Kicking around the southwest getting ready for summer touring.

Greetings I hope this summer is finding you and those close to you safe and happy. Last Blog I reported I was up for several New Mexico Music Industry Awards. I am happy to report I won one of those nominations in the category of New Age Contemporary. I was surprised and honored as I accepted the award for all the hard working musicians in my part of New Mexico. It was a top-notch awards ceremony with amazing performances, formal banquet and all the major players in New Mexico Music. Lest you don’t think that is much several are Grammy winners and recently Oscar winners. Music is big and close to the burgeoning film industry here as well. I met the two other musicians from Las Cruces who were also nominees, C.W. Ayon in Blues and Mick Harris in Pop. C.W. Ayon won his very competitive category. Though we had met half-an-hour before the awards show I hit it off with he and his wife immediately. Maybe it is because we are both extremely hard-working independent artists. Or maybe it was that we were all three sitting at tables nursing beers because no one would talk to us. The music industry in New Mexico is heavily represented by the northern cities of Albuquerque and Santa Fe. Most have never been to Las Cruces, which is, incidentally New Mexico’s 2^nd largest city. I introduced myself to one of the major distributors of Native American Music who was presenting that night. He dismissed me quicker than you can open a beer saying, “I was wondering who ‘Randy Granger’ was.” Okay. I was polite and professional and slightly embarrassed that I had been so nice to him and his wife.  He was presenting two of the categories I had multiple nominations in and mispronounced my name. I wanted to show my award to him afterwards but thought better of it.

Awards do count. Especially the awards where you don’t have to beg every Facebook friend, relative and acquaintance to go vote for you. These awards were pre-judged by New Mexico music pros then sent out to some seriously qualified national judges. I mean seriously well known. I was blown away by that. The people who weren’t talking to me before all of a sudden were seeking me out saying hey we have your music in heavy rotation at our station could you record a station ID? It is all part of it. Awards for independent musicians help bring us cred, attention and better paying gigs. You have to make really good music first though. No substitute for music that sounds killer, has feeling and raises you above the hundreds of thousands out there. Here is some good press we had in our local papers http://www.lcsun-news.com/las_cruces-news/ci_15156196 my hometown of Hobbs, NM ran a front page story and interview on my award. I was so happy knowing my family would read it and feel proud. They have always supported me in everything I’ve done. You can read the articles and more at my website http://www.randygranger.net/press.html.

I was in Santa Fe playing some shows and thought the awards ceremony was Saturday night so I rushed to my room after playing followed by a trip up to 10,000 Waves to soak in the communal tubs. Drove an hour south to Albuquerque only to find it was the wrong night. I just laughed at myself and went back ending up with a great night strolling in and out of live music venues around the Santa Fe Plaza. I conducted a flute playing workshop for the Albuquerque area flute circles and had a wonderful time seeing some friends and meeting new ones. Melissa Dominguez, a Santa Fe photographer and college friend I hadn’t seen in too many years took some really nice photos she let me post here. Yes that’s a Kilt I’m wearing. Specifically a Utilikilt which I absolutely enjoy wearing both on and off stage. You’ll love their approach and humor.

My schedule for this year’s International Native American and World Flute Association’s (INAFA) convention for me is:

Lead a Clinic titled “The ABC’s of Playing the Native American Flute” in Lecture Room 143, July 15^th at 1:00 PM

Perform July 14^th at 7:30 PM with Michael Graham Allen aka Coyote Oldman in Gantner Concert Hall

Perform Solo concert: July 15^th at 3:00 PM in the Phillips Recital Hall

You can find out all about the Convention at http:///www.inafa.org. For the first time INAFA will be allowing main performers to offer private lessons during the Convention. You can email me directly for info an costs at lonegranger@netscape.com. I have over 15 years teaching guitar, percussion, voice and Native flute along with being a lifelong, classically trained musician I have worked with some of the best flutists such as Michael Allen and R. Carlos Nakai. If you want to get an intense private lesson and evaluation feel I don’t have much free time at the convention so slots are going quickly. I will also have a booth with my Indian Summer Music Award and NM Music Industry Award winning CD’s, t-shirts and more. I plan to have two new CD’s available and am working on the details now and will be ordering them soon. I am so absolutely excited about these new CD’s.

I’ll be playing in El Paso at the end of June. You can always bookmark my calendar at http://www.randygranger.net/calendar.html. While up north in Wisconsin I will do a few other gigs including the 6^th Anniversary World of Faeries Festival in South Elgin, IL. I am open to booking some House Concerts or flute circle performances/workshops. Email me if there is an interest. I look forward to seeing again the friends I made at the 2008 INAFA Convention. Don’t be shy. Say hello.

See you down the trail,

Randy 

Native American Flute Firefly music in the Texas Hill Country.

What is Za Zee Za Zu Zing?

The opening track on my new album A Place Called Peace is a song called Za Zee Za Zu Zing. It is a fun song with vocals, djembe, Native American flute and Hang drum. The chorus is the nonsensical phrase Za Zee Za Zu Zing which really doesn't mean anything that I'm aware of. I was playing around on my Hang and came up with a melody and heard the djembe part and the singing etc. Sometimes the words come first, other times the melody or the flute part I never know but I'm glad it does.

An interviewer for New Mexico Magazine asked me recently if I had vocal training and I answered yes. She said she asked because she is also a singer and said her choir would warm up with za zee za zee za zee za zee za while singing the major scale. Then it hit me she's right. I warm up with all sorts of syllabic stuff, chicken sounds melodic yawns. Oh man, when I'm driving to a gig I'm thinking there must be a hidden camera recording how ridiculous I sound and look. Nothing new though.

This video was put together and produced by Moonface Media Farm and the clips are from the World of Faeries Festival where I played earlier this year. I think he did a pretty great job. Thanks Michael!
Enjoy...
Randy

ZA ZEE ZA ZU ZING