Newsletter “Sacred Soundscapes” – Insights, stories, and inspiration from Nandin – exploring the art and heart of music.

Latest Posts

Will Curiosity Overcome Your Fear?
Will Curiosity Overcome Your Fear? We all have protective reactions in place. It’s about survival and it’s what keeps us from jumping in front of buses and off cliffs. It also can keep us from moving forward. We react as if it’s a life and death situation, but often it’s really just about trying something… Read more: Will Curiosity Overcome Your Fear?
From Effortful to Automatic, Why Chunking Works.
From Effortful to Automatic, Why Chunking Works. Have you been searching for the best way to practice, to maximize the use of your time? Here’s a great explanation of the method called “chunking” – taking smaller bite sized bits of music so that you can learn more quickly and easily. Steven Kotler from the Flow… Read more: From Effortful to Automatic, Why Chunking Works.
The Frustrated Flutist – Shostakovitch and Orchestra Seating Plans.
The Frustrated Flutist – Shostakovitch and Orchestra Seating Plans. I just finished playing in a couple of concerts featuring Dmitri Shostakovitch with an amateur orchestra that includes some professionals (me and a few others). The 5th Symphony is a real parody against the Stalinist regime. Overboard marches, an achingly tragic slow movement and a completely… Read more: The Frustrated Flutist – Shostakovitch and Orchestra Seating Plans.
An Ancient Tip and a Mantra.
An Ancient Tip and a Mantra. I’d like to pass on to all of the wonderful benefits that Nick Polizzi (“The Sacred Science “ documentary) has to say about meditation: “If there is one practice that I’d recommend to anyone who wants to improve their health and overall quality of life, the answer is simple.Meditate.… Read more: An Ancient Tip and a Mantra.
Part 2, Peter’s Piccolo Party.
Part 2, Peter’s Piccolo Party. DOUBLE STOP DUETS! Frustrated that about all those LOVELY double stops in some of that wonderful violin music you’d love to play?These duets are for you!Passacaglia – J. HalvorsenandSarabande con Variazione– J. HalvorsenThey sound especially thrilling when played by two piccolos! TONGUE TIP DANCE Then there was a wonderful performance… Read more: Part 2, Peter’s Piccolo Party.
Peter’s Piccolo Party!
Peter’s Piccolo Party! After my accidental pilgrimage to a sacred site in Brugge (see previous newsletter, or my Blog), I spent a weekend full of wonder with Piccolo Master Peter Verhoyen. His teaching techniques are not only extremely well illustrated and explained (be sure to see his books) but he includes the listeners in the… Read more: Peter’s Piccolo Party!
An Unexpected Grace in Brugge.
An Unexpected Grace in Brugge. Here I am, a tourist in Brugge – the Venice of Belgium – and it is indeed picturesque. Canals wind through centuries-old buildings beneath pink clouds and blue sky. I feel like I’ve stepped into a Vermeer painting. I arrived a day early to explore before the Piccolo Weekend, which… Read more: An Unexpected Grace in Brugge.
TEACHING UNLEASHED, with Lea Pearson.
TEACHING UNLEASHED. In conversation with with Lea Pearson, creator of “Music Minus Pain”. Last week, Lea Pearson hosted a virtual open house for her online program, “Teaching Unleashed”. She shared her journey with hand numbness and discussed a new teaching program focused on physical technique and body awareness for musicians. I joined the discussion and… Read more: TEACHING UNLEASHED, with Lea Pearson.
The Healing Power of Presence.
The Healing Power of Presence. I was ill with some sort of virus recently, and remembered what Eckhart Tolle had to say about how he became even more present than usual when he was ill. So, I tried being present with my stomach ache, and noticed that my body really liked it. It relaxed with… Read more: The Healing Power of Presence.
Why We’ll Never Stop Making Music.
Why We’ll Never Stop Making Music. Unique self-expression is part of our humanity. AI Cannot Create YOUR experience of making music. The prominent Greek philosophers Plato and Aristotle affirmed that music contained an intrinsic element that was conducive to the promotion of moral or spiritual harmony and order in the soul. What’s fascinating about Plato… Read more: Why We’ll Never Stop Making Music.
The Next Level on Your Journey as a Human.
The Next Level on Your Journey as a Human. The Next Level on Your Journey of Discovery Ask yourself:Are we evolving spiritually?Are we trailblazing inwards?Looking for new inner frontiers? A lot has been accomplished in the last few decades especially regarding tech. However, although we’re exploring outer space, we still don’t know the depths of our… Read more: The Next Level on Your Journey as a Human.
Music as a Healing Meditation.
Music as a Healing Meditation. Here’s what the Romanian composer Violeta Dinescu says about music as a meditation: “I was fortunate to have an exceptional piano teacher who drew my attention to the secret of piano sound: depending on how you strike the key, you can shape the sound by controlling the richness of the… Read more: Music as a Healing Meditation.
Are You Your Thoughts?
Chopping Wood and Carrying Water The Zen Master was asked what changed when he became enlightened. He answered: Before enlightenment, I chopped wood and carried water.Now, I chop wood and carry water. Just what did he mean? Is it a Zen Koan, an unanswerable conundrum? Something to confuse the mind?In a way, yes. Because the… Read more: Are You Your Thoughts?
Why We Make Music.
Why We Make Music. “Listening to music can be a wonderful meditation.” “The practising of an instrument can be a wonderful meditation for many people because it really stops the mind. There’s just the pure act of listening. You know yourself as the consciousness that’s listening.” Eckhart plays the soundless flute, the equivalent of one… Read more: Why We Make Music.
Breath is Our Meditation.
Breath is Our Meditation. Quote: “Make it a meditation:when you breathe out, just feel that you are pouring your love into existence; when you breathe in, existence is pouring its love into you.”– Osho That’s the essence of existence for wind players! We take a breath in, and exhale sound which carries a vibration, a… Read more: Breath is Our Meditation.
What Is Missing?
What Is Missing? The fact is, nothing is really missing, but when we’re not present in the moment that we are in, it can feel like something is missing. Presence. Being here, now. You’ve probably heard that somewhere! But we get lost so easily in our thoughts. Sure, we have to make plans, do our… Read more: What Is Missing?
The National Flute Convention was a Blast!
The National Flute Convention was a Blast! What an incredible time we had at the National flute Convention! There were usually two or three or even more sessions going on at the same time that I would have loved to have attended. The flutists were top calibre. I also heard some really exquisite piccolo playing… Read more: The National Flute Convention was a Blast!
What We Are that AI Isn’t.
© Wailing Wall Photo: Shutterstock
My time with Osho.
April 23, 2017 Nandin tells her story: how she first came to Rajneeshpuram, played for Osho in Pune and became a street musician. No choice but to leave Relationship crisis. My boyfriend and I wanted to do something together to try and heal our relationship. I thought of something like a Chinese cooking class, but… Read more: My time with Osho.
The first time I went to India.
August 6, 2022 Nandin’s first steps – and stretches – towards the East. The first time I went to India, I wrote my Last Will and Testament before I left Canada. The only thing that I had of any worth was my flute, but it felt to me like I might actually die, or at… Read more: The first time I went to India.
What Meditative Music Making Does For You!
Hello Musicians! What if I told you that you could: …all while building reliable resources for your health, well being and musicianship! What would that do for you? Not just in playing and performing, but in the way you approach your time, resources and strategies. Musicians using this system share that this has been an… Read more: What Meditative Music Making Does For You!

Join Our Musical Community Today!

Join my free newsletter