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2009 Year End Roundup - Las Cruces Sun-News
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Very honored to be in this list.

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I posted a quote not too long ago on Facebook. Something about how an artist must do art, a poet must write and a musician must make music if they are ever to be at peace with themselves. Many of the comments seemed to say that music or art made them feel peaceful.  Funny how every person brings what is from their context, the experience into comments. The same can be said about art so it was really interesting for me and instructive.  I took the quote to mean that there is something in artists that compels them to create, and when they aren’t they will go through new interests, friends, experiences unknowingly looking to express that drive. I know from personal experience. When you take the commitment to hear the muse, as it were, you notice the world differently. You feel things others don’t and when you suppress or make excuses you can literally splinter and succumb to emotional and mental turmoil and destructive behaviors. Again, personal experience.

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So seeing how every person read something different into that quote got me thinking about the art experience from the observer’s view. We look at a painting, watch a movie or attend a concert and come away with such disparate takes. I know at my performances people will say things about songs or whatever that I have no clue what they are talking about. I just listen. I just say thank you. Because ultimately I think most artists want an audience of one or many to “feel” something. Most times I don’t know where some lyrics or a melody is going but I trust it. I am not at all clever or trained enough to intentionally do this or that—i.e., manipulate what I want a listener to feel or think. Not at all. Even so all of my musical training and experience comes together and connects with a deeper source and intelligence. That collaboration is remarkable and never lets me get prideful.

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When I’m not on the road I try to busk (street playing for coin) at our Las Cruces Grower’s Market. It has been going on for decades every Saturday and Wednesday. I have busked in many cities and I remember when I first started busking with the Native American Flute in 2004 I was shit. I would hide in the doorways wanting so much to make a sound I couldn’t yet. Being a lifelong musician I knew it would eventually come and it scared me to play it in public. I routinely do things that really terrify deeply. Of course I’m now completely confident playing. What I’m confident about is not that I’ll get all the notes right—that is no guarantee—but that I can communicate what I’m feeling. One of the coolest things I notice is that when people walk by me, sometimes even before that realize it’s a real person playing, they change. Their pace all of a sudden slows. Their stride gets longer; they close their eyes and put their head back to let the sun hit it. It is wonderful to see that. When they realize it is me playing they get embarrassed like someone caught dancing when they don’t know someone is watching. I love it.

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People are more cautious with their purses. They clutch them a little closer. Usually they walk by, pause then turn around to open their wallets or purses and toss money in my case. Or they send their kids to do it. No matter what I am playing I stop and say thank you to the kids. I want their early experiences with musicians to be a positive one. People at our Famer’s Market aren’t afraid of musicians they way some other cities are. When I play my Hang I end up answering the same questions a couple hundred times. It gets exhausting but I’ve learned to be patient. Days when I’m not feeling patient, aching with arthritis, depressed, angry etc. I don’t bring the Hang. Still the number question is do I make my own instruments. I seriously don’t know what that it about but other musicians tell me it happens to them.

I am so grateful that I can actually make money busking. It is not for the sensitive or moody. You encounter thousands of people in a several hour period. No exaggeration. You must put up with cranky vendors, asshole cops, know it alls, transients eyeing your tip case, asshole Mariachis…(can’t figure that one out yet), competitive performers who set up way to close to you, people not respecting your time, music, personal space, dogs who steal the candy you set out for the kids or piss on your case….

