News items posted to this page are usually edited versons of Member Mailings.
Four Winds News: 8 October 1999
Hear ye, Hear ye!
We know we haven't posted a NEWS page in a while, and a lot of you out there are wondering what the heck we've been up to. Well, we've been really, really, busy! And we haven't had the time to update the website while we've had more pressing matters to attend to! Mostly related to WE EACH SEND A VOICE, our 5 Year Anniversary recording project. It's been an amazing amount of work, and much of it non-musical, organizing financing, pre-sales, logistics, bookeeping, preparing artwork. You get the idea, remember this is still a volunteer organization!
We are also preparing for The 17th Annual Witches Ball, the Pagan Spirituality Expo and a looking into presenting another Open Choral Yule Celebration. Not to mention, Rededication and retraining, integrating new Members and the usual singing, chanting, drumming and studying. Busy enough for you?
WE EACH SEND A VOICE IN PRODUCTION!!
On Friday October 1st, Kurt FedEXed the Artwork down to Oasis CD & Cassette Duplication. On Saturday, after a busy Day humping records for Richard C, we hauled it up to Blairs' to pick up up the finished Audio Masters. The trip was worth it to see Rich's jaw hanging open when Blair played the remixed Let The Way Be Open on his bitchin' speakers.
Oasis beat out other production faciilties on price, extras and sheer helpfulness. The deciding factor is that we found out that they reproduced This Winter's Night for MotherTongue, a project we were rather impressed with! We also got a little luck, in that the price for the package we're getting dropped over the past month! Huzzah!
On Monday the CD-R Audio Masters were sent off to Oasis, so now the project is in their capable hands. That puts us in Phase Three of the Project; Production. It seems strange since now we are at the point of waiting for other folk to do their thing. We are tolkd that the production turnaround is perilously close to Four Weeks, so we need everybody's good energy and powerful prayers that all goes smoothly and we have product in time for the Witches ball!
In addition, preorders have been coming in and now stand at very respectable $725 with $400 in investment capital also in. So it appears that the plan seems to be working. We will be able to pull this off without wiping out anybody's life savngs and we may even be able to see a little profit to put into the work of the Chorus! A music stand, a microphone or two, the NEXT recording... Part of the learing process has been inspiration to all of the possibliities for projects we could do. As long as we have a good team, these is so much that is possible. Ashe!
WE EACH SEND A VOICE:
Five Years of Celebration in Song, Chant and Rhythm
CDs and TAPES NOW AVAILABLE FOR PRE-ORDERINGPreorder Prices: CDs: $10.00 Reg.$15 Tapes: $6.00 Reg.$10
CLICK HERE TO PREORDER CD.S & TAPES
This deal goes away when we get the bill, Order NOW!
RITUAL OF REDEDICATION & ICE CREAM SOCIAL
On Sunday, October 3rd, a fair representation of the Chorus gathered at the Staten Island abode of Miz Daya-Li to delcare our Rededication to the Chorus ands it' Mission. Our Bardic Ritual of Redeication was of course full of song, chant and drum and also featured a rtitual retelling of our Bardic History, much as the ancient bards would recite their credentials and deeds before their Lords. Updated from the last Rededication in February of 1997, the editied story weiged in at an impressive eight pages! The recitation, accomanied by environmental percussiuon, was epic and mesmerizing!
Coyote was also present to take his tithe in scrambled choreogrphy and trickly logistics. Honored with a smile and "let's move on, shall we..." Many of the Members' pledges were remakably powerful and moving. The power and energy present was very eveident. At the conclusion, sufffering from "ritual munchies" we were more than ready to tackle the adundant goodies, including an entire turkey roasted by House Mother Heather and an enticing assortment of ice creams.
We also noted and honored Members absent, either due to commitments or the slings and arrows of outraegous fortune. Basicly, wish you were there! All too soon it was over and we were forced to return to this world. But we are renewed, refreshed and refocused on our work and our future.
WINTER SOLSTICE CELEBRATION
We noticed that our rehearsal schedule in December has one of our dates a day away from The Winter Solstice. We decided to celebrate the day on Tuesday, December, 21, with an untypical weekday ritual celebration of the event. So to serve our community and the Bardic Arts we love so well, we will bring out once again The Songs of Solstice, a sing-it-yourself Choral Celebration of the Return of the Light.
We have reserved a large strudio space at CAP 21 so we can accomodate a fair crowd of our friends and guests. This will be open to the public, and all are welcome. Just be prepared to sing.The unsual weekeday evening event actually makes sense. Aside from proximity to the celstial date, it's also a couple of days removed from the harried Holiday seson weekends, already full of shopping, church, ritual, and family commitments. So we hope many of you out there will be free to attend. This particularl ritual is fun, festive, suitible for the whole family and has been a real crowd pleaser!
OPEN CHORAL YULE CELEBRATION
TUESDAY, DECEMBER 21, 7:00-9:30pm
CAP 21 Studios, Studio #3, 212 807-0202
Collaborative Arts Project, 18 West 18th Street, 6th Floor, NYCWe are planning an open, public Sing-It-Yourself Celebration of the Winter Solstice for ourselves and all our friends, fans and supporters. All are welcome as we greet the return of the light with joyous noise!
This is a rented space, please arrive on time!
MIX IT GOOD
On August 29th, Kurt, Athena and Joni went up to Blairs' Studio for a mixing session. It's amazing how tiring just sitting and listening to music can be when you're devoting your full attention to it! The digital technology is just marvelous, and we were able to accomplish in five hours what would have eaisly taken five days with analog reel-to-reel equipment! We brought back the goods for the team to drool and/or growl over. Sioux Honor Song and Ocean Mother Medley didn't make the cut. They don't stink, but don't quite make the grade.
In Council the following week, we mercilessly ditched material that we felt was not ready for prime-time. Tough, since it included some of our faves. We had an interesting moment, comparing the Session 1 and Session 3 takes of Gaia. We have a HUGE amount of our ego/identity wrapped up in that song and the two versions arrived with different strengths and flaws. When it came to choosing, both Kurt and Blair "Went to the Wives." This involves playing the stuff on good, big speakers cranked up to "whadda ya, nuts!" to hear every nuance. Gaia 1 wins, with tweaking, by a beat. The general consnesus, it sounds more like us.
Gettin' Busy! Hope to see many of you in the coming weeks!
Kurt Griffith/Talking Stone,
Choral DirectorMitaquye Oyasin * Blessed Be * Ashe * Shalom * A Salaam * Amen