A Breath of Song

Song: Great Turning Music by: Joanna Colwell Notes: It seems fitting that Grace Oedel, who tells us she is “Not doing any of this alone," brings us a song caught by a friend of hers, Joanna Colwell... and that this song references the mentor and teacher Joanna Macy, who helped so many folk seek reconnection. Grace and I are joined by Rebecca Csuy to learn this three part song, and then we dive into a laughter-filled conversation that visits some hard questions and nourishing responses. Grace is doing vital work in the world in many different arenas, seeking ways to help us get comfortable with the enormous changes we are facing, hospicing modernity -- but she points out, “I eat chocolate chips in bed… I am not a holier-than-thou person!” "We're all in it together," like the song says... "we are turning it around." Songwriter Info: Joanna Colwell is a yoga teacher and song leader in MIddlebury, Vermont. She started the Yoga Equity Project and can generally be found tearing down the patriarchy with art, song, ritual, and good cheer. Sharing Info: The song is free to share in oral tradition groups, but please contact Joanna for recording and/or performing permission. Song Learning Time Stamps: Start time of teaching: 00:03:03 Start time of reprise: 01:08:19 Links: Grace's Substack: https://graceoedel.substack.com/ Joanna Colwell – Middlebury yoga teacher: https://www.yogaequity.org/ Joanna Macy – The Work that Reconnects: https://workthatreconnects.org/ Octavia Butler: "Kindness eases change." "God is change.": https://www.octaviabutler.com/ Moira Smiley on A Breath of Song: https://www.abreathofsong.com/episodes--show-notes/39-stand-in-that-river#/ , https://www.abreathofsong.com/episodes--show-notes/40-render-a-remedy-with-moira-smiley#/ Heidi Wilson on A Breath of Song: https://www.abreathofsong.com/episodes--show-notes/139-bend-and-rebound#/ , https://www.abreathofsong.com/episodes--show-notes/140-the-feast-with-guest-heidi-wilson#/ , https://www.abreathofsong.com/episodes--show-notes/228-all-call-this-home#/ Singing Resistance: https://linktr.ee/singingresistance Kairos Center with Songs in the Key of Resistance: https://kairoscenter.org/projects/songs-in-the-key-of-resistance/ NOFA – Long-Handled Spoon Dinners: https://www.nofavt.org/about/blog/announcing-new-long-handled-spoons-dinners L’Chaim Jewish collective leadership in Burlington: https://www.lchaimcollective.org/ Ilyse Morgenstein Fuerst, UVM professor: https://www.uvm.edu/cas/religion/profile/ilyse-morgenstein-fuerst Elise Witt on A Breath of Song: https://www.abreathofsong.com/episodes--show-notes/21-song-deep-in-your-bones#/ , https://www.abreathofsong.com/episodes--show-notes/211-set-us-free#/ Nero’s Expedition Up the Nile by Moondog (Louis Thomas Hardin): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zpUIzHWB_zc James Baldwin “The children are always ours.”: https://www.thenation.com/article/archive/notes-house-bondage/ Aylie Baker – wayfinding in Micronesia: https://emergencemagazine.org/essay/wave-patterns/ Indigo Girls: https://www.indigogirls.com/ Batya Levine on A Breath of Song: https://www.abreathofsong.com/episodes--show-notes/166-breathe#/ Nuts & Bolts: 4:4, minor, 3-layers Join this community of people who love to use song to help navigate life? Absolutely: https://dashboard.mailerlite.com/forms/335811/81227018071442567/share Help us keep going: reviews, comments, encouragement, plus contributions... we float on your support. https://www.abreathofsong.com/gratitude-jar.html

Song: We Will Not Stand Down Music by: Grace Oedel Notes: This song came directly out of protective action, as Grace was asking herself how to develop a chant into a song -- it's got a groove, it's alive, and it's adaptable. Sing it with only a few words, or add some lyrics. Get people moving on the parts they resonate with and help them hear the collective pulse that underlies it all. Add what feels good in your body and voice -- and next week, join Grace and me for a wide-ranging conversation that asks questions about how can we keep showing up with and for each other for the long haul? How can we use rage as a fuel that doesn't burn us out, but helps us to not stand down, to not go home, to do what scares us because love is underneath that rage, moving us on! Songwriter Info: Grace is a doula for change and an enthusiast for collective action. She's an ordained rabbi who organizes with the L'Chaim Collective and serves as the executive director of NOFA-VT, building power for a just and delicious future. She sits on the boards of Rights and Democracy, Milk with Dignity, National Family Farm Coalition, National Sustainable Ag Coalition, the Better Selves Fellowship, and is an affiliate for the Institute for Agroecology. She leads a monthly community sing for resistance and hope that is a real banger, is a fan of desserts, and is mama to three little ones. Sharing Info: The song is free to share in oral tradition groups - use it anywhere it can be helpful! - but please contact Grace for recording and/or performing permission. Song Learning Time Stamps: Start time of teaching: 00:03:44 Start time of reprise: 00:15:29 Links: Grace's Substack: https://graceoedel.substack.com/ Nuts & Bolts: 4:4, major, 3-layers Join this community of people who love to use song to help navigate life? Absolutely: https://dashboard.mailerlite.com/forms/335811/81227018071442567/share Help us keep going: reviews, comments, encouragement, plus contributions... we float on your support. https://www.abreathofsong.com/gratitude-jar.html

