Earlier this year Canyon released two Native American albums of children’s music: Goodnight, Sweet Dreams, I Love You by Randall Paskemin and Navajo Songs for Children by Talibah. While expressions from different traditions, Cree and Navajo, both albums present songs for children in native language and in English. Randall features lullabies and songs for younger children infused with his Cree (Sweetgrass First Nation of Canada) heritage such as Dance Baby, Dance! Talibah includes songs about traditional Navajo ways as well as popular culture such as Spider-Man.  See the video below for a child’s blessing by Talibah.

Both albums are great ways to introduce children to Native American culture in a fun way which they can relate to while learning about other traditions. Both recordings include native language transliterations and English translations.

More behind the scene footage and photographs of a video shoot featuring four songs from R. Carlos Nakai, William Eaton and Will Clipman’s Dancing into Silence.

We did have the excitement of a snake “attack”, though it was the snake that was attacked. While setting the glow lights in the pitch darkness to mark the trail for the first dawn shoot, I allegedly stepped on the head of the snake pictured below. I did think I saw a very small snake in the light of my headlamp, but it wasn’t moving in the night cold and I thought I’d stepped over it. Jeff Nagy, who provided the pictures from his camera phone, documented the remains. Rattle snakes were on everyone’s mind (especially on the second dawn shoot which was in less traveled desert), and are always to be treated with extreme caution.

Check back here for more information on the release of the videos which are in the editing process.

On Sunday, May 23, Canyon Records staff traveled to Gates Pass west of Tucson to spend three days on a video shoot featuring  four songs from R. Carlos Nakai, William Eaton and Will Clipman’s Dancing into Silence. Stephen Butler, the producer/director for the project, and I had gone ahead to scout locations and shoot test footage. Sunday afternoon we showed R.C., Will Clipman and the Canyon staff the three shooting sites.

Monday morning we are onsite at 4:00 a.m. moving equipment  uphill through the desert in absolute darkness. Using glowsticks I marked the trail through the cacti (jumping cholla is the worst to encounter) and up slopes covered with loose rock. Everyone wore a headlamp. The view from the road was eerie: a line of colored lights snaking up an unseen hill with bobbing white lights (headlamps) indicating where Canyon staff was moving equipment up the trail

The artists showed up at 4:30 a.m. with William Eaton driving through the night from Cottonwood, Arizona (about five hours)  to arrive on time. The morning was windy which made use of the crane difficult, but we covered our footage for one song. We finished about 10:30 a.m. (light is not good for shooting after this time). At 3:00 p.m. we were at our second site (not shown in the video) for sunset shooting. We are off the evening shoot about 9:30 p.m. after covering our footage for a second song.

Everyone worked long, hard hours, but expressed they’d rather be there than back at the office: Alexis Santos, Kathy Norris, Jack Miller, Jeff Nagy (of Nile Graphics) and his son Alex, and, of course, R.C., William and Will who were very patient while we set up shots and dealt with technical issues. I also owe thanks to the staff who kept the office going while we were on our campaign in the desert: Marty Butler, Kristen Butler and Lisa Minker.

Check back for the second part of our on-location video for Dancing into Silence.

Don’t miss the snake attack.

This past Friday Canyon producer/director Stephen Butler and I returned to Gates Pass outside of Tucson to shoot B-roll footage for the videos for the R. Carlos Nakai, William Eaton & Will Clipman release, Dancing into Silence. After a relaxing stroll (about a half a mile) uphill hauling a couple hundred pounds of equipment through the Arizona desert in 100+ degree heat, we set up three cameras, shot until dark, and then sauntered (stumbled) back down with head lamps as our only light. This was a follow up shoot to our previous full crew shoot in May.  These videos were shot on my Nokia E71.

Native American flutist R. Carlos Nakai talks about his new exhibit at the Musical Instrument Museum (MIM) in Phoenix, Arizona. Nakai’s exhibit features two flutes he donated plus his two gold records for Canyon Trilogy and Earth Spirit that he loaned (added after the picture at left was taken). His exhibit is part of the Artists’ Gallery which features instruments and memorabilia by John Lennon, George Benson, Eddie Palmieri and many others.

