Covid creations

During the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, I met musician Jim Sande online through mutual musical interests. Although residing on opposite coasts, we decided to collaborate on a couple of songs, due to mutual musical admiration. "Wonder" is our first track. Jim wrote the music first (and plays all instruments), and I wrote the lyrics to accompany the music (vocals are mine). Jim's wife Jayne Cavitt created the cover art and Jim mixed the track in his home studio. Available on all major streaming platforms.

Our second track is "Heart Sutra." It was hatched when I suggested we create something based on our shared Buddhist connection (we have studied with the same teachers of Tibetan Buddhism, we discovered after meeting), and Jim suggested looking at The Heart Sutra text. I chose the passages from the text in Tibetan, Chinese & English, wrote the music, and recorded vocals and ukulele at David Lange Studios in Edgewood, WA, Jim added bass, bass clarinet, marimba, celeste, and bottles and mixed the track in his home recording studio in upstate NY.

“Heart Sutra” is meditative folk. Using lyrics from the ancient Buddhist text The Heart Sutra in three languages (Tibetan, Chinese, and English) and with folk instrumentation of voice, ukulele, bass, and marimba, the song beautifully captures a grounded desire for focus and meaning. Structurally the song is basic, and yet has cunning complexity. The steady rhythm, relaxed vocals, and rich, diverse instrumentation draw the listener in to a contemplative and satisfying soundscape.