Creative

Paul Green Music Philosophy Business Consciousness and Magic.

On today's programme I'll be talking to Paul Green. This is a fantastic chat with Paul that goes very deep and includes the effects of having a superpower of implicit learning and successive approximation! This is the lost wisdom of the ancients. We also talk about philosophy degrees and the power of playing Samba. Music is just walking.

To support the podcast and get access to features about guitar playing and song writing visit https://www.patreon.com/vichyland

and also news for all the creative music that we do at Bluescamp UK and France visit www.bluescampuk.co.uk

For details of the Ikaro music charity visit www.ikaromusic.com

Big thanks to Josh Ferrara for the music

How to Bootstrap with No Bootstraps.

Today I reflect on developing an idea whether that's for business or art or both when you have no funds. Even when bootstrapping an idea is difficult because you don't even have any bootstraps.

This comes out of the conversation that I had with two previous podcast interviewees, Tommie Kelly about Stuart Wilde and his book The Trick to Money, and Trish Nichol who came up with the no bootstrap idea.

I am recording this while walking in Kent, England.

To support the podcast and get access to features about guitar playing and song writing visit https://www.patreon.com/vichyland

and also news for all the creative music that we do at Bluescamp UK and France visit www.bluescampuk.co.uk

For details of the Ikaro music charity visit www.ikaromusic.com

Big thanks to Josh Ferrara for the music

Walking on sand

This is a short solo show about finding the source of your inspiration. I go to my personal source and explore how that can relax and give space for ideas.

The ideas can be creative or restorative. My personal source will not be yours but the way of finding them might be.

To support the podcast and get access to features about guitar playing and song writing visit https://www.patreon.com/vichyland

and also news for all the creative music that we do at Bluescamp UK and France visit www.bluescampuk.co.uk

For details of the Ikaro music charity visit www.ikaromusic.com

Big thanks to Josh Ferrara for the music

Tommie Kelly on Stuart Wilde, New Age, Occult, Predictions

It is great to have the multitalented Tommie Kelly back on the podcast and today we're talking about Stuart Wilde.

Stuart was one of the biggest and well-known writers in the new age movement back in the 1980s and early 1990s but he's more or less disappeared from view today. Stuart died about 10 years ago but if you talk to anyone now, very few people will know of Stuart Wilde.

Both Tommie and I consider Stuart to be an important writer with lots of ideas that are relevant today. We discuss his books, what he was like as a person and some of the interesting events that happened around him. We also discuss his ability to shock, as well as being one of the funniest guys that you could meet.

Tommy talks about some of his new projects including his music, his comics and his oracle cards. For further details visit.

https://www.adventuresinwoowoo.com/

To support the podcast and get access to features about guitar playing and song writing visit https://www.patreon.com/vichyland

and also news for all the creative music that we do at BluescampUK and France visit www.bluescampuk.co.uk

For details of the Ikaro music charity visit www.ikaromusic.com

Big thanks to Josh Ferrara for the music

Taylor Ellwood Joanna Brook Mediumship, Magic, Poetry, Cut Up

This episode is a double header with the wonderful team of Taylor Ellwood and Joanna Brook. This is packed with great ideas and stories about creativity and the processes involved, including writing books, poetry and painting.  Their work includes writing, classes on magic, divination, celebrant work amongst others. This is a vibrant chat, good times. 

Taylor Ellwood is the magician. He’s been practicing and experimenting with magic for over 30 years, designing innovative and original systems of magic that help people get results and transform their lives. Taylor has been reading Oracle and Tarot cards professionally since 2004. Taylor has been writing books on magic and teaching classes on a variety of spiritual topics including spirit communication, manifestation practices and inner alchemy since 2003. At Brightheart Alchemy Guides Taylor offers a variety of spiritual services designed to help you manifest results as well as provide answers around the issues you are dealing with. He also teaches classes both solo and with Joanna on spiritual topics.

Joanna Brook is the priestess. She began professional Tarot consultations in 2007 and mediumship in 2012. She is an ordained minister in the Seven Sisters Circle, where she studied eclectic modern paganism, ceremony, astrology, path working, divination, and spiritual counselling.

Joanna officiates hand-fastings, funerals and customized ceremonies.  She also facilitates a New Moon ritual open to all in Eugene, Oregon each month.