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If you can’t take that all in stride and still smile at absolutely everyone, expect the really creepy ones, you should not be out there.  I can make friends with anyone and usually do. I try to play short, entertaining songs because you only have them for a few seconds. People take so many photos and videos of me playing I wonder where they all end up? I’ve been learning Christmas songs on the Native Flute which is not that easy. Cross fingering, half and micro holing not to mention every flute maker is different in the fingering and notes you can reach. I set up with my Roland Mobile Cube, a clip on mic, my cd’s, tip case, candy and my post cards which is all a small hassle to transport but worth it. Lately I’ve come to rely on the income of it all and usually sell out of CDs. There are a few hagglers…geez. Don’t make me get out my taser…haha. You will be interrupted, dissed and overlooked but you will also learn so much about how people experience live street music and musicians. Most of all you will be doing exactly what you, as a musician, are meant to be doing. It may not be a concert hall but it is real. You know the renowned violinist Joshua Bell went busking with his Stradivarius in the New York subways as an experience. He got completely and actively ignored for the most part. Jeff Buckley was so freaked out by his stratospheric success that he cancelled a tour and went busking and playing solo in coffee houses. Same thing. Everything you do that scares you will make you stronger. Believe me. I was playing last Saturday and a woman asked which was the best CD for her to buy. I mentioned the various songs. She wasn’t impressed. I mentioned the various awards they received then. She looked at me like I was purple with orange spots, rather incredulously. She said are you telling me you’ve won awards? I said yes, a few here and there. She said well then what the hell are you doing playing here for dollar bills? I said I was really enjoying myself. 

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Merry Christmas and thank you for your support and allowing me to live simply, create music and support myself all while really loving what I do.

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Randy

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Here’s a video for What Child is This from Winter Colors.....

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Fall came overnight here in southern New Mexico’s Mesilla Valley along the Rio Grande. Then almost 80 degree days meant lots of yard work for the industrious. Our 14 Pecan trees require lots of love and soon they will freeze the husks and be ready for harvesting. That is a serious task that usually means lot of hot baths and Aleve. A Harvest Full-Moon this week was astonishing and beautiful.  I find myself busy as ever managing my career and time. I had a couple of weeks off preceeded by shows in a Cave in Boerne, TX, Austin, Dallas, Arlington and back again. I played this week for the Hospice Candlelight Memorial and it was as moving as ever and the most people they’ve had. For the first time it was in their expanded facility and I’m very proud of them for the work they’ve done and the $6million they raised for the expansion. 

Full Moon Rising over the Organ Mountains in southern New Mexico. November 2

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Saturday Nov. 7^th I’ll return to the Dona Ana Arts Council’s Renaissance ArtFaire. I’m really glad. Wasn’t sure if they were going to include me due to mid-stream staff changes, but I talked them into it. I always enjoy it and the 30,000 people who attend do as well. We are so lucky to have the best November weather. It is always deep blue skies, dry air and in the mid 70’s. They put a dragon in the moat and have giant smoked turkey drumsticks, the best pastrami and kosher dills this side of New Jersey and lots of entertainment. I will be on the Rio Grande stage Saturday at 11:30 and 3:30 playing my Native flutes, Hang drum and singing up a storm. I’ve invited a dancer, Terry Alvarez, and a cellist from la Cella Bella, Allison Reynolds, to sit in with me should be fun. Here is a link to some press about the RenFaire as well call it http://www.lcsun-news.com/las_cruces-sunlife/ci_13680330

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A Place Called Peace continues to receive great reviews and of course winning the Indian Summer Music Awards in the Flute category is something I am so proud of because it was a blind judging and not a popularity contest. Beating out a Grammy® and several NAMA winners really didn’t mean much other than it validated that if you express yourself from the heart 100% and have faith in your music you will be recognized and heard. A music journalist who is the most sought after critic in the New Age genre said “there is deep feeling here, and that is something you can’t fake” as Bill Binkleman said in a review on NewAgeReporter.com. You can read the full review here:  www.randygranger.net/REVIEWS.html 

 I found out this week that I’ve been invited to perform and conduct a flute playing workshop at the 2010 International Native American and World Flute Association’s conference in Eu Claire, Wisconsin and am delighted and happy about it. Learn more about the conference at http://www.worldflutes.org/

