Didjeridu Ecstasy

1. November

The foundation for this piece is an 11/8 rhythm I came up with on a doira, a frame drum with jingles from Xin Jiang, China. Yes, there are two different didj tracks, one on the right channel, the other on the left.

2. Nestucca Ecstasy

Twice a year I play at Diana Zemilla Clark's "Whole Earth -Whole Person Retreat" at Nestucca Sanctuary on the Oregon Coast. The yurt there is one of my favorite places to play didjeridu. It has become a tradition at the retreat for me to play at the end of an evening of ecstatic dancing. This piece first came through on one such evening.

3. The Black Glove

Dedicated to Tommie Smith and John Carlos, 1st and 3rd place finishers in the Men's 200 Meter Dash at the 1968 Summer Olympics in Mexico City. At the awards ceremony they stood at attention, each with one arm raised with a clenched fist, wearing a black glove, in protest of the conditions faced by African Americans.

4. Gnome

Inspired by and dedicated to my friend Naomi L. Frankel. This particular version is the longest performance of this piece I've ever done, and is my favorite piece on the CD. When I finished this take, Steve, the recording engineer, said "That was amazing."

5. A Breath of Fresh Air

Here I explore the relationship between sound and silence.

6. Dervish in Bunny Slippers

Inspired by and dedicated to Brieana Endura. I saw her at the Dances of Universal Peace wearing bunny slippers, and this title flashed in my head.

7. Camellotto

Another drum and didj piece. The drum is a bendir, a Turkish frame drum, and the rhythm is in 9/8 time. This is another piece with two different didj tracks.

8. I'm An Old Didj Hand

I once was challenged to play country music on my didjeridu. This is what I came up with.

9. Boo Hu

This piece debuted on The Autonomy Hour, Kathy Fors' radio show on KBOO-FM, Portland.

10. All We Are

This is inspired by the wicked witch of the West's guards in "The Wizard of Oz."

11. Devil's Churn

During the first recording session for this CD I took a break and visited Devil's Churn, a big cleft in the rock where the sea is whipped to a froth just south of Yachats, Oregon, and about 20 minutes from the recording studio. This piece was recorded shortly after returning to the studio.

12. A Full Deck

This was my first experience with overdubbing. The two didj tracks were originally meant to be different takes. I suggested listening to the two of them together, and they fit.