Birds in Tasma Gardens, Daylesford, Victoria, AU

Yesterday I finished an iMovie that I have been working on.  It is a bird slideshow.  Since I've been taking SO many pictures of birds this month, I decided to group them into a "birds in July" collection.  All these birds have visited Tasma Gardens in the past few weeks....plus some!  I had to narrow my pictures down to the few that would fit my soundtrack....which was graciously and musically provided by Adrian Kosky.  Thanks, A!

Listening to Recordings from the Radio Springs Hotel in Lyonville

As I type this blog entry, I am listening to recent recordings I made during performances at the Radio Springs Hotel with Phil Mac and Adrian Kosky.....Adrian played guitar, tambourine, and strumstick, Phil Mac played harmonica, bowed saw, egg-shaker, and triangle, and I played a mountain dulcimer.

Happy Ducks in Daylesford

This week I have been enjoying the blessing of the beautiful Australian Wood Ducks in Daylesford.  These beauties were too bashful to be photographed last year.  Whenever I would try to capture them with my camera, they would waddle away as fast as they could.  This year, they are hanging around and seem happy to receive my hand-outs.  I'm happy about that.

Mountain Dulcimer in an Australian Mainstream Magazine!

Today I received by mail a copy of The Wanderer magazine, "Australia's Largest RV Club Magazine," July 2010, Volume 25 No 7 issue, which includes my story about making music with a mountain dulcimer on road trips in Australia!  I'm so excited that publishers were interested in my musical mountain dulcimer story which Adrian Kosky submitted to the magazine for me.  Here's one of the pictures we sent in with my story:

From The Wanderer, July 2010

That's a self-portrait I made after a play by the pond one day last year at Tasma House Music and Arts Retreat.....no doubt one of the days spent pondering up my story that I hoped would be published someday.

Click the little magazine picture below to follow a link to the photo album that includes pictures of my mountain dulcimer story, if interested in reading it.

The Wanderer, July 2010

A Picture From the Porch in Daylesford

It seems I am into bird themes this week.  This is a picture I took this morning after brekky, and the beauty in it amazes me.  I am thanking God for showing me this sight.

Another Beautiful Bird

Since I've been exploring the Birds in Backyards site and forum, I remembered this little guy that I photographed in Shoreham, Victoria, Australia, during Easter 2010.  I was so excited about seeing two koalas (in one day) that I forgot about this beauty!  I think this is an Eastern Yellow Robin.  So beautiful!

The close-up makes him look bigger than he was, I think.  So here's another view:

So cute!

The Little Pied Cormorant Came Back

I guess I made my iMovie too soon!  I thought I would never see this bird again after its first visit.....but I was wrong.  I think it's making itself at home in Tasma Gardens!

A Little Pied Cormorant

I've spent the weekend watching this bird

It has been swooping the pond....stalking the goldfish, as I have stalked its stalking.  I googled birds of Australia and found a wonderful website and forum for finding out what's what on this side of bird world and found out that this big bird is called a Little Pied Cormorant.  It was not happy with the camera, but I have lots of pictures of it.  And a movie, too.  This has been my entertainment for the weekend, and it has been good for me.

The Australian birds website is:  Birds in Backyards (Click here to visit that website.)  And the forum that is attached to the website can be accessed by clicking here.

Adrian Kosky and Shotgun Shack -- Promo Video

I've been working on a  new iMovie.  It's for Adrian's band, Shotgun Shack.  I would appreciate some feedback on this one, as it is a serious show!




There's an email button on the lower left of my blog, if anyone would like to send feedback.  Thank you!

Recent Road Trip near Daylesford

On a recent road trip I saw this cool house/vehicle:

After driving by it the first time, on the second look Adrian and I stopped to knock on the owner's door and asked for a closer look.  It's a pretty amazing piece of work.  The porch on the back folds out on the side to allow more space for the grill.  There's a private bed space above the truck cab, a fold down dining table, a kitchen sink, with cabinet space and lots of electrical features.  Quite the road trip find!  

Mountain Dulcimers, Road Trips, and Magazines

I found out last week that an article I wrote about my road trips in Australia will be published in the July issue of  The Wanderer.  I'm REALLY excited about this new place to share news of music via my mountain dulcimer musings!

Click here for more info about The Wanderer magazine.

Midnight Special, Mountain Dulcimer & Guitar Duet, Lyonville, Victoria, Australia

Here's another Radio Springs Hotel recording.  This one is from January 16, 2010.  Adrian Kosky playing a Gibson guitar, and I am playing a Simerman mountain Dulcimer.  I like to re-listen to these recordings!  Glad to share them, too.  Thank you!

Midnight Special, Dulcimer & Guitar Duet, January 16, 2010, Adrian Kosky and Carla Maxwell, Victoria, Australia

Proper Citation for Songs

Lately I've been posting so much of my own music that I temporarily forgot a most important part about sharing information!  In my previous post I shared a performance of the song, "Bad Moon Rising" and the song, "I Walk the Line," but I failed to recognize the writers of those songs......and I hereby profusely apologize regarding the improper posting!

My intent was simply to share an experience from my past.....the only way I know how to best share something.....and that is to get some kind of copy of it out in the universe via the big WWW.  So I freely popped up a recording of my past performance of the song, "Bad Moon Rising" and a recording of the song, "I Walk the Line," both of which I recorded with my personal and handy-dandy-digital recorder....but I left out this bit:  "Click here for information about the song, 'Bad Moon Rising,' a song by Creedance Clearwater Revival, 1969, written by John Fogerty.  Also, the song "I Walk the Line" was written, recorded, and made legendary by Johnny Cash.  Click here to read more about Johnny Cash's hit, "I Walk The Line."

S o r r y!!

Dulcimer & Guitar Duet at the Radio Springs Hotel in Lyonville, Victoria

Here are a few recordings from yesterday's mountain dulcimer/guitar performance by Adrian Kosky and me during the Mother's Day lunch hour at the Radio Springs Hotel & Pub in Lyonville, Victoria, Australia.  As always....unrehearsed, unplanned, unrestrained.......never know what background sounds might be included in these recordings.....and I never know how long we might be rolling in various vibes!


Roll In My Sweet Baby's Arms, May 9, 2010 (with live babies in the background!)
Bad Moon Rising, May 9, 2010 (with live babies in the background!)
Tamp it Up Solid, May 9, 2010
I Walk the Line, May 9, 2010
Man of Constant Sorrow, May 9, 2010
Forked Deer, May 9, 2010

My Piano Improvisation on Video

I did a bit of my piano practice/improvisation aka "marching" and filmed it today.  It took a few tries to get comfortable with the camera angle and its presence.  Then I decided to use today's music in an iMovie and added it to one of my "works in progress."

This is my own form of music therapy.  I play what feels right at the time...making up the music as I go.  Sometimes the music stays in my head for a day or two after I play it.  I guess I am embedding the chords and rhythms in my mind as I reflect and listen to what I have already played.  I guess that's why I hear familiar structure in this unstructured playing that I do.  My piano skills are very limited, as I am teaching myself....and no matter what I might sit down to play, it always seems like I return to the "marching" sounds.

I find it interesting to watch my own music making.  Today is the first time I have filmed myself playing the piano.  I'm not happy with the position of my arms nor the tension I saw in my hands, but now that I am aware of these things....maybe I can relax a bit more when I play and correct the problems.