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Sunday I am on my way to Florida, Melbourne specifically for the 1^st Native Rhythms Festival  November 13-15. This is a new festival put together by the Indian River Flute Circle, a whole host of passionate volunteers and sponsors.  I will be performing solo as well as with Michael Graham Allen, aka Coyote Oldman. Mark Holland and N. Scott Robinson, Jonny Lipford, Jan Sieden, Clint Goss, Doc Green and other musicians will be there along with Native American Flute makers and other crafts people. I am excited also because a few NASA launches are scheduled while I’m there and Cape Canaveral is just miles from Melbourne. I love Florida’s people and food. I will be travelling through San Antonio, New Orleans, Tampa, Savannah, Macon and hopefully Arkansas depending on the weather. Originally the Poet Wayne Crawford would be travelling with me and we scheduled performances from our collaborative CD “Oasis Bound” however, his duties as poetry editor, Arts Council work and more piled up so I’ll be driving alone and may or may not book a gig in your town… Of course, if you have a flute circle or would like a house concert get in touch with me. My Hang drums are always a real hit especially when people hear them for the first time. I always look forward to bringing my unique Native American flute music from a trained musician, healer and native New Mexican perspective. My own ancestry is so rich with peoples who journeyed far, held rituals, were seers and resilient. I’d like to think they all meet in my Heart—and that is where the music is made.

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Randy

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Here is a video of the Police song Every Breath You Take on Native flute and Hang drum. Enjoy.

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Finding the Updraft....

Being a working musician is not the same at working a being a musician. You do the gigs, do the time, do the practice, do the social media thing and at the end of the proverbial day you pay your dues and bills with money you’ve made trading your talent and time for money. That is the simplicity of it. The complexity of making that happen takes nerves of titanium and a resolve not even Sisyphus had rolling that rock up the hill. I heard an interview today with Stewart Copleland where he said before he drummed with the Police he would write letters after every show in different handwriting saying how awesome the drummer Steward Copeland was at last night’s show. I can relate.  

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In the past 30 days my music has taken me to Milwaukee, Dallas, Austin, Boerne, Chicago and points in between. Driving through west Texas I saw the Buzzards, AKA, Turkey Vultures cleaning up the road kill the TDOT never picks up, ever. Driving the 12 hours to Austin or Dallas I see the Buzzards riding the thermals, what I call the updrafts. It is so serene, effortless, and efficient. Craning my neck to admire them with their featherless heads and huge wingspan I think how perfectly their gliding accompanies Native American flute music, or vice versa. Then I remember they are Carrion, feeding on decay and death. Usually around then I think of my enemies hovering around me waiting for the same. I’d rather not think on my enemies but as Sun-Tzu said in “The Art of War” keep them closer than your friends. Recent events have reminded me of the pettiness and viciousness in the music business. Hey, it’s the same in any endeavor where you don’t share the self-imposed limitations and comfort zones of those around you—but this is not about my enemies, it is about me. The thing about ART is it needs a creator and an observer. A performer needs an audience whether it is watching you on YouTube, on their iPod or hearing you live. The exchange and communication is essential otherwise you are creating in a vacuum.

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Somewhere along the way I learned the freedom of knowing that everyone and everything in my experience is of my own creation. Not in a narcissistic way but rather in what I need to learn that I missed the previous time it happened. The freedom to not be a victim of anything is liberating but comes with an enormous responsibility that “I” did this. So as I watched events unfold I imagined I was in a theater watching a movie. In this movie the haters were navigating a maze where my success and talent was a dead end so they blamed me and I took the time to indulge their delusion. Nothing is personal as Don Miguel Ruiz reiterates in his book, “The Four Agreements,” absolutely nothing. In Milwaukee my album, A Place Called Peace, won the Indian Summer Music Award in the Flute category. What rocks is that it was a blind judging where the judges had no idea who the artist was therefore judging it on things like musicianship and how the music made them feel. How wonderful is that not to have to beg and deluge your fans, friends and family to “vote for me” in this popularity contest that has nothing to do with music. Something I was reminded of when my name was inadvertently left off a Native American awards ballot recently and the organizers were so hostile to my fans (fans of Native American music I will add) that they have lost credibility. Or how a Facebook friend (let's hope no longer) reported that I was badmouthing a flute maker whose name I never mentioned. Wow, talk about circling Vultures, though vultures don’t deserve to be maligned that way.

