in my workshop who said, “The more you practice, the happier you'll be” was actually met with a respectful qualifier from me. I said, among other things that, “There can actually be a point of diminishing returns if we practice for too long.”How aware are we when we practice?  Do we keep an eye on the clock or a stopwatch?  Do we know when our hands start to show signs of being tired?Depending on your level of experience, I don't recommend practicing for more than an hour at a time.  Take a break.  Do something completely different with your hands, and preferably less strenuous.I notice that when I'm playing passages of music that are particularly technical, after 20 to 30 minutes, my fretting hand forearm begins to feel warm.  Very warm. Those tendons are heating up because of all the intense work I'm doing on the frets.Consider the warm tendons in your fretting arm to be the “caution” light coming on, exhorting you to change what you're playing, or if necessary, to take a break from playing for the afternoon, or for the day.Ignoring this “caution” light can lead to muscle and nerve damage which I don't know how to classify physiologically, but which I know is very real and has the potential to be detrimental.It can be tempting to push through the pain, but trust me, the only kind of pain you want is the soreness on the tips of your fretting hand fingers as you develop callouses.So yes, overexerting ourselves by playing difficult music on the guitar for too long…can be harmful.  Let's avoid that, shall we?Mental FocusWhen we practice, there are a variety of things we can spend time doing: scales, speed-building exercises, chord transitions, strumming patterns, fingerstyle, flatpicking, and so on.  And on a side note, I teach exercises that develop these motor skills inside GuitarSuccess4U.There's also the mental aspect of acquiring a deeper knowledge of chord theory, which doesn't take as much physical exertion, but does require our minds to be sharp.Certain musical topics like the memorization of the fretboard, non-diatonic chords, various types of modulations, and more, can make our brains get a little frazzled if we focus on them for too long. And even as I teach these concepts in GuitarSuccess4U that I just listed, I break them down into modest segments that can be consumed at a reasonable pace for maximum benefit.Think about your ability to focus as you play the guitar.  Does your practice session need to begin with technical, demanding material?  I would actually advise against it.I like the idea of starting off with something simple, and almost mindless, as I make myself at home on the instrument. After I've tuned up (which I do every time I practice), I get reacquainted with my guitar in a way that says, “Good to see you, friend.  Let's see what the Lord has for us today as we work together.”It's like meeting with someone for coffee. I'm not going to go deep on a discussion topic right away – I'll first exchange pleasantries, maybe even debrief our most recent conversation (which would be our most recent practice session, right?) and then ease into the more challenging material.I won't go into great detail here, but during my practice session, I make sure to work on something I don't yet know how to play, but also to play through something I do know, because we also need to keep our repertoire songs fresh.I keep water nearby, so I can take a sip occasionally.  This helps keep my mind alert for longer.  But there does come a time when my mind starts to wander.  That's when I'm likely to encounter what I call “The Fuzz Factor.”  The Fuzz factor is when I start to get sloppy.  I start to miss notes, or to drag, or even accelerate the tempo.  I become noticeably less precise.The biggest indicator of “The Fuzz Factor” though for me is this: I begin to make mistakes in a song in places where I never make mistakes. This is my cue to stop – even if I haven't hit my hour mark.If I choose to keep playing, to push on through, I can cause harm.  I might not cause physical harm, because my hands might not be tired.  But is there another type of harm?I would say yes.  It's what I'd classify as muscle memory harm.Now, muscle memory is a topic for another episode, perhaps, but you get the idea.  Our fingers develop a mechanical memory for how to play something on the guitar.And our fingers only do what we tell them to do.  They can't think for themselves. So, if I play something incorrectly and I don't fix it, my fingers basically think to themselves, “I guess that's how we're supposed to play it.”They don't have the ability to say, “That didn't sound right; let's fix that.”  Our fingers simply cannot think for themselves, so we need to think for them…and to be watchful and intentional.Let's say I'm practicing, and after about 45 minutes, as I'm working intensely on a very technical guitar piece I plan to perform or lead soon, I start to experience “The Fuzz Factor.”What do I do?Option #1 – I can play it once more and see if I can do it.  I think this is a good option, because I can get a feel for the status of things.Option #2 – I play until I make a mistake, and then I hit the brakes.  I like this approach too, with one qualification – I think it's super important to finish by practicing some aspect of the passage correctly.Option #3 – I can keep on playing it until I (hopefully) get it right, but with how mentally worn down I might get, that's not likely. I don't recommend this third option, because I could be reinforcing incorrect playing, which is what my hands will remember.  And the next time I grab my guitar, I won't be standing on solid ground; I'll probably play some of those mistakes that I was “practicing.”Now, if I'm weary and lacking focus, I won't choose to play the song segment in its entirety.  That, as we've discussed, would be counter-productive. Instead, I'll “divide and conquer.”  I'll just take one part of the challenging section and break it down in some way.I might play it much slower.  I might just isolate the variables to the movements of my fretting hand, or my picking hand, but not both. If it's a song that I sing while I play, the obvious choice is to take my voice out of the equation.But it's important to end on a strong note. Back to the coffee meeting analogy; if I encounter a point of verbal disagreement with someone I'm meeting with for coffee, I don't think it would be wise to end our conversation at that point.Continuing the coffee meeting analogy, if there's a disagreement, I think the best course of action, especially if it's not looking like total reconciliation is immediately possible, is to take a moment to pray, to reassure each other that we're still friends (even if we need to agree to disagree), and then to commit to meeting up again to continue the conversation.Stopping a practice session earlier than we'd like is not quitting.  It's just hitting the pause button.Conversely, prolonging a practicing session even though things are not going well, can lead to muscle memory harm, which we certainly want to avoid.So, if you find yourself encountering “The Fuzz Factor,” and your hands are simply not cooperating, try to intentionally bring the practice time to a close, playing some aspect of the challenging section correctly, because the last thing you play is what your hands will remember most clearly. Team DynamicsMany of us play our guitars in a setting where we collaborate with other musicians.  We may be professionals in a band, or volunteers on a worship team.It's likely that our rehearsals are in the evening, or even late at night, due to daytime work hours for some of our collaborators.If you're a “night” person, this is not as much of a challenge.  “Morning” people may struggle to stay focused as the rehearsal progresses.But everyone will have had “a day.”  And a day could have been uplifting, but often, it has depleted us mentally and physically.This is when we need to watch out for the risk of physical or muscle memory harm, which we've talked about, but not just for ourselves…for our collaborators, too.I've been a part of worship team rehearsals that are very focused, but also concise.  Like, literally 45 minutes. This necessitates a high level of preparation and professionalism on everyone's part.  Each song basically gets one, maybe two passes, with time for a few questions.  In this environment, there's really no major danger of over-exerting our hands or minds, because it's a short sprint.But I've also witnessed, first hand, a less planned-out rehearsal that went upwards of 3 hours.  This was more of a collaborative brainstorm session, and for some, that's how they process ideas. There may be freedom in the room for people to come up with musical articulations and to talk about who steps forward in the sonic texture at different times.But three hours for a set of four or five songs?  Really? I think, with a rehearsal that long, we run the risk of getting hazy, and at the very least playing a lot of guitar with only short breaks for discussion.  I don't recommend it, unless you and your team have a solid routine for rehearsals.Someone's hands (or even vocal cords) run the risk of fatigue if they press through a rehearsal like that.  And often, we're distracted enough by what we're working on that we don't realize how our muscles are working…or straining.So, in terms of a healthy team dynamic, I'd say that preparation, and a balance of spontaneity can lead to a good rehearsal…especially if the leader can verbally “check in” with everyone and ask how they're doing.Be your own advocate, though.  If your worship leader is not tuned into the fact that your long day has been just a bit too long, you may need to sit down, sit out, or step out.  Do this respectfully, of course, but anyone who values your longevity will get it.Overdoing it physically or mentally in a team environment is not worth it.  We can still keep the standard high, especially if we take care of ourselves.Wrap-UpWell, this was quite the discussion.  Perhaps you went into this episode with a bit of trepidation, unsure as to where I was going to go with this topic.  Perhaps it has been informative.I'm hoping that in some way, you still feel encouraged to practice.  Just make those practice times count, and know when to pause. My hope is that you'll be able to play your guitar for a very long time over the course of your life, and that some of today's ideas help make that possible.If this episode was encouraging to you, I invite you to do two things. First, please leave a comment with your thoughts.  I'm in the process of taking my live practicing workshop and turning it into some kind of online educational experience, and these thoughts today are just a glimpse at that.Second, if you're not already investing in your guitar journey in an ongoing way, please check out GuitarSuccess4U.com. This is a place where we have a curated collection of premium guitar content that is all arranged in such a way as to help you make tremendous progress, in a self-paced, God-honoring environment with a community of like-minded guitar players.  Head on over to GuitarSuccess4U.com to learn more.So, keep practicing, but stay tuned in to all that's going on as you do.  Know your limits, play the long game, and watch how far the Lord leads you down the path of serious fun on the guitar.   Thanks for experiencing this episode.  I'll see you next time.Thanks for reading Guitar Serious Fun! Subscribe for free to receive new posts and support my work. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit guitarseriousfun.substack.com

