Advocating for compassion and getting paid.

I would rather feel compassion than know the meaning of it. Thomas Aquinas:

Monday is the 20th annual World AIDS Day an event that hopes to bring light to the continuing Pandemic of HIV disease and AIDS. In my community there will be an event with speakers, information, free testing and me providing music. Check my calendar for details. As a musician, and like many artists, I get asked to provide music and entertainment for many causes. Recently a radio interviewer was commenting on how I am at so many benefits and fundraisers performing. With a chuckle in her voice she said that obviously I’m not getting paid and why do I do them and how do I decide on which ones to support. I could feel the resentment rising in me like yesterday’s enchiladas so I took deep breath and said I would do more if I could afford it and that I let my Heart decide. That ended that line of questions thankfully.
The truth is that I do get many requests to use my music and to perform for so many causes that I have lost track. Nonetheless, I decided years back that I would be an advocate for compassion whether it be for Relay for Life, Animals, Hospice care, HIV, Cancer, Prisoner rights, Native Americans…you name it I’ve leant my music, time and talent to it. Sometimes it has only been me and organizers who showed up but hey I was there. When I lived in Albuquerque I worked for the All Indian Pueblo Council as my day job while playing bars, clubs, festivals etc. with my alternative band The Peat Column at night. Through an IHS grant I would visit all 19 New Mexico Pueblos doing HIV/AIDS outreach and education. Oh yeah that went over well. Tribal councils would schedule a presentation with me at 6 pm then sometime around 1 am would tell me to come back tomorrow. This is the Indian way of making someone prove their commitment. Oh man it paid so poorly, (we called it Rez wages) that I fell behind on student loan payments so they garnished my wages and after rent I had nothing left so my car was repo’d. Them were some lean days brother. I had to leave and find another job on the bus route and buy a used, ancient Honda civic wagon. I did write a good blues song out of the whole experience to good for that.

That job came after being a volunteer for an HIV speaker’s bureau that took me into prisons, schools, medical schools, and government and teaching programs. I had lost some friends to AIDS and have always volunteered places. The thing about compassion is it is free from judgment. You feel that empathy regardless of circumstance. We tend to think in the West that AIDS is a gay, white male disease but the current reality is that: *

• More than 25 million people have died of AIDS since 1981.
• Africa has 11.6 million AIDS orphans.
• At the end of 2007, women accounted for 50% of all adults living with HIV worldwide, and for 59% in sub-Saharan Africa.
• Around 67% of people living with HIV are in sub-Saharan Africa.
• Young people (under 25 years old) account for half of all new HIV infections worldwide.

These statistics affect us all. Think of the 11.6 million AIDS orphans in Africa. It wouldn’t take much for a war lord with promise to offer a direction to these children that makes them feel empowered and loyal to a really destructive way of life and if you follow events in Somalia, The Congo, Nigeria etc. you know that is dangerous. In developing and transitional countries, 9.7 million people are in immediate need of life-saving AIDS drugs; of these, only 2.99 million (31%) are receiving the drugs. See while in the prosperous nations people are seeing AIDS as a chronic, manageable illness, citizens of less prosperous nations die of simple things like dysentery and diarrhea—something we might take for granted. Mother Theresa received a check for $500 from a wealthy British man who read about her plight in then Calcutta and he received a very quick letter back. He expected a florid thank you note instead he found a scrap of paper saying, “We need much more than that.” That is the thing about compassion—it is selfless and reminds us we are connected and certainly not alone. We are, as indigenous cultures know, are interconnected.

Next Friday there is a CD release fundraiser that I am so honored to be a part of. It is for La Casa which is a shelter and program for domestic violence victims and their children. New Mexico has a pretty big problem with that and I’ve done programs for them in the past. I was really humbled to be asked to be included and am looking forward to the CD “Peace Begins at Home.” Here is a link to a story about it. http://www.lcsun-news.com/las_cruces-sunlife/ci_11090673
The number of people living with HIV has risen from around 8 million in 1990 to 33 million today, and is still growing. There is no room for blame when it comes to compassion unless you point the finger at yourself first. Be an advocate for compassion and the world will soften. Like the Dalai Lama said; “Compassion is the radicalism of our time.” And to close with Mother Theresa’s famous quote; “We cannot do great things, only little things with great big love.” Remember that when you feel overwhelmed. -Randy

more info: * http://www.avert.org/statindx.htm

Transcending DNA & Thanksgiving through music!

This year began with a set of concerts in a museum in January and in November another performance in another one. These are those great museums with life sized figures, sound, lighting and information plaques. I really like these places and get immersed in the past. Turns out both places have permanent exhibits about the first peoples of the area collectively “called ‘Paleo-Indians’ (meaning "ancient" Indians), appear to have occupied the Americas, including the southwestern United States and northern Mexico, for 10,000 to perhaps 40,000 years – a period of time longer than that for all the succeeding cultures combined” *

The fact that one of the most well-known spear head led to the idea of the “Clovis Man” around 15,000 years old was found a few hours north of where I was born has been on my mind as I reflect on these museum exhibits, the Thanksgiving holiday and my work as a Native American flute player and musician. My own family’s ancestry had always been murky and shrouded in stories of Apaches, a great-grandfather who was a Seer in the Tarahumara tribe in Mexico, Aztecs, Mayans and Spanish and Germans who came to the new world via the Yucatan area. My ancestors didn’t take genealogy notes as they scraped by crossing back and forth over the Rio Grande. In order to be as truthful as I could I took a DNA test to determine my origins? The results are complex and there is a link on my website’s Bio page. Suffice to say that indeed my Amerindian heritage is ancient Mayan, Apache, Athabaskan, Dogrib and a few Central American tribes. What does this mean to me? I don’t know. Is this my culture? I don’t think so. I think a culture is first of all a shared language then shared values like how they care for their dead (something pretty important to archaeological research) and a shared history—their stories.

