Planetary Gig Talk

Lyric Hartley grew up in Alabama, where participation in the Church of Christ was a big part of his life. The Church had many services, but all were a cappella, without instrumentation, and Lyric loved the singing. His family also got together frequently for musical gatherings called 'Pickin's" where everyone participated with some sort of instrument or singing. Lyric spent a lot of his life on spiritual quests to India and elsewhere, and after getting back into guitar, found out about The Music Lesson by Victor Wooten and attended Spirit of Music camp. He says, "Music tunes me," and that music and spirituality are similar. He says imagine humans are like tuning forks and need music to be in tune and harmonize together on the planet for a more peaceful world.

Enjoy some of the highlights from Planetary Gig Talk podcasts 12-22 with Rev. Kim Capps, Moe Jackson, Erasmus Caffery, Sharon Kneebone, Scott Ballantine, Andra Faye, Nina Casey, Mike Lessin, Jane Callen, Jeffree Heaton, and Adalia Tara. You'll especially want to hear about the body tambura and fonging!

Joe Filisko is one of the best harmonica players, teachers, and technicians in the world, but he didn't play harmonica when he was young. He started playing guitar in his teens and it "made time simultaneously stand dead still and fly ahead rapidly." After playing a while in a guitar ensemble, he became intrigued by some of the master blues and roots harmonica players, joined a harmonica club, started to participate in the Society for the Preservation and Advancement of the Harmonica (SPAH), and ultimately began to work on harmonicas. His initial goal was to understand, explain, and teach about the role of the harmonica in American folk, blues, and roots music so that people could appreciate the rich nature of that music. He has now been playing roots music with Eric Noden for over 15 years (rootsduo.com). Joe says music is magical, and people want to participate; they feel a sense of being, purpose, peace, and relaxation through music. He says when musicians can get the audience clapping and singing it always raises the energy level in the room. The harmonica can be a magical musical fix, and he believes everyone should own and play simple songs on the harmonica. He also says all public schools should teach singing and rhythm. "I wish people were getting together and making more music."

Gary's earliest musical inspiration was his mother, who had a terrific voice. When he was four, he saw his grandfather play music and "how happy everyone was." When seven, he received his grandfather's harmonica, and Gary knew he had found his purpose. He since has played in many bands, both harmonica and guitar, and written many songs, too. Gary says, "The power of music is love, pure love; ... more pure than any other kind of love you could have; ... it's completely unconditional." He founded Harmonikids almost 30 years ago to teach kids how to play music and improve their lives. "Never underestimate a child and the power of music. ...Everyone has a way to make the world a better place. Check out www.harmonikids.org.

Jason Walker was smitten by the drums early in life, and is still playing with some of his childhood friends. He says he has been fortunate to play in a lot of different situations and always wants to see where music leads him. "Music takes you out of regular time and space," he says. He plays with the intention of best serving the space he is in. Vibrations of music are a powerful thing, he says, and can heal your body; "rhythm is bigger than all of us." He is thankful for the conversations about the power of music, like at Victor Wooten's Spirit of Music camp, and says it is on musicians to pursue this. He says it seems to him that music is a being or entity and that we are being played by music as much as we are playing music. He also talked about Taketina, which is a polyrhythmic exercise to experience vibrations in your body

Kanttara Naba has been singing her entire life. She was born in Israel; her mother was from Yemen and her father from Iraq; she has since moved to the United States and recently to Hawaii. She says, "Music is what I was born to do." She was very shy as a child, but when singing, "something greater than me took over." Kanttara says music and singing can and should be used to elevate consciousness. She had "a vision of myself leading a musical production that is going to elevate consciousness." She says healing and music are one and the same. "My voice has been given to me not just to entertain, but to heal." She says music and art can bring a new level of awareness, and musicians have important roles in that. Please check out the link to support her project "Queen," https://www.patreon.com/join/KanttaraNaba?

Planetary Gig Talk host features short highlights from the first eleven podcasts, featuring Eric Weinberg, Steve Little, Allen Holmes, Michael Roudebush, Alison Chase Radcliffe, Barry Warsaw, Grant Dermody, Frank Fotusky, Mary Flower, Erick Schonher, and Tara Gorman! If you didn't have a chance to listen to the initial podcasts, this compilation will be fun. Further compilations will be published in no particular time frame.

Alexander Sovronsky grew up in a very musical family, and fell in love with the violin when he was 2 years old watching Itzhak Perlman play on Sesame Street! He started with Suzuki violin and has become an exceptional professional violinist, actor, and musical composer. One of his specialties is studying how Shakespeare used music in his plays. Alexander says Shakespeare's goal in using music in the theater was always unification and connection with the audience. He says that "the power of music is about connection and community...music is a great way for humans to be together." Alexander says music is a vibration that affects us all on a molecular level and that, in order to create change, we should "find theater, find music that affects you and share it with people." Please check out: www.AlexanderSovronsky.com

Bob has a clear image of when he first remembers music; it was at his grandmother’s home when he was about 3 or 4 years old. He figured out the keyboard and played songs, making up stories in song, started playing saxophone when he was 11 and was gigging by age 16 or so. He has played with many great musicians, including Paul Simon and Mike Stern, and recently has been playing in a trio with Victor Wooten and Dennis Chambers. Bob says that when you play, you have to let go, and there is not a sense of power but of peace. “The energy that happens is beyond our control; when we are playing, it’s not us. We’re just letting the music flow.” He says it’s not thinking, planning, or making decisions; it’s a spiritual experience.  He says the whole system we live in is vibrational, and when you manipulate the vibrations in an aesthetically pleasing way, it runs very deep. Music is a force for unification, he says, and “I see the unification of humanity through music.” The promotion of division is the opposite of music. Musicians tend to be deep thinkers about existential issues and realize there is a wonderment, excitement, and joy to living. He also says he wished people would travel more to have direct contact with other people because we are in a miraculous space.

Liz's mother was famous musician Ann Rabson, so Liz had a lot of music around the house growing up. She started on the sax when she was 8, played clarinet and flute too, and began guitar when she was 14 years old. She says making connections with people through music really can enrich their lives. Also, teaching people that they can play music is very positive. Her mother was very interested in music education and Liz and her father have been promoting blues in the schools. She is also a photographer and currently is very active in the music community in Brooklyn and plays with eclectic group, the "Queens of Everything."