Transcript included below…I can't complain.  But sometimes I do.Philippians chapter 2, verse 14 starts off with the command to “Do everything without complaining or arguing.”That's a tall order to try to attempt without the Lord's guidance and strength.But if He commands it, that means that with His help, it's possible.As a guitar player, there are many things I could complain about, whether the next concept I can't grasp yet, or the next skill I can't yet execute. I could complain about how my guitar feels or sounds, or I could even complain about one of my short or long-term music endeavors and how it isn't going as well as I'd like.Give me opportunities to find something to complain about, and I will find them.But that's only because my sinful tendencies are to look for them.What about shifting my mindset to things I'm grateful for when it comes to my guitar journey?  What can I be looking for in this season of thanksgiving, but also year-round?  Here are some of my thoughts – and just a heads up – they're ones that Captain Obvious probably could have pointed out to me.  In other words, they're really pretty straightforward.1.  I have all 10 digits. With respect to those who don't, I'm blessed to have full functionality of my fingers and thumbs. I know that there's no promise of this, and someone on the receiving end of these words I'm sharing might agree with that statement…from experience.I occasionally hear stories about people who have had an unfortunate accident where they have lost the capacity to use all their fingers, or even their hands. It could be a life-changing event that happens in a single moment, or perhaps it could happen over time. Twice in the past couple of days, I've heard about people in my circles who would love to have the full use of their hands, but who are physiologically limited in some way, due to a medical condition.This doesn't have to be the end of the story for a guitarist.  Sure, it can be much more challenging to play the instrument without all 10 digits.However, there are two iterations of a customized capo out there that have made it possible to enjoy playing chords with less than four fingers. They are the Third Hand Capo and the SpiderCapo.  These two capos have spinning discs or tumblers that can create up to 63 combinations per fret…and that's even before embarking on alternate tunings.They create the illusion of an alternate tuning, but don't require totally new shapes – just partial ones.  Even without a capo like this, there are still single finger partial chords out there.But these capos provide unique voicings that are reminiscent of alternate tunings.Speaking of, some of the open tunings I've experimented with, like DADGAD, can be leveraged with a lot of open drone strings and fewer fretting fingers, and still facilitate some very beautiful chords.So, for those who are missing one or more fingers, guitar can still be within reach in a new way.Phil Keaggy is a master musician who has built a career around pivoting from an injury to his guitar picking hand.  The job of his now missing medio finger has been replaced by his anular finger, and the anular's functionality has been replaced by the chico finger. In layman's terms, his ring finger and his pinky have become the new middle and ring fingers, respectively.Who uses the chico / pinky finger a lot anyway, right? Even with tools like this, some people don't have the physical strength to apply their fingers to the frets of a guitar.With this in mind, for those of us who have all our digits, if we're not sure what to be thankful for, I'd say that gratitude for that basic blessing can be a really good place to start.2.  I can hear out of both of my ears.It has been said by several musicians I've met, that listening is just as important, if not more important, than playing music.To know how to contribute to the sonic signature of an ensemble, we need to listen well.And to be able to simply enjoy music, we must be able to hear.  The loss of hearing in one or both of our ears can change our ability to enjoy music.I know several people who can only hear out of one ear, and fortunately, they are still able to enjoy music.But there are people who cannot hear out of either of their ears, despite the fact that they would love to be able to enjoy listening to music.  Some were born without their hearing, and some have lost it, either immediately or gradually.To lose my sense of hearing would make me deeply sad, because of how important music is to me.In fact, in a game of “Would You Rather,” when asked the question, “Would you rather lose your sense of hearing or your sight?” my obvious response was “My sight.”Right?  With my sight gone, I would still be able to hear music, and in some ways might still be able to enjoy playing music.  Sure, some of the significant position changes up the neck require a visual connection to the fretboard, but over time, it's possible to become more and more visually independent from the guitar.And losing one's sight is a sure way to accelerate that visual independence.As a matter of fact, I will occasionally temporarily wear a blindfold on my eyes to discover how well I can rely on the tactile approach to playing, while leaning heavily on my ears to guide me.It's a good exercise.  I highly recommend trying it.  If you don't have a blindfold or bandanna handy, just lower the lights.  But of course, be sure to remember how to get back to the lights switch, so you don't trip in the dark.So as a guitarist, I can be grateful that both of my ears can hear.3.  I can enjoy playing and sharing music.It's easy to take this for granted, but as a guitarist, I can enjoy picking up my guitar, playing songs that I know or am learning, and then sharing those songs with others.I can share songs by collaborating with other like-minded musicians who want to work with me to make something more together.I can share songs with a listening audience, whether in a living room or a grandstand, or anything in between.  I can even record songs with my guitar in the studio, or more simply, on my phone, so as to be able to transcend miles and years. The ability to enjoy playing music and sharing it is something that cannot be overstated.  How many guitarists used to be able to play, and can play no longer? They're out there.  Some played too hard and developed Repetitive Strain Injury or Carpal Tunnel Syndrome.I've worked hard to discipline my hands with stretches and strength-building exercises, all of which I teach inside GuitarSuccess4U, because an ounce of prevention is worth what?  A pound of cure.Some guitarists have developed arthritis.It's a sobering fact that one day, every guitarist will play his or her final notes on the guitar.  When that will be, we don't know.It could be today.  It could be eighty years from now.I know that my earthly hands won't last forever, and that one day I will not be able to play my guitar. But today, I can. And for that, I am grateful.Every day is a gift, and the ability to play and share music is a gift.What this Gratitude DoesAs a guitarist, I'm all about embarking on musical challenges that help me grow.  Some of those challenges are within my reach, and result in what I'd call “quick wins.”Other challenges, though, take months or years, and I find myself slogging through some really technical guitar work that will hopefully lead to artistry and proficiency.But that takes time.And in our culture, some people (ok, sometimes I) want faster results.  And when I don't get those results, I come to a fork in the road.I can complain and be annoyed, or…I can be grateful.Which do you think leads to higher morale, better focus, and a more effective process?I think you know.  Gratitude.  It helps me play better, it gives me more focus, and it allows me to stick with it for longer.We all need breaks.  We all need the opportunity to regroup.But gratitude gives me a better practicing posture.I'd also say that when it comes to performing, some of the people I share my music with absolutely love it.Some.  Not all. There will always be a small percentage of people in the audience who will either look like they don't love what I'm doing, or they'll offer me their divided attention because, for example, they'd rather look at their phone while I'm pouring my heart out.Who knows what people are going through?  But what do you think I aim to do under these circumstances?I try to give thanks.  I try to focus on why the Lord has me there, sharing that music.  He may have someone in that audience who is brokenhearted and really needs to be encouraged.Bringing a message of encouragement through music for that one person may be the main reason the Lord has me there.Or, maybe I'm just supposed to play for Him, to be content in who He is to me, and who I am to Him. There may be hundreds of people at one of my performances, but in God's economy, those numbers may not line up with my expectations.  Is that ok?  Gratitude makes it so.He may have something totally different planned for how He wants to use me and my music in that place.So, with open, grateful hands, I give thanks.I give thanks for the opportunity to share my music with anyone.  Because really, no one has to listen to me play, right?In our home, we have a little framed quote on our counter that says “Gratitude turns what we have into enough.”  Did you catch that?Maybe it's enough to simply play my guitar and enjoy that.That's some good perspective, isn't it? I'd also say that it's much more attainable to experience serious fun if we are grateful.Further Thoughts on GratitudeGratitude is not a seasonal thing.  It can be, but the best practice as a follower of Christ is to be grateful as often as possible.Rehearsing the Lord's faithfulness is such a great way to give us encouragement, to strengthen our hearts.  Christ was an excellent example of this.  Even before he fed the 5,000, with just five loaves and two fish, Jesus had a posture of gratitude.  According to the New International Version of Matthew 14, verse 19, Jesus gave thanks. In Luke 22, Jesus was in the upper room with his disciples, spending time with them for the last supper he would partake of before he was to be crucified. Even under those circumstances, what did he do before he served his disciples from the cup, and again before he broke the bread and gave it to them?  He gave thanks.  Twice.If gratitude is good enough for the Son of God, I would do well to follow his example.Another passage from Philippians – chapter 4, verses 6 and 7 reminds us, even in a season of struggle, “Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.”I need that verse.  I need it very close to me, because my tendency is to worry, and to not be grateful.And I need to look at that verse with fresh eyes, because it is in danger of becoming so familiar that I don't really take it to heart.  I need to give thanks even as I present my requests to God.But do you know what? We can be grateful in all seasons, even the hard ones.  What happens when something we treasure is taken away?  Will we, like Job, still praise the name of the Lord?  That's a true test of our gratitude.It takes a spiritually mature response to say, “This is not what I would have wanted, but if the Lord wills it, I will still find something about it to be grateful for.”Can we still praise God when things are not going the way we want them to?  When we're struggling in times of need or illness?Worshiping and thanking the Lord in those seasons is a sweet kind of praise that pleases Him, perhaps even more than the praise that comes in seasons of prosperity and health.Here's a visual picture for you. Imagine if I was driving along, and I tried to press the accelerator (the gas pedal) in my car, while simultaneously applying the brake.That's not effective.  If the accelerator is gratitude, and the brake is complaining, they really cannot occupy the same space.Following this logic, I can't complain and be grateful at the same time…at least not about the same thing. And even if I'm grateful about one thing and simultaneously taking time to complain about something else, I'm not giving the full measure of attention to either posture.It's so much better to relinquish the tendency to complain, and to embrace gratitude.Who likes to be around a complainer?  Usually, other complainers.  Misery loves company, right?Who likes to be around a grateful person?  Almost everybody…perhaps not a complainer, because, well, they can't be as miserable as they want to be.But if I'm given a choice, I like to spend time with grateful people.  They help me to be even more grateful.So, in this season of thanksgiving, and always, let's be grateful for however many fingers we have, however well we can hear, and however much we're able to enjoy playing and sharing music.We have no guarantee of tomorrow (really, we have no guarantee of our next breath.)Our health and the functionality of our bodies, while it is present, is something to be tremendously grateful for.  When I see my guitar abilities through that lens, I'm humbled and I claim a fresh perspective.The people we can share our music with won't always be here with us on earth either. There are people I've cared deeply about, with whom I've shared my music in collaboration, and people I've served by singing and playing for them, who are now at home with the Lord.Now is the time.  It's the time to give thanks, to sing and play songs about how grateful we are, to worship the Lord through it all, and to let gratitude permeate every note we play.Hopefully, today's discussion yielded some insights into tools that are out there, like the Third Hand Capo and the SpiderCapo. Maybe it inspired you to tune your guitar creatively.Maybe it gave you some practical guitar strategies, like wearing a blindfold or lowering the lights temporarily while you practice.Maybe it provided some thoughts on how to take better care of your hands.But most of all, I'm hoping that this episode provided some good perspective, through helpful reminders of how blessed we all are, and how grateful we can be.What are you grateful for, especially with regard to your musical journey?  I'd love to know.Feel free to leave a comment below.  And please consider sharing these thoughts with others by telling them about this episode.Lastly, if you're looking for a grateful group of like-minded Christian guitarists, I encourage you to look into joining GuitarSuccess4U.  This is a community I lead, as I pour my knowledge and heart into their guitar journeys. And for that I'm deeply grateful.Do you know what else I'm grateful for, right now?  Your willingness to take time to receive and reflect upon these words I've put together.  I'm so glad you chose to listen today.  Thank you.  I'll see you next time.Thanks for reading Guitar Serious Fun! Subscribe for free to receive new posts and support my work. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit guitarseriousfun.substack.com

Gaea Star Crystal Radio Hour #509 was taped live at Singing Brook Studio in Worthington, Massachusetts, in November of 2022 and features songs by Mariam Massaro and visionary improvisation from the Gaea Star Band with Mariam on vocals, native flute, dulcimer and ukulele, Craig Harris on congas and marimba and Bob Sherwood on piano and 12-string guitar. We begin today with the stormy, unsettled “Exploration” featuring lush native flute from Mariam and a tense, taut rhythm section. “The Garden Of Love” is a bouncy avant-folk piece driven along by Mariam's eight-string ukulele until the jazzy afro-cuban coda featuring scorching piano work from Bob. “Follow Heyaiho” is a gorgeous, atmospheric jam with visionary lyrics and floating native flute from Mariam buttressed by Craig's steady conga work. “Calling Everyone To Give It All” is a prayer of hope and “Learn Something New Today” features acoustic 12-string from Bob in the DADGAD tuning over Craig's heartbeat native drums. We finish today with the hypnotic, progressive psychedelia of “Holding To The Vision” featuring more evocative vocals and native flute from Mariam. Learn more about Mariam here: http://www.mariammassaro.com

We the amazing Mike Millard master of Led Zeppelin at the LA Forum on 6/25/77, lovingly remastered by DADGAD. In My Time of Dying, SIBLY, and No Quarter are heard, and they're all exceptional. AS IS THE SOUND. Jimmy is on point in this show.

Click the link to join the blues guitar show workshops http://thebluesguitarshow.com/bluesguitarworkshops/In this episode I take you through some basics of playing slide guitar as well as the DADGAD tuning. We look at a couple of chord shapes and a cool slide riff that'll have you jamming like Skip James in no time! Follow me on instagram @bluesguitarshowpodcast Make a small donation at 'Buy me a coffee' https://www.buymeacoffee.com/bluesguitarshowSupport the show

-Sarah's website is the one-stop shop for tour dates, news, merch, and music, including The St. Buryan Sessions, a full-length live concert in the beautiful medieval church of St Buryan, just up the road from the rural cottage where she and her family live: sarahmcquaid.com.-Each of the songs from The St. Buryan Sessions can be found on Sarah's YouTube channel: youtube.com/sarahmcquaid-Sarah is on Patreon! Become a patron for exclusive Sarah McQuaid content: patreon.com/sarahmcquaid-Sarah is touring this summer! Sign up for her mailing list and never miss a show in your area.Here's a link to the official Troubadours on Trek Spotify Playlist, where you can hear all the featured songs from every episode in one playlist (songs will be added as episodes air on Patreon):-Sarah's song pairing for this episode: “Puff the Magic Dragon” by Peter, Paul and Mary-Grace's song pairing for this episode: “Big Lizard” by The Dead Milkmen-Sarah's featured song is “The Tug of the Moon,” from The St. Buryan SessionsCorrections:The book Sarah mentions, in the context of folk music traveling back and forth and both ways between the United States and the UK/Ireland is called Wayfaring Stranger, written by Fiona Ritchie and Doug Orr“Ebb and Flow” is the name of the “pretty love song” on my second album, Two Birds, that was written in DADGAD.The origins of the “Riker Maneuver” (Riker chair maneuver): Jonathan Frakes had a back injury from moving furniture that made it hard to bend and get into chairs the normal way. So he started swinging his leg over the tops of chairs to sit down. Look this up on YouTube if you haven't seen it. There's a hilarious viral compilation video. Frakes' back injury is also the reason for the famous “Riker Lean.” Frakes also thought it would be a hilarious and cocky thing for his character to do, and when no one called him out on it, he continued to do it. In his words: "That started in Ten Forward because the backs of the chairs were so low, it was easy. And then I thought, this is really a hotdog, @$$hole thing to do. Nobody's going to let me do this. And then nobody stopped me! It's such a cocky, unattractive, kind of bad cowboy move… Whoever did the YouTube compilation of Riker sits down, it went viral and was even more embarrassing, and made me strangely even more proud."Strange New Worlds premieres on Paramount Plus on May 5th!!The redshirts in this episode have indeed been featured in a well-circulated meme but Sarah is correct when she points out that several of the “red shirts” in this episode are wearing yellow. Here's a link to the meme: https://ifunny.co/meme/kirk-spock-mccoy-and-ensign-ricky-are-beaming-down-to-x6x7hHnu5According to Memory Alpha, a fairly comprehensive online Star Trek wiki, the Metron at the end of the episode was played by Carole Shelyne and voiced by Vic Perrin. I couldn't confirm that the Metron on the ship intercom's is also voiced by Perrin so that remains an unanswered question.From Wikipedia's entry on the Prime Directive: “The first filmed reference to the Prime Directive occurs in the first season TOS episode "The Return of the Archons" (1966), when Spock begins to caution Captain Kirk of the starship Enterprise when he proposes to destroy a computer controlling an entire civilization.”The aliens I couldn't think of, who brokered peace between humans and Klingons were the Organians. The treaty is called the Treaty of Organia or the Organian Peace Treaty. The episode is TOS 1:27, “Errand of Mercy.”The book Grace recommends is The Age of Miracles by Karen Thompson Walker

If you've never heard of a musician named Chet Gardiner, here's a fine introduction.  This is his solo acoustic version of a song I wrote a few months ago, which he recorded at his home studio in Hawaii.   Both the bassy resonance of Chet's voice and his delivery reminds me very much of the last recordings Johnny Cash made, which I think were brilliant. Chet's fingerstyle DADGAD guitar playing is so evocative as well. He plays a lot of other instruments as well, and I'm very much looking forward to hopefully spending the last half of January with other musicians at his studio in Hawaii making a record together.  More on those plans soon...

