First, create a Google calendar to host the events you’d like to list.

I don’t want everything on my personal calendar showing up in my gig feed. Both Google Calendars and iCal (5.01, and Lion OS) support multiple calendars from different accounts and origins, and it’s easy to get confused as to which calendar is which, and which one hosts your events. It’s important to establish an intentional chain. I had a double-booking mistake recently after failing to instruct my iPhone to “default” to my main calendar; I took a date via iPhone that didn’t show up where I needed it to, because I had too many calendars and incorrect settings… lesson learned the hard way.

Establish a “home base” calendar on your PC, in your desktop/laptop iCal app. Give it a memorable name, and in the preferences on both your PC and phone, designate it as the “default” calendar. Routine entries will reside here. Make additional calendars for business, personal, family etc if you think you need to; but recognize that you’ll need to assign the event to whichever calendar you intend it to reside on… every time. This is particularly true of the Gig calendar we’re creating.

Why Google for the gig calendar?

Google will be the source for the published gig stream.

It’s easy to add a Google account to iCal 5. Dates entered in either place will show up on both. After adding your Google account in iCal preferences/accounts, it shows up on iCal calendar lists, its dates show up in your iCal calendar window (or not, if unchecked in the iCal list), with the entries that it contains color-coded.

It’s not so easy to subscribe to an iCal/iCloud calendar from Google, and having tried this first, I can tell you it didn’t work for me (maybe it’s possible, but I couldn’t figure it out).

With this setup, gigs (or events) entered on any iCloud-configured device and assigned to the Google gig calendar will show up on all devices and the Google calendar. In this configuration, iCal 5 is the front-end application interface for your Google calendar. As mentioned above, once this is set up, it works in both directions… that is, if you make entries in your Google calendar, they’ll show up everywhere using your iCal/iCloud account.

OK, so how do I publish?

Calendar widget?

Google’s overall advantage in this process is clear. From the settings in Google Calendar, it’s possible to get code for a Calendar widget that can be placed anywhere that hosts html. The disadvantage of this particular portal, from a gigging musician’s point of view, is that the end user would need to page through your entire calendar to find your gigs. It would be much more user-friendly to publish a widget containing only a list of the gigs on the calendar.

No! Use an RSS feed!

This is possible from Google via RSS – all Google Calendars have an RSS feed. (Apple’s iCloud offers no resizable embeds, widgets, or RSS – at least, not yet.)

This requires a number of simple steps using Feedburner as an intermediary to help configure your feed to get the dates in the right order, and a widget generator tool such as Widgetbox (flash only – won’t work on iOS devices like the iPhone or iPad), Google’s BuzzBoost (part of FeedBurner, requires some CSS coding to make it look nice) or Webrss (which ignores your Feedburner formatting, not good).

Step 1

In the left sidebar of Google Calendars, click the arrow next to your calendar’s name and select “settings.” On that page, look for Calendar Address in the left sidebar and the XML button to the right of it. Click it and a popup gives your RSS feed address – almost! You’ll need to modify this to use it in the next step, so copy and paste it somewhere you can find it – a text editor, Word, whatever.

It will look like this:

https://www.google.com/calendar/feeds/YOURGOOGLEID%40gmail.com/public/basic

You might notice between /feeds/__________/public is something that looks like your Gmail address, with %40 instead of the “@”. So far so good.

Step 2

Remove the “s” from “https” (do this or it will fail in Feedburner, which Google also owns, but never mind – this was a couple hours of frustration before finding the answer! Take the “s” out.):

http://www.google.com/calendar/feeds/jonburrbass%40gmail.com/public/basic

Step 3

Next – one more modification of the link is needed to get dates to display in chronological order (rather than the default: order of entry)

To the end of the link, paste:

?orderby=starttime&sortorder=d&max-results=15

This adds a “query” to the URL, leading to the correct display of records.

Note: the “=d” in the string means “descending order;” change it to “=a” if you need ascending order, that is, earliest date at the top. The number at the end allows you to specify how many entries will be displayed.