Joanna teaches classes on magic and the pagan path, both solo and with Taylor. Joanna is also an accomplished poet.

https://www.brightheartalchemyguides.com/

https://www.magicalexperiments.com/

To support the podcast and get access to features about guitar playing and song writing visit https://www.patreon.com/vichyland

and also news for all the creative music that we do at Bluescamp UK and France visit www.bluescampuk.co.uk

For details of the Ikaro music charity visit www.ikaromusic.com

Big thanks to Josh Ferrara for the music

Nassos Conqueso Multi Instrumentalist

In this episode I talk to the wonderful Nassos Conqueso about mixing contemporary and traditional music and the wonderful world of Greek instruments.

Nassos is a singer/songwriter, guitarist and multi-instrumentalist from Athens. Nassos released his single Under the Endless Sky in January of 2017 and two months later he released his debut album Love in Crisis.

He studied electric guitar and music theory with Pantelis Gertsos (guitarfor → MusicFor) until he passed the Associate Diploma of the London College of Music in Music Teaching (Upper Level). He also studied music harmony & modern composition with Nikos Panagiotakis, vocals & piano with Lia Hide and jazz harmony with George Argyropoulos at the Musical Praxis Conservatoire where he successfuly completed his Harmony Degree.

Occasionally, he had acoustic guitar and songwriting lessons with Max Milligan. He holds a Master's Degree - MMus in Songwriting - from Bath Spa University, under the tuition of Davey Ray Moor. He's currently working towards his PhD, under the supervision of Professor Amanda Bayley and Dr Matthew Sergeant. While his main instrument is the guitar, he enjoys playing other instruments, such as piano, baglamás, ukulele, blues harp, bass guitar, banjo, lap steel guitar, tzourás, stylophone, bouzouki… In any case, the sound is what matters the most!

At the same time, Nassos started working as an administrative assistant in the LCM and RGT examinations representative office in Greece, as well as for guitarfor. He has undertaken the promotion, online publishing, photo shooting, web design and he has contributed in organising concerts and seminars with musicians like Larry Goldings Trio, Kurt Rosenwinkel New Quartet, Larry Carlton, Adam Levy, Jonathan Kreisberg Quartet, Paul Gilbert, Al Di Meola, Andy McKee, to name but a few.

In January 2017, Nassos released his first single Under the Endless Sky, under the pseudonym Nassos Conqueso. In March 2017, he released his album Love in Crisis, which is also available in Compact Disc. He's responsible for music, lyrics, arrangement, production, vocals, piano, ukulele, baglamás, tzourás, harmonica, guitar, stylophone and programming. At the same time, he became the 6th member of Bound Affairs as an acoustic guitarist and keyboardist, until September of 2018.

Between 2019 and 2021, he represented Greece, along with two other artists, in the European Union's Introspection Music Experience project. His contribution involved the production of the song 'A Moveable Feast', as well as recording various instruments for the song 'Collateral'. Based on this experience he released the double-track single A Moveable Feast in October 2022, in the International Mental Health Day.

Check out http://www.nassosconqueso.com/

To support the podcast and get access to features about guitar playing and song writing visit https://www.patreon.com/vichyland

and also news for all the creative music that we do at Bluescamp UK and France visit www.bluescampuk.co.uk

For details of the Ikaro music charity visit www.ikaromusic.com

Big thanks to Josh Ferrara for the music

Stage Performance Techniques, Bluescampuk 2023

This is a live recording of a workshop that Chris Penfold and I conducted at this year's BluescampUK at Tonbridge School.

As this was only recorded with contact lapel microphones there is some external sound with people playing drums at parts of the recording but there are some brilliant ideas here that if you're involved in presentation, you would find useful.

To support the podcast and get access to features about guitar playing and song writing visit https://www.patreon.com/vichyland

and also news for all the creative music that we do at Bluescamp UK and France visit www.bluescampuk.co.uk

For details of the Ikaro music charity visit www.ikaromusic.com

Big thanks to Josh Ferrara for the music

Tom Collins, Plant Science, Travelling, Boats

I am talking to Tom Collins about his world of Plant Science the extraordinary biodiversity of South Africa, what we need to grow food for a burgeoning population and the very well real risks that we face in the future.

This veers into very interesting territory, Tom also discusses his sailing, building boats and just generally navigating the seas of science, commerce and being creative.