Saylor Dollar, an acoustic duo based in Tallahassee Florida, is our musical guest for today. We had a fabulous chat, and we went from talking about Tallahassee to getting a package delivered of a brand new 59 Magnatone Amp from the UPS man as we  talked about gear – now that's what we call great timing! It's all right here on the dHarmic evolution podcast. So strap up your seatbelts and let's take a ride to Tallahassee, Florida to hang out with Dale and Lisa of the acoustic duo, Saylor Dollar! Before we get into the show, I just want to remind you that my coaching program is open for you folks out there in need of coaching in these categories: Relationship coaching, Spiritual coaching, Life coaching, and of course, Podcast coaching. So for all my dHarmic Evolution fans and supporters who are looking for life-changing results in any of these areas, please email me at james@dharmicevolution.com I'll set up a 30-minute NO COST, NO OBLIGATION Zoom call for you and I to vet this out and see if we are a good fit together,  because this is one-on-one coaching. It's not group coaching. Therefore, I can only handle a limited number of people and I hope it's you! Again, there will be limited spaces available as this is “one-on-one”, so reach out ASAP to reserve a spot! Back to the acoustic duo, Saylor Dollar's band members consist of Dale Dollar (guitarist), and Lisa Saylor Dollar (vocals and violin). They perform an eclectic mix of original music featuring guitar riffs with a 70's southern rock feel, Irish folk-style song structure, and lyrics inspired by Appalachian story-telling and love. Lisa Saylor Dollar has a degree in music education from Florida State University. She has completed additional studies in Eisenstadt, Vienna, and Salzburg, Austria. Lisa is a music teacher in the public schools. She began performing in church as a child, and has performed with many professional orchestras and as a free-lance violinist. She has performed with local bands including Crossroad Bluegrass, and Sweet & Greasy. Dale Dollar studied guitar at Florida State University. He has taught private guitar lessons and has written and performed with many bands including Shapeshifter Project, Carrion Curse, and Sweet & Greasy. Get to know more about Saylor Dollar and listen to their eclectic music featured here on the show. Hear about Tallahassee, and sinkholes that you can swim on. We talked about alternate tuning, including DADGAD and a whole bunch of others. How Lisa went from symphony to bluegrass, you have got to hear her play the Orange Blossom Special! Log Cabin, Chris Godwin, Indian Head factory, hiking, great parks, Swanee fest, Buffalo and Phoenix, Ace Frehley and classical guitar. How did we fit that in such a short time? You're about to find out as we take a ride today with Lisa and Dale of Saylor Dollar here on the dHarmic evolution podcast! More about Saylor Dollar Support Saylor Dollar and their music through different platforms. You can go check out their website, social media pages and music platforms and follow them through these. All the links are provided below!  Quotes: 04:54 “We both love music. It's basically the first love of our lives and never going to stop. That's basically what we do all the time. ” - Dale 26:20 “I love that music though. I love the freedom of being able to just make it up as I go and play what I feel. And those guys encouraged me to sing, lead. That's the band I was in when Dale and I met and then now I just love being able to write with Dale, have our own stuff and not have to sing anybody else's stuff.” -Lisa 41:01 “I'm always practicing. I do my TrueFire, I do some of their courses. I'm always trying to learn something new. I love it.” - Dale 51:49 “My advice to anybody who wants to do music is to just play and enjoy it. Because even if nobody likes what you're doing, but you like what you're doing, I think you should just play and enjoy the music. Because as we talked earlier, there's so much ego in this business. And as long as you love what you're doing, you believe in what you're doing, I say just play, it doesn't matter if anybody likes it as long as you like it. And if you inspire just one person to play, I mean, it makes it all worth it. So that's me.” - Dale 52:26 “Don't doubt yourself, second guess yourself. Everybody has their own thing. God gave us all different talents and different gifts. So use yours. Don't compare that to anybody else there.” - Lisa Timestamps: 01:59 Introducing Saylor Dollar 03:15 Saylor Dollar talks about Tallahassee, Florida 04:00 Where do Saylor Dollar spend most of their time when going out and doing their performances? 05:25 How do Saylor Dollar put their material together and have their songs come together? 08:57How did Saylor Dollar start collaborating - when and where did they meet? 11:20 Listen to “Colored Water Sunshine” by Saylor Dollar 14:57 Saylor Dollar talks about the story behind “Colored Water Sunshine” 17:04 Sinkholes that you can swim in that are in  Tallahassee, Florida 18:06 Saylor Dollar on their special favorites on alternate tuning and DADGAD tuning. 22:22 Gears and instruments that Saylor Dollar uses when they get out and play. 24:14 Lisa's powerful vocals and who she listened to before she started singing. 25:42 Lisa on joining a bluegrass band. 27:52 What are Saylor Dollar's process for getting ready for when they're going to do a record. 30:36 How does Saylor Dollar put their music together and what great do they use? 32:44 Saylor Dollar about doing a full band and a duo.  33:54 Listen to “Goodbye” by Saylor Dollar 37:58 What is the metaphor behind “Goodbye” and who had the personal experience with this song.  41:12 What does Lisa and Dale like to do for fun outside music and work?  42:44 Where are the best venues for their eclectic music? 46:10 At what age did Dale start playing and who did he listen to growing up? 48:57 When did Dale transition from heavy metal to something different? 50:18 Lisa as a teacher of strings. 51:18 Saylor Dollar's goodbye message to the audience and words of wisdom to the upcoming artists. 53:35 Listen to “Ride On” by James Kevin O'Connor   Spotify Playlist: Did you miss the alumni of the dHarmic Evolution Podcast? Check out our 4 dHarmic Rising Stars playlists and see their music there. Don't forget to share them with your family and friends as well and let the world support these amazing indie artists! Check the links here: dHarmic Rising Stars: Aquila https://open.spotify.com/playlist/4loDaYF0OuWRjZeMXvEjK4   dHarmic Rising Stars: Orion https://open.spotify.com/playlist/5CnL9tl0xbU4oDh6jtJBZx   dHarmic Rising Stars: Lyra https://open.spotify.com/playlist/1ov0OqNMJmPhHrxZjsXthS   dHarmic Rising Stars: Scorpius https://open.spotify.com/playlist/5oQ4Sc4LAJSexsDgDcixt8   dHarmic Evolution links: Want to stay up-to date with our new release of episodes? Here's a pro tip, head over to dharmicevolution.com so the show will just come to your phone every Friday at 4:44 AM EST!  Don't forget to let me know what you think as well by leaving us some comments. Also, send this off to a friend and let them join the growing community of dHarmic Evolution. Hey, do you know someone who is suffering from anxiety and depression? Please help them out by having the book “7 Steps to Mental Freedom.” It will be a great read for them. You can easily find it as well on the main page of the website or you can just send them to https://tinyurl.com/25a994tw  Keep yourself updated with what's going on with dHarmic evolution, check out our Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/dharmicevolution and, if you are an artist, an author, or a keynote speaker, who is trying to find a safe place to post your content to, you can check out our own Facebook community page and let the world support you! Check out the link here: dHarmic Evolution Community.  Special Links and Mentions: Tony Robbins Tom Brady The Allman Brothers Band Joni Mitchell AC/DC Metallica Ace Frehley Kiss Frank Bello Jimi Hendrix Randy Rhoads Judas Priest Iron Maiden Slayer Connect with Saylor Dollar Website: https://saylordollar.com/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/SaylorDollar/ Instagram: https://instagram.com/saylordollar Twitter: https://twitter.com/saylordollar YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/SaylorDollar Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/2g3frfjox2Id76kF6NkLnd Apple Music: https://music.apple.com/us/artist/1487435760 ReverbNation: https://www.reverbnation.com/saylordollar    

Document don't create pt #4.  I get clarity on HOW TO document and not create.  Turns out I love playing with, editing, and crafting the story.  If you have Summit Interviews you need sliced and diced and turned into clips that you can push out on the social media I can do that for you.  If you need testimonials scheduled, recorded and edited, I can do that for you. I'm intrigued by this idea of creating short form stories that create engagement and create an action at the end.   I can chop up a testimonial that I produced for someone into the little mini clips and use it as my own testimonial of what I'm doing.  And the customer is happy because I'm in effect pushing it out for them.  Win Win WinAdministrative: (See episode transcript below)WATCH this episode here: Table Rush Talk Show.Listen on the go at http://TableRush.net. Over 450 episodes and counting!Check out the Tools For A Good Life Summit here: Virtually and FOR FREE https://bit.ly/ToolsForAGoodLifeSummitStart podcasting!  These are the best mobile mic's for IOS and Android phones.  You can literally take them anywhere on the fly.Get the Shure MV88 mobile mic for IOS,  https://amzn.to/3z2NrIJGet the Shure MV88+ for  mobile mic for Android  https://amzn.to/3ly8SNjSee more resources at https://belove.media/resourcesEmail me: contact@belove.mediaFor social Media:      https://www.instagram.com/mrmischaz/https://www.facebook.com/MischaZvegintzovSubscribe and share to help spread the love for a better world!As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.Transcript: MZDocument don't create part three or four of let's track, pretend it's a different day. It's not as sunny out, I have a different ponytail. Perhaps I've shaved off my would you call them lamb chops? And say get a say. I'm going to talk more about document creating and document don't create. That way. The purpose of documenting and not creating is so we can pump out more content. There's two things I want to talk about an epiphany I had about how I can document what I'm doing now to have more content where it's been a struggle for me or a question. I'm like, I don't really understand this document don't create thing. So I'm going to talk about that. And then the other thing is, what was the other one? Can't remember. It'll come to me. Okay. Listening, make it through the intro. I'll be right back.Mischa Zvegintzov Okay, I hope you enjoyed the intro. If you're watching the video, I love that bow. It's so fun. It's like five seconds or four seconds or two, or whatever it is, I think it's so fun. If you're listening in podcast land, it's a much. It's a 32nd. I explained the table rush. Anyway, the other open loop I have for you is the importance of documenting and not creating for speed of having lots of content to put out there, and why that can be so good. And there's different thoughts on it. But I'm going to address that on the next episode. So subscribe, so you'll get the update. Again, this speaks to the power of batch recording. So I'm repurposing all these video clips. Right? So I interview I'm for a client I have now I'm repurposing her interviews. And then I'm also repurposing a testimonial for somebody. So I'm editing it down, creating the nice little testimonial. I'm editing down this person summit interviews, if you have summit interviews, and you want me to repurpose those for you and create content that you can splash out on the social media, I can totally do it. Just my emails in the in the notes, so click on that, send me an email, we'll see if we can sort something out. But I'm, I'm I'm, I was feeling overwhelmed. And I was like, gosh, this is taking some work that I love. So I love playing with editing and crafting the story and taking out the the unnecessary stuff. Just so fun for me. I'm not sure why I like like it so much. But I do. I guess I'm intrigued by this idea of creating engaging, short form stories that create engagement and create an action, like, create this content, create an action at the end. And that action can be tons of different things.Mischa Zvegintzov So as I'm editing this testimonial last night and got it came out so good, I just was watching this testimonial going, Oh my God, what an amazing story. What an amazing job I did interviewing it, interviewing this person. And then what an amazing job of editing it. And I have to do next for the other client is chop up one of our interviews that are some of the interviews. That's going to be fun, because it's going to be something outside of what I've started on the creation process, right. In other words, someone's giving me the interview that they made the video that they made for their summit. And then I'm going to slice and dice it. So this is going to be very interesting for me, it's gonna be fun to see how I can tell her story with her video. I thought I was like it hit me. I was like, Oh my gosh, I can this testimonial that I've created for them. And effect. I can chop that up into the little mini clips and use it as my own testimonial of what I'm doing. Like this is the documentation of what I'm doing. So I can say, hey, I created I can put captions on there, instead of putting the captions of what the person is saying. I can put my captions on there saying, Hey, I created this awesome testimonial for these two people, I can do it for you. I can set up the I can schedule the interview, I can do the interview, and then I can chop it up into one nice little five minute testimonial and then I can repurpose that into you know, five or so mini clips that you can splash out on the social media and documenting. I'm documenting what I'm doing with the content that I already created with just a little extra tweak. Such a powerful epiphany for me. Right so because I was like, Oh my gosh, it's I've been creating seven. I'm in the middle of this posting a video.Mischa Zvegintzov One of these many clips pushing it out across all the channels, except for LinkedIn, Twitter, Snapchat, I haven't added those into the queue yet, but I can't wait to thanks for hanging in there with me as I'm talking through this, but of course created, I've worked for a few hours on one interview created all these clips of my own. And then I've got that content for the week. And so as I was editing this other content for the client, I was like, How is this all gonna fit together? And I'm like, Oh, my gosh, this is amazing. The I can just repurpose that content and push it out as documentation of what I'm doing. And the customers I'm doing it for are going to be super happy because I'm in effect, advertising for them. How amazing is that? Like massive epiphany. So I'm super excited about that. If you have an interest in having me repurpose some of your interviews, that you've done with people to for a summit or for a challenge or for testimonials, and you want to repurpose it and push it out the same time, have me push it out for you, on what through my channels. Reach out to me, I'm so excited. This is so fun, as this is all coming together. And then if you want to get some testimonials, but you're so busy that that you don't have time. But you see the value in paying somebody like me, I'm super Calendly efficient. I will get the emotional engagement on that testimonial that you want. Even if your Lamborghini guy I'm sorry, no way. Well, I'm at DADGAD. And no judgment, by the way, as I said from a place of non judgment, but anyway, again, if you would like somebody to help you set up the testimonial, interview the person, ie record the testimonial, edit it down to a nice little five minute clip, and then break that out into the mini clips so that you can push it out over the social media. And then at the same point, I'm going to use it as testimony of what I'm up to documenting what I'm doing. So you'll get free exposure to my audience. Reach out to me, maybe we can work something out. Okay, the next episode is going to be the importance of the speed. What what pumping out a lot of content can do for you over and above. Just you know creating looks likes and follows because there's a lot more benefits from it. Okay, listening next episode coming