Song: All Call This Home Music by: Heidi Wilson Notes: Heidi Wilson has devoted herself to the craft of songweaving -- and it shows! My groups have all loved this song -- a great mix of almost-rap with sweet harmony swells, and trading back and forth playfully. Once it's in your head, it stays, providing a rhythmic counterpart to walks and a sweet sense of neighborliness with all our more-than-human kin. Songwriter Info: Heidi Wilson has a passion for sharing songs in service to community and the wild world; songs that celebrate the seasons, bring groups together, offer thanks, muster courage, and make room for healing. She is drawn to the potent and surprising journey of deep-listening and collaborative emergent music making. Heidi has been leading community singing groups in Vermont for the last 15 years and currently sings with the vocal trio Heartwood. Sharing Info: Heidi says: "I’m on an ongoing journey figuring out how to share songs (that feel like generous gifts from the world) while also making a living as a songweaver. I am happy for the songs coming through me to be shared! If people are singing them in informal, community, or ritual settings that’s awesome, sing away! If people are sharing them in a setting where they are making a bunch of money or there is a budget for educational/repertoire materials and they are able to pass some of those resources my way I appreciate that. I would feel good about that reciprocity coming in the form of a one time donation (venmo: @Heidi-willsing) or by joining me on Patreon and supporting my songweaving work at any monthly level. And if you are interested in recording any of these songs let’s talk! Looking for recordings of more songs? I mostly share music through Patreon, an online platform to support artists. On my Patreon site I’ve posted 80+ songs. Each post has downloadable practice recordings of the harmony parts. And through Patreon I also link to a spreadsheet where the songs are organized into categories, so you can listen through and find just the right song for Spring, or Gratitude, or Trees." Song Learning Time Stamps: Start time of teaching: 00:03:06 Start time of reprise: 00:15:28 Links: Website: www.HeidiAnnWilson.com Patreon: www.patreon.com/HeidiWilson Heartwood Trio: www.heartwoodtrio.com Nuts & Bolts: 4:4, major, 3-layers Join this community of people who love to use song to help navigate life? Absolutely: https://dashboard.mailerlite.com/forms/335811/81227018071442567/share Help us keep going: reviews, comments, encouragement, plus contributions... we float on your support. https://www.abreathofsong.com/gratitude-jar.html

The Sunday after this episode is released, March 29th, 2026, at 4 p.m. Eastern time, there will be an online gathering of folk who use song to help navigate life -- and we'll sing through this Ribbon of Songs with live-looping! To learn more, click here, or sign up right now to join us! Lyrics ​& Links to the original episodes for the songs in this ribbon. ​ #74 Equinox Blessing by Heather Houston Honoring the darkness, Honoring the light, Honoring the day, Honoring the night All things find their way into balance Suspended in time Shadows and light #205 Set It Right by Ana Hérnandez Call: There’s a great trouble in the land Resp: We’re gonna set it right again (3x) All: We’re gonna set it right, set it right again. More verses to zip in: Trouble’s been brewing too many years We need clean water and healthy food People need housing, we’ve a right to thrive Mass deportations tearing families apart We are the ones who can change the world We need education to build a just world Families need childcare, they don’t need to go broke We need fair wages, rich folk need to be taxed! Add more verses to suit your actions. #146 Begin Again by Jean Farmer I begin again with my breath, joining earth, earth and spirit. I return again to my breath, ​walking home the unknown path. #168 The Net by Patricia Norton (inspired by Sri Nisargadatta) The net that I thought was holding me, it is full of holes, full of holes. The net that I thought was holding me, it is full of holes! The net that I thought was holding me tight – it is not a big barrier, I can get by it. The net that I thought was holding me, it is Full. Of. Holes. There is a ground of truth beyond the net! (a gazillion times) Like the water, I’m falling free. (4x) #184 Where the Moss Grows by David Ruffin Where the river flows and the moss on boulder grows, we can remember what we deeply know. There is time to be here and see what becomes clear... when we let it go, and go where the moss grows. Oh, when we let it go, ​and go where the moss grows. #36 Brighter Days by Jenny Cook There's so much hope in a snowdrop, the promise of spring to come. Hold on, hold on through the cold, brighter days will come. Join this community of people who love to use song to help navigate life? Absolutely: https://dashboard.mailerlite.com/forms/335811/81227018071442567/share Help us keep going: reviews, comments, encouragement, plus contributions... we float on your support. https://www.abreathofsong.com/gratitude-jar.html

Song: Life's Dance Music by: Tarren van Ettinger Notes: This dance of a song loosens me up every time I sing it -- both with the original two parts from Tarren, and then I snuck a third part in when I was singing it on my looper, and I was having so much fun with it, I added it too! Learning the steps as we go -- in and out of the circle, day into night into day, confident, then confused, and back again -- I am grateful for the way this song makes a sweet dance of the whole kit & kaboodle! Songwriter Info: Tarren is an AuDHD, agender singer/songwriter from Davenport, IA, formerly from Alaska. They have been writing songs actively since 2015, when they wrote their first song at the Village Fire gathering in Decorah. They take inspiration from everything from literature to personal experiences. Tarren lives with their animal-trainer partner, a dog, bird and rabbit, and the occasional foster-critter. Sharing Info: The song is free to share but Tarren always welcomes financial and/or networking support if/when folks are so moved. Song Learning Time Stamps: Start time of teaching: 00:03:19 Start time of reprise: 00:16:33 Links: Bandcamp: https://tarrenvanettinger.bandcamp.com Mastodon: https://musician.social/@tarrenvane Discord: @tarrenvane Email: tarrenvane@proton.me Nuts & Bolts: 3:4, major, 3-parts Join this community of people who love to use song to help navigate life? Absolutely: https://dashboard.mailerlite.com/forms/335811/81227018071442567/share Help us keep going: reviews, comments, encouragement, plus contributions... we float on your support. https://www.abreathofsong.com/gratitude-jar.html

