Barks in the media- a Concert for Dogs

In Portuguese we have a few sayings that use the word dog as a qualifier: ‘vida de cachorro’ (dog’s life) usually implies a very difficult life in which one  feels disempowered and submissive. On the other hand, something can be qualified as ‘bom pra cachorro’. Literal translation would be “good for dogs”. However, the actual meaning is ‘really good’.

Well I can assure you that this Saturday Feb 18th A Benefit Concert for Dogs will be bom pra cachorro (really good) for dogs and humans. A wonderful show in which dogs and humans will unite in community for good music and in support of a good cause. The event will collect funds for A Leg Up Rescue, an organization that rescues small dogs.

This show has already brought many joys to all of us involved in putting it together. We have

Carta para alguém que está perdido

Quem nunca se sentiu perdido, atire a primeira pedra. Seja você em que idade for, se já teve o privilégio de refletir sobre que passo dar na vida, já se viu sem certeza sobre que direção tomar. Privilégio, sim, pois isto são dons do tal livre arbítrio. Os pobres ( ou afortunados) animais parecem não ter este tipo de preocupação. A natureza lhes impõe padrões rígidos de comportamento. A nossa liberdade é fato, mas é claro, é limitada pelos nossos condicionamentos mentais e restrições sociais. Porém, nossa habilidade de reagir a situações é vasta. Com tanta escolha a fazer, haja responsabilidade. E as consequências? Será que queremos realmente encará-las? Ou talvez seja melhor viver paralisado sem fazer escolhas ( o que já é uma escolha)? Ou deixar que os outros as façam por nós?

Certa vez na noite de Ano Novo conheci alguém perdido. Dois dias depois, ele me procurou

The Transcendental Sounds of Crickets

What song or sound fascinates you?

With this question in mind we started our 4^th meeting of our group Sounds Transformative last Dec 13^th in a San Francisco coffee shop.  Musicians, non-musicians, and people from different regions of the planet shared their fascination with certain sounds and songs. As we listened to each other we began to enter the mysterious realm of the relationship between ourselves and sound landscapes. In this intersection, notes, melodies, and sounds encounter sensations, feelings, emotions, thoughts, and sometimes, as a result, we can have a taste of the transcendent.

“Bossa Nova is from God”, says David Darling

In this last part of the interview with Grammy award winning musician and music educator David Darling, David declares his love for Bossa Nova. David’s connection with Bossa Nova dates back to the 1970s when he was invited to join the Bossa Nova influenced Paul Winter’s group. In the 1960s Paul Winter had been one of the first American musicians to incorporate Bossa Nova into his repeirtoire. In the video below, David Darling talks about the beautiful and relaxing qualities that draws him to Bossa Nova.

Join our new FREE group on Music and Transformation

SOUNDS TRANSFORMATIVE

I would like to invite you to join our new group Sounds Transformative for those interested in discussing and experiencing the relationship between Music and Transformation.  In this informal group the facilitator will suggest topics to be discussed and will share music to be experienced. Some of the topics that may be addressed are: the power of music, transformation, spirituality in music, consciousness, human potential, deep listening and many others. This is a group for music lovers, musicians, and all persons interested in personal growth, consciousness and spirituality. This group is inclusive of many forms of music (pop, instrumental, world music, etc.) and specifically music that is not usually considered sacred or spiritual. We are not affiliated with any particular spiritual worldview.

This is a FREE group.

We meet regularly in a coffee shop in San Francisco. Our meetings last 1 hr to 1hr 30min.

Please email josehgarciasound@gmail.com if you are interested in attending.

Thank you and looking forward to hearing from you,

Joseh Garcia

Morte, mestre vital!

Como parece ser difícil aceitar nossa finitude e a dos que amamos. Podemos ter várias crenças de vida após a morte, mas a perda física é inevitável. Preferimos evitar o contato com a mesma o máximo possível, ao ponto que não conversamos sobre, nem discutimos o assunto. E eis que de repente, nos vemos diante da própria, através do nosso encontro pessoal, ou do de pessoas próximas a nós. Nesta hora, não há como fugir da realidade da morte. Será que há vantagens em acolher a morte como algo a se refletir no cotidiano? Ou é melhor fazer como sempre fazemos com qualquer outro tópico-tabu: – deixá-la à margem da consciência? Ao escrever estas linhas me lembro das palavras de Buda, que sugere que tenhamos consciência da morte a cada dia. “Para que?”- nos perguntamos. “Ela vai acontecer de qualquer jeito, então pra que pensar em algo tão negativo?” Acontece que a consciência da morte alquimicamente transforma nossa relação com a mesma. De inimiga existencial torna-se mestra vital nos convidando a ter discernimento sobre o que realmente importa ser feito neste breve tempo de existência. A morte nos força a um

Smiling at mistakes with David Darling

Have you ever felt blocked and longed to expand your creativity?

David Darling

The musician and teacher David Darling invites us to return to childhood to restore our freedom to explore and to be more creative. Besides being a highly accomplished cello player who received a Grammy award for his album Prayer for Compassion in 2010, David Darling facilitates workshops that help us to trust in our ability to risk new steps in life and in music. He graciously reminds us to smile at our mistakes as we improvise through life. I had the pleasure to attend one of his workshops recently and the honor to interview him.  In this first part of the interview he shares his political views, talks about his early years, and discusses the similarities between life and improvisation.