Learn more about SongTown and get 10 free videos to see what the fuss is all about! CLICK HERE SongTown Press Books:Mastering Melody Writing : BUY NOWThe Songwriter's Guide To Mastering Co-Writing : BUY NOWSongbuilding: Mastering Lyric Writing : BUY NOW Guest: Jeff Cohen: Website Hosts: Marty Dodson :   Facebook   :   InstagramClay Mills : Facebook  :  Instagram Featured Song: “I Like That” Tery Wayne : ReverbnationCarey Latham : Facebook 

SUPPORT THIS PODCAST: CLICK HERECaroline Marie Brooks is a singer songwriter and 1/3 of the Juno-winning band Good Lovelies. We dig into her life in music and her fantastic new solo album Everything At The Same Time. She describes how she's been wanting to make a record of very personal music for a long time and that making this album was in a way an act of self-care. We talk about her life with Good Lovelies and how she sees her doing a solo album as being “lifted by”, as opposed to “stepping out from”. She also looks back on her experience touring as a new mother and describes how touring with a young baby can be extremely taxing but also gratifying. We nerd out about guitar playing and alternate tunings which she explains was her father's influence. She reflects on insights she's gained in her 40th year and how they've informed her new album."Mortality plays a big role in the songs I've been writing and thinking about a lot in relation to my own parents and my children and that continuum. My grandmother is 92. On my 40th birthday, we had this big party and it was my family and my grandmother was there and my daughter and we took this family photo with four generations. And I just thought about that line and where I am in it and my mother and thinking of my mother at my age. And then thinking about my grandmother at my age. And then what my daughter will be like at my age. And all those things feeding into each other. So, yeah, 40 feels like a milestone in that it marks a very specific time of my life. And now that I made this record, I specifically will always feel like I've captured that time."---SUPPORT THIS PODCAST: CLICK HERE---CAROLINE MARIE BROOKSWEBSITEBANDCAMPINSTAGRAM---AND SOMETIMES ... WHY?:ANDSOMETIMESWHY.COMEMAILIGFBTWEET

Guitar players and lovers, you're in for a special treat! In my 2nd session with Grammy winning guitarist & composer LAURENCE JUBER, he plays a guitar piece I wrote for him called… “Guitar Piece” - and explains HOW he played it! This is a unique look into the creative process of one of the most gifted players of the last 50 years. He not only talks about his methodology, Laurence also discusses his love of Renaissance guitar and reveals his deep knowledge of guitar history. Get up and dance to his own newest piece, “Grandma's Blue Chicken Pan”. As if that were not enough, the dashing Wings guitarist also talks about the Beatles use of harmony and how he expresses it on the guitar. In this relaxed chat between old friends, you will laugh, cry and be amazed! A masterclass from a true master. Watch! Listen! Learn! Take notes! And please, subscribe to Radio Richard to be notified of Laurence's next show on DADGAD guitar!!! Join this YT channel to get access to special perks: https://www.patreon.com/radiorichard Help Radio RIchard reach 100k subs:

Tenille Townes is doing country music her way. The rising star is getting ready to release new music and hit the road with Brothers Osborne. We talk about her new single "Girl Who Didn't Care", the one year anniversary of her album The Lemonade Stand, how she shared a stage with Shania Twain at 9 years old and so much more. 

In this episode I talk you through some quick and fun techniques for playing blues music in DADGAD tuning. This tuning is a great tool to break out of a playing block or just to spice up your repertoire. For Blues Guitar Show Merch head over to: https://the-blues-guitar-show.creator-spring.com/For more courses content and to download TAB PDF's go to www.benmartin-music.comSupport the show (http://www.benmartin-music.com)

Gaea Star Crystal Radio Hour #439 is an hour of acoustic visionary improv music played live by The Gaea Star Band with Mariam Massaro on vocals, acoustic 6- and 12-string guitars, Native flute and ukulele, Robin Rooney on djembe and vocals, Bob Sherwood on piano and Craig Harris on Native drum and congas.  Recorded at Singing Brook Studio in Worthington, Massachusetts in April 2021, todays show begins with the epic, dramatic “Listen To The Call Of Spirit”, a song with a series of movements that take the piece from nursery rhyme to strikingly progressive and dynamic, to funked-out jazz and bossa nova.  Highlights are Mariam’s Native flute passages and Mariam and Robin’s inspired vocals.  “Return” is a song in prayer of the spring and the return of the light led by Mariam’s chiming, silvery 8-string ukulele and “In The Stillness Of My Heart” is a dramatic, beautiful, powerful piece built around a dancing piano motif from Bob.  “Children Of The Stars” and “I’m So Happy I’m Alive are songs from Mariam’s “For The Children” album and are rendered beautifully here with fine vocals from Mariam and Robin.  Mariam strums her chiming 12-string in DADGAD tuning for today’s closer, the deeply meditative raga “Lift Your Spirit Higher”. Learn more about Mariam here: http://www.mariammassaro.com

“In terms of research of things that really benefit us and keep us on an even keel, mindfulness research is just off the charts effective.”—  Scott McBeanCreativity can be a lot of things: a way to make money, a way to bring joy… and even a mindfulness practice.Pastor and mental health counsellor Scott McBean treats creativity as a source of positivity and a powerful way to maintain his mental health. His creative practices are little things that bring him joy, such as playing guitar or doing family photography.He also sees creative exercises as opportunities for mindfulness.Scott is a strong believer in the physical and psychological benefits of mindfulness, which is about so much more than just meditation.A few mornings per week, he'll read poetry for 15-20 minutes and then write his own poem. For Scott, this exercise serves as a mindfulness practice.“People often think that that looks like something like centering prayer, or sitting in silence and stillness, or counting your breaths and things like that. Those are mindfulness practices, absolutely, but mindfulness practices are also things that engage other senses, too,” Scott says. “Writing...  being out in nature… taking dedicated time to engage each of your five senses serves the same function as some kind of stereotypical mindfulness practice of sitting in silence somewhere.”Painting, dancing, or even something like washing dishes can be practiced mindfully and creatively.In‌ ‌this‌ ‌episode,‌ ‌you'll discover:‌ ‌How you can transform a surprising number of activities into mindfulness practices  Why the ‘tortured artist' trope exists — and how pain and creativity became linked What makes all the difference when it comes to creating good art v. mediocre artAbout Scott McBeanScott is a pastor and mental health counsellor at Northstar Community, a recovery ministry in Richmond, VA. He enjoys playing guitar, watching movies, and spending time with his wife Brittany and daughter Norah. Highlights:‌ ‌00:28  About Scott McBean01:31  “What is your ritual?”03:03  Mindfulness & writing04:46  Walking meditation & Brother Lawrence06:16  Scott's creative outlets08:30  DADGAD tuning14:06  Tortured life trope & risk-taking17:46  Craftsmanship18:44  Evolving relationship to creativity20:26  Anxiety22:02  What's next?Links:‌ ‌www.northstarcommunity.comhttps://www.facebook.com/scottwmcbeanIG: @scottishthingsscott@northstarcommunity.comSong: https://arundownhouse.bandcamp.com/track/a-passing-thoughtDADGAD: Richard Thompson, Ed Gerhard, Michael Watts, Will Ackerman, Andy McKee, Don Ross, Kaki King, Colin Hay.Special thanks to Emily Milling and the team at The Ultimate Creative and our business manager Erika Macauley.Music for this podcast was recorded with producer Spencer Garn at Diamond Street Studios in Atlanta, Georgia.Learn more at www.hollandcreative.io/ritualConnectwww.hollandcreative.iodaniel@hollandcreative.ioIG: @conversioncopydesign

Song: The Road to the Unknown Album: The Distance Track: 02 Started: Sunday 7th February 2021 Completed: Sunday 7th February 2021 Instruments: Guitar: ESP LTD EC 1000 (DADGAD & EADGBE) Bass: Fender USA Precision Deluxe

Nick Drake tuning? Open G? Unlock new sounds on your guitar by exploring the 5 alternate tunings that changed acoustic guitar history today! ★ What kind of guitar player are you? How should you practice? Take the quiz today: https://tonypolecastro.com/★ Get the show: https://tonypolecastro.com/get-acoustic-tuesday★ FOLLOW on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/tac.guitar/ Alternate tunings on acoustic guitar can truly expand your sonic vocabulary. If you're feeling fatigued or tired of playing the same things, spend some time exploring one of the 5 alternate tunings I offer in this episode of Acoustic Tuesday. You get a chance to hear very popular tunings like DADGAD and Open D Maj while also learning how to play on the fretboard with them. With each alternate tuning, I'll provide some basic chords or picking patterns that can be used with each alternate tuning.  Each one of these alternate tunings can take your guitar playing to places it has never been before. And that's a good thing! Hearing your instrument make new sounds you didn't think were possible is truly inspirational! In addition to exploring alternate tunings on acoustic guitar, I also want to share with you the inspirational story of a veteran who overcame PTSD by learning to play guitar — oh, and he went on to teach other veterans how to play guitar, too! Last but not least, you'll get my roundup of the latest headlines in the acoustic guitar world. This week, we'll take a look at three different YouTube series that are designed for guitar geeks of all interests! 

Gaea Star Crystal Radio Hour #423 Part Two was recorded on a snowy December day at Singing Brook Studio in Worthington, Massachusetts, and is an hour of visionary improv music featuring the Gaea Star Band with Mariam Massaro on vocals, native flute, ukulele and 6- and 12-string acoustic guitars, Bob Sherwood on piano, Robin Rooney on vocals, djimbe and percussion and Craig Harris on congas and native drums.  Today’s show begins with the mystical raga “Into The Boundless Beauty”, a lush and swirling piece held aloft by Mariam’s DADGAD tuned, modal 12-string acoustic guitar.  Following this hypnotic epic is the skipping folk ballad “Brightly Does It Shine” featuring Mariam’s chiming 8-string ukulele.  This upbeat piece features 2 further movements, a funky Afrocuban workout with excellent flute from Mariam and a final sparse, lovely celebration of winter held aloft on Bob’s classical piano figures.  “Many Seeds Have Fallen” is a track from Mariam’s “For The Children Album”, here given a deep and varied improvisatory treatment before it segues seamlessly into the “Vision Quest” track “Spirit Of Water”.  We finish today with another medley of Mariam songs, the driving Andean folk of “Pachamama” and a dark, funky jazzed-up take of Mariam’s tribute to a mystical cave in Cuzco, Peru, “Amaru Machay”.Learn more about Mariam here: http://www.mariammassaro.com

In this episode I talk about my admiration of Whitesnake and the discovery of Blue Murder and I end up exploring the tuning of DADGAD as I learn the tune of "Valley of the kings". I also talk about the many new updates to the podcast as well. you can show your support as always by purchasing merch in the RBI store: www.reformedbyiron.com/stringstosoul links for this episode: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9_5-CGSJZDE --- This episode is sponsored by · Anchor: The easiest way to make a podcast. https://anchor.fm/app

In this episode - the alternate tuning extravaganza!!! I show a few very unusual alternate tunings used by the greats Dory Caymmi and Toninho Horta and talk about the famous DADGAD tuning, one of the most famous and widely used ones besides standard tuning. Enjoy!