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See there I go back into being the victim I said I didn’t want to be. Ain’t easy is it? But I know that I and only I brought the bad and the good into my life. How? I was not impeccable with my word, #1 of the Four Agreements. Turns out, as I’ve said before, I’m human and in need of constant readjustment. I’m in the real world playing to audiences who sometimes know nothing about me and are paying $20 a head. I’m on YouTube, where I don’t delete comments, being called everything from God to fag, daily. I read reviews from Switzerland, get emails from Australia to Russia people saying how much they hate or love me. My online sales surprise even me, yet I panic at every new sound my car makes.  I don’t take any of it personally, hate or the praise. At an open mic recently a fantastic poet and teacher at NMSU said to me afterwards, “Dang every month I come ready to give it to the man and rip the shit out of everything wrong in this world with my poetry and then you play. All that anger just leaves me and I forget what I was so pissed off about.” How cool is that? I am grateful that I no longer struggle with musical insecurity and questions of self worth. A calm assertiveness (as the Dog Whisperer always says) is in me that radiates. I know that there will never be a shortage of inspiration, confidence, determination, talent and skill. My best work hasn’t even been recorded. I know these things, I don’t have to will them, just make them happen, fearlessly, regardless of circumstance or health. I wish that same contentment to all my fans and friends. Just find the updraft and ride it.

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Here is a video from a recent performance in Dallas, Texas of my soon to be recorded song, “Hello Daddy.”

Randy

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HELLO DADDY

http://vimeo.com/6700920

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I hope the Dog Days of summer find you all well, rested and creating wonderful memories. Here in the Mesilla Valley on the Rio Grande River the Green Chile harvest season is well underway. All around the valley harvest and wine festivals abound. The smell of roasting chiles is strong and people are lined up with their burlap bags to get their supply into the freezer—a ritual in New Mexico. I played for the fifth year at the Franciscan Festival of Fine Arts in Mesilla Park, NM. This is an arts festival which resurrected (no pun intended) six-years ago after a two decade hiatus. The setting is a retreat center that which lends itself to my music. This summer also saw a return to the World of Faeries Festival in South Elgin, IL as well as performances in the Santa Fe area with poets Wayne Crawford and Wendy-Brown Baez and at the Sum Arts Festival, a co-host BlogCast on BlogTV.com with Rod Krug. You can see some of the recorded broadcast at http://www.blogtv.com/People/didgerod ,   and so many more exciting opportunities.

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Right now I’m in route to perform at the Indian Summer Music Festival in Milwaukee, WI where I’m nominated for “Best Flutist” for my CD A Place Called Peace and am looking forward to hearing some great music. I take the Miller Stage at 12:30PM, Sat., Sept. 12th.  September is full of performances with other musicians, something that is always a treat for me.  Please check my website calendar for details on the upcoming shows at randygranger.net/calendar.html. Here is a list.

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Sept. 17th, 8PM-Irie Bean Coffee Bar Austin, TX. 2310 South Lamar, Suite 102, Austin, TX 78704 Randy in a solo performance in the courtyard. Also that night buy a $12 bottle of wine and get complimentary massages from 7-9PM. http://www.iriebean.com/

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Sept. 19th, Equinox Concert in the Cave Without a Name, 7-9PM 325 Kreutzberg Rd, Boerne, TX. Tickets and more info at: http://www.sacredinspiration.com/event.html

with Sound Healer and Tibetan Singing Bowl player Jodi Roberts as well as Native American flutist Virgie Ravenhawk.

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Sept. 26th, Move Studios , 7:30PM Randy Granger with World Flutist Cornell Kinderknect and percussionist Martin McCall.  17062 Preston Rd, suite 108, Dallas TX, 75248 There is limited seating. For ticket info go to http://www.movestudio.com/ there click on Workshops Series and Events on the left hand side. Click concerts for mine and Cornell’s concert. Click the purchase link. You will be asked to register and pay online if you like or you can call 972-732-0206 during business hours to do the same.

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Sept. 27th, Randy Granger and Cornell Kinderknect perform Special Music 10AM at Unity Church Arlington, 3525 S. Bowen Rd., Arlington, TX www.unityarlingtontx.org.