Song: Walk Me Home Music by: Una McCann Notes: What do you do with anger? Can you set shame gently aside so you can get out of the way of what's coming through you and wants to be voiced? How do you move through times of doubt and grief to do what you are called to do? Una shares with us a beautiful song companion for walking each other home, and we explore these questions and so, so much more in this extended conversation. Songwriter Info: Una McCann is based in Belfast, Northern Ireland where she works as a choir leader and songwriter. She has been leading groups in harmony since her school days and has been working with adult choirs for 15 years. Una is a proud and active member of the UK Charity The Natural Voice Network, and works in line with the principle that we are all born to sing. She is passionate about the power of song and creativity to transform lives. Song writing is a part of life that sustains and supports Una. She writes melodies and words that she needs to hear in that moment and is always delighted when they resonate with other people too. In her spare time, Una enjoys running singing holidays and retreats. Sharing Info: Una says: "Please sing these songs; they were born to be sung. If you make money through singing the songs and would like to support me in my work as a song carrier, please purchase songs through my website or drop me an email for more options." Song Learning Time Stamps: Start time of teaching: 00:05:32 Start time of reprise: 01:28:35 Links: Website: www.unamccann.org Facebook: Una McCann Music Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/unamccann47/ Rhiannon: https://rhiannonmusic.com/home Earthsong camps with John Bowker: https://www.earthsong.ie/about-earthsong A note in sand or water: https://youtu.be/-CZlrgq8syE?si=VzijHkmvxuPUJ7MD The first song Una remembers singing: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8QfXXj8RoPk&t=32s Stéphane Grappelli – musicians of the eyes and musicians of the ears: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/St%C3%A9phane_Grappelli Una’s Soundcloud – Henrietta!: https://soundcloud.com/unamccann/henrietta Tara Brach – teachings of kindness and wellbeing: https://www.tarabrach.com/ Natural Voices Network: https://www.naturalvoice.net/ Indigo Girls: https://www.indigogirls.com/ The Roches: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Roches Airplane: https://youtu.be/MhVcbRldEfs?si=rubOOaeZ2S8lXF-a (from the Indigo Girls 1992 “Rites of Passage” album – my gift to Una was finding the song she loved!) Gamelan instrument: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gamelan Nuts & Bolts: 4:4, major, harmonized Join this community of people who love to use song to help navigate life? Absolutely: https://dashboard.mailerlite.com/forms/335811/81227018071442567/share Help us keep going: reviews, comments, encouragement, plus contributions... we float on your support. https://www.abreathofsong.com/gratitude-jar.html

Song: We All Need A Little Love Music by: Una McCann Notes: In this super-satisfying song, Una McCann stepped into the funk so we can all dig into a little more love in our lives -- not a bad thing to wish for filling our hearts. Doesn't matter what the regimes of the world are doing; we can invite a little more love into our hearts right now! Next week Una and I get to dive right into a conversation about the songwriting shift from singer-songwriter to community songs, how Una manages the energy of 300 singers every week, and more -- hope you can join us! Songwriter Info: Una McCann is based in Belfast, Northern Ireland where she works as a choir leader and songwriter. She has been leading groups in harmony since her school days and has been working with adult choirs for 15 years. Una is a proud and active member of the UK Charity The Natural Voice Network, and works in line with the principle that we are all born to sing. She is passionate about the power of song and creativity to transform lives. Song writing is a part of life that sustains and supports Una. She writes melodies and words that she needs to hear in that moment and is always delighted when they resonate with other people too. In her spare time, Una enjoys running singing holidays and retreats. Sharing Info: Una says: "Please sing these songs; they were born to be sung. If you make money through singing the songs and would like to support me in my work as a song carrier, please purchase songs through my website or drop me an email for more options." Song Learning Time Stamps: Start time of teaching: 00:03:16 Start time of reprise: 00:18:15 Links: Website: www.unamccann.org Facebook: Una McCann Music Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/unamccann47/ Nuts & Bolts: 4:4, minor, SATB Join this community of people who love to use song to help navigate life? Absolutely: https://dashboard.mailerlite.com/forms/335811/81227018071442567/share Help us keep going: reviews, comments, encouragement, plus contributions... we float on your support. https://www.abreathofsong.com/gratitude-jar.html

Song: The Reach Words by: Wendell Berry Music by: Malcolm Dalglish Notes: I learned this beautiful round from the amazing Moira Smiley, who connected me with Malcolm Dalglish to request his permission to share on this podcast. I continue to be amazed by the seeds we sow when we befriend and tend each other, unfolding understanding and trust. It's not always easy to reach forward or back -- but these seeds we plant with each other open, even if the winter is long and icy! At least that's where this poem is taking me today. And let me tell you, I practiced deep love and care for all of you whose voices are comfortable in higher ranges than mine! I taught it where I'm comfy -- but I did the reprise where Malcolm actually set the sheet music (nice tenor/soprano range) -- so if you want to buy the sheet music from him and sing along with it, that's where you should head... Songwriter Info: Malcolm Dalglish is a hammer dulcimer player and composer from Bloomington Indiana, whose many vocals celebrate a love of our natural world. He has set many poems by Kentucky author, and farmer, Wendell Berry. Sharing Info: Please buy sheet music on Malcolm's website if you plan to share this song as a songleader. Song Learning Time Stamps: Start time of teaching: 00:02:50 Start time of reprise: 00:14:29 Links: Malcolm's website: https://oooliticmusic.com/ Nuts & Bolts: 4:4, major, round with optional descant Join this community of people who love to use song to help navigate life? Absolutely: https://dashboard.mailerlite.com/forms/335811/81227018071442567/share Help us keep going: reviews, comments, encouragement, plus contributions... we float on your support. https://www.abreathofsong.com/gratitude-jar.html