I talk about Led Zeppelin's 1972 Australiasian Tour, and play some songs from their 2/19/72 Adelaide gig. I use a newly remastered recording by DADGAD as the source. Led Zeppelin at their peak down under. Immigrant Song, Whole Lotta Love, and the entire acoustic set are played.

This conversation is a real slow burn, and we LOVED recording it. You're in for a treat. Here is the translation Kate mentions, a version of Donal Og that's startling and strange in the ways that only really great translations can be. (He said, knowing very little about translations, really). (Though I'll correct myself and say that it's probably true that really bad translations can be startling and strange too...) Donal Og It is late last night the dog was speaking of you; the snipe was speaking of you in her deep marsh. It is you are the lonely bird through the woods; and that you may be without a mate until you find me. You promised me, and you said a lie to me, that you would be before me where the sheep are flocked; I gave a whistle and three hundred cries to you, and I found nothing there but a bleating lamb. You promised me a thing that was hard for you, a ship of gold under a silver mast; twelve towns with a market in all of them, and a fine white court by the side of the sea. You promised me a thing that is not possible, that you would give me gloves of the skin of a fish; that you would give me shoes of the skin of a bird; and a suit of the dearest silk in Ireland. When I go by myself to the Well of Loneliness, I sit down and I go through my trouble; when I see the world and do not see my boy, he that has an amber shade in his hair. It was on that Sunday I gave my love to you; the Sunday that is last before Easter Sunday and myself on my knees reading the Passion; and my two eyes giving love to you for ever. My mother has said to me not to be talking with you today, or tomorrow, or on the Sunday; it was a bad time she took for telling me that; it was shutting the door after the house was robbed. My heart is as black as the blackness of the sloe, or as the black coal that is on the smith's forge; or as the sole of a shoe left in white halls; it was you put that darkness over my life. You have taken the east from me, you have taken the west from me; you have taken what is before me and what is behind me; you have taken the moon, you have taken the sun from me; and my fear is great that you have taken God from me! (Shades of St Patrick's prayer in that last verse...) So what do I ACTUALLY know about translation? Mostly what I remember from many long, wonderful (as in full of wonder), beery conversations with my pal, Ian Lavery. Poet, academic, punctuation pedant and a very, very funny man. Anyway, when he was doing his PhD on Northern Irish poetry I would regularly perform my friendly duty by insisting he come drinking with me when he should have been working. So it was Ian who witnessed me - two bottles of white wine to the wind and heading for a few pints - walking into the road and smashing the windscreen of an oncoming car with my head. All the classic accident shit went down - a local lad leaned over me shouting 'How many fingers can you see pal, how many FINGERS?' My shoe came off (just the one.) And I apparently garbled half remembered lines from Seamus Heaney's 'Station Island' all the way to the hospital. And yes, I do realize that makes me sound like a complete wanker. Anyway, so, when Kate mentioned Donal Og I thought of Ian because he knows his translations. And because he's from Carrickfergus, and first turned me on to Louis MacNeice, also from Carrickfergus. Who worked at the BBC in London for many years and was friends with (seriously) Andy Irvine (check out this interview with Andy if you don't believe me): https://podtail.com/en/podcast/rte-second-captains/second-captains-andy-irvine/ So thinking of friendship, and distance, and love, as Kate was singing Donal Og, and then and then...the song was over, and we talked some more about other things. And then Kate mentioned her children, and bringing them the see where she studied geology in Melbourne, and THAT'S when I sort of made my tangled, inarticulate attempt to say that...what...everything is everything. Music, songs, friendship, love, food, cars, biscuits, concertinas. All of it. Or, as the great Scottish songwriter Michael Marra might have said...The World is Phul o' A Number o' Things... https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4Jz6LJXUqhI Which isn't a million miles away from this: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CIMNXogXnvE If you're of a melancholy turn of mind, you need songs like these. I wrote to Kate the day after we finished recording to say thanks, and what a lovely way to spend an evening. And it's true. Thanks Kate (and Ciaran O'Grady) for the chance to listen. ... The New Graces (Kate Burke, Melanie Horsnell and Robyn Martin) have recently tracked and mastered their debut album at Sydney's Rancom Street Studios, working with producer Garth Porter (Sherbet, Lee Kernaghan) and legendary engineer Ted Howard (Gurrumul, Paul Kelly & The Stormwater Boys). The album is due for release in early 2020. (Website coming soon) To buy Kate's music go here: lukeplumbandkateburke.com kateandruth.com troubleinthekitchen.com ... To learn more about QuasiTrad go here: https://quasitrad.com ... And finally, as aways. If you liked this episode and think you got some worth from it, then please pledge $2 over at www.patreon.com/blarneypilgrims. Of course, you don't have to become a patron to listen, but we guarantee you'll enjoy each episode more because you'll be safe in the knowledge that you're a deadset legend. If you can't afford to pledge on Patreon, and we totally understand if you can't, all is not lost. You can still support the show by sharing it on your socials, posting about it in your favourite forums or simply by telling your mates about it down the pub. Till next time. Darren & Dom www.patreon.com/blarneypilgrims www.blarneypilgrims.com facebook.com/BlarneyPilgrimsPodcast @blarneyPilgrimsPodcast

This is part two of our awesome conversations with Scott Bunn. Scott Bunn (AKA The Bunn) has a sick channel in you called The Bunn and he talks about baritone guitars and tuning them low!!! Like really like, like EADGBE (one octave below a standard guitar) and lower! At the time this episode is published, Matt has his baritone tuned DADGAD. Thanks for listening and check us out on social media to interact with us. @DreadMatt on Twitter, @officialdreadmatt on Instagram, SeVIInn Dread on Facebook. --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/campfiretalk/message

This is the audio from our video here: https://youtu.be/8-UnSRXlG8I Well this was a turn up for the books. Blinking once again into the dawn light of our own ignorance, Dan and I are awakened to the immense talents of Mr John Smith. We have Simon to thank – he and John are friends – for this most auspicious and fortuitous happening. John’s unique blend of British folk and Americana hits the sweetest of spots on our radar. A fingerstyle master, slide supremo, accomplished songwriter and utterly compelling vocalist, we feel privileged to welcome him to Schwangri-La where we get to hang out, talk guitars, build a board and get treated to our own performance of three songs. It’s a day we’ll never forget… at least until the next time he comes back, which he surely must! Yes, we know the show was about two hours shorter than it should have been. Children needed to be collected, flights caught and all that life stuff. The important thing was that we got the board built for his tour. He WILL be back! I’d just like to add – Mick here – all those tracks were first takes, straight out of the gate. Colour us impressed, deeply moved and forever inspired! For everything John, please head to https://www.johnsmithjohnsmith.com/ The tracks he plays are:• 'Joanna' (from the album Headlong, 2017)• 'Winter' (from the album The Fox And The Monk, 2006/2010)• 'Hares On The Mountain' (from the album Hummingbird, 2018) Enjoy the episode! Pedals & stuff in this episode… • TC Electronic PolyTune 2 MiniUK & Europe: http://bit.ly/2jKaukTUSA: http://bit.ly/2k2Gu4BAustralia: http://bit.ly/2vn6b6N • Raven Labs Professional Master Blender II PreampNo longer made • RMI Lehle Acouswitch Juniorhttps://lehle.com/EN/RMI-Acouswitch-Junior • Origin Effects SlideRig Compact (links for latest model)UK & Europe: http://bit.ly/2XZltfiAustralia: http://bit.ly/2ZA9MfE • Boss OC-3 Super Octave (fed from the piezo pickup only)UK & Europe: http://bit.ly/2pQJrK8USA: http://bit.ly/2dJOjwxAustralia: http://bit.ly/2x4uRCo • Strymon El Capistan dTape EchoUK & Europe: http://bit.ly/2cVgRPrUSA: http://bit.ly/2cud3aBAustralia: http://bit.ly/2pUnPeu • Strymon Blue Sky ReverbUK & Europe: http://bit.ly/2wJSNO8USA: http://bit.ly/2XldBYsAustralia: http://bit.ly/2GgGPLr • Strymon Flint Reverb & TremoloUK & Europe: http://bit.ly/2G3EVQ3USA: http://bit.ly/2tmFl0WAustralia: http://bit.ly/2FkLm49 * Why do we have preferred retailer links? Find out here: http://www.thatpedalshow.com/partners Interesting bits and go-to sections…- Intro playing and intro: 0:00- John plays Joanna: 2:00- Rewind to earlier… goofing about with John’s guitars: 5:45- John’s Fylde Alexander and a bit of DADGAD: 11:40- John plays Winter: 15:26- Pedalboard build of sorts: 18:55- John’s signal chain: 19:35- John plays some of Hares On The Mountain: 22:30- New board layout: 23:30- Back to the show and more board explanation: 26:05- Folk meets Americana? 30:00- John plays us out… 33:00- And plays all of Hares On The Mountain – phew! 33:15 Guitars in this episode:• Fylde Alexander: https://www.fyldeguitars.com/alexander.html (link for standard model)• Fylde Falstaff: https://www.fyldeguitars.com/falstaff.html (link for standard model) Amps in this episode• AER Alpha Acoustic Amp http://aer-the-acoustic-people.de/en/products/acoustic-line/• Fender ’65 Super Reverb with Jensen P10R speakers https://shop.fender.com/en-GB/guitar-amplifiers/vintage-pro-tube/65-super-reverb/0217600000.html?rl=en_US• Fender Rumble Stage 800: https://shop.fender.com/en-GB/bass-amplifiers/contemporary-digital/rumble-stage-800/2376106000.html We hope you enjoy this episode. Please subscribe to our channel. You can buy TPS merch to support our efforts https://www.thatpedalshowstore.com We are on Patreon – crowdfunding for creativeshttps://www.patreon.com/ThatPedalShow Please visit our preferred retailers!UK & Europe: Andertons Music http://bit.ly/2cRvIvtUSA: Riff City Guitar & Music Company http://bit.ly/2cyOYjDAustralia: Pedal Empire http://bit.ly/2mWmJQf

➜All show notes and links: https://acousticlife.tv/at74/➜Get the show: https://tonypolecastro.com/get-acoustic-tuesday Featured in This Episode... #4 Play Acoustic Guitar In DADGAD Tuning  Maybe you've wanted to look into DADGAD tuning but felt it was this elusive thing, or maybe you've never heard of it at all! Well, this lesson will help you not only get started but also playing in this tuning today! #3 What's On the Turntable This Week? This week’s featured acoustic artist is Eric Skye, who comes recommended to us by Acoustic Tuesday listener Trent S. from La Crete, Alberta, Canada. Trent says, "What I love? Everything. I love his fingerpicking, and I especially love his Flatpicking. His album June Apple is absolutely fantastic, and it's not lighting fast so it's awesome to sit down and play along with. I just recently did a lesson with him, he's super kind and explains things so well. And he's got 50 fiddle tunes up on his website in standard notation for the true music geek!" #2 Eric Bibb Shares His Favorite Guitar I want you to think back (AT Episode 66), where we featured an artist named Eric Bibb. Eric is a fantastic blues player and a torchbearer of the folk tradition. He had just released an album called Global Griot. We heard from Eric right after our feature so we, of course, hit him up for his responses to three burning questions we had for him. Check out his video response! #1 Harlem Street Singer Review This movie is something I think everyone should watch. This is the story of Reverend Gary Davis, from when he grew up in the deep south. He was an integral part of the 1960s folk scene. You'll agree it's a must watch documentary.

Joe and Aaron bring in guitarist and vocalist, Dustin Furlow, to discuss all things fingerstyle guitar. The guys talk about influential fingerstyle guitarists including Tommy Emmanuel, Stephen Bennett (harp guitar), Andy McKee, Tony McManus, Garreth Pearson, Don Ross, Mike Dawes, Adam Rafferty, Adrian Legg, Alexander Misko, and Matt Thomas. They look into approaches to choosing the right keys for solo fingerstyle guitar arrangements, as well as alternate tunings such as DADGAD and open D tuning. The guys dive seriously into the details of nail maintenance and acrylic gel nails for fingerpicking. Dustin, with his wealth of experience playing and performing with high end acoustic guitars, explains the benefits and downsides of many types of guitars, especially as they relate to fingerstyle guitar playing. They look at the differences in sound and playability of Martin, Taylor, Gibson, Larrivee, and Beneteau guitars, as well as choosing the right pickups and pre-amps to get the best live amplified sound. dustinfurlow.com for more information

Gibson's not at NAMM huh? Bold. --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/thetonecontrol/message

Part One of our Interview with Laurence Juber of Wings.      This week starts with some oddball querstions , and meanders through LJ's thoughts on John and Paul's songwriting, and the performance aspects of each of the four.       This is then followed by a discussion of "Drop D", "DADGAD", and why he frequently chooses to play in alternate tunings.       The show then ends with an excerpt from a tutorial where he demonstrates his arranging skills, letting us into his head with "Martha My Dear" on guitar.