So now you have:

http://www.google.com/calendar/feeds/YOURGOOGLEID%40gmail.com/public/basic/?orderby=starttime&sortorder=a&max-results=15

Step 4

Copy this link now, and paste it into the “Burn a feed right this instant” field in Feedburner.  Bang! You’ll have your feed, displaying in the order you specified, ready to import into the widgetmaker of your choice. Make your widget, grab the code, and put it on your website or wherever you can paste html. On that score, it’s useful to investigate the “static html for pages” app in Facebook; a Facebook tab in your band page becomes an editable html hosting interface where you can put your gig calendar, music players, videos, email grabber, or whatever.

Example (of both) Facebook/jonburrmusic

my calendar on my website

If you’d like help with any of this, or putting it on Facebook or wherever, shoot an email and we’ll see if we can set up a support session, for which I bill a modest rate.

Thanks for reading!

The climate has been really weird, and got suddenly weirder the last year and a half. We’ve had the most snow and rain ever recorded in the Northeast U.S. It’s been cold and cloudy. Those who would deny Global Warming (a/k/a Climate Change) have ammunition in their ongoing battle for public skepticism.

But, it’s not so simple as that…

Remember the volcanic eruption shutting down the airports all over Europe the summer before last?

This article on the aftereffects of the Mount Pinatubo eruption in 1991 shows that radical climatic disruption is an aftereffect of volcanic eruption. The aberrations of the last two years have a mitigating explanation; we are suffering the aftereffects of many major volcanic eruptions the last two years, including those in Eyjafjallajokull, Iceland, and Kirishima, Japan. Volcanic activity is continuous and ongoing.

What are the effects of Global Warming on geology? We know that matter expands when heated. If the Earth is getting warmer, it’s reasonable to theorize that it is expanding – so what are some possible effects on the geology? Heightened earthquake, tidal, and volcanic activity, accompanied by even more bizarre meteorological phenomena? It seems that cataclysmic natural disasters are proliferating: earthquakes, tsunamis, hurricanes, floods, tornadoes, wildfires, Nor’easters, blizzards, typhoons. There have been tornadoes in lower Westchester County, NY, and in the Bronx and Long Island, for the first time ever. Are these all the result of human activity such as deforestation, the use of automobiles and burning of fossil fuels, and the raising of livestock for food?

Maybe this is the Earth’s immune system, trying to protect it from the Human threat. Earth expands, volcanoes erupt blocking sunlight, and earth cools down again for a little while.

This post is speculation and hypothesis, not complete science. But asking the right questions based on known facts are the beginning of scientific inquiry.

Faith has another definition: “comfort in the presence of the unknowable,” or “acceptance.” This latter definition has great practical value, especially for the modern person who’s been exposed to modern science and has a tough time accepting religious dogma literally. There’s been an increasing division in the world between progressives and fundamentalists because of this dichotomy of definition, with the fundamentalists rejecting modernity and science, and progressives rejecting religion because of perceived incompatibility with cherished beliefs. Fear of the unknown is a primal condition for humans. It’s uncomfortable, and people seek relief from it, and doing so in the manner of the first definition above has lead to most of the organized religions of the world, with people willingly following the teachings of one great teacher or another. Finding ones’ own faith is a challenging lifelong task that most are unwilling to undertake. We are taught to listen to the wisdom of experts; when we’re sick we go to the doctor. We have an accountant do our taxes, we see a lawyer for legal help—and we leave our spiritual life in the hands of the clergy and do as they say…or, at least we used to until science came along and made that hard to do for many of us in the modern world. Unfortunately, if we don’t have our own practice for spiritual maintenance, we’ll get spiritually sick.

