Oct 30, 2020
Welcome to episode #292 of dHarmic Evolution
It is with pleasure for me to introduce the only symphony
conductor we have ever had on the Dharmic Evolution. Drummer,
composer, and “World Maestro”, let’s welcome for the third time on
the show, Colin Donohoe!
The last twelve months have been both awesome and crazy for Colin.
He and his wife, Ceren, wanted to be away and be in the woods to
concentrate on the projects they are working on. Hence, they are
currently in the beautiful state of Oregon. Unfortunately, there
was a major fire in Oregon recently. Colin expressed his
gratefulness and admiration to the dedicated team of firefighters.
In dire circumstances, the team was able to drive the residents
away from the fire while they were driving into the fire. And
because of these efforts, they were able to come back safely
home.
Pivotal moments in Mongolia
About a year ago, Colin embarked on a tour to Japan, South
Korea, and Mongolia. This was a part of the project he was working
on for his orchestra, “The Pangean Orchestra” wherein he interviews
at least one musician from every country. He delved into the
approaches, technical aspects of the instruments, and just learning
their music in general.
One of the most pivotal moments for him was in Mongolia where he
was able to see a lot of concerts, jam with bands backstage, and
what it is like to be a musician in Mongolia. He jammed with the
musicians using his Kanjira which is an Indian drum (a very small
frame drum, but it gives the characteristics of a drum set).
Although they needed a translator from Mongolian or other languages
to English, these musicians are totally eloquent. They blended
pretty well and music has been their language.
The Prayer Garden
This project was born in Mongolia. Colin and Ceren went there to unplug from the world, get away from news and social media. Moreover, they went to the Gobi Desert, where there was no WiFi, literally nothing except endless sky and white foxes. Consequently, they were forced to live in the moment and just have a spiritual and peaceful time.
Then at one of the concerts in Mongolia, they heard a woman announcer mispronouncing some English words. It sounded like “Prayer Garden”, but she actually said player something. As a result, the epiphany came to Colin, and realized that it is a good concept. However, his father died in February. Then they came back to Arizona to be with his mother, unfortunately, COVID-19 broke out.
Due to the pandemic where everyone cannot go out and Colin had to take care of his mother, Colin, also needed an escape from everything that was going on. And so together with Ceren, they created The Prayer Garden. Wanting to be in a good space and just getting away from the anxiety, and apprehension during the pandemic, and also the recent loss of his father, Colin was able to write these incredible tracks. It initially started as a live stream, then he continued working out on the music and created a cinematic soundscape that would go underneath it. Because The Prayer Garden is supposed to bring the listener deeper into a meditational or relaxed state, he wanted to play something that was a bit of a flourish and a bit virtuosic, but also musical; it has to be melodic. He always makes sure the spirit of the piece is paramount, and that his playing should only be supporting the piece which is to bring people into peace and calm.
Check out The Prayer Garden from the links below; this was just released on 10/16/2020. He also released an EP called The Sunset Serenity Mixes.
Amazon Facebook Instagram Spotify
Timestamps
4:32 Experiences in Oregon and the recent major fire
8:19 Asian tour and pivotal moments in Mongolia
12:44 Listen to “Eloquent” by Colin O’Donohoe
16:50 The birth of “The Prayer Garden” album
25:54 Listen to “Inhale” by Colin O’Donohoe
30:24 Music is an escape and writing the tracks
33:32 Using space in music
38:11 Listen to “Morning Air” by Colin O’Donohoe
43:21 Where did Colin record the tracks
45:22 Plans on where to go next
49:52 Listen to “Solace” by Colin O’Donohoe
55:53 Does Colin find it difficult to connect with English translators when he interviews musicians from other countries
59:54 How are Colin’s kids doing?
1:00:26 Words of wisdom from Colin
1:04:35 Listen to “Connected” by James Kevin O’Connor
Quotes
24:20
It's funny you wrote the track. But as you're recording and
practicing to it, you let the track speak to you. And you start to
learn the track, and it's weird because you created it. You should
know what the track wants, but now the track is its own entity.
It's it is own thing. It has its own characteristics. And you
listen back at it, you say, oh! I should be playing this here. Oh,
that's what you want. And you get a relationship going with the
music you just wrote.
28:27
Wherever you travel to, you bring a little piece of that back with
you.
29:10
Just be alive and let your imagination take you where you want it
to go. And if things work, you know, somehow get into your mind
while you're listening. That's fine. You know, let it go in there
and then let it pass out like a wave and then just be alive in the
moment of the music.
29:30
One thing a lot of composers and performers forget is that one of
the best things they can do with their music and with their
instrument is just not played. Because silence is a note.
29:49
It's called embrace the silences because that's what makes music so
beautiful is the spaces
42:59
We’re not trees. We don't have these roots that stick us in the
ground. We're human, and humans have moved throughout the history
of our species, we move.
43:31
If there's someplace you've always wanted to go to, then start
making it a dream of “I've always wanted to see Australia or
Ireland” or wherever, and make a plan to go there. Set yourself a
plan and a course on how to get there.
45:33
If you're just so passionate about what you're doing, then it's
just fun to get up every day.
58:09
But I would encourage all of us for all of our sakes, to take some
time out every day, close your phones, close your computers,
meditate, go for a walk with the trees. And take some time to get
to know yourself. Because it's so easy with the things on our phone
to just forget who we are.
Connect with Colin
Website www.worldmaestro.com
Instagram @worldmaestro
Facebook @worldmusicmaestro
YouTube www.youtube.com/c/WorldMaestro/about
Soundcloud soundcloud.com/worldmaestro
Selected links and mentions
James
Brown
Mark
Twain
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