This is brilliantly interesting for amazing ideas.

To support the podcast and get access to features about guitar playing and song writing visit https://www.patreon.com/vichyland

and also news for all the creative music that we do at Bluescamp UK and France visit www.bluescampuk.co.uk

For details of the Ikaro music charity visit www.ikaromusic.com

Big thanks to Josh Ferrara for the music

Tom Collins, Plant Science, Travelling, Boats

I am talking to Tom Collins about his world of Plant Science the extraordinary biodiversity of South Africa, what we need to grow food for a burgeoning population and the very well real risks that we face in the future.

This veers into very interesting territory, Tom also discusses his sailing, building boats and just generally navigating the seas of science, commerce and being creative.

This is brilliantly interesting for amazing ideas.

To support the podcast and get access to features about guitar playing and song writing visit https://www.patreon.com/vichyland

and also news for all the creative music that we do at Bluescamp UK and France visit www.bluescampuk.co.uk

For details of the Ikaro music charity visit www.ikaromusic.com

Big thanks to Josh Ferrara for the music

Using what you've got

 This follows from my chat with Chris Penfold about making good and mending. This one is about using what you've got. We can talk about this from a material point of view, where you're using equipment that you already have, but it's also about your skills, and you have many of these placed within other areas of activity; bringing these on board will benefit you.

I spoke about something that Michael Breen said during an NLP training. The story was that his wife was very good at interior design; she could change colours and items in a room in her head, but it made her a nightmare to take out for dinner because she would do the same thing with the items on the menu. She would make endless comparisons between different dishes in different courses.

So look at all the skills that you have as a musician. You may also be a good people person, being a good communicator. That may be evident within your music, but it might not be. If you're not a very good people person and you're trying to be a teacher, then that would be a problem.

However, if you're not good at that but may be good at organising or something else, you could bring those skills to the front to help with project management.

As he was in the army, Chris was talking about the British Army having to be inventive because they didn't always have the equipment to fix the problem. They have to think it through and work out how they could accomplish the task with the gear that they have.

So, for instance, if you have a guitar, a music stand and a computer, you could set yourself up as a teacher. If you've got a car, you can travel to people. You don't need to go and buy a more expensive guitar or equipment to accomplish that. Now that on the face of it is obvious, you'll be surprised because I have coached people who would become teachers who had the idea that they needed new equipment so they could set this up. It's unnecessary, but you could also look at that from the point of view of what you require to be a performer. You only need what you have.

I interviewed Billy Childish, the artist and punk musician. Billy comes out of this aspect of using primitivism in what he does, particularly musically, so the idea of limitations is good. He has a couple of old amps, one which dates back to the 60s, possibly even earlier than that and a couple of old battered-up guitars, nothing new, and he has managed to produce well over 150 albums. It all comes from the perspective of keeping it simple, even the recording techniques. This idea of garage recording is playing in an ample space with the band and then just going into a studio and putting the vocals over the top.

He has done this for years, and it enabled him to produce a lot of albums with that very raw sound, and it influenced many bands, including the White Stripes.

So another aspect of working with what you've got also involves people; obviously, this presents a sharp focus on how good your networking is.

You probably know The people you need to form a band or the people who know them you already know. I think it's always problematic when you audition people because you don't know their personalities particularly well; the chemistry between various members makes a band, so working with the people you already know will lead to a better lineup.

I would also say this is true of running a team for business. If you're starting something new, you can headhunt the people you know; that's a good way forward.

The excellent book by Tony Buzan is called Genius, and it's all about such genius and Mastermind groups.

This book sites that many geniuses didn't do the stuff on their own they had help from very influential people, and that enabled them to develop not the way that history is taught; we always go for the grand man narrative, and to some extent, there is an element of that you know the great person that focuses attention. Still, they can't do this independently, and there's often more than one great mind that goes into creating and achieving.

You need to be able to work with others and be flexible with that, and again, if these people already know, then you're more likely to do that because I'll be friends of yours

 To support the podcast and get access to features about guitar playing and song writing visit https://www.patreon.com/vichyland

and also news for all the creative music that we do at Bluescamp UK and France visit www.bluescampuk.co.uk

 For details of the Ikaro music charity visit www.ikaromusic.com

 Big thanks to Josh Ferrara for the music