The Sunday after this episode is released, February 15th, 2026, at 4 p.m. Eastern time, there will be an online gathering of folk who use song to help navigate life -- and we'll sing through this Ribbon of Songs with live-looping! To learn more, click here, or sign up right now to join us! Lyrics ​& Links to the original episodes for the songs in this ribbon. ​ 33. There Is A Love Words by Rev. Dr. Rebecca Parker Music by Elizabeth (Beth) Norton There is a Love holding me; There is a Love holding all that I love; There is a Love holding all; I rest in this love. ​ There is a Love holding us; There is a Love holding all that we love; There is a Love holding all; We rest in this love. 210. In This House with MaMuse By Karisha Longaker In this house, we lead with love. In this house, we lift each other up. In this house, we learn to fly with the dove. Oh, this is the house we've been dreaming of. Oh, this is the house we've been dreaming of. So come on over (come on over), Welcome in (welcome in), Come on over (come on over). Let's be friends (let's be friends). Come on over (come on over). There is enough. Oh, this is the house we've been dreaming of. Oh, this is the house we've been dreaming of. 101. Sacred Breaking By Hannah Jeffery The only way to be here is to be constantly breaking open How else do we make sense of this human experience? Beauty, break me open Tragedy, break me open Humility, break me open Love, crack open my heart Heartbreak is our birthright It's the only way to be here Heartbreak is our birthright It's the only way we can heal 158. Quiet At First Music by Eileen Webb Lyrics by Kai Skye It's quiet at first, this song of love for all the living things. But once you start to hear it, it's quite impossible to pretend there's something better you could be doing. 178. My Body By Alexandra Sarton Love My body is fly My body is beautiful My body is bold My body is mine 123. Arms of Love By Alexa Sunshine Rose Come now child, lay it down Just breathe Just be Come be cradled in the arms of love Just breathe, just be. Join this community of people who love to use song to help navigate life? Absolutely: https://dashboard.mailerlite.com/forms/335811/81227018071442567/share Help us keep going: reviews, comments, encouragement, plus contributions... we float on your support. https://www.abreathofsong.com/gratitude-jar.html

Song: Heading Home Music by: Ben & Dom Notes: I read a commentary by Ailey Jolie, saying, "You cannot breathe your way out of patriarchy." She was observing that regulating the body's emergency responses is good to do as a way of caring for ourselves -- but not if it means simply increasing our ability to tolerate a situation that is causing our bodies to cry "emergency." We need to breathe and steady ourselves, as this song of Ben & Dom's does so beautifully -- and the reason is to bring ourselves even more fully into the present, ready to respond effectively to what actually is because we have the capacity to look directly at what is not working. So let this song bring you home to yourself -- whole, rested, and ready. Songwriter Info: Ben & Dom are a singing duo, weaving their voices around songs old and new. Ben takes the high notes and Dom takes the low notes (most of the time). Their lyrics touch on friendship, nature and what it means for two men to sing together in this modern day. Sharing Info: Ben & Dom say: "We would love this song to be sung and shared in any circle. It is a parting song suitable for lots of different situations and occasions. If you feel like you want to share the song we have sheet music and teaching tracks available on our website. There is a tiered pricing structure to suit groups of different sizes and setups. If the cost is any kind of challenge for you then please be in touch and we can send you the materials free of charge. " Song Learning Time Stamps: Start time of teaching: 00:04:04 Start time of reprise: 00:18:29 Links: Ben & Dom's website: www.BenAndDom.com Ben & Dom's Bandcamp: https://benanddom.bandcamp.com Buy score for Heading Home: https://benanddom.bandcamp.com/ Essay of Ailey Jolie: https://www.facebook.com/share/p/16LcZ7iR43/ Nuts & Bolts: 4:4, major, 3-part harmony Join this community of people who love to use song to help navigate life? Absolutely: https://dashboard.mailerlite.com/forms/335811/81227018071442567/share Help us keep going: reviews, comments, encouragement, plus contributions... we float on your support. https://www.abreathofsong.com/gratitude-jar.html

Song: Pray With Our Feet Words by: Paul Vasile, based on a quotation by Rabbi Abraham Joshua Heschel Music by: Paul Vasile Notes: This is what folk in Minneapolis are doing -- praying with their feet, getting out on the street. They're singing songs to bless each other, the people they're protecting, and the ICE agents who are so misguided. And this is not the only place in the world where people of "middle power" gather -- not super-powers, not uber-wealthy -- just people who care about living in a world where we feed and educate our children, hold jobs with purpose. Paul Vasile describes it as "belonging belovedness -- you are safe, you are seen, you are heard." In this conversation, we dive into the sometimes knotty weeds of faith and how someone who is deeply connected in a faith tradition might want to expand into questions of what world we want to create together. Big trees. "Talk less, sing more." "As a queer person, I experienced a faith that helped me be a bigger, better me." Songwriter Info: Paul Vasile (he/him) is a church musician, teacher, coach, and composer who finds his greatest joy in collaborative and community-centered work. Committed to modeling expansive, imaginative, and hospitable experiences of music making wherever he goes, Paul's leadership builds trust, invites spaces of creativity, vulnerability, and play, and supports practices of reflection and holistic learning. For the past decade he has offered short- and long-term transitional leadership, consulting services, and creative resources to faith communities in seasons of discernment, challenge, and transformation. From 2016 to 2023, Paul served as the Executive Director of Music that Makes Community, a non-profit that shares "paperless" (oral tradition) leadership practices and songs. He traveled across North America modeling distinctive approaches to communal singing and learning at retreat centers, conferences, denominational gatherings, seminaries, and in congregations of all sizes. Paul also composes music that invites communities to express and explore their connection to sacred stories, their bodies, and the ecosystems that sustain us. His music is represented in Glory to God, All Creation Sings, and Voices Together, as well as The Hymn Society’s resource, Songs for the Holy Other: Hymns Affirming The LGBTQIA2S+ Community. Sharing Info: Please buy sheet music on Paul's website if you plan to share this song as a songleader. Song Learning Time Stamps: Start time of teaching: 00:04:35 Start time of reprise: 01:15:00 Links: Paul's website: https://www.paulvasile.com/ Paul's Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lovedintobeing/ Sheet music for Pray With Our Feet: https://www.paulvasile.com/products/pray-with-our-feet Feb 7th workshop at Lutheran church in Ft. Washington, MD with Maren Marchesini: https://www.sharingthesong.org/ Inspiration for lyrics, including quote by Rabbi Abraham Joshua Heschel: https://www.tbemaine.org/praying-with-hearts-and-feet Music that Makes Community: https://www.musicthatmakescommunity.org/ Rev. Donald Schnell, a 2012 interview as Music Makes Community was beginning: https://www.conversations.org/story.php?sid=329 Bobby McFerrin: https://bobbymcferrin.com/ Taizé chants: https://www.taize.fr/en/the-songs Chanda Rule: https://www.chandarule.com/ Hold Me by Nina Wise: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yxU_egWayc4&t=16s Nina Wise: https://ninawise.com East Coast songleader trainings: Mila Redwood in Toronto: https://www.milaredwood.ca/song-leader-training Patricia in Burlington, VT: https://www.juneberrymusic.com/songleader-training.html Alice Parker: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alice_Parker Liz Rog -- here's a place to find her book on songleading: https://www.centerforbelonging.earth/ Arvo Pärt – Passio: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Passio_(P%C3%A4rt) Spencer LaJoye: https://www.spencerlajoye.com/ Spencer's song Plowshare Prayer:...