Beliefs

Some people are easygoing and seem to have good mental habits (maybe including a spiritual practice of some kind, intentional or not), but the vast majority of us do not have good habits. We need some kind of program or practice, possibly including some organized religion—or meditative practice. For some, recreation or exercise is enough. Beliefs play a huge part in the course of human life. People tend to identify with their beliefs, forgetting that they have adopted these beliefs themselves voluntarily, or that they can change them. People are not born with beliefs—they have to be taught, or adopted. Humans identify so strongly with their beliefs that they are willing to die for them, and frequently would rather do so than change them. Beliefs are routing nodes of the mind, a prism through which reality is interpreted, forming the nature of experience. Changing a belief is fundamental mental work; it’s difficult, requires a lot of thought, letting go and processing, and can be very painful; consequently many people would rather die than do it. People can identify so strongly with their beliefs that they are willing to do battle, kill or die in the defense of them. For a person to “change” (which could mean “recover” or “get better”) means to change either beliefs or physical form (such as weight loss, muscle mass or tone, or posture).

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Maybe a persons’ belief system includes an exclusivity provision; many religions do…there’s only one way, it’s this way, and if you do anything else, you’re going to hell. As common as this is, it’s not unusual for people to have unwillingness to explore a practice that seems to reside outside the bounds of their religious beliefs. Apostasy, idolatry, and paganism are big no-nos to many people, and consequently they are unwilling to investigate anything that has the appearance of a competing belief system. When it comes to meditation, however, further investigation reveals that every major religion has contemplation, prayer or meditation somewhere in it. Or, maybe a person is so firmly agnostic or atheistic that adopting a practice that has any appearance of religiosity is equally anathema to them. These individuals will benefit the most from the second definition of “faith”: “comfort in the face of the unknowable.” It’s OK to have a daily practice to maintain psychological and physical well being, and meditation has proven effective for thousands of years—ever since the Buddha said “don’t take my word for it. Try it yourself!”

“Letting go” is the most effective weapon in the war on obsession, resentments, grief, and depression.

The preceding post is the final chapter of Jon’s new book “Letting Go: Practical Meditation for Everyday People.” Available now!

Life getting you down? Stressed to the max?

“Let Go.”

What does that mean? How do you do it? It’s explained in this book.
Jon Burr has created a practical manual for personal renewal, recovery and healing using insights from his own experience.
“This writing is immensely helpful and I have sincerely benefitted from reading it…Apparently I/we really needed this. Who knew that letting go was an art form that needs to be practiced! Mil gracias.” –María Elena Gaitán (aka ‘Chola Con Cello’), a reader
“I love the multidimensional/multidisciplinary approach…The neuroscience aspect of it is in a way a discipline on its own and is really advanced thinking…your thinking runs parallel to the essence of that book, ‘The Brain That Changes itself’” —Arlyn Valencia, M.D. Neurologist, Stroke Subspecialist

Life getting you down?

Stressed to the max?

“Let Go.” (and please hit the “like” button!)

What does that mean? How do you do it? It’s explained here.
Jon Burr has created a practical manual for personal renewal, recovery and healing using insights from his own experience.

“This writing is immensely helpful and I have sincerely benefitted from reading it…Apparently I/we really needed this. Who knew that letting go was an art form that needs to be practiced! Mil gracias.” —María Elena Gaitán (aka ‘Chola Con Cello’), a reader

“I love the multidimensional/multidisciplinary approach…The neuroscience aspect of it is in a way a discipline on its own and is really advanced thinking…your thinking runs parallel to the essence of that book, ‘The Brain That Changes itself’” —Arlyn Valencia, M.D. Neurologist, Stroke Subspecialist

Release from obsession, resentments, grief, depression

 How many times have we heard this? Somebody sees us suffering, and they tell us we need to “Let Go.” “Get over it.” “Move on.” “Fuhgedaboudit.”

 How aggravating! That was my reaction… let go? I’m not holding on to anything… that I’m aware of – so you can TAKE your “let go” and @^%$%#!! Can’t you see I have PROBLEMS? I feel bad! I’m angry! I’m sad! I’m a victim of my feelings! I’m a victim of my circumstances, and I’m having a rational reaction to them!

 Well… maybe you’ve experienced this, or maybe not, but this hypothetical person was unknowingly giving me a great gift, and in the process imparting a great secret about the nature of mind, consciousness and feeling.

