Gaea Star Crystal Radio Hour with Mariam Massaro

Gaea Star Crystal Radio Hour with Mariam Massaro

Gaea Star Crystal Radio Hour #477 is an hour of improvised visionary acoustic music played by the Gaea Star Band with Mariam Massaro on vocals, Native flute, acoustic guitar and 4- and 8-string ukuleles, Bob Sherwood on piano and bass guitar and Craig Harris on congas and Native drums.  The show is recorded live at Singing Brook Studio in Worthington, Massachusetts at the end of December 2021 and begins with the gorgeous “Oh The Silvery Moon”, a prayer for the world with a funk vibe with the group overdubbing bass guitar, Native drums and more vocals and flute from Mariam to achieve a deep and danceable track.  “Oh The Rain” begins as a Native groove with lyrical native flute from Mariam and grows into a lush, psychedelic trance piece and Mariam picks up her ukulele to give “Roses By My Bedside” a bouncing groove that Bob wraps in various harmonic contexts.  “The Golden Ray” wraps the listener in mystical fascination with warping, swirling echoes and a trance-like vocal from Mariam.  “Rushing River” forms around a ukulele drone groove into a deep and evocative rocker and then fades away as a minimalist musical figure supporting Mariam’s prayer-like vocal.  “Sweet Passion” features Mariam on her chiming 8-string ukulele as she sings a powerful, open, direct love song to life and vistas of native flute circle above swirls and waves of piano to form the lush, impressionistic “Slowing Down To What Matters”, a gospel song with a powerful rhythm section accompanying a powerful vocal from Mariam.
Learn more about Mariam here: http://www.mariammassaro.com

Gaea Star Crystal Radio Hour with Mariam Massaro

Gaea Star Crystal Radio Hour #476 was recorded live at Singing Brook Studio in Worthington, Massachusetts in December 2021 and is an hour of imaginary, visionary, otherworldly improvised acoustic music by The Gaea Star Band with Mariam Massaro on vocals, acoustic guitar, sitar, shruti box, Native flute and ukulele, Bob Sherwood on piano and Craig Harris on congas and Native drums.  Today’s series of songs and tone poems begins with the kinetic, energized “It’s Never Too Late”, an inspiring song with powerful acoustic guitar and vocals from Mariam.  “Dancing On The Wings Of Light” begins with a compelling Native evocation and slowly builds into waves of lyrical Native flute, minimalist jazz piano and low heartbeat drums.  “Strong Winds” is a delicate, gorgeous and skipping song with a picturesque lyric from Mariam, and “May I Be The Reflection” is a lush, somber ballad with an aching, dancing vocal and chiming acoustic guitar.  Mariam sits at her sitar for the ragas “Lotus Queen” and “Sri Padma Lakshmi”, two expansive, open pieces that find Mariam playing various combinations of sitar, native flute and shruti box to accompany her mystical lyrics.
Learn more about Mariam here: http://www.mariammassaro.com

Gaea Star Crystal Radio Hour with Mariam Massaro

Gaea Star Crystal Radio Hour #475 is an hour of visionary improvisational acoustic music played by Mariam Massaro and Bob Sherwood of The Gaea Star Band.  Recorded live at Singing Brook Studio in Worthington, Massachusetts, with Mariam on vocals, Native flute, schruti box, Celtic harp, acoustic 12-string guitar and 4- and 8-string ukuleles, and Bob on piano and bongos.  Today’s first number is the deeply mystical, ethereal “Praise For The Rain” a lush tone poem as Mariam’s Celtic harp runs coalesce into Bob’s rich, evocative tapestry.  We bring in an extended flute and piano exposition for the second half featuring virtuosic playing from both Mariam and Bob.  Acoustic open-tuned !2-string forms the drone for “The Voice Of Creation”, a patient, slowly opening raga with a questing, deeply spiritual vocal from Mariam.  Mariam plays the open drone of the schruti box and Bob accompanies on percussion for the lush, subcontinental “Slip Through The Portal Of Light”.  A shift to piano leads to a mystical exploration that races through Western and Eastern modes to an extended flute coda.  “Oh Mother (Oh Madre)” is a glorious, chiming folk song made even more energized and rocking by Mariam’s dancing 8-string uke.  Today’s show concludes with evocative takes of Mariam’s “We Call In The Elements” and “Oh Holy Ground”, the first a driving, fundamental jam with fine vocals, the second a steady, prayerful minor blues ballad.   
Learn more about Mariam here: http://www.mariammassaro.com