Nakai spoke shortly after performing in the MIM’s beautiful theater to MIM’s first sold out concert. The MIM has the world’s most comprehensive collection of musical instruments featuring instruments from all parts of the globe displayed in state of the art galleries. Opened in April, MIM includes a special gallery where children of all ages have the opportunity to play many kinds of instruments (including a very large gong). The MIM is truly an experience that should not be missed (it will take more than one trip to enjoy everything the MIM has to offer). For more information go to www.theMIM.org.

Estun-Bah (Apache “for the woman”) features Native American flutist Tony Duncan, guitarist Darrin Yazzie and drummer Jeremy Dancing Bull.  In From Where the Sun Rises, Estun-Bah blends the music of Native traditions with a contemporary acoustic sound that results in an appealing new expression of modern Native culture.  Click here to listen to Dance of the Painted Warrior.

Duncan, a member of the famed Yellow Bird Indian Dancers, is a championship hoop dancer who has performed throughout the world.  Duncan brings the flair of the hoop dance to his compositions and flute playing.  To get to know Tony in his own words, view the video below.

The album’s beautiful cover image is “Jason’s Corner” by Michael Fatali.  For more of Michael’s beautiful landscapes go to www.fatali.com.

Gabriel Ayala’s final thoughts on his first trip to Venezuela.

Wednesday, November 25th, 2009, the day was spent sightseeing around Guarenas. I found the architecture of the buildings very beautiful and the people of Venezuela were very welcoming. That evening we travelled to Guatire where I would perform my first concert held in a building for the Performing Arts. More…

Saturday, November 21st, 2009, I was sitting at an airport in Houston, Texas on my birthday getting ready to depart to Caracas, Venezuela. As the invited featured artist at the “Festival Internacional de la Guitarra Academica”, I arrived in Caracas after an eight (8) hour flight just as the sun was about to rise. More…

In late April 2010 Canyon Records recording artist Opie Day-Bedeau (Bois Forte Band of Minnesota Chippewas) entered the studio to work on his debut solo recording.  The recording titled “One Love” will be comprised of Round Dance songs and is set to be released through Canyon Records this summer. Opie is best known as head singer for the championship Pow-Wow group Midnite Express as well having sat with some of the best drum groups of the last two decades including Eyabay and The Boyz.  Recently, Opie has been sharing his excellent Round Dance songs with fans all over Pow-Wow country and in 2009 he released a Round Dance album with good friend and respected singer Mike Sullivan, Sr. (Lac Courte Orielles Ojibwe) entitled “Love, Lies & Lullabies.” During the session for the new solo album, Opie and the Canyon Records studio were visited by Terry St. John and Gee Yellowbird members of the legendary drum group Eyabay (Red Lake Chippewa Nation)

All of us at Canyon Records would like to congratulate composer James DeMars for receiving the Arizona Governor’s Arts Award.

When R. Carlos Nakai began working with Canyon in the early 1980s, he told us that one of his major goals was to perform with symphonies and to bring the Native American flute to the classical world.  In 1986, Canyon commissioned for Nakai the first concerto for Native American flute and orchestra, Spirit Horses.  The commission was awarded to James DeMars who would go on to write extensively for Nakai, including Two World Concerto which Nakai has performed with over twenty-five symphonies including the Philadelphia Orchestra.  In the 1990s Canyon would release three albums (Spirit Horses, Native Tapestry, Two World Concerto) featuring Nakai performing DeMars’ compositions.  The latest release for DeMars and Nakai is Guadalupe, Our Lady of the Roses, a concert opera based on the story of Juan Diego’s encounter with Our Lady of Guadalupe.  DeMars composed the Native American flute part as if it was a vocal soloist, scoring the flute to interact with the lead vocalista.  This technique required a performer like Nakai with extensive orchestral experience.

The Governor’s Arts Award was bestowed on DeMars for Guadalupe, Our Lady of the Roses making him the first composer to receive this honor in Arizona history.  Guadalupe, Our Lady of the Roses is also available as a DVD of the premiere concert.