Song: Trust the Work Words by: Pierre Teilhard de Chardin, S.J. Music by: Paul Vasile Notes: Trusting the work of love inside us, as excruciatingly slow as it seems sometimes.... this is a mantra I can fold right into my life, singing it on the regular to remind me back into the power of inner trust. Next episode is a conversation with Paul where we talk about the choice (he ok'd) to replace the word "God" with "love" -- and what it is we all seek. I offer this as a somatic check in as well -- as you sing it in different ranges, how does your voice and body respond? Songwriter Info: Paul Vasile (he/him) is a church musician, teacher, coach, and composer who finds his greatest joy in collaborative and community-centered work. Committed to modeling expansive, imaginative, and hospitable experiences of music making wherever he goes, Paul's leadership builds trust, invites spaces of creativity, vulnerability, and play, and supports practices of reflection and holistic learning. For the past decade he has offered short- and long-term transitional leadership, consulting services, and creative resources to faith communities in seasons of discernment, challenge, and transformation. From 2016 to 2023, Paul served as the Executive Director of Music that Makes Community, a non-profit that shares "paperless" (oral tradition) leadership practices and songs. He traveled across North America modeling distinctive approaches to communal singing and learning at retreat centers, conferences, denominational gatherings, seminaries, and in congregations of all sizes. Paul also composes music that invites communities to express and explore their connection to sacred stories, their bodies, and the ecosystems that sustain us. His music is represented in Glory to God, All Creation Sings, and Voices Together, as well as The Hymn Society’s resource, Songs for the Holy Other: Hymns Affirming The LGBTQIA2S+ Community. Sharing Info: Please buy sheet music on Paul's website if you plan to share this song as a songleader. Song Learning Time Stamps: Start time of teaching: 00:03:43 Start time of reprise: 00:16:07 Links: Paul's website: https://www.paulvasile.com/ Paul's Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lovedintobeing/ Nuts & Bolts: 4:4, minor, optional round Join this community of people who love to use song to help navigate life? Absolutely: https://dashboard.mailerlite.com/forms/335811/81227018071442567/share Help us keep going: reviews, comments, encouragement, plus contributions... we float on your support. https://www.abreathofsong.com/gratitude-jar.html

Song: The River Music by: Coco Love Alcorn Notes: Coco is entering a long and challenging journey with an aggressive cancer diagnosis. She’s hopeful and grounded, but as an independent musician, she doesn’t have access to benefits like employment insurance or sick leave. With her treatment schedule, she’s had to cancel every concert, every tour, and even postpone the recording of her new album. She also had to pause her local choir until further notice. This means she’s facing at least a year ahead with almost no income — while focusing all her strength on healing. Supporting her directly through buying her music, or donating to the GoFundMe will make this time easier. In the meantime, you can sing this song of Coco's, bringing river healing energy into the world! Songwriter Info: “Coco is the ultimate musical spark plug... an electrical connector through which the creative energy flows. In my 30 years of touring around the world, I have never seen another performer able to bring people together like Coco does.” ~ James Keelaghan - Artist Director, Summerfolk and renowned Canadian singer/ songwriter The first thing you notice about Coco Love Alcorn, is the voice. It's a rich, dynamic, supremely soulful instrument – hailed by the press as extraordinary, beautiful, and stunning – that has a way of touching your heart and making you care. As a performer, Alcorn is always in the moment, joyful, and genuine. She combines diverse musical influences including jazz, R&B, pop, folk, and Gospel. Her playful and witty character, love of improvising, and willingness to engage fearlessly with the audience has made Alcorn an established presence on the Canadian music scene. Born in Antigonish, Nova Scotia and now based in Owen Sound, Ontario, Alcorn’s career has spanned more than 20 years, 12 (9 solo) albums, cross-Canada tours, collaborations, festival appearances, award nominations, and notable success in TV and film licensing. And it took someone with a spirit like Alcorn's to navigate this path. "Throughout my career I have explored across many genres, collaborations and projects, taking a winding path to get to here,” she says. “But I’ve loved every step of my journey and trusted my inner curiosity to take me where it wanted to go.” Sharing Info: Please support Coco directly if you are sharing this song, either by buying the music on her website here: https://cocolovealcorn.com/store or supporting her GoFundMe here: https://www.gofundme.com/f/SupportCocoThroughCancer Song Learning Time Stamps: Start time of teaching: 00:02:49 Verses taught slowly: 00:11:55 First run through: 00:15:50 Start time of reprise: 00:20:53 Links: Coco teaching the song: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xgmg1K7BFxo&t=133s Coco's GoFundMe: https://www.gofundme.com/f/SupportCocoThroughCancer Lisa Littlebird teaching tracks: https://thebirdsings.com/the-river/ Sheet music for The River: https://cocolovealcorn.com/store Nuts & Bolts: 2:2, major, verses & chorus, harmonize Join this community of people who love to use song to help navigate life? Absolutely: https://dashboard.mailerlite.com/forms/335811/81227018071442567/share Help us keep going: reviews, comments, encouragement, plus contributions... we float on your support. https://www.abreathofsong.com/gratitude-jar.html