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The Concert in the Cave will be something really special both acoustically and musically. Jodi Roberts is a wonderful sound healer and dear friend. Cornell and I have played together a few times at festivals and had an instant musical connection and friendship as well. What a joy these shows will be. I hope you can make some of them or maybe forward the info to friends and flute people you know in these areas. One of the truly awesome things about making music is how in the moment it is at the same time it is ephemeral. Those sounds that are vibration and rhythm will never happen again. Live music is like transforming sound molecules into emotions. It is something I try to never take for granted and feels so fortunate to be able to do what I do.  It is interesting that the instruments I use, the voice, the hang drum, the guitar and native American flutes are all exposed  and do best when played in a direct, emotive and from the heart way.  Enjoy these Dog Days of summer. Fall is seeping in slowly but surely.

Randy

My most recent road trip/tour was a journey I’ve made several times to the upper Midwest, specifically Illinois. This time I made sure to book a couple of free days in Chicago as down time.  Booking a hotel downtown Chicago on Hotwire I wasn’t sure what I’d get but it turned out to be an absolutely perfect set up. I was right downtown between Rush St. and Michigan Ave at the older Tremont Hotel with its rickety old wooden elevator, Mike Ditka steakhouse, right across the street from Starbucks and an “old school” staff.  On the ninth floor I could see the condos next door, the foot traffic on Rush Street and so much more. The shower even had a thermostat that told you the temp of the water. That impressed me, as a practical yet luxurious touch.  The simplest amenities seem to impress me.

Driving up NM hwy 185 along the Robledo mountains I crossed the Rio Grande and reflected that I would cross the Missouri, Mississippi and play at a festival right on the Fox river. I liked that thought.  In St. Louis I was out late at night trying to find a place to eat that didn’t have the words Bell, Del, Kentucky or Burger in its name. I stopped to get gas and noticed a guy looking at me and my car. He said, “You look you’re living out of your car these days. Get kicked out?” I laughed and said I was a musician and he nodded knowingly. After explaining what instruments I play and the style of music (something I rehearse on long trips) he thought I was just passing through but I said I was actually looking for in interesting, reasonable place to eat other than those week-old hot dogs in the store. So he says, “Hey you like Sushi?” I say sure and he gets his iPhone from his car and speaks “Sushi” in the phone and spends about ten minutes looking up places nearby to eat and so friendly and helpful, even rubbing my neck a little—in a completely innocent way—asks  for my website etc. He sends me downtown St. Louis to Wasabi which I eventually find after walking a few blocks but it is closed on Monday’s. Sigh. I approach to guys walking up the street and ask their advice so they say yeah there is an Irish like pub up the street, but they warm me there is some really loud Karaoke. I’m starving at that point so walk in and there is an older gentleman and woman with a suitcase full of CD’s and they are just howling away. I sit at the bar only to find out the kitchen closed about 15 minutes before. I had to laugh.

I decide to take some shots of the Gateway Arch and stop and the Mississippi River to pay tribute to the late singer Jeff Buckley. Just as drive through downtown a late Cardinals game gets out and thousands of people dressed in Red are streaming out onto the streets. The Arch is beautiful at night reflecting the skyline and casting shadows on the clouds. I ended up stopping at the quick mart next to my hotel and actually bought one of those mystery-meat hot links that spin on those rollers took one bite and threw it away. Ate some MORE tropical trail mix—oh yum, and went to bed.

Driving through the Midwest plains reminds me so much of the Llano Estacado where I grew up in southeastern New Mexico, except it is green in the Midwest.  The Missouri Breaks are beautiful and the hills of western Kansas are inspiring. As I drove through the part of Iowa where the Bridges of Madison County are I couldn’t help feel nostalgic for the times my family would pile into the car and take the long road trips through seemingly endless country. My brother, sister and I would sing all the current hits of the day to alleviate the boredom.  Passing car after car stuffed to the gills and families watching DVD’s I thought how technology is just another distraction to do the same thing. Of course my crazy GPS unit named “Susan” kept me company often yelling at me to turn around when possible. I swear she gets more assertive each time she repeats.