 We tend to think of our minds as being the series of pictures in our heads, and our thoughts are the contents of our life, like the characters on a stage in a play. The supremacy of intellect and the superiority of the human mind over our “animal instincts” is drummed into us from infancy; humans are rational beings, science and logic are our rulers, while our parents admonished us “don’t feel that way,” or “you shouldn’t be angry,” or “don’t cry, be brave.” Our feelings are viewed as unruly and suspect, as if they belong to another being… we even call it our “unconscious,” as if their source is a mysterious, inaccessible pool of darkness. We need to rule them with an iron fist. They are the manifestation of our base nature, and they come unbidden like gophers from a hole in the ground, and need to be tamed and even suppressed. We are taught to be aware of our thoughts, to use our power of thought to solve problems, and to ignore our feelings or to use our mind to control or suppress them.

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 We have not been taught about the total structure of mind, or the true relationship between awareness, the “conscious” mind and our feelings/unconscious. Over the centuries, this realm has been the province of the religious, the mystics, poets and artists; this realm of feelings, spirit and the soul. Knowledge of feelings was thought to be beyond the reach of science, even as psychiatry and psychology stepped into the breach and sought to collect data about them. Many theories and schools of thought emerged, but the study of the mind, psychiatry and psychology lacked the stature of “true science” because of the unavailability of empirical data.

 There is new science now, however, empirical science, that has very interesting implications pointing to a new paradigm. There are new data gleaned from powerful new techniques using electronics and imaging, and a new model, a new way of looking at the nature of mind, consciousness, awareness and the nature of feelings is emerging. There have been discoveries tracing electrical activity; it has been discovered that there are brain cells scattered throughout the body; it has been discovered that the immune system carries neurotransmitters. Functions of the brain have been localized and identified with ever greater precision than before; thought processes and emotional reactions have been observed and measured. It has been discovered that the mind has two independent memory systems.

 This last development, coupled with the idea that there are brain cells scattered throughout the body, is particularly interesting when it is considered that the brain cells in the body are connected in particular to one of the two memory systems… in fact, these corporeal brain cells are one of the memory systems. It has been written that these discoveries suggest that the body “is the unconscious mind.”

 There is a fundamental problem with our traditional cultural understanding of the “unconscious.” To the extent that “consciousness” has to do with the activity of the Cortex – the outer layer of the brain, the ongoing “thought movie” in the front of our minds, the so-called “human” thinking brain (although all mammals have it in varying degrees of development), then the activity of this “other” brain can be described as unconscious… but that does not mean it’s beyond the reach of awareness. This is the huge misconception in our culture; it is a widely-held belief that because something is not on the “movie screen “of our Cortex, at the forefront of our “thinking mind,” that it is somehow beyond reach. Consciousness has been equated with awareness.

 We are not the movie. We are the watcher of the movie. We have a “spotlight operator” (Freud’s “superego”) that has the power to focus awareness, and to shift the focus from the “movie” to our feelings. If we are anything, we are “awareness.”

 Constantly, in every waking moment, if we allow our focus to shift to our “feeling” state, we are often painfully (or blissfully) aware of our emotions. It’s our sense of “how we are,” “how we’re doing” – it’s the underlying subtext to our life. It’s like a musical score in a movie; our emotional state is with us constantly, and in fact is the greatest determining factor in the course of our day and our life. Our emotional state governs our reactions, colors our thoughts, produces our mood, our ability to think and to function… in short, it is the dominating function of mind. Frequently we have a task to perform in our daily life, a job to do, and our emotional being can overrule our “conscious” mind and make it literally impossible to function. We can feel distracted, or bothered, or angry – or elated, joyful, energetic… and often have absolutely no clue as to why we feel the way we do. Maybe we’ve felt a particular way for years, and don’t know any other way of being. This is the “unconscious” mind at work, often barging into our awareness with demands for attention, or action! We have been conditioned since childhood to ignore the single largest factor in our sense of well-being, of “okayness” in our life!

 Where do feelings come from?

