BETH WOOD

I hope you are staying well and doing alright. Time seems to be doing a funny dance these days… I have slowed down and stayed in one place, and yet I can’t believe it’s already July! I am so grateful for all of you who have tuned in to my online musical mischief and supported me from afar. Here’e what’s going on…

Well I’m having a blast making things for my Patreon peeps! Have you signed up yet? Patreon is the best way you can support my work these days and keep up with all that I’m doing and making. It’s like a subscription to my music and poetry, and I am releasing one new song and one new poem each month exclusively to this group. Plus we have Zoom visits sometimes and I know everyone is sick of the computer but I truly have so much fun every time we gather! You can join for as little as $1 a month, or for as much as you like! If you connect with my music and my work, I hope you’ll come and join us. This group is sustaining me and my work, giving me focus, and keeping spirits high, and I hope we can keep growing! Click here to go to my Patreon page. 

We had a wonderful time with our Women, Nature and Song all day songwriting Zoom retreat! I am so grateful to Kathy and Gi for hosting the event, and for the creative, funny, inspiring women who came together and made it so special. Speaking of Zoom workshops, I am honored to have been invited by the Portland Folk Music Society to lead a workshop on dynamics on July 15 at 4 pm Pacific! Here are the details:

Wed, July 15 – SongMapping: The Power of Dynamics – A Performance Workshop. Hosted by the Portland Folk Music Society via Zoom  Have you ever stood back and thought of a song as a whole?  Where are the high points and low points? Which moments contain the most potential for expressing emotion?  We will look at songs to see how to use dynamics – where to get loud, where to get soft, where to pause, where to breathe — to engage listeners and tell a compelling story. Open to all but space is limited. 4 pm Pacific time. The cost for this 90-ish minute workshop is a suggested donation of $15 (but pay what you can, no judgment!) Please donate early to reserve your spot. When you make your donation, please write “Beth Wood Workshop” in the notes section. Paypal: https://www.paypal.me/bethwoodmusic or Venmo: @bethwoodmusic

I have so BIG NEWS about a new release! You may remember me going on and on about how much I looooove playing the concert series called Home By Dark in Georgia. First of all, their motto is “A song can change your life.” AMEN!! How many times has statement rung true in my own life? Too many times to count! This beautiful series has grown from a songwriter-in-the-round on top of hay bales with an audience of 30 to a huge state of the art stage production with the best backing band in the country and beautiful sound and lights in a spectacular outdoor setting with thousands of seats filled every year, many of which are filled by loyal season subscribers who come to every show. I am so honored that I got to play that first Home By Dark show way back when, and I have played the series every year since. For some reason they keep inviting me back?!? James and Karen Casto and the band of James, Jim Hettinger, Steve Cunningham, Matt Blanchard, Mike Shetler, Carole Ford and Vanessa Connor have become family, and our shows are a reunion I look forward to every year. I have always thought hmmmm…wouldn’t it be cool to release an album with the Home By Dark band backing me up?? Well, thanks to James Casto, now that dream has become a reality! James has chosen some of our favorite moments over the years and compiled them into an ambum. The CDs are on their way to me now!! If you would like to order one, click here and I will send you one as soon as I get them. It will be available for download and streaming on July 20. I LOVE SINGING WITH THIS BAND! The energy, musicianship, trust, comraderie are out of this world.  Can’t wait to share it with you.

Here’s a little taste of what a Home By Dark show is all about…

I loved hosting a Sunday morning “music church” livestream last week with my friends Chris Kokesh and Gentle Thunder as special guests! You can still watch it here in case you missed it. Please note there are two parts as we had a little technical glitch that we quickly renamed an ‘intermission’. 🙂  I’m thinking of doing more of these livestream concerts as I just love getting to hear my friends and share them with folks who might not have heard them yet! I love weaving in poetry and conversation and and songs into a time of reflection and celebration. I think I will choose a different time because Sunday morning is such a busy time for streaming. Going forward I’m going to call it “Joyful Measures” and I can’t wait to have more special guests! Are there any special guests you would like to see? I will keep you posted.

Bailey was so helpful at my first Zoom songwriting retreat! 

I shared a new poem on Patreon this week about these froggies that live around here. These cute little guys are everywhere and they sing so loud! 

We had a grand adventure in the Alvord desert in Eastern Oregon a few weeks ago. Part of our time spent there was out on the playa, a six mile wide dried up lake in the shadow of Steens mountain… shooting footage for a music video! (stay tuned…) It was breathtaking!

And this happened the other night when I was driving home… so perty!

Thank you for reading and for being a part of my creative journey. I am sending you good wishes from my little abode in Sisters. With much gratitude from your fan,

Beth Wood

PO Box 551

Sisters, OR 97759

www.bethwoodmusic.com

Holler at me: bethwoodmusic [AT] hotmail.com

Come join me on Patreon!

Here I am with my face on Facebook.

I barely know how to use it but I’m tryin’ on Twitter

Find me on Instagram @bethwoodmusic

Find my dog on Instagram @bailey.pants

For the love of Pete, somebody please help me with Youtube