Our related post on the Blogging Musician's site: http://adamharkus.com/unlocking-fretboard-understanding-key-signatures-guitar/ Our website: https://tunein-toneup.com/ Our dedicated post for lesson 13: https://tunein-toneup.com/2017/05/05/guitar-lesson-13-how-to-practice-without-a-guitar-and-further-rhythm-ideas-and-alternate-tuning/ Guitar Lesson 13a: This lesson is mainly as a result of some of the feedback which we have had from listeners, namely that they found lesson 5 on rhythm playing really useful and wanted more of this. As a result I showed up to Dan with the two questions: PART 1 - This was to revisit chord melodies and song writing ideas. What we covered in this section of the lesson organically grew and we added in some ideas about alternate tunings, including DADGAD. PART 2 (12.5.17)- Here, Dan really helped me out by giving me some superb ideas for what to do while unable to practise and how to develop my musical understanding of keys and the fretboard without needing to use the guitar. Very helpful as I currently have some tendonitis making it difficult to play :(

From working with three of the four Beatles to tracking the James Bond theme to mastering DADGAD tuning, Grammy-winning guitarist LAURENCE JUBER shares his life adventures. He also performs some of his favorite pieces—including an arrangement of "Deck the Halls," which is available on his new CD, Holidays and Hollynights—and details several stunning guitar approaches. And in a cool vintage gear moment, Laurence busts out his sterling 1893 Martin steel-string.

This is a track from the new CD 'Band of Two' by Banna de dhá, the duo of fiddler Tom Morley and DADGAD guitarist Hazel Ketchum. The Irish phrase (pronounced 'bonna de gaw') makes reference to the 'banding together' of their two instruments, fiddle & guitar. This tune is usually played as a hornpipe but here the duo give it a moody interpretation.

This is a track from the new CD 'Band of Two' by Banna de dhá, the duo of fiddler Tom Morley and DADGAD guitarist Hazel Ketchum. The Irish phrase (pronounced 'bonna de gaw') makes reference to the 'banding together' of their two instruments, fiddle & guitar. This tune is usually played as a hornpipe but here the duo give it a moody interpretation.

THE HILLBENDERS are undeniably the hottest young band on the acoustic scene. Claiming the championship title at the 2009 Telluride Bluegrass Band Competition helped put The HillBenders on the map, and their recent victory at the 2010 National Single Microphone Championships prove that they continue to be a force to be reckoned with. These buzz-worthy bluegrass whiz-kids are quickly rising above many of their peers and gaining international recognition for their aggressive combination of contemporary influences with traditional inspiration and instrumentation, as well as their infectiously energetic stage performances. The HillBenders released their debut album Down To My Last Dollar in spring 2010 and are currently working on their follow-up CD AL PETTEWAY & AMY WHITE are an award winning duo that performs contemporary Celtic- & Appalachian-Influenced Acoustic Groove. Their music was featured throughout the soundtrack of the 2009 Ken Burns EMMY-winning documentary, The National Parks: America's Best Idea. And in 2010, their album, "Caledon Wood" (which includes the main theme of the National Parks documentary) was names one of the essential albums of the past 20 years in Acoustic Guitar Magazine. Their recent album "High in the Blue Ridge" released early this year.

This is Session 15 of the Worship Song Video Blog includes an example of playing the song "Rise" (written by Shawn McDonald). This is a video blog of guitar tips and ideas for playing worship songs. This song edition includes a video demonstrating the song arrangement on guitar and a downloadable PDF chord chart with the lyrics and chords (courtesy of WorshipTeam.com). CHORD CHART PDF: download here. Video Demonstration: See below. This video became very popular and people have been asking a number of questions (all of which are explained or demonstrated in the video). But to give some written information here will help. Guitar Tuning- This song is done with D-tuned guitar strings. This means that instead of the standard EADGBE tuning of the strings, the guitars low E string is tuned to D, not E. This means the tuning becomes DADGBE. UPDATE: Actually, the original version of the song by Shawn McDonald is done in the DADGAD tuning. I am not sure how I missed that, but it it certainly would make the song pitch to D much more "dronelike". Try it with both tunings and pick the one you like- but the original should be DADGAD, not the D-tune that I have noted in the video. Tempo/meter - I play this demonstration around 70bpm, although the original song is done around 74-76 by Shawn McDonald. Strumming Pattern - The strumming pattern on this song is demonstrated on the video, but some folks wanted it written out. Here is a staff measure that shows the pattern. The notes are just chord strums (I couldn't figure out how to get Finale to do it any other way). Anyways, for each note is a strum. The letters indicate which direction the strum is. D for down, U for up. For churches using WorshipTeam.com, the song, chord chart, lyrics and audio are already available and pre-loaded for you in the WorshipTeam.com system song database. If you are not part of WorshipTeam.com and want to listen to audio samples or purchase the album directly yourself, see the Amazon link below. Amazon Link: http://amzn.to/15fleeY hope that helps Kim Gentes