It turns out that DNA tests only test “two of your many” ancestral lines. You would need to test your mother’s male relatives and cousins in order to piece together the most accurate “probability” of your lines. Whew! Time and money baby. I’m satisfied knowing the little I do and decided to let things be and not pursue tribal enrollment. Funny thing is that DNA tests don’t reveal your spirituality, religion, political affiliation, language or any of the myriad “choices” we make in life. Does being Native American make me a better musician? A better flute player? Who knows? I often get the comment that a listener could tell I was Indian because of emotional playing. Hmm. I believe music transcends all that I am--thankfully. I have this notion that every experience I and my ancestors have is distilled through my music. What I mean is when I’m playing my egoic self is put to sleep and every joy, happiness, struggle, grief and spirituality is focused into a note. Musicians like Les Paul, Miles Davis and Ella Fitzgerald understood that and often talked about the importance of the one note you are playing being the most important.

So maybe in order to transcend through music the musician needs to transcend the cellular memory and be a prism, an instrument. I like that idea and don’t feel so alone knowing that all my ancestor’s work, struggle and resilience is supporting the music coming through. I can also blame them when I forget the notes. Ha ha.

Thanksgiving is here and I know it hasn’t been about the historic Pilgrim and Indian shared meal in a very long time. It is symbolic, a metaphor. As we gather with our families and friends we take part in something that every one of our ancestors has done—the sharing of bounty. So transcend any guilt or judgment and pass a little appreciation and love with those yummy mashed potatoes. I’ll be in Phoenix with my Flutes and Hang in tow hopefully making the holidays just a little more peaceful through music.

Happy Thanksgiving and Safe Travels.
Randy

https://www3.nationalgeographic.com/genographic/participate.html
http://www.dnatribes.com
* http://www.desertusa.com/ind1/du_peo_paleo.html


Here is a little video of a song “Calling Snow” from Winter Colors, 2006.

Email Link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-g6OlsENbRk

DNA Music in my blood and yours too.

What is it about music that is so conducive to healing and emotions? I've been wondering this and mostly just accept it. Some recent experiences have brought it home. I know how affected I am by music and see the affect on listeners and sometimes hear from them about being brought to tears or moved by my songs. Other times I hear from people how much they hate my music and me in general. Hey, at least they are listening and are usually from either Canada, Germany or France and hear it on YouTube. Go figure ha ha.

I listen to podcasts when I'm travelling the hundreds of miles to gigs. Recently I was listening to a Living Dialogue with Dr. Larry Dossey about the late scientist, Susumu Ohno, who took strands of DNA from humans and other species and assigned notes or musical values based on a really complex method which you can read about at: http://www.mimg.ucla.edu/faculty/miller_jh/gene2music/previouswork.html His wife is a violinist and performed the notes, which resembled a musical score. The result is something called DNA Music and when you listen to it knowing what it is you will be so struck with awe. The music sounds rhythmic and like a modern Bach or Mozart. It sounds like a Hang drum or celestial Harpsichord. Go to http://whozoo.org/mac/Music/samples.htm to listen. I've noticed things like melody and pitch are universal and people react to harmony and dissonance the same way across so many cultures. My main instruments, Voice, Hang drum and the Native Flute are all instruments that are exposed and expressive in direct ways.

Last weekend I was in Phoenix at the FarWest Folk Alliance conference where me and hundreds of other Folkies listened to tons of music and went to cool workshops about the music industry. All these people united in music was special. I did a showcase and overall felt flat and stale. I think when I am trying to impress industry people and be something more than I am at the moment I lose connection to that source of creation flowing through me and my Ego (the part of me who wants things) takes over and pushes the 'real' me out of the way. That is why doing concerts and informal performances are always so fun for me and the audience—I'm there for them and they are there to hear me. Oh well, I did it and heard some amazing music and met some fantastic people regardless.

I stayed an extra day with my musician friend Saggio and his wife Barbara. They live west of Phoenix in a Geodesic home. They were such gracious hosts and lead Healing Music Meditations one of which I was lucky enough to attend and offer some music of my own. The affect the music had on the attendees was very peaceful and healing I thought. Saggio and I played a lot of music on our combined 5 Hanghang, Native Flutes and the wonderful variety of instruments. Being amongst so much music I lost track of time and worries. What a retreat! I've heard it told that when we are being creative we are tapping directly into THE source and things like depression and pain can't enter our mind. I felt that lately and driving back to New Mexico I was blasting Coldplay and Snow Patrol and reconnecting with my own music in a new way.

Music is real and part of the now that I think Eckhart Tolle writes about. This weekend I'm playing at the 37^th annual Renaissance Faire in my home town where they get about 35,000 visitors and as I play my Hang and Flutes I'll be aware that my music is part of something larger, innate and immediate. I'll remember to let it flow and get the hell out of the way……haha. See you all there! Check my Calendar for the performance times.

Here is a video I call Hang Heaven because being surrounded by 5 of them is pretty cool. It's a little improvised song on a couple of them.

Have a wonderful musical weekend Y'all!

Randy

Hang Heaven