I had spent time in Chicago but never more than a day and not in downtown. When I found a hotel in the near north area that was affordable I was excited. Chicago is such a beautiful city and the air is kept clean by the massive Lake Michigan. There are so many things to do free there if you don’t mind paying for parking that is somewhere between $35 and $50 a day.  There were small parks on either side of the block where I was staying. I took my Native Flutes and played right in the middle of those awesome skyscrapers. It just rang out and soon people would bring their dogs next to me to do their business (shows what they thought of my music) ha-ha, as an excuse to listen. It was magical. The food was amazing, plentiful and the choices up and down Rush Street were overwhelming. I found a cool happy hour right across my hotel with a bar menu of Tapas to drool over. I met such friendly people who would welcome me to their city.  It is funny that when you say you are from New Mexico this glazed look comes to their faces—almost like a reverence. I did get that comment of, “Wow we whites really screwed your people didn’t we?” when they find out my Native ancestry and say something like, “That’s okay the casino slot machines only pay out to Indians” to make them laugh. I walked about 15 miles up and down the Loop stopping at Tribune Plaza, Starbucks, the Chicago River, the Modern Art museum, Starbucks, Pritzker Center, the Jelly Bean sculpture, Chicago Institute of Art, Starbucks, World Plaza, Oak Street Beach, Fullerton Beach, (where I entertained beach goers with my Hang) Lincoln Park, the Dog Beach, Starbucks, Crowne Fountain and ended up at the Starbucks across the street from the hotel.

I did play some along the way as well but the destination was the 2009 World of Faeries Festival in South Elgin. We had rain, wind and cold on and off the first day which made for a long day. We all hung in there though and I performed several times and met some beautiful people. The woman in the booth next to mine found out I was Mestizo like herself and we just got all Mexican….. Too funny. Now get this, we got to talking food—no surprise if you know anything about me—and she said I’m going to bring you some home cooking tomorrow. And she did!  She made Chicken Mole with Spanish rice and packed in a Tupperware bowl. Wow! It was delicious when I finally got to eat it 15 hours later in the Quad cities. The second day was beautiful and being in the Oak trees along the Fox River is just magical and a perfect setting.  I actually sold some flutes too. I was so happy about that. I’m now distributing Coyote Oldman flutes at festivals and concerts and it is a huge honor.  It was reported to me that during my first set on Saturday an Eagle suddenly appeared and circled above the Park. Things like that happen so often to me that I almost expect it. Kudos to the Fairy Fest organizers Dave, Gloria and the volunteers for their work, passion and dedication. This year was just about seamless and that is saying a lot—even with the rain.

I’ll be performing in the Santa Fe area this weekend with performance poets Wayne Crawford and Wendy Baez-Brown. Check my calendar for more info: http://randygranger.net/calender.html. Also I'll be performing at the Indian Summer Music Awards in Milwaukee this September where I'm also nominated in the flute category.

Thank you for reading these blogs I hope they are interesting and entertaining.

Randy

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Summertime is the time for festivals and what a better way to spend a day. I’ve played quite a few festivals this year and always enjoy myself and the exhaustion after a long day is strangely rewarding. Next weekend I’ll be performing at the World of Faeries Festival in South Elgin, IL doing a couple of private shows along the way. The 1460 mile drive (one way) is a haul but it is what I do and what musicians before me have done. You go to where the people are. This festival is a wonderful collage of part Renaissance Festival and Lord of the Rings paying homage to the little Fairy that lives in all of us—the part that still believes in magic. Music, dancing, vendors, food, fantasy and fun are what this is all about. The festival is set in a beautiful private park of massive Oak trees right on the tranquil Fox River. I am so giddy about performing my Native American flute music and ethereal Hang drum. It rings out to the trees and I could swear last year I heard them singing back. The organizers of this festival are people who volunteer to make this a top notch festival and are genuine, hard-working and passionate about all things fairy. If you have ever organized a festival you know the minutiae involved. Kudos. Check their website for the most current schedule of events and performers.

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After that I will be rushing back to New Mexico to do some more performances with two amazing poets, Wayne Crawford and Wendy Baez-Brown, in Santa Fe and northern New Mexico. My travels will take me to the San Antonio, Dallas, Florida and more this fall including a showcase performance at this year’s Indian Summer Music Awards in Milwaukee. I mentioned in my last blog that I am nominated for a ISMA in the “Flute” category. I now sell premium Native American flutes as well as hand-made Jewelry, my CD’s and Aromatherapy Massage Oil a craft I learned being a licensed Massage Therapist for 18 years now.