 They come from the “other” brain, with its memory scattered throughout the body. Scientists have called it the “limbic” brain. All mammals have it. We have two brains, functioning together, at the same time, each of which has its own memory. The limbic memory is the feeling memory; feelings are the product of the limbic brain. The limbic brain remembers motion, and can memorize repetitive tasks; something we “know by heart,” “do by instinct,” “automatically,” “as a matter of habit,” or something that I “feel in my gut” – all these are contents of the limbic memory. “Muscle memory” is limbic memory. We can instruct our bodies by imagining and planning with the cortex, as in learning a piece of music, then at some point, as the focus is changed to “the feel of it,” it enters the limbic memory.

 So, the “unconscious” isn’t nearly as inaccessible as we are taught to think. The unconscious mind is always with us and always accessible if we use our awareness to focus on it. It runs on a track that is not underneath the conscious mind; it’s parallel, a constant companion, and, potentially, our greatest ally, rather than the mysterious enemy as it has come to be regarded.

 How does this apply, then, to “letting go?” First we’ll ask what we’re “holding on” to.

 The limbic brain sees the “movie;” it responds to the thoughts we have, as well as to actual events, which still must enter it through the process of perception. The limbic brain doesn’t know the difference between real and imagined events, particularly if we believe what we are imagining. The limbic brain responds to beliefs and logical conclusions of the conscious mind.

 Feelings are corporeal events, felt through the nerves in muscles and organs throughout the body. Feelings are organic states, chemical changes in regions of the body. As an emotion occurs, chemicals rush to or are generated at a particular location in the body, and we experience it as a feeling. The feeling can persist and become an attribute of our reality; an attitude, or a persistent state of emotional being, a part of our emotional makeup. For example, we can experience a trauma of some kind, and as a result a part of the body will “lock up,” enter a persistent physical state, which is related to the thought or experience that produced it in the first place. Feelings parked in the body in this fashion become persistent reminders of the event, person, place, object, chemical, or thing associated with them.

 Feelings can pile up, and suffering can compound. We can get to the point of feeling bad for feeling bad, and wonder what’s wrong with us, or begin to condemn ourselves. As the accumulation of unreleased negative emotions grows, conditions like depression can develop; depression is a state of persistent self-condemnation, coupled with a loss of functionality and feelings of despair and hopelessness. An inadequately maintained emotional mind can lead to serious difficulty and suffering.

 Let’s look at an example of an emotional event.

 Say some idiot cuts us off on the road, and we feel insulted, disregarded, or criminally endangered by the incident. We experience a flood of fear, followed immediately by anger, and sometimes this leads immediately to an attack response followed by retaliatory behavior and a “road rage” incident…. or, possibly, the car passes, and we resolve to let the incident go by without causing further endangerment, and spend varying amounts of time during the day reliving the incident and trying to get rid of the feeling it left in us. Or, we might let the idiot go past, recognize and accept the reaction it has caused in us, conclude that we are in fact OK nonetheless, take a few deep breaths, and forget about it.

 Some of us are taught to believe that the only way to get rid of a feeling in a situation like this is to act (or, rather, react) to the situation immediately and not get stuck being a “patsy.” Others feel frustrated and powerless in the situation, and try to think their way through to a different outcome, possibly involving having the guy thrown in jail and pointing their finger at him at trial, or maybe trying to locate him and put a bomb under his car. Yet others understand that feelings are not facts, they are not permanent, and they will pass, and the smart thing to do is not to aggravate the situation and just get on with life, and trust that the feeling will pass as we leave the incident behind us.

 This last person has decided not to “hold on” to the feeling, but instead to “let it go.” The person that relives the incident over and over is obsessing about it, and can’t let it go, and relives it consciously with no difference in the outcome, although somehow hoping to think his way to a better result. The person who goes into retaliation mode has either forgotten or doesn’t know that his feelings are his own, that they are generated within him, and that they are his problem alone to deal with; this retaliator seeks to hold the other person responsible for his own feelings, regardless of the possible cost to himself.

 From looking at these three options, it seems that the person with the best outcome from the situation and making the wisest choice is the one letting go of the incident, and letting go of the feelings.

 “Letting go,” rather than a mysterious abstraction, is a necessary skill in the maintenance of emotional health. As emotions are experienced, they can pile up like trash in an unkempt house. “Letting go” is an essential form of emotional house-cleaning.

