Harmony and Hijinks with Duchess

We are joined by Master Sommelier, drummer, Toto super-fan, and Hilary's erstwhile coworker, Fred Dexheimer for a funny, far-reaching chat about all things Bacchic. Being happy tipplers ourselves, we loved Fred's riffing on the many parallels between enjoying wine and making music. As Hilary can attest from their years working together in restaurants, Fred's no stranger to hijinks, and it's safe to say a good time was had by all when we taped this episode. [Full disclosure: we were drinking rosé THE ENTIRE TIME.]

We are joined by Grammy-nominated songwriter, singer, and educator Kate McGarry for a far-reaching conversation about carrying the weight of our ancestors, being present and generous onstage, creating community, and much more (including sitting in the Kennedy family pew at church during her Massachusetts childhood). Kate is a true singers' singer and a beautiful spirit; her definition of harmony as "energetic alignment" is as elegant as it is concise.

Get ready for a master class on singing and life with Grammy-winning vocalist (and all-around beautiful and wise human being) Catherine Russell. Cat has shared the stage with David Bowie, Cyndi Lauper, and Steely Dan (to name but a few) and, with half a dozen critically acclaimed recordings under her belt, is one of the most dynamic jazz and blues singers of our time. Cat shares insights about how she chooses the songs she sings, the importance of being a musical archaeologist, and the live-saving properties of music. 

We sit down with singer, actor, radio host, painter, and urbane woman-about-town Jessica Molaskey. In our chat, Jessica shares her lifelong love of Joni Mitchell and Stephen Sondheim, the joys of genre-hopping, and the fine art of trusting one’s intuition.

The Duchess gals discuss winter, winter blues and how to avoid them.

In this week’s episode we discuss a vinyl-only bonus track “Going Home,” Hebrew "R" sound pronunciation, and Dvorak's "From The New World" symphony. Also included is a seldom-heard English Horn imitation by our arranger/producer Oded Lev-Ari. 

We sit down for a long-anticipated chat with one of our favorite people and vocalists, Mr. John Dokes. In true Clark Kent fashion, John is a high-powered business executive by day (after a stint as a marketing exec and comic book creator at Marvel comics, he's now Chief Marketing Officer of Accuweather) and a jazz singer and swing dancer by night.