The Sunday after this episode is released, January 4th, 2026, at 4 p.m. Eastern time, there will be an online gathering of folk who use song to help navigate life -- and we'll sing through this Ribbon of Songs with live-looping! To learn more, click here, or sign up right now to join us! Lyrics ​& Links to the original episodes for the songs in this ribbon. 4. Let It Blow Through by Maggie Wheeler Let it blow through, let it blow through. Open up the windows of your soul, and let it blow through. Hard times come, and hard times go, let it blow through. Open up the windows of your soul, and let it blow through. Hard times come and hard times go, let it blow. Open up the windows of your soul, and let it blow through. 63. Awaken Me by Abigail Spinner McBride 1. Open my eyes to the miracles around me, wake me up, wake me up. (2x) 3. Shake me from my sleep and stir me from my dreaming. Chorus: Awaken me. (4x) 113. Borrow Trouble by Patricia Norton Let me not borrow this trouble ahead of time. Let me not carry this sorrow before it's mine. It will come when it comes, and go when it goes. I will know; I will know. It will come when it comes and go when it goes, I will know. My trust and love are banks on the river where grief and praise can find a flow. My tender heart, it floats on the ocean. The waves come. The waves go. 161. Good Friend by Jan Harmon Oh the wind, it is a song that harbours through the winter, Oh the sail, it is a door that bids the song to enter, And let us sail the sea, good friend, And let us sing together, The singer lasts a season long, While the song, it lasts forever. 204. May the Way Open Before You by Ana Hernández May the way open before you. May you see beyond darkness and light to the love you are; to the love you bring into the world. 6. Be Open by Debbie Nargi-Brown Be open for something wonderful to happen Be open to the possibility (x2) Aiye Aiye Aiye, Aiye Aiye Aiye (x2) Join this community of people who love to use song to help navigate life? Absolutely: https://dashboard.mailerlite.com/forms/335811/81227018071442567/share Help us keep going: reviews, comments, encouragement, plus contributions... we float on your support. https://www.abreathofsong.com/gratitude-jar.html

Song: I Believe Music by: Una McCann Guest singers:​ Rebecca Csuy, Seth Norton, Tom Norton, Marika Tabilio Notes: You'll hear a wonderful group of singers helping me cover all the ranges of this song: Tom and Seth bring the bass, Marika nails the tenor, Rebecca lines up the alto, and I take on soprano. There's a bit of octave confusion -- where do we find these pitches in our different voices?! And then this fabulous song and groove reminds us to see the goodness -- in you, in me, in everybody. So grateful to Una McCann for living into the teachings of Tara Brach and catching this song that feels so good to have singing in my body! Wishing everyone a week of discovery and festive comradery, whether you are celebrating holy days or simply the close of 2025... Songwriter Info: Una McCann is based in Belfast, Northern Ireland where she works as a choir leader and songwriter. She has been leading groups in harmony since her school days and has been working professionally with choirs for 15 years. Currently the chair of the Natural Voice Network, Una runs 6 Natural Voice style weekly choirs. She also enjoys running singing holidays and retreats. Una is passionate about the power of creativity to transform lives and encourages her singers to improvise, play and explore their own creativity. Song writing is a part of life that sustains and supports Una. She writes melodies and words that she needs to hear in that moment and is always delighted when they resonate with other people too. I Believe was born out of the wish to always see the best in people even when it’s hard and we don’t want to, and to remember that underneath all of us is someone who just wants to be happy. We all come from love but sometimes we lose our way a bit. It was inspired by listening to Tara Brach who creates beautiful talks on topics such as this. Sharing Info: Please buy sheet music on Una's website (see below) if you plan to share this song as a songleader. Song Learning Time Stamps: Start time of teaching: 00:05:24 Start time of reprise: 00:19:52 Links: Una's website: www.unamccann.org Sheet music for this song: https://unamccann.org/product/i-believe/ Una's Instagram: www.instagram.com/unamccann47 Una's Facebook (Una McCann Music): https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61558408430060 Tara Brach's website: www.tarabrach.com Natural Voice Network: www.naturalvoice.net Nuts & Bolts: 4:4, minor, 2 layers, one layer with melody & two harmonies Join this community of people who love to use song to help navigate life? Absolutely: https://dashboard.mailerlite.com/forms/335811/81227018071442567/share Help us keep going: reviews, comments, encouragement, plus contributions... we float on your support. https://www.abreathofsong.com/gratitude-jar.html

