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Keeping the Beat – Your Brain on Music Podcast with Gregg Whitt

Drum Circles are as old as time and the first form of music therapy. This episode – Keeping the Beat features Greg Whitt. He is an award-wining teaching artist and Sage Stream performer.

Your Brain on Music– Each week we dissect an iconic song from both a layman’s perspective (mine) and a scientific perspective offered by guest neuroscientists, musicologists and more. We will explore things like: What makes this song iconic and intriguing?

Drum Circles with Our Artist Greg Whitt

Greg Whitt of Drums for Change is an award-winning teaching artist using music to share old world ideas about happiness, relationships, and wellness. He leads interactive learning programs to creatively connect people in ways that are joyful, engaging, and good for you. When you join in, you’ll feel more vibrant, more relaxed, and more connected to others and to the world around you. With a graduate certificate in Transformative Leadership from the Maryland University of Integrative Health, his programs are actually applied philosophy about how we can live, work, and play well together in community; only they’re cleverly disguised as music, and they’re delivered as interactive and engaging fun. These programs highlight old world values that serve as positive examples for healthy, happy, and productive lifestyles for modern society. As a facilitator he works to strengthen connections to these timeless principles. As an educator, he teaches how we can do this in partnership with the ancient wisdom traditions of the world. Greg’s happy place is near the sea, surrounded by great music, his sweetheart Annelies nearby, and a tasty beverage in hand. 

Other Features

I provide thoughts this episode on a song that has impacted his life.

Following Greg, Connie Tomaino offers practical tips for you to use music in your everyday life for health and wellness. Connie is the Executive Director and co-founder, along with Oliver Sacks, of the Institute for Music and Neurological Function. 

Introduction courtesy of Jim Nantz and, additionally, thanks to Ariel Sol for the original music. https://www.arielsol.com/
Greg Whitt discusses drum circles and music on this month's podcast.

About Your Brain on Music

Each week we dissect a famous song from both a layman’s perspective (mine) and a scientific perspective offered by guest neuroscientists, musicologists and more. We will explore things like: What makes this song iconic and intriguing? What is your initial reaction and interpretation of the song? How does this song make you feel? What emotions, memories are stirred? What is happening in our brains when we listen to it? What musical elements contribute to the songs impact? Can we learn anything from the production techniques? How do the vocal delivery, instrumentation, arrangement contribute to the mood and atmosphere? How has the song influenced music culture? How can listeners deepen their appreciation of the song after understanding its elements? We will invite celebrity music guests to talk about music in their lives and how songs, beyond their own, have impacted their lives, including that day’s featured song.

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