The Rayna Sense RAYNA

Catie Glynn started off as a mentor of mine, but I quickly recognized in her a friend and fellow performer whose work and spirit I respect a great deal. Based in the picturesque little art town of Lanesboro, Minnesota, Catie shares the story of The Root River Anthology, a play she originally began writing for the stage in memory of her father, and adapted as a lyrical, musical, whimsical radio play in response to the pandemic lockdown. It was recorded rather creatively in closets and on iPhones, and the Commonweal Theatre Company Resident ensemble and the members of Catie's theater company, A.R.T. (Audacious Raw Theater) are the featured voices. The music is by composer Eric Carranza. We flex and flow in our conversation, meandering through metaphorical waters both calm and turbulent, finding moments of delicate and profound wisdom along the way. I hope you'll feel as restored as I did listening to this conversation here on The Rayna Sense.

My guest today is Eric Carranza, a gifted musician, artist and educator based in the Lowertown district of St Paul, Minneapolis. In our conversation, he reveals how his ancestral language of Spanish poured forth somewhat spontaneously in him as he was writing a recent piece of music for his project Root River Vibes, even though he barely spoke it before. We allow the moment to take us where it will, dancing and flowing with subjects including spontaneity and improvisation in art, and how we might all do well with being in the present, and having a little more looseness in life. It's all coming up right here on The Rayna Sense.

My guest Max Bent and I must have known each other in a past life. We've never spoken before this conversation, but we don't miss a single beat. Calling in from Baltimore, Maryland, Max is many things: beatboxer, deep thinker, spirit man and music teacher of gifted artist James B. Good, featured on an earlier episode of this show. We waste no time in getting into a big, easy flow, touching on subjects including mystical numbers, making meaning in music, learning by doing, and the sacred silent space in between two beats. Heavily influenced by hip hop, Max surprises me by performing "Hinei ma tov" live, a traditional Jewish song sang in Hebrew in a reggae style and looped live on his loopstation. Max translates the meaning of the song as “It's so good to be here together.” I agree.

I meet a LOT of people in my life. Several of them tend to be eccentric, offbeat, apart from the mainstream. Some of them are also creative, musical, funny, artistic, wise and deep. But few of them have grabbed my attention right off the bat, from the get-go, as immediately and undoubtedly as my guest today. Calling in from Ahmedabad, the capital city of the state of Gujarat in India, Shraddha Hattangady Mehta is a versatile, sensitive singer with emotional awareness, spiritual depth, and strength of character that blows my mind. She's open, honest, blunt and bold -- my kind of woman -- and, I'm guessing, yours too. This podcast is the first time we've ever spoken and the experience for me was profound as I learned about how she's navigated life's breaks and blows with grace, humor, wisdom, self-acceptance and gratitude. Without further ado, here's the conversation you didn't know you were dying to hear. Featuring the song "Rangi Sari Gulabi Chunariya," an ode to a beloved pink sari sung by Shraddha in the dadra style, a light vocal form of Hindustani classical music.

Have you been putting off a burning desire? Are you afraid of being judged negatively, of not being "good enough?" My guest today is the thoughtful, eccentric and utterly creative accordion player, street performer and world-travelling puppeteer Sophie Crafts, of Sophie's Smokin' Squeezebox. We speak about her journey into street performance, the massively understated worth of getting oneself out there messily, imperfectly and quickly, and Sophie introduces me to the hilarious and highly useful theory of being a First Farter. (Yes, you heard that right. No, it isn't a typo.) She also shares a personal story about her wake-up moment to race relations, white privilege, and taking intentional action. I hope you can find a little tidbit of wisdom just for you right here on The Rayna Sense. Featuring the song Stayin' Alive with Sophie on accordion and her marionette Sylvie on bells and percussion. 

Has life ever thrown you a curveball? James Burrows was born with perfect pitch, and autism. Today I speak with his mother Nancy in Baltimore, Maryland, about the incredible musical journey James has had with the support of his whole family: from how his gift showed up in infancy, had him eating meals only in the car because the sound of the refrigerator compressor would startle him, finding the perfect mentor in an up-and-coming local beatboxer, graduating from high school during a pandemic, and being featured on NPR. James joins us on the interview briefly towards the end, talking about synesthesia and doing an impressive mental scan of his entire SoundCloud catalog to pick out a tune that features his current favorite note, F#. The episode includes two original tunes by James: This Connects to my Happiness, and A Great Pattern. It's a timely story of acceptance, resilience and adaptability, right here on The Rayna Sense.