Song: What A Gift Music by: Angela Gabriel Notes: What a gift it was to be in conversation with Angela Gabriel -- we talked about how to deal with having been "poked in the voice" -- and the sensation of healthy singing. -- What was "one of the most idea shattering things" Angela has ever done in her life, and how "that butterfly excitement" led her there. How she's gotten to a place where, "I don't shame myself anymore," and a slew of adulting tactics she practices. ("I have a lot of arrows in my quiver.") How community singing can show up in activist spaces, where "it is difficult, but it doesn't have to be somber." How she sets up her own space -- "I actively choose to make it colorful..." and how that helps with healing. "The tremble" when singing for someone who is dying. Percussion and how it that has made Angela's voice distinctive in community singing songs... SO many things I loved in our conversation, not to mention this song! Songwriter Info: Angela is a performer, a teacher, a facilitator, and a lifelong learner. Her mission in life is to facilitate expressive creative, musical, and vocal experiences and to encourage folks of any age and background to replace judgement with curiosity and open themselves to their unique, creative flow. Sharing Info: The song is free to share but Angela always welcomes financial and/or networking support if/when folks are so moved. Song Learning Time Stamps: Start time of teaching: 00:04:55 Start time of reprise: 01:22:01 Links: Moira Smiley: Leather Britches: https://moirasmiley.com/downloads/leather-britches-2/ “The Truth” – Velma Frye: https://www.abreathofsong.com/episodes--show-notes/18-the-truth#/ Josh Habermann – Santa Fe Desert Chorale: https://desertchorale.org/about/our-people/#artistic_director Susan Swaney – choir director in Bloomington UU church: https://www.uubloomington.org/about/our-ministers-and-staff/ Kate Munger – Women Singing In Circle retreat: https://www.lamafoundation.org/engage/events/women-singing/ Threshold Choirs: https://thresholdchoir.org/ Melanie DeMore: https://melaniedemore.com/ Becky Reardon: https://beckyreardonmusic.com/ Terri Garthwaite: https://terrygarthwaite.com/ Poor People’s Campaign: https://www.poorpeoplescampaign.org/ Pam Blevins Hinkle – No Kings Song doesn't seem to be online yet, but her website is https://pamblevinshinkle.com/ Online group called “Lumos Transforms”: https://lumos-transforms.mn.co/ PetCanvas: https://mypetcanvas.com/ Mbira: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mbira Unitarian Universalist Church in Bloomington, IN: https://www.uubloomington.org/ Rhiannon’s All the Way In improvisation class: https://rhiannonmusic.com/2026-all-the-way-in “I live my life in a river of grace…” Kate Munger: https://thresholdchoir.bandcamp.com/track/life-grace-trust Yes – Fragile: https://www.yesworld.com/discography/fragile/ Willow Smith – Empathogen: https://willowsmith.com/products/empathogen-digital-download Angela's website: www.angelagabriel.me Nuts & Bolts: 4:4, blues minor, 2 layers and body percussion Join this community of people who love to use song to help navigate life? Absolutely: https://dashboard.mailerlite.com/forms/335811/81227018071442567/share Help us keep going: reviews, comments, encouragement, plus contributions... we float on your support. https://www.abreathofsong.com/gratitude-jar.html

Song: Make Good Trouble Music by: Angela Gabriel Notes: I had the privilege of recording this song together with many members of my familiy -- and something happens on this recording that is very common in community singing -- I started in the key of A minor, and group wisdom decided that the key of A-flat minor, slightly lower, felt better in our collective voice! So you'll hear us readjusting together to reach an agreed sound, and what's cool is we all get there. Rather than rerecord to get an ordinary "perfectly pitched" recording, I decided to stay with the energy of the moment -- that really beautiful feel of connection that we had in that room -- because that's what this song is encourages. We support each other to speak up, to disrupt when needed, to make good, necessary trouble! You'll hear the six-year-old in the room leading some warm ups, and even a blooper at the end (never telling whose phone it was....) Songwriter Info: Angela is a performer, a teacher, a facilitator, and a lifelong learner. Her mission in life is to facilitate expressive creative, musical, and vocal experiences and to encourage folks of any age and background to replace judgement with curiosity and open themselves to their unique, creative flow. Sharing Info: The song is free to share but Angela always welcomes financial and/or networking support if/when folks are so moved. Song Learning Time Stamps: Start time of teaching: 00:03:56 Start time of whole song: 00:09:21 Links: Angela's website: www.angelagabriel.me Nuts & Bolts: 4:4, minor, 3 layers, each harmonized Join this community of people who love to use song to help navigate life? Absolutely: https://dashboard.mailerlite.com/forms/335811/81227018071442567/share Help us keep going: reviews, comments, encouragement, plus contributions... we float on your support. https://www.abreathofsong.com/gratitude-jar.html

Song: Breath By Breath Music by: Juliana Murphy Notes: There is so much joy and delight in the holiday seasons -- and there can also be so much grief and loss. The air is thick with the smells of sugar and memories, we are in contact (or not) with folk with whom we carry long histories, and sometimes it's really hard to show up as we are now. I love this song of Juliana's for the full acceptance of grief: "I will allow my heart to be broken." And I love the way that very allowing unsticks feelings, so they become a river flowing, a soul opening... and I love the way she gives a concrete way to do all this: "breath by breath, steady and slow." This song helps me be wiser about allowing my full self to include my grief -- and reminds me that breath by breath, that grief can be a gentle, soul-opening presence. Songwriter Info: Juliana Murphy (she/they) comes to the circle with a lifelong love of singing and a library of original and collected songs that connect us to ourselves, nature, and the cycles and rhythms of being a human on this planet. She brings a deep desire to sing a more beautiful, inclusive, loving, sustainable, and delightful world into being. Juliana is co-founder of the Monsoon Seed Choir and Chrysalis Choir, co-tends the Tucson Community Song Circle, is a graduate of the Littlebird Songleader Flight School for community songleading and is a member of the Ubuntu Choirs Network. Sharing Info: Juliana says: "This song being carries potent medicine for moving grief. It is most supportive when sung within a container of care, both individually and in community. If you plan to perform or record it with the intent to sell, please contact me for permission." Song Learning Time Stamps: Start time of teaching: 00:03:22 Start time of reprise: 00:15:51 Links: Website: https://www.julianamurphy.com/ Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/cw/julianamurphy Community Singing Offerings: https://www.tucsonsongcircle.com/ SoundCloud: https://soundcloud.com/jumutx Nuts & Bolts: 3:4, major, 2-layer Join this community of people who love to use song to help navigate life? Absolutely: https://dashboard.mailerlite.com/forms/335811/81227018071442567/share Help us keep going: reviews, comments, encouragement, plus contributions... we float on your support. https://www.abreathofsong.com/gratitude-jar.html