Gaea Star Crystal Radio Hour with Mariam Massaro

Today on Gaea Star Crystal Radio Hour #474, The Gaea Star Band presents an hour of visionary acoustic improvisational music with Mariam Massaro on vocals, harmonica, Native flute, shruti box, Celtic harp, 4- and 8-string ukulele and acoustic guitar, Bob Sherwood on piano and Craig Harris on Native drums and congas.  Recorded live at Singing Brook Studio in Worthington, Massachusetts, today’s show begins with the languid, floating prayer “Unfolding”, a soft, mystical journey that slowly settles into a gentle groove supporting Mariam’s lovely melody and harmonica work.  “Freedom To Fly” is a lovely, acoustic-guitar driven folk song with a beautiful, simple melody from Mariam and “Stand Strong” is a lush raga underpinned by Mariam’s drone on the shruti box and imaginative, dynamic piano from Bob.  Mariam strums her chiming 5-string ukulele for the delightfully icy, evocative “Ice Crystals”, a celebration of winter with a gorgeous, hopeful melody from Mariam.  “Bubbling Up From Deep Within” returns today’s show to the mystical realm and features a wintry exposition from Mariam over her ukulele and Craig’s skipping, playful congas.  Today’s closer is the epic “Rail Train/Let The Music Guide You On And On”, a musical adventure liberally decorated with Mariam’s masterful native flute.
Learn more about Mariam here: http://www.mariammassaro.com

Gaea Star Crystal Radio Hour with Mariam Massaro

Gaea Star Crystal Radio Hour #473 is an hour of visionary acoustic improv music performed live by The Gaea Star Band with Mariam Massaro on vocals, Native flute, acoustic guitar, 12-string acoustic guitar, percussion and ukulele, Bob Sherwood on piano and Craig Harris on congas and Native drums.  Recorded on a cold early winter day in 2021 at Singing Brook Studio in Worthington, Massachusetts, today’s show begins with the relaxed, soft groove of “Oh, The Wind”, a whisper of a minor key ballad with a lovely, focused vocal from Mariam over the band’s unrushed backing.  Leading on from “Oh, The Wind” as something of a second movement, “I Awoke” is a beautiful, prayerful musing from Mariam scattered with beautiful Native flute passages over a hypnotic series of piano figures from Bob.  “The Floodgates Of Our Hearts” is a somber, whispering prayer given shape by Craig’s steady conga work and “Sing Down The Walls” is a classic song from Mariam’s “Gaea Star Crystal” album, here given a rich, emotional treatment with fine vocals and acoustic guitar from Mariam.  In honor of the tenth anniversary of the Gaea Star Goddess Show at Northampton’s Academy Of Music the band presents a tight rendition of “Isis” that hits all the right points as well as a virtuosic take of the beautiful Goddess song “Queen Of Heaven” with fine playing on all sides.  
Learn more about Mariam here: http://www.mariammassaro.com

Gaea Star Crystal Radio Hour with Mariam Massaro

Gaea Star Crystal Radio Hour #472 was recorded on a cold, still November afternoon at Singing Brook Studio in Worthington, Massachusetts and is an hour of visionary improvised acoustic music played live by the Gaea Star Band with Mariam Massaro on Native flute, vocals, acoustic guitar, Celtic harp and 4- and 8-string ukuleles, Bob Sherwood on piano and Craig Harris on congas and Native drums.  Today’s first song is the gentle, powerfully contemplative “Through The Open Window”, a wistful, beautiful farewell to November built on Mariam’s chiming Celtic harp and a bittersweet, persistent piano figure from Bob.  “The Portal Is Waiting” is a deeply mystical, swirling, pleasantly disorienting piece with an inspirational lyric from Mariam over Craig’s heartbeat pulse and Bob’s dancing piano, and “Let The Voice Of Creation Sing” is as powerful folk song of unity and connection driven by Mariam’s steady, driving acoustic guitar.    The band picks up the intensity and tempo for the lovely “Treasures” led by Mariam on her baritone ukulele.  “Dance It” remains in the folk vein, a chiming song with a powerful underpinning from Craig on congas under Mariam’s dancing ukulele.  Mariam deploys the delicate, chiming tones of her 8-string ukulele for the lovely, musically naïve “Are You Following The River Of Life?”, a gorgeous, powerful and fundamental song decorated with Mariam’s Native flute.
Learn more about Mariam here: http://www.mariammassaro.com