Celtic Lughnasadh and another story from our Scottish Shanachie, Duncan We've been away for nearly 6 weeks now. Unbelievably, with all of the ups and downs that life throws at you, we're still here! We're back - and to make up for our absence we bring you the biggest Celtic Myth Podshow Special ever - again!! It's just over an hour and a half long! If you like to listen to the show while commuting, it might be an idea to split it up into two halves. If you stop just after our visit to see Duncan, you'll be all set for the story in the last half. The Lughnasadh show has six wonderful pieces of music, a dreamy story, a poem and a beautifully sung version of that poem. We've also got a section about the festival of Lughnasadh from The Religion of the Ancient Celts by J. A. McCulloch. Full show notes, details and Contributor pages over at our main Website at http://celticmythpodshow.com/autumn Running Order: Intro 0:41 News & Views 2:05 At the Edge of the Cornish Sea by David Helfand 3:11 Lughnasadh from Religion of the Ancient Celts 6:12 Middleton Moor by Kiss the Mistress 15:19 Autumn by Francis Ledwidge 21:40 Black Dog of Loneliness by Orient XPress 23:31 The Shadow of Old Dreams by Andy Guthrie 28:07 Rowan & Bracken by Odd's Bodkin 33:01 Nami's Trees by Keith Wilson 37:18 Autumn by Linda Ballew 1:11:06 Listener Feedback - Deb 1:13:28 Celtic Language Podcasts, Pt.1 1:15:20 Scottish Gaelic 1:15:43 Welsh 1:18:20 Cornish 1:20:05 Lughnasadh Dance by Damh the Bard 1:21:36 Celtic Language Podcasts, Pt.2 1:26:40 Irish Gaelic 1:26:56 Breton 1:30:10 Well Below the Valley by Omnia 1:31:36 Outtakes 1:36:42 We hope you enjoy it! Gary & Ruthie x x Released: 19th Sep 2009, 1hr 40m We love hearing from you! Email garyandruth@celticmythpodshow.com, or call us using Speakpipe News & Views We say hello to all of our online friends, especially those on Facebook and Twitter and send out a huge welcome to the new people joining us from Myspace. Welcome all! We inform our listeners about the wonderful video interview with Ruthie taken by our friend, Paul Newman (catch up with Paul on Bandcamp). Paul has had a recent bereavement and we send our love out to him.   At the Edge of the Cornish Sea by David Helfand David Helfand composes and performs original and traditional music on Celtic Harp, mandocello, guitar, keyboards and percussion. Many of David's compositions were born through improvisation and drawn on the inspiration found in the power of music from many wondrous cultures. "As I returned from my maiden voyage from the land of Britain full of awe, unspeakable joy and deep reservoirs of inspiration, slowly the music started to speak. From the high craggy cliffs where the ruins of Tintagel castle lay overlooking the dark waters off Cornwall's shore, to the ancient majestic ruins of Glastonbury Abbey and the dark mysteries of the Tower of London, the swirling maze of the city's streets and the magic of the standing stones on Salisbury Plain, I swam deep in the waters of imagination. Shortly after returning home and embarking on creating "At the Edge of the Cornish Sea", I soon shared with the world, dark grief and immense sadness as the two towers crumbled to the earth creating its deep grave of shattered lives and dreams. What once seemed important became insignificant against the dark clouds of sorrow." You can find out more about David on his website or on our Contributor Page.   Lughnasadh Scant records remain of the ancient Celtic religion, beyond some eleventh- and twelfth-century written material from the Irish Celts and the great Welsh document Mabinogion. This classic study by a distinguished scholar, first published in 1911, builds not only upon the valuable hints supplied by the surviving texts but also upon the still-extant folk customs derived from the rituals of the old cults. A masterly and extremely readable survey, it offers a reconstruction of the essentials of Celtic paganism. The Celt is portrayed as a seeker after God who links himself by strong ties to the unseen, eagerly attempting to conquer the unknown by religious rite and magic art. The earliest aspect of Celtic religion lies in the culture of nature spirits and of life manifested in nature, and this book offers fascinating glimpses into primitive forms of worship, depicting Celtic rites centred on rivers and wells, trees and plants, and animals. The Druids maintained an optimistic view of the afterlife, and the author presents the subject from the comparative point of view, drawing upon evidence from Celtic burial mounds to elaborate upon ancient beliefs and customs related to the culture of the dead, including rites of rebirth and transmigration. Unabridged republication of the edition published by Constable and Company Limited, 1911. Project Gutenberg With gratitude for music provided by Anne Roos   Middleton Moor by Kiss the Mistress Kiss The Mistress was formed 18 months ago and in that time has moved from folk club floor spots to main act bookings. Their debut CD About Time, released on the 20th March 2009 is already receiving rave reviews and their CD launch at the famous Cambridge Folk Club a fantastic night, attended and enjoyed greatly by an appreciative audience who had traveled from across the Eastern region to attend. You can find out more details about Kiss The Mistress on their website or on their Contributor Page on our website.   Autumn by Francis Ledwidge Francis Ledwidge, the Irish nationalist and poet, was born in Slane on 19 August 1887 the son of a poor labourer. Leaving school at the age of 14 he worked in various manual labour positions while developing a love for and honing his own poetical talents. It was in 1911 that Ledwidge first received notable recognition for his poetry. Having sent a collection of his poems to well-known author Lord Dunsany he received a favourable response, Dunsany assuming the role of mentor to Ledwidge, introducing him to the Dublin literary scene. Although possessing moderate Irish nationalist views Ledwidge nevertheless signed up with the British Army - the Irish Volunteers in October 1914 - to serve in France and Flanders during World War One, on the basis that it was unreasonable to expect others to fight for the freedoms that he would later enjoy. Despite his initial reluctance to enlist he nevertheless argued that his service with the British during World War One was in no way incompatible with his nationalist views: rather, he believed he was furthering the cause of Irish independence from Britain. Archive.org   Black Dog of Loneliness by Orient XPress Orient Xpress is a transCaucasian Indie Guitar band with Azeri passion, Irish soul, Essex Blag, Polish spirit, and a whole heap of loveliness. The sort of band that a 15yo crazy will love but his mum will too (from their Myspace page). You can find out more about Orient Xpress on their Contributor Page.   The Shadow of Old Dreams by Andy Guthrie We are incredibly privileged to have Andy as a Contributor to the show. He tells stories that are alive in his family today and that have come down through the ages. He says: The old Legends are a passion and a Joy, and the writings of Fiona Macleod are inspiration, in all I do. I have been a Head gardener of 31 years for large house, and sill working, I see the years come and go from spring to winner, and love it all. I retell the old stories. You can read more about Andy on his Myspace page or on our Contributor Page.   Rowan & Bracken by Odd's Bodkin Odd's Bodkin is a trio comprised of Kenny Klein, Anna Klein, and Stephanie Rosalyn Mitchell, performing Celtic-Gypsy-Pagan-Sea Shanty music at ren faires, Pagan events, and other venues. Their music ranges from serious to whacky, and their shows are a bit unpredictable. Original and Traditional British Isles, Celtic, and Gypsy music, Sea Shanties, Ballads and Weird Songs. Our new CD is available now on our other website, on this site, or at the Southern California Renaissance Faire and our other tour venues. You can find out more about Odd's Bodkin on their website or our Contributor Page.   Nami's Trees by Keith Wilson Keith’s spiritual and musical paths seemed to somehow converge in Ireland, the homeland of his pre-revolutionary war American ancestors. Several of his previous band’s most memorable performance experiences, in which the audience connection could only be described as magical, took place in Dublin. He will return to Dublin for his first solo acoustic performance (as Saint Narcissus) at Eamonn Doran’s on August 14, 2009. In the intervening years, Keith has re-discovered his Celtic roots in Ireland as well as his new-found spiritual roots in their ancient Christian practices. Through immersion in research of many things Celtic, his writing continues to be heavily informed, inspired, and influenced by the world of Celtic myth and reality. You can find out more details about Keith on his Contributor Page on our website.   Autumn by Linda (Mum) Ballew Ruthie's Mum sent us a beautifully sung version of Francis Ledwidge's poem Autumn in a superb coincidence for the season. We are so very proud of her version and hope you enjoy it as much as we do. Linda spends her time helping others with a type of healing called 'Laughter Yoga'. You can find out more about this form of healing at the laughjoyfully.com website. She tells us that times are USA 6am, UK 11am - twenty minutes or so - US 1 712-423-3900 , Uk 001 712-432-2900 pin for both - 607 1292 # only Long Distance charges may apply. 365 days a year plus special occasions upon request. Birthdays, anniversaries, rites of passage, pagan and Christian rites - no charge but notice is needed for preparation. August SHE'LL come at dusky first of day, White over yellow harvest's song. Upon her dewy rainbow way She shall be beautiful and strong. The lidless eye of noon shall spray Tan on her ankles in the hay, Shall kiss her brown the whole day long. I'll know her in the windrows, tall Above the crickets of the hay. I'll know her when her odd eyes fall, One May-blue, one November-grey. I'll watch her from the red barn wall Take down her rusty scythe, and call, And I will follow her away.   Listener Feedback from Deb in Kentucky We read a wonderful message from Deb from the Hudson Valley, NY.   Celtic Language Podcasts 1 - Scottish Gaelic One Minute Gaelic One Minute Gaelic provides an introduction to basic Gaelic. With this course you will not become fluent, but you will acquire a range of useful expressions which you can use while on a trip to a Gaelic-speaking part of Scotland. Your efforts are guaranteed to make a good impression on people you meet. The phrases included in this course have been specially chosen to help the learner make fast progress on the basics of Gaelic, with each new episode building on previously-learned knowledge. You can find the podcast on iTunes, catch it with this Feed, or from the Radio Lingua website, Radio Lingua.   Gaelcast Welcome to Gaelcast, where programs filled with news, interviews, stories, music and more in Scottish Gaelic and English will be podcast every other week. Gaelcast was founded by three people who have been involved in journalism, technology and Gaelic-language activities in the United States for many years: Mike MacKay, Ed Bradshaw and William (Liam) Cassidy. Mike and Liam, who have learned Gaelic, often may be heard as foreign commentators on BBC Radio nan Gaidheal in Scotland. Liam and Ed also are involved in music, performing in the band known as Na Maragan. Our aim is to produce audio programs that will be interest Gaelic speakers learners and native speakers wherever they may be in the wide world. You can find the podcast on iTunes, catch it with this Feed, or from the Gaelcast website.   Letter to Gaelic Learners Letter to Gaelic Learners is informative, educational and interesting. A special programme, in the form of a 'letter', specifically aimed at Gaelic learners who already haver some knowledge of the language. The text and audio file for Roddy Maclean's "Letter to Gaelic Learners" is available here each Friday afternoon. Listen while you read by clicking the listen icon on the Alba website. You can find the podcast on iTunes, catch it with this Feed, or from the Alba website.   Little Letter to Gaelic Learners Little Letter to Gaelic Learners is a simple letter for established Gaelic learners. Roddy Maclean has created this letter for learners who have progressed beyond basic learning, but find the Litir do Luchd-ionnsachaidh (Letter to Gaelic Learners) too advanced. Accompanying text is available in both English and Gaelic. Listen while you read by clicking the listen icon on the Alba website. You can find the podcast on iTunes, catch it with this Feed, or from the Alba website.   - Welsh Learn Welsh Podcast A podcast to help people learn to speak the Welsh language in a fun and simple way. The Learn Welsh podcast is designed tgo teach you conversdational Welsh that will help you to underestand other Weklsh speakers and to be understood yourself. You can find the podcast on iTunes, catch it with this Feed, or from the Learn Welsh Podcast website.   Say Something in Welsh (Southern) SaySomethingInWelsh is a new, simpler and faster way to learn Welsh. You don’t need to read or write or do any revision – you just start speaking normally and naturally from the very beginning. But we don’t expect you to take our word for it! You can find the podcast on iTunes, or from the Say Something in Welsh website.   Say Something in Welsh (Northern) SaySomethingInWelsh is a new, simpler and faster way to learn Welsh. You don’t need to read or write or do any revision – you just start speaking normally and naturally from the very beginning. But we don’t expect you to take our word for it! You can find the podcast on iTunes, or from the Say Something in Welsh website.   - Cornish Radio an Gernewegva Podkast yn Kernewek gans Mathew Clark. A podcast in the Cornish language. You can find the podcast on iTunes, or from the Radio an Gernewegva website.   Lughnasadh Dance by Damh the Bard Damh is a modern-day Bard whose spirituality, and love of folk tradition, is expressed through his music, storytelling and poetry. Drawing on the Bardic traditions his performances are both entertaining and educational, weaving a tapestry of myth, peace, and anthems that speak directly to the heart, but never without a good splash of humour. Listen to this amazing song, originally written and performed by Gwydion Pendderwen. He released his first album, Songs for the Old Religion, in 1975, followed by a book of his music and lyrics titled Wheel of the Year in 1979. His second album, The Faery Shaman, was released in 1982. Both albums and the songbook were well-received by the Pagan community; the songbook included many songs which became classics within the community, and the two albums have since been collected as a two-CD set titled The Music of Gwydion, available from Serpentine Music. Gwydion also served for a time as a court bard to the West Kingdom of the Society for Creative Anachronism. You can find Damh's music on iTunes, or from his website, Pagan Music. He is also the voice behind Druidcast, the official podcast of the Order of Bards, Ovates and Druids (OBOD, for short) - modern day Druids. You can find Druidcast here and find out more about OBOD here. You can find out more details about Damh on his Contributor Page on our website.   Celtic Language Podcasts 2 - Irish Gaelic One Minute Irish One Minute Irish provides an introduction to basic Irish, or Gaeilge. With this course you will not become fluent, but you will acquire a range of useful expressions which you can use while on a trip to an Gaelic-speaking area of Ireland. Your efforts are guaranteed to make a good impression on people you meet. The phrases included in this course have been specially chosen to help the learner make fast progress on the basics of Irish, with each new episode building on previously-learned knowledge. You can find the podcast on iTunes, catch it with this Feed, or from the Radio Lingua website, Radio Lingua.   Rí - Rá Weekly Irish lessons for kids or beginners in a fun and easy to learn format. Brought to you by the creators of ri-ra.ie, online and interactive irish lessons for kids. Sadly, we could only find three episodes of this fine show. You can find the podcast on iTunes, or with the Feed address, or from the Rí - Rá website.   Blás Is é atá sa phodchraoladh seo ná míreanna ó chláracha Gaeilge BBC Raidió Uladh. Is é Blas príomhchlár Gaeilge an stáisiún, a chraoltar Luan, Máirt, Déardaoin agus Aoine á chur I láthair ag Lynette Fay, Tomaí Ó Conghaile is Brian Mullen. I rith Chraobhann Iomána agus Peile na hÉireann, tugann an clár An Domhnach Mór deis do lucht tacaíochta agus díograise na gcluichí a dtuairimí féin a nochtadh ina leith. Rogha míreanna ó na cláracha seo ar fad atá sa phodchraoladh. Bain sult as! You can find the podcast on iTunes, or with the Feed address, or from the Blás website.   An tImeall The original Irish language podcast begun in July 2005. You can find the podcast on iTunes, or with the Feed address, or from the An tImeall website.   Lá Irish language news and politics podcast. You can find the podcast on iTunes, or from the Lá website.   An Líonra Sóisialta Irish language news and politics podcast. You can find the podcast on iTunes, or catch the Feed, or from the An Líonra Sóisialta website.   - Breton Keleier ar gwia A tech podcast in the breton language. You can find the podcast on iTunes, or catch the Feed, or from the Keleier ar gwiad website.   RCF Rivages: Buhez Activities and culture in the Breton language. You can find the podcast on iTunes, or catch the Feed, or from the Keleier ar gwiad website.   Well Below the Valley by Omnia With eight CDs and a DVD to their name, OMNIA is one of the pioneers of the "PaganFolk" movement in Europe and has harvested international acclaim on many Pagan, Folk, Medieval, Gothic and Fantasy festivals, as well as in many theatres. OMNIA's sound is a mix of the deep earthy tones of Luka Aubri-Krieger's didgeridoo, the incomparable harp, hurdy-gurdy and bodhran playing of Jennifer Evans-van der Harten, the unmistakable "DADGAD" guitar-groove of Joe Hennon, the flutes, bouzouki, drums, and ironic dialogue of front man Steve "Sic" Evans-van der Harten and the deep tribal drumbeats of Mich Rozek. All of this is entwined and bound by haunting and powerful vocals singing in English, Gaelic, Breton, Latin, Finnish, German and Hindi... You can find out more details about Omnia on their Contributor Page on our website.   Get EXTRA content in the Celtic Myth Podshow App for iOS, Android & Windows Contact Us: You can leave us a message by using the Speakpipe Email us at: garyandruth@celticmythpodshow.com. Facebook fan-page http://www.facebook.com/CelticMythPodshow, Twitter (@CelticMythShow) or Snapchat (@garyandruth), Pinterest (celticmythshow) or Instagram (celticmythshow)   Help Spread the Word: Please also consider leaving us a rating, a review and subscribing in iTunes or 'Liking' our Facebook page at http://www.facebook.com/CelticMythPodshow as it helps let people discover our show - thank you :) If you've enjoyed the show, would you mind sharing it on Twitter please? Click here to post a tweet! Ways to subscribe to the Celtic Myth Podshow: Click here to subscribe via iTunes Click here to subscribe via RSS Click here to subscribe via Stitcher Special Thanks Tavola Rustica, for selections from all albums used during the Nami's Trees story. See the Contributor Page for details.   For incidental music: Diane Arkenstone The Secret Garden. See the Contributor Page for details. Kim Robertson, Angels in Disguise. See the Contributor Page for more details. Jigger, Time Ticks Away. See the Contributor Page for more details.   For our Theme Music: The Skylark and Haghole, the brilliant Culann's Hounds. See their Contributor page for details. Additional Sources OBOD And, of course, the Awen - inspiration and imagination!   Extra Special Thanks for Unrestricted Access to Wonderful Music (in Alphabetic order) Anne Roos Extra Special thanks go for permission to use any of her masterful music to Anne Roos. You can find out more about Anne on her website or on her Contributor page. Caera Extra Special thanks go for permission to any of her evocative harping and Gaelic singing to Caera. You can find out more about Caera on her website or on her Contributor Page. Celia Extra Special Thanks go for permission to use any of her wonderful music to Celia Farran. You can find out more about Celia on her website or on her Contributor Page. Damh the Bard Extra Special thanks go to Damh the Bard for his permission to use any of his music on the Show. You can find out more about Damh (Dave) on his website or on his Contributor page. The Dolmen Extra Special thanks also go to The Dolmen, for their permission to use any of their fantastic Celtic Folk/Rock music on the Show. You can find out more about The Dolmen on their website or on our Contributor page. Keltoria Extra Special thanks go for permission to use any of their inspired music to Keltoria. You can find out more about Keltoria on their website or on their Contributor page. Kevin Skinner Extra Special thanks go for permission to use any of his superb music to Kevin Skinner. You can find out more about Kevin on his website or on his Contributor page. Phil Thornton Extra Special Thanks go for permission to use any of his astounding ambient music to the Sonic Sorcerer himself, Phil Thornton. You can find out more about Phil on his website or on his Contributor Page. S.J. Tucker Extra Special thanks go to Sooj for her permission to use any of her superb music. You can find out more about Sooj on her website or on her Contributor page. Spiral Dance Extra Special thanks go for permission to use Adrienne and the band to use any of their music in the show. You can find out more about Spiral Dance on their website or on their Contributor page. SaveWe finish off by wishing you 'Hwyl Fawr', which is Welsh for 'Goodbye and have fun'!     Save Save Save Save Save Save Save Save Save Save