 It has been found that toxic emotions harbored in the body can cause disease of many different forms. “Holding on” can cause cancer, heart disease, obesity, diabetes, and many other ailments.

 How do we let go? What does it feel like? How do we know when we’re doing it?

 There are several ways; the most vivid practical example I can think of is in dealing with an obsession.

 Obsession is a defense against the experience of loss. In the car illustration above, and in many obsessions, the loss threatened is to our self-esteem. We may have a picture of ourselves as someone you can’t do that to, who has some pride, and doesn’t let people get away with things, for example. For this incident to occur unchallenged in some way would involve having to rethink these tenets of our self-image, and after the fact, we might end up mentally constructing a different outcome that protects our self-image, and rethink it time and again, replaying the incident, looking for a different result, all the time experiencing the anger of the original insult. It can become consuming and occupy our consciousness, taking us out of the present, preempting our capacity for awareness of life around us, or other feelings we could be having, or our work.

 OK. We have our hypothetical situation here… what do we do?

 The way to interrupt this frenetic cycle of feeling and circular thought is through a process of intentional interruption. There are simple steps we can take to stop the storm of thought and release the feelings that make the thoughts keep spinning:

 Stop

Look

Listen

Breathe

Feel

Let go

 There is a sudden result in that the thinking is interrupted; the feeling remains, at first, The feeling needs to be released and swept out like old dust from a corner.

 As the steps above are practiced, several things happen. At first, we suddenly return our awareness to the present moment, rather than our endless replays of the incident. We focus on the immediate environment, interrupting the Cortex -  the thinking part -  first. We actively focus on other things like the sights and sounds around us, to fully return to the present moment.

 The human body is a miraculous healing machine. As we focus on other things, the body’s capacity to release and clean itself out can be invoked through regular rhythmic breathing, rhythmic motion, and feeling the pull of gravity. As we turn our awareness to our feeling, our “body-mind,” we are capable of monitoring where the discomfort is, and consciously relaxing the area. We are able to breathe into it, and feel a sensation of falling within as the tension releases,. We can assist the process by exercise,  dancing or movement, Yoga, or stretching.

 As the tension releases, the toxins causing the tension and bad feelings begin to enter the blood, and there’s a rushing or flooding sensation that may be not at all pleasant. Sometimes intense sadness or nausea comes with the release, or maybe a vague discomfort, and possibly a warming sensation in the area affected. Some people hold on to feelings forever to avoid these sensations. The unknown can lie beyond; it can be scary to let go of things, particularly resentments or regrets that had become cornerstones of our souls. Letting go is a real physical process.

 Ultimately the desired outcome is the disconnection of a thought, belief or conclusion from the feeling that had long been its mate. When an old resentment is revisited after a physical release of its manifestation in the body, we experience that its power is gone, and there’s a sense of detachment from it, that it can no longer hurt us.

 This is freedom from obsession… at least, from that particular one!

 “Letting go” is the most effective tool in the war on obsession.

]]> http://jonburr.wordpress.com/2011/10/12/letting-go/feed/ 6 Jon Burr http://jonburr.wordpress.com/2011/10/11/the-improvising-chef-2/ http://jonburr.wordpress.com/2011/10/11/the-improvising-chef-2/#comments Tue, 11 Oct 2011 06:00:30 +0000 Jon Burr http://jonburr.wordpress.com/?p=478 ]]>

It's Out! Download $18

The Improvising Chef – Making Healthy Food Tasty
Bassist/author/chef Jon Burr lays out a sustainable, enjoyable path to optimum nutrition, taste, body weight, and health.

“There’s no other book like this.  I will personally recommend this—not only to my patients who need to incorporate healthy, palatable and enjoyable eating habits to reduce their cerebro-vascular and cardiovascular risk factors—but also to everyone who will come across my path.”

—Arlyn Valencia, M.D. Neurologist, Stroke Subspecialist

“Jon claims to be making healthy food tasty.  Personally, I think he’s making tasty food healthy!  Either way, this engaging, insightful, beautiful and clearly heart-felt work is aimed right at the sweet spot, where the food we love – loves us back.  I endorse that destination, as well as Jon’s joyfully improvisational means of getting us there!”