Gaea Star Crystal Radio Hour with Mariam Massaro

Gaea Star Crystal Radio Hour #471 is an hour of dynamic, visionary acoustic improv music played live by The Gaea Star Band with Mariam Massaro on vocals, Native flute, acoustic guitar, 4- and 8-string ukuleles and shruti box, Bob Sherwood on piano and Craig Harris on congas and Native drums.  Recorded live at Singing Brook Studio in Worthington, Massachusetts in November of 2021, today’s show begins with the driving, mystical “Your Eyes Shine”, a powerful and elemental love song driven by Mariam’s powerfully played acoustic guitar and Craig’s fundamental Native drum.  “Here There and Everywhere” is a drifting, floating meditation evoked from a series of flute fanfares from Mariam and icy, tumbling winter piano figures from Bob.  This lush, unwinding, mystical ballad unwinds slowly into the upbeat “To The Happy Place In My Heart”, a tropical Mediterranean piece with a beautiful, dancing melody from Mariam and bright piano arpeggios from Bob.  “Strands Of Beauty” is a somber, rich raga layered over Mariam’s shruti box with lithe congas from Craig and dramatic Eastern piano from Bob.   “A Radiant Star” is a gorgeous, sweeping ballad with impassioned acoustic guitar and an open, expansive melody from Mariam.  “Here’s To All Those Places” is a mystical, swirling piece with evocative vocals from Mariam and detailed, circular piano from Bob that drives to a powerful climax.
Learn more about Mariam here: http://www.mariammassaro.com

Gaea Star Crystal Radio Hour with Mariam Massaro

Gaea Star Crystal Radio Hour #470 is an hour of improvised acoustic visionary music recorded live by The Gaea Star Band with Mariam Massaro on vocals, Native flute, acoustic guitar, ukulele and Celtic harp, Bob Sherwood on piano and Craig Harris on congas and Native drums.  Recorded at Singing Brook Studio in Worthington, Massachusetts in November 2021, today’s show begins with Mariam’s compelling anthem “Sing Down The Walls”, here given an impassioned and upbeat reading with driving acoustic guitar and an inspiring vocal from Mariam.  “Transforming More” is a jazzy number driven by Mariam’s ukulele and a heavily rhythmic piano track from Bob over Craig’s rocking congas.  This epic sound exploration moves through 3 more movements, “Galloping Horses”, “Oh The Sun” and “Transformation”, taking the listener on a journey through Western and Eastern musical directions and pollinations.  “All Is Well” is a beautiful, spacious folk song taken at a brisk clip, featuring imaginative, precise piano from Bob under Mariam’s impressionistic and gorgeously open vocal journey.  “Wonderful Feeling Within” is a mystical prayer built on Mariam’s chiming Celtic harp and “We Are All Light” closes today’s show with a deeply dramatic stream of conscious journey driven forward with Craig’s fundamental Native drum track.
Learn more about Mariam here: http://www.mariammassaro.com

Gaea Star Crystal Radio Hour with Mariam Massaro

Gaea Star Crystal Radio Hour #469 was recorded at Singing Brook Studio in Worthington, Massachusetts on a blustery November day and is an hour of inspired, visionary acoustic musical improvisation presented by The Gaea Star Band with Mariam Massaro on vocals, dulcimer, ukuleles, native flute and acoustic 12-string guitar, Craig Harris on congas and native drums and Bob Sherwood on piano.  Today’s show begins with the lovely, light and very creative “Let’s Sail Into The Essence Of Love”, a driving and upbeat piece heightened by exemplary contributions from the whole ensemble.  “Just Put Down Your Day” is a skipping, Hawaiian-inflected folk song and “Cast Aside” brings in a mystical, reflective mood with swirling piano figures and a reflective vocal from Mariam.  “Oh Let’s Rise” is a rousing anthem to positive unity that gives way to a series of ragas led by Mariam’s sitar-like 12 string guitar; the mystical, spacious “Grateful” features an inspired improvised vocal and lyric from Mariam and “Ganesha” is a song of reverence and praise to the Indian deity.  Today’s show completes with an extension of this lovely tone poem to include Lakshmi and Saraswati.
Learn more about Mariam here: http://www.mariammassaro.com

Gaea Star Crystal Radio Hour with Mariam Massaro

Gaea Star Crystal Radio Hour #468 was recorded at Singing Brook Studios in Worthington Mass in November of 2021 and features songs and imaginative improvisations from the Gaea Star Band with Mariam Massaro on vocals, native flute, acoustic guitar, baritone ukulele and dulcimer, Bob Sherwood on piano and Craig Harris on congas and Native drum.  Today’s first piece is the swirling, mystical “What A Way To Start The Day”, replete with Craig’s tribal Native drums and visionary vocals from Mariam.  “Deep Inside Where Only I Reside” mines a rich Arabic tonality as Mariam tells a compelling tale of the animals of the jungle.  “How Can We Make Less Of A Ripple?” is a prayer set to a gorgeous psychedelic rhythm and “Embracing” is a pretty waltz by Mariam featuring her folky vocals and acoustic guitar.  We return to a minor, trance-like vibe with “Grateful For The Days Gone By”, a bluesy diatribe against corporate exploitation with some driving piano work from Bob.  “Wings Of Love” drifts on a cloud of acoustic guitar from Mariam and warm, damp summer scales from Bob.  We finish with three Mariam classics, the sprightly “Children Of The Stars”, the lush and contemplative “Rainbows” and the mystical “Twin Flame”.
Learn more about Mariam here: http://www.mariammassaro.com