 Midsummer celebrations, the Mark of a Druid and Angus Og Well, it's Midsummer. Or actually, just after Midsummer and it has been absolutely swelteringly hot here. Absolutely glorious weather! If the weather is like this for you, we recommend a nice, long, cool drink, an comfy chair, headphones and settling down for a Monster of a Show! We've been away for a month now. Unbelievably, with all of the ups and downs that life throws at you, we're still here! We're back - and to make up for our absence we bring you the biggest Celtic Myth Podshow Special ever!! It's just over an hour and a half long! If you like to listen to the show while commuting, it might be an idea to split it up into two halves. If you stop just after our visit to the Dragon's Head to see Duncan, you'll be all set for the story in the last half. We've got six great pieces of music for you, some chat about the Festival of Midsummer, a really exciting section from Rhonda Carpenter's Celtic novel, The Mark of a Druid and some listener contributions to bring you - a poem and a beautiful story.Oh, and don't forget our regular trip to the highlands to meet up with old Duncan in another trip to the Dragon's Head for a story from our resident Scottish Shannachie. Don't blame us if the world misses you for an hour and a half while you get into some serious fun! Full show notes, details and Contributor pages over at our main Website at http://celticmythpodshow.com/midsummer2009 Running Order: Intro 0:40 News & Views 1:24 Mooncoin by The Irish Experience 3:53 Midsummer Celebrations on Sacred Texts 6:30 Gathering by Andrew Hargreaves 13:30 The Storyteller by Willo's Song 15:44 I Forgot by the Witchy Godmother 19:23 Midsummer's Night by Jillian LaDage 28:02 The Sleep of Angus Og by Andy Guthrie 33:40 Midsummer Night's Dream by Karen Kay & Michael Tingle 43:34 The Gathering - Part 1 from The Mark of a Druid by Rhonda Carpenter 48:30 Noon of the Solstice by Damh the Bard 1:14:43 Listener Feedback - Jen 1:22:03 Fairy Tale by Omnia 1:23:16 Promo - Ayepod 1:28:44 Outtakes 1:31:59 We hope you enjoy it! Gary & Ruthie x x Released: 19th Sep 2009, 1hr 40m We love hearing from you! Email garyandruth@celticmythpodshow.com, or call us using Speakpipe News & Views We talk about all of the wonderful submissions that we have had for the Show and the Website; poems, stories and some fabulous art. We also mention that we're really proud to have been nominated for the 2009 Parsec awards for Speculative Fiction Podcasting.   Mooncoin by The Irish Experience The Irish Experience was formed in 1996 to entertain Seattle pub crowds on Saint Patrick's Day, and their music quickly found a much broader appeal. Attracting fans of all ages, their upbeat music has been praised for guiding folks through the gnarly turns and tempering their road rage. The Irish Experience play Celtic and Appalachian music on traditional electric instruments. You can find out more details about The Irish Experience on their website or on their Contributor Page on our website.   Midsummer Celebrations on Sacred Texts There are two sources for the information in this section and both can be found on Sacred Texts. Thomas Wright's article (from which the image on the left derives) can be also found on Sacred Texts. The piece in question is here.   Gathering by Andrew Hargreaves Andrew is a very talented friend of ours who excels at many arts and crafts. Apart from his wonderful music and poems, he is a superb woodworker and you can find examples of his work on his website, wildyew.com, where some of his pieces are available to buy. You can find out more about Andrew on his Contributor Page.   The Storyteller by Willo's Song Willo's Song is an acoustic, folk act based in Wiltshire UK. Daryl says: After a brief spell in Canada I returned to Wiltshire, UK in Summer 2004 and in 2008 have started writing music again, concentrating on a more acoustic, folky style with the intention of recording and releasing a new CD in 2009 with the working title of The Storyteller. "The Storyteller - This was the first new song written by myself in quite a while and the foundation of this whole project. The inspiration came back in August '08 while at the annual Artemis Gathering where I finally got to see Damh The Bard perform. It was such a wonderful experience and I was caught up in the music and stories he had to tell. When I arrived home on the Sunday evening I lifted my guitar and very quickly the Storyteller was written." To find out more about Willo's Song go to their Myspace Page or visit the Contributor Page.   I Forgot by the Witchy Godmother Witchy Godmother has been a storyteller all her life. Probably not the best when asked at 5 who tangled up her father’s fishing line. Of course it was the cat, she didn’t like to get wet you see and of course she wanted to catch the fish so the fishing pole was right there….. And so begins the tale of this amazing lady who has written an extremely moving and evocative piece called I Forgot which deals with the issues of advancing years in a way that's suitable for all ages! To find out more about Witchy go to her Myspace Page or visit the Contributor Page.   Midsummer's Night by Jillian LaDage Jillian says: In a way my initial exploration into the people we call the Celts had nothing to do with the Celts themselves but more to do with my growing inclination and curiosity with the world and events that surrounded them. My broadening interest with the migrating Celts has been a four year journey of writing, reading and traveling which has led me to this place and the release of my debut album, The Ancestry, on my label Tarith Cote, in December 2008. I am excited to welcome you to the site and share through extension the music and the musings behind it. About this track, she says: May/June 2008 Midsummer the midway point between Beltaine (May day) and Lúnasa. The Celtic day began at dusk; the fires extinguished and lit at Beltaine would be silenced and lit again at the solstice. Futures were read from the number and appearance of the bon fires. Sun wise processions asking for protection were held in the fields, while St. John's Wort, considered the 'blessed plant' in Wales, was gathered and placed over the doors of houses and buildings and in Scotland cast into the fires. To find out more about Jillian LaDage go to her Website or visit the Contributor Page.   The Sleep of Angus Og by Andy Guthrie We are incredibly privileged to have Andy as a Contributor to the show. He tells stories that are alive in his family today and that have come down through the ages. He says: The old Legends are a passion and a Joy, and the writings of Fiona Macleod are inspiration, in all I do. I have been a Head gardener of 31 years for large house, and sill working, I see the years come and go from spring to winner, and love it all. I retell the old stories. You can read more about Andy on his Myspace page or on our Contributor Page.   Midsummer Night's Dream by Karen Kay & Michael Tingle Karen says: "I live literally at the ends of the earth in magical mystical Cornwall. I love the sea and lush green nature. The stunning scenery inspires my music and meditations. I love to create and express myself using my voice. I hope you will enjoy my creations." She is also the editor and founder of Fae Magazine. A new magazine for faery fans in the UK, rest of Europe and around the faery world! You can find out more about Karen on her website, Michael on his website or our Contributor Page.   The Gathering, The Mark of a Druid, Pt.1 by Rhonda Carpenter When twenty-six-year-old Eve McCormick awakes, the images from her nightmare are indelible. The dream feels so real she must force herself to get a grip. This experience is just the beginning for Eve, a Los Angeles clinical hypnotherapist and researcher investigating whether reincarnation is fact or fiction. Unstoppable visions of an ancient lifetime steal days from her. The danger escalates when she wakes up physically injured and marked with a strange symbol. While Eve battles the past to maintain her sanity and safety, her project is jeopardized as another researcher’s attempts to take over. One partner dies and another is accused of inappropriate conduct. Eve and her friend, Dr. Andrea McMurray, don’t believe in coincidence and probe their shared visions for answers. On the other side of the Atlantic, Welshman Ryerson Sanders is haunted by his dreams and believes Eve’s research project can help him. For both of them, an ancient Celtic prophecy and long-sought revenge entangles the past with the present. A druidess and a shape-shifter must join to save the druid way of life, while a queen conspires to kill Erin’s only high king. Will the oaths and agendas of the past reach across the centuries to strengthen or to destroy? Follow their stories in her podcast novel The Mark of a Druid, which you can also hear on Podiobooks. you can also buy this book at Amazon. Find out more about Rhonda on her Website/Blog or on her Contributor Page.   Noon of the Solstice by Damh the Bard Damh is a musical storyteller who works within the world of myth that cannot be proved; where the Faerie really do dance on Midsummer's Eve, where the trees talk, and the Hollow Hills take you into the realms of Annwn. Where the Goddess rides her horse, guiding you to magic, and the Horned God of old calls us from the shadows of the Greenwood. You can find Damh's music on iTunes, or from his website, Pagan Music. He is also the voice behind Druidcast, the official podcast of the Order of Bards, Ovates and Druids (OBOD, for short) - modern day Druids. You can find Druidcast here and find out more about OBOD here. You can find out more details about Damh on his Contributor Page on our website.   Listener Feedback from Jen We read a beautiful message from Jen. At the end of the show we announce the BYKI competition winners - yay!   Fairy Tale by Omnia With eight CDs and a DVD to their name, OMNIA is one of the pioneers of the "PaganFolk" movement in Europe and has harvested international acclaim on many Pagan, Folk, Medieval, Gothic and Fantasy festivals, as well as in many theatres. OMNIA's sound is a mix of the deep earthy tones of Luka Aubri-Krieger's didgeridoo, the incomparable harp, hurdy-gurdy and bodhran playing of Jennifer Evans-van der Harten, the unmistakable "DADGAD" guitar-groove of Joe Hennon, the flutes, bouzouki, drums, and ironic dialogue of front man Steve "Sic" Evans-van der Harten and the deep tribal drumbeats of Mich Rozek. All of this is entwined and bound by haunting and powerful vocals singing in English, Gaelic, Breton, Latin, Finnish, German and Hindi... You can find out more details about Omnia on their Contributor Page on our website.   Promo - Ayepod.net We've asked some of Scotland's top musicians to tell us about their life and music (read the questions). The programmes are available as a MP3 download or as an rss feed. To subscribe to this feed copy the URL of the podcast feed below and paste the URL into your podcast software. This software is usually free and one which we use is Juice (or itunes). You only need to use the podcast feed once as all our podcasts are tied to this feed and your software will alert you when we upload a new one. You can buy CDs of all these artists at www.footstompin.com.   Get EXTRA content in the Celtic Myth Podshow App for iOS, Android & Windows Contact Us: You can leave us a message by using the Speakpipe Email us at: garyandruth@celticmythpodshow.com. Facebook fan-page http://www.facebook.com/CelticMythPodshow, Twitter (@CelticMythShow) or Snapchat (@garyandruth), Pinterest (celticmythshow) or Instagram (celticmythshow)   Help Spread the Word: Please also consider leaving us a rating, a review and subscribing in iTunes or 'Liking' our Facebook page at http://www.facebook.com/CelticMythPodshow as it helps let people discover our show - thank you :) If you've enjoyed the show, would you mind sharing it on Twitter please? Click here to post a tweet! Ways to subscribe to the Celtic Myth Podshow: Click here to subscribe via iTunes Click here to subscribe via RSS Click here to subscribe via Stitcher Special Thanks Adragante, canonj pachelbel from Tradincelt. See the Contributor Page for details. The Irish Experience, Fiddler's Lament from Green Energy. See the Contributor Page for more details. Keltoria, Lia Fáil (Stone of Destiny), Spirits in the Mist, Way of the Warrior from Lia Fáil (Stone of Destiny). See the Contributor Page for more details. Jaime Heras, Movimiento 2 from Piano Concerto. See the Contributor Page for more details. Esgi, With No Beginning from Echoes In Time. See the Contributor Page for more details. Ceili Moss, Lonesome Man's Dance from Excerpts from the 3 official CDs. See the Contributor Page for more details. DJ Fab, Painful Destiny, A Glory's Night, Desper, The girl borned in kumpar, Call of the heavenly messenger, The heaven is not so far and The Morn from Ocean Dreams. See the Contributor Page for more details.   For incidental music: Diane Arkenstone The Secret Garden. See the Contributor Page for details. Kim Robertson, Angels in Disguise. See the Contributor Page for more details. Jigger, Time Ticks Away. See the Contributor Page for more details.   For our Theme Music: The Skylark and Haghole, the brilliant Culann's Hounds. See their Contributor page for details. Additional Sources OBOD And, of course, the Awen - inspiration and imagination!   Extra Special Thanks for Unrestricted Access to Wonderful Music (in Alphabetic order) Anne Roos Extra Special thanks go for permission to use any of her masterful music to Anne Roos. You can find out more about Anne on her website or on her Contributor page. Caera Extra Special thanks go for permission to any of her evocative harping and Gaelic singing to Caera. You can find out more about Caera on her website or on her Contributor Page. Celia Extra Special Thanks go for permission to use any of her wonderful music to Celia Farran. You can find out more about Celia on her website or on her Contributor Page. Damh the Bard Extra Special thanks go to Damh the Bard for his permission to use any of his music on the Show. You can find out more about Damh (Dave) on his website or on his Contributor page. The Dolmen Extra Special thanks also go to The Dolmen, for their permission to use any of their fantastic Celtic Folk/Rock music on the Show. You can find out more about The Dolmen on their website or on our Contributor page. Keltoria Extra Special thanks go for permission to use any of their inspired music to Keltoria. You can find out more about Keltoria on their website or on their Contributor page. Kevin Skinner Extra Special thanks go for permission to use any of his superb music to Kevin Skinner. You can find out more about Kevin on his website or on his Contributor page. Phil Thornton Extra Special Thanks go for permission to use any of his astounding ambient music to the Sonic Sorcerer himself, Phil Thornton. You can find out more about Phil on his website or on his Contributor Page. S.J. Tucker Extra Special thanks go to Sooj for her permission to use any of her superb music. You can find out more about Sooj on her website or on her Contributor page. Spiral Dance Extra Special thanks go for permission to use Adrienne and the band to use any of their music in the show. You can find out more about Spiral Dance on their website or on their Contributor page.   Save Save Save Save Save Save Save   Save Save Save