The Sunday after this episode is released, November 23rd, 2025, at 4 p.m. Eastern time, there will be an online gathering of folk who use song to help navigate life -- and we'll sing through this Ribbon of Songs with live-looping! To learn more, click here, or sign up right now to join us! Lyrics ​& Links to the original episodes for the songs in this ribbon. 89. a spell for intergenerational trauma by Ahlay Blakely Breaking Breaking Breaking the cycles now Ripple through Through to the ancient ones Ripple through Through to the future ones ​ Healing at the Root We’re calling Healing at the root of our belonging 170. Over/Under by Lyndsey Scott Over / under All the way through Over / under Back to you Over / under All the way down Over / under Lost then found I am the love that doesn't leave We do this til we free us! Feel thru the dark is how we see We do this til we free us! We are remembering how to grieve We do this til we free us! You are a part of my family We do this til we free us! 77. Winter Song by Dirk Mont Campbell All things come and go, summer sun and winter snow. Blow wind, fall, rain; all things die and live again. Fallen leaves lie on the ground so cold and dead. Oak tree stands bare, and the holly green and red. Robin sings of love and loss for Jenny Wren. ​All things that die will return to life again. 50. Navigate the Current by Saro Lynch-Thomason I often feel a deep despair For a pain that feels unending For a body made with many faults That resists all salve or mending I’m tossed and driven with a tide Of an ocean unforgiving I am left shaking on the shore Afraid of even standing. I feel a deep temptation then As I am lying weary For a marble form to encase my bones That I may rest more deeply What comfort to be cast as stone To be static and suspended No ecstasy, no misery Nothing given or expended I am startled then by the touch of friends Who raise and fortify me Who say my name, bid me stretch my frame Help me face the sea’s great fury. Where would I be in these long hours Without their voices by me? To ease the pain and soothe the strain Of a troubled and angry body? ​ I am bound between the amity That salves a body splintered And the cries and sighs of the daily hours That pull my soul more inward. Oh, may I learn to trust the hands That soothe a pain so fervent ​May I ride each wave with a greater faith And navigate the current 147. Walk On Through by Samara Jade The Mystery is holding your hand The Mystery is holding your hand The Mystery is holding your hand As you walk through The angels are holding your hand The angels are holding your hand The angels are holding your hand As you walk through…. Chorus: So walk on through - no turning back Walk on through - we got your back We’ll stand by you You’re not alone So walk on through, we’ll walk you home (other verses, same form, fill in the blank with: stars and moon, mother earth, ancestors, all of us, etc) 68. Share the Journey by Katie Sontag As the dark fades away, here it comes, a brand-new, new day. As it leaves, we watch it go, all we learned, all we need to know. I believe we will survive. I believe this is our time. ​I believe we are alive to share the journey, to share the journey. Join this community of people who love to use song to help navigate life? Absolutely: https://dashboard.mailerlite.com/forms/335811/81227018071442567/share Help us keep going: reviews, comments, encouragement, plus contributions... we float on your support. https://www.abreathofsong.com/gratitude-jar.html

Song: Set Us Free Music by: Elise Witt Notes: Elise is an inventive songleader and huge heart in Georgia, USA, whom I met online during the pandemic doing vocal improv with our shared teacher, Rhiannon... but I had been in contact with her before then because I wanted to sing a song of hers with my community chorus. Here, she has set words from the Rev. Timothy McDonald, calling us to the kind of integrity that gives freedom. I teach the song a capella, so you can sing with just my voice -- and then do it with piano at the end, so you can experience it that way -- and then if you follow the shownote links, you can sing it in Spanish and English with Elise, Judith & Lisset Rodés -- Lisset wrote the Spanish words... and it's a little slower, a little more legato than I sang it. I love it when there's a chance to compare different versions of the same song! Songwriter Info: Elise’s concerts of Global, Local & Homemade Songs™ and her Impromptu Glorious Chorus™ workshops create and connect singing communities around the world. Born in Switzerland, raised in NC, and living in Atlanta since 1977, Elise speaks 5 languages fluently and sings in at least a dozen more. The Elise Witt Choral Series features choral arrangements of her original compositions and she recently published All Singing, a songbook with 58 original songs including music notation, lyrics and chords, stories and photos. A founding member of Atlanta’s Theatrical Outfit, Elise spent many years as a Resident Artist, visiting communities around the state of Georgia and the Southeast, teaching global music and writing local songs with students of all ages. From 2009 until 2024 Elise served as Director of Music Programs at the Global Village Project, a non-profit, special purpose middle school for teenage refugee girls in Decatur Georgia, for which she published Imagine A Circle: The Global Village Songbook, Using Singing and Songwriting to teach English for Multi-lingual learners. Elise currently gathers singers of all persuasions in joyous circles, and continues her global touring. Sharing Info: Elise says: "I always love to share songs in oral (by ear) tradition and I'd love to hear from you how and with whom you share the song... AND the song is also available as a choral arrangement (SATB, SSAA, TTBB) on my website https://elisewitt.com/web/ewcs-choral-music/" Song Learning Time Stamps: Start time of teaching: 00:02:49 Start time of reprise: 00:15:29 Links: Website: www.EliseWitt.com A glimpse of what I do: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e0YHTe_Q7bE&feature=youtu.be All Singing: The Elise Witt Songbook: https://elisewitt.com/web/product-category/songbook/ “Jenny Jenkins” global community music/art video created for DAS Year 1: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QCmNNZIVZkw&t=2s “Ready or Not” global community music/art video created for DAS Year 2: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UNsUsSobImw&t=11s Imagine A Circle: The Global Village Project Songbook https://elisewitt.com/web/gvp-songbook/ Elise's Bandcamp: https://www.BandCamp.com/EliseWitt Choral arrangements by Elise: https://elisewitt.com/web/ewcs-choral-music/ Choral arrangements for Set Us Free in particular: https://elisewitt.com/web/product/set-us-free/ Spanish and English version of Set Us Free in concert: https://youtu.be/L5IjAhJZyOo?si=5WIleerpseLX_rxo Nuts & Bolts: 4:4, major, many verses Join this community of people who love to use song to help navigate life? Absolutely: https://dashboard.mailerlite.com/forms/335811/81227018071442567/share Help us keep going: reviews, comments, encouragement, plus contributions... we float on your support. https://www.abreathofsong.com/gratitude-jar.html