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I am fortunate that my music receives favorable reviews. Being a professional for all this time I’ve learned to not necessarily believe my own press. In other words whether it is a good or bad review you need to detach and not take anything personally regardless. You realize the reviewer is writing for his or her audience, doesn’t know you and is reviewing their response to your music, not you. That being said I did get a review this week that really moved me from Bill Binkelman on NewAgeReporter.com. Bill is the most sought after reviewer in this genre and consequently receives hundreds and hundreds CD’s a week. He is a long-time music critic who writes for numerous venues but his reviews on NewAgeReporter.com is something every one of us recording artists works towards and treasures. You can read the full review by clicking here. In referring to my CD, A Place Called Peace, he said; “Randy Granger's name deserves to be listed with other renowned Native American flute players, both Native and Anglo, because he obviously has both the chops and the artistry to warrant it. A Place Called Peace illustrates that he is not just a gifted multi-instrumentalist but that he "feels" the music with a sincerity and emotional honesty which can't be faked.” That alone humbles me. It is one thing for a critic to say your music is pretty, etc., but when they recognize your musicianship it almost makes the years and years of sacrifice and dedication seem worth it. Of course it is though, regardless and I know it. I’m exaggerating but anyone who pursues a dream dependent on bearing your heart in public then have people review it—well you know what I mean.

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I appreciate your comments, criticisms, kudos and your friendships cyber they may be. Here is a video made last year by Moonface Media Farm’s Michael Volkening another volunteer who lends his expertise in video production to this festival.

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See you down the trail.

Randy

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ZA ZEE ZA ZU ZING

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I hope everyone is having a fantastic summer. Here in southwestern New Mexico it has been dry and just a little under normal for temperatures. We are grateful for this. Now that the Monsoon rains have begun the humidity makes every living thing here droop a bit. I’ve been busy with performing and recording a new project.

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I am honored to share that my CD, “A Place Called Peace” is nominated for an Indian Summer Music Award in the category of Flute along with musicians like Mary Youngblood and Jan Michael Looking Wolf. This is a prestigious award and the nomination is something I’m proud to have. As I watched Federer accept his trophy for winning a record 15 Grand Slams the interviewer kept asking him how it felt to win this record and Wimbledon. Federer said that the record was never his goal. Instead his goal was to play as well and as hard as he could. I respect that. As a working musician I occasionally seek out awards more for a means to an end than self validation. See it is my experience that awards mean more to people hiring you or reviewing your music than to the actual musician. Awards are mileposts saying people in your industry recognize that you did something meaningful, a document· When I’m busking for bucks at the Farmer’s Market or playing in a bookstore to a crowd of 20 or so what matters, what keeps people listening, is the heart, skill and attention I am giving to my music in that moment. I know that. Making a living as I do with my music I want to get paid fairly for my effort and sale music. Nominations and awards carry some clout in that respect but you still need to give listeners and fans a reason to pop your CD in more than once or put you on their IPod.

Most times I forget to apply to awards and miss the deadlines. That is something that a record company usually does for an artist. A reporter asked me who played the various instruments on my CD she was reviewing. She mentioned that it wasn’t listed nor was the producer. I sheepishly admitted it was me playing all the instruments as well as engineering and producing. I said I was embarrassed to list that because I thought it would make me seem like an egotistical control freak. Imagine what I feel about awards. I really have those cringe moments when I’m waiting off stage and the MC is going on and on about this award or that nomination. That said I am really humbled by the company I’m in for the nominations some are Grammy winners. You can check them out at the ISMA website. http://www.indiansummer.org/entertainment/isma.html

I’m fortunate to be able to receive these nominations and to produce what is in my heart onto a recording. When you accept the muse it stays right there with you and when you slack off it is like splinters in your soul. I’m really grateful for every single download, sale and audience member. Really. Thank you for your support and whomever wins the ISMA award I’m elated to be a part.

Randy

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Here is a video of what I call my Americana Medley from a recent performance.