-David L. Katz, MD, MPH, FACPM, FACP

Director, Yale University Prevention Research Center

The Author

Jon Burr is a bassist, composer, teacher, author, producer, engineer, chef, and dad. Active in the creative arts since childhood, he sat in for Charlie Mingus (by Mingus’ invitation) at the Village Vanguard at the age of 16, and went on to play with jazz greats such as Buddy Rich, Chet Baker, Stan Getz, Stephane Grappelli, and pop artists such as Tony Bennett, Eartha Kitt, Rita Moreno, Barbara Cook and many others. Also active composing and leading his own ensembles, he recently released an EP of his new band Giant Cicada.

Jon’s interest in food began with fish he caught and cooked as a child. Struggling throughout childhood with weight and fitness, his early efforts to get in shape met with frustration until influential mentors in later years inspired his study of food and nutrition. Suspecting he was an “easy gainer,” then later on as a cancer survivor, Jon’s discoveries in facing these challenges led to the knowledge collected in this book. Also informed by his experience as an improvising jazz musician, the book shows the path to an enjoyable, sustainable lifestyle-based approach to food, nutrition and exercise. His stamina and youthfulness belie his 58 years, wearing 32” pants at 5”10. Find him on the web at jonburr.com.

http://www.nationmaster.com/graph/hea_obe-health-obesity

and among the lowest in the world for heart disease:

http://www.worldlifeexpectancy.com/cause-of-death/coronary-heart-disease/by-country/

Japanese diabetes rates are among the lowest in the world:

http://www.idf.org/sites/default/files/Figure 2.1_Diabetes per region_2010-2030_0.pdf

But – Japanese cancer rates are moderately high.

http://ganjoho.jp/public/statistics/backnumber/2010_en.html

Recently back from an eye-opening trip to Japan with the wonderful Manhattan Jazz Quintet, I made many observations from my perspective as a healthy food blogger, author and advocate. The Japanese culture and cuisine are world renown; having the chance to spend enough time to observe some of the eating habits of the population gave a glimpse into a well-established, relatively homogeneous culture with strong traditions and very interesting, nutritious food. Japan is densely populated, and has a successful and efficient marketplace distributing quality nutrition consistently throughout the country.

Yakitori Stand

I had a chance to see many thousands of people during the course of a four-week musical tour, and make observations about the daily habit of diet, the availability of foods as well as the characteristics of the food supply, and the apparent health of the population. I took every chance I could to explore local cuisine, finding places frequented by everyday ordinary Japanese in the routine course of their lives, observing their culinary preferences, habits and techniques, and the apparent state of their health.

As a rule, Japanese appear happy. Socially integrated, considerate behavior appears foundational to Japanese society; self-respect, respect for others, and empathy come easily to the Japanese. There’s the sense that a profound ethical foundation underlies the culture, probably owing to Buddhist influence (unfortunately, given the language barrier, I was unable to investigate this aspect of the society as much as I would have liked), a strong sense of tradition, and relatively strict homogeneity in the population. Appreciation for artistic things and quiet seem as common as the raised glass of beer, sake, or cigarettes, which are very common. Obesity is rare. Having seen many thousands of people, the occasional overweight person seemed oddly out of place.

Architecture in Shinjuku!

The infrastructure of the country, the architecture and public amenities are advanced, beautiful, well maintained, and orderly. Litter is rare. The trains run on time and the platforms are clean. In short, Japan seems like a very highly civilized, functional place, and I had a wonderful time there. They love jazz, and appreciate my work as a musician, which feels fantastic (especially contrasted with the post-apocalyptic morass of the American music business). If not for the language barrier, I’d have tried to stay! I’m certainly looking forward to returning.

