Musitations™: Exploring Music, Meditation, Creativity and Wisdom

00:00 Intro 06:23 Travis' Journey 12:20 Travis attacked by Dogs in a Monastery in Thailand! 17:00 Travis and Drew's humbly start their YouTube channel in a 350sq ft studio apartment! 21:00 Travis shares about surprises and insights about his Sound Healing Journey 25:00 Michael's Yoga Nidra, Samskaras and release of emotions in Sound Healing and Meditation 32:00 Travis' suggestions to how to experi...

I was so honored to be interviewed on McCall's podcast Falling Into Soul: An Exploration of Inner Alchemy on the subject of Burnout & Soul Renewal , a subject near and dear to my heart. Having burned out 3 times in my life, I knew this would be a deep dive and it was! She graciously agreed for me to post it on my youtube channel and included it on my own Musitations podcast since this was the...

For those who know Mark Nepo's work he needs no introduction.  For those who are not yet familiar with his work, Mark Nepo has been called “one of the finest spiritual guides of our time,” “a consummate storyteller,” and “an eloquent spiritual teacher.” A bestselling author, he has published twenty-three books and recorded sixteen audio projects. His books have been translated into more than twent...

00:00 Intro  04:17 Letters to a Young Poet Inspiration 05:51 Rodin and Rilke’s Relationship 08:00 Rilke asks, “How should I live?”  09:22 Rodin’s Answer 11:51 Rilke’s quest for a Muse  14:29 Heart Work and Empathy 19:45 Creativity and Madness 21:12 Do we need demons to create? 26:00 Art and the Mystery of Being 27:45 Seeing with Awe and Wonder 30:37 Looking through Rilke’s Eyes 31:57 Letters and P...

Chris and I have been having musical soulversations for close to two decades.  An accomplished film composer, conductor and musician based in LA, he has worked with Michael Bublé, Dr. Dre, Christina Aguilera and many others.  More importantly, he has a deep and profound understanding and approach to the art and practice of creating music. We went through David Darling's Music for People apprentice...

Thrilled to have my good friend, colleague and fellow Multi-Grammy® nominee Will Clipman on Musitations™ for the kick off of season 2! I have admired Will and his profound work in world music and percussion for more than 3 decades!  It is such an honor and treat to have him on the show.  Little did I know we had so much in common; both being published poets, devoted world music multi-instrumentali...

I first met Felipe when he asked me to be part of a local PechaKucha, a fascinating form of storytelling that celebrates humanity. Felipe was the driving force and organizer for our local chapter. For those that don't know PechaKucha’s 20x20 presentation format allows each presenter 20 chosen images, each for 20 seconds. In other words, you've got 400 seconds to tell your story, with visuals guidi...

I am thrilled to have my good friend, fellow flutist Sherry Finzer on Musitations Episode 12! We've known each other close to a decade and share a love of the flute and a passion for bringing more healing, meditation and mindfulness into the world through music. Topics we explore:  What led you from classical/jazz to more healing music? How do you use music as a meditation for yourself and others?...

I so loved doing this podcast with one of my newest soul friends Susan Harper - a true moving storyteller, dream weaver and continuum teacher who opens portals to the vast space of creativity we all have within us!  This last year, I became a huge fan of the work of Emilie Conrad. I spent most of COVID reading, re-reading, digesting and book marking her riveting autobiography "Life on Land," where...

In episode 10 I'm thrilled to have the talented musician and author McCall Erickson back on Musitations™!  I first read a quote 5 years ago by McCall that touched me deeply, “Soul work is not a high road. It's a deep fall into an unforgiving darkness that won't let you go until you find the song that sings you home.”  It was a beautiful distillation of what I have found to be true on my own journe...

I was thrilled when my good friend and musical colleague from my Music for People days asked me to be on her wonderful Sounds of Healing Podcast.  We decided to create a 'soulversation' for both of our podcasts as we dove into The Sounds of Mindful Living from the Heart which I have renamed Soundful Living from the Heart for our Musitations podcast episode 9!  A particularly special, heartfelt par...

Jonathan Best is a multi-talented, multi-instrumentalist who is devoted to helping the world transform through music. A true music gardener, Jonathan and I met while we were both going through a life changing program known as Music For People guided by our beloved teacher, friend and fellow musician David Darling.  We had scheduled this session before David suddenly and unexpectedly took his last...

Bill Schulz (Chiz) has been my oldest and dearest soul brother and friend for the last 42 Earth years.  He was the first one that awakened in me both the practice of meditation at the age of 16, and the first person I explored musitations and soulversations with.  We have shared a love of using music as a form of inquiry into the nature of reality and being-at-large through our over 4 decades of f...

In episode 6 I have the wonderful opportunity to have a deep soulversation with musician and author McCall Erickson.  I first read a quote 4 years ago by McCall that touched me deeply, “Soul work is not a high road. It's a deep fall into an unforgiving darkness that won't let you go until you find the song that sings you home.”  It was a beautiful distillation of what I have found to be true on my...

In this episode I have the unique opportunity to have a deep dive conversation with the author of Radical Wholeness: The Embodied Present and the Ordinary Grace of Being , Philip Sheperd.  This profound book really touched me and gave expression to many of my own experiences of wholeness.  Philip shares my love of creativity and the power of present moment awareness for helping us move from our he...

Today is my paternal grandfather's spiritual birthday - the day he took is last breath 47 years ago. It is also the birthday of one of my dearest soul mentors who transitioned 13 years ago, Hugh Carter, whose soul name was Pilgrim - a deeply humble, wise and compassionate soul who taught me so much.  Hugh was a musician, teacher, and life long minister of the soul.  They both lived well into their...

In this episode Michael takes listeners into his micro-musitation practice: Three breaths to de-stress . It is a resonant breathing practice that calms the nervous system, reducing fear, anxiety and increasing blood flow.  This also has been found to be very beneficial in boosting immunity and also help you in dealing with respiratory distress.  Being Music is his brand of music that explores both...

"Each moment is note in the song of today," is a line in a poem I wrote many years ago while going through a dark night of the soul.  It was my attempt to stay with my experience of grief and despair, to feel my feelings all the way through until the grief and sadness cleansed me of all that was not essential and I found myself changed by the experience.  As painful as times like these are that we...

On this first episode of Musitations™ - Michael shares his Bill of Creative Rights. Modeled after his teacher, friend and improvisational musical mentor David Darling's Bill of Musical Rights, Michael shares about the creative crisis on the planet today.  We all need a creative outlet to help us maneuver the rapids of modern life like never before given pandemics like the Corona Virus.