But, I did come back with a lot of new food ideas. Their health statistics are generally far superior to those in the U.S., particularly in the area of obesity, diabetes (also known as diabesity and/or metabolic syndrome), and cardiac health, where the U.S. has fallen sharply into epidemic and failure. Something is going right in Japan, although their cancer rates are high, which could very well be their high rates of alcohol and tobacco consumption, or history of radiation-related calamity. Cancer rates increased with Western influence in the diet, and as tobacco consumption increased in the occupation after World War II. [see here] Lung, stomach and colon cancers are the big killers in Japan. Industrial foods with additives similar to those in the US (high fructose corn syrup and trans fats) and monosodium glutamate (MSG) are increasing in the food supply, adding negative factors; but all in all, the Japanese seem much more successful in bringing quality nutrition cheaply and consistently to a large population on a relatively small island. The day-to-day habits of the Japanese – those everyday choices learned as children, and long-standing cultural tradition – seem to protect them from the worst influences of Western industrial or fast food. Good nutrition habits are inculcated to the Japanese from infancy.

Breakfast (raw egg not shown). Shown here: cooked egg, pickles, seaweed, miso soup

Japanese generally eat rice frequently; maybe three times a day, though not in large quantities. Raw eggs are a staple. A Japanese breakfast might consist of Miso (fermented soy bean paste) soup with tofu and wakame (leafy seaweed); a bowl of rice with natto (fermented soy beans) and a raw egg mixed into it, eaten with nori (sushi seaweed) strips folded around the rice mixture with chopsticks. Seasonings include soy sauce, and togarashi (fine-ground red hot pepper and sesame mix), with a side of some pickled vegetables or ume plum or some other little savory treat. A salad with sesame oil dressing might be an accompaniment, and/or little side dish of tofu, flavored with scallions, bonito flakes, and soy sauce. Maybe a small one-inch square of broiled mackerel might go along with it. In western Japan (nearer Korea), kimchi might be served with breakfast. Some local variation occurs; in some of the hotels serving breakfast, there might be no tofu or no fish, and cooked eggs and bacon are also available many places.

I came to love the taste of the traditional Japanese breakfast, even though the raw egg and natto together could have a somewhat slimy texture in the rice and took some getting used to. When these things are all mixed together and seasoned with soy, sea vegetables, and hot pepper, it can be quite delicate and savory–but more importantly than that, there are really good things happening nutritionally in this breakfast.

Japanese breakfast on the plane home - natto at center, top

Natto is known for some remarkable properties, including the ability to break up arterial plaque. It’s high in protein and the K vitamins, particularly K2, which is rare in other foods. Japanese have mixed feelings about Natto—some never overcome their childhood resistance to it (it’s infamous for its odor—it’s an acquired taste), but, given its nutritional profile, it’s well worth overcoming initial resistance. The Bacillus subtilisit contains is a desirable pro-biotic.

The sea vegetables are high in all kinds of wonderful vitamins, minerals, iodine, and antioxidants [link]. They’re highly nutritive, and, they have a savory taste. Tofu is a great source of protein. Although raw soy or soy protein isolate have become less favored by holistic researchers over recent years, fermented soy products are pro-biotic, carrying constructive intestinal flora, and are easier to digest and metabolize. These include the miso paste, the base of the miso soup, which is savory, the natto mentioned above – and soy sauce, which is also fermented. There had been some speculation and considerable coverage in the American press regarding the use of soy sauce and its impact on the incidence of stomach cancer (put forth by Japanese scientists on the basis of the population data), but recent research shows that the opposite is true: [click here for story] Fermented soy products are good, and prevent cancer. For those with gluten sensitivity, it’s useful to note that Soy Sauce (Shoyu) contains wheat gluten, whereas Tamari does not.

Kimchi, consisting of fermented vegetables such as cabbage or radish also has pro-biotic characteristics, involving fermentation, and is another really healthy component popular in Japan (although of Korean origin)[link].

Seven-Eleven Shelves

Healthy food is relatively easy to come by in Japan. Convenience stores are ubiquitous, featuring an assortment of convenience supplies but with a much more diverse and healthy array of food options than in the U.S.. Salads, packaged fish, noodle lunches, boiled (or raw) eggs in packages, dried fish, nuts, dried beans, cheeses, yogurt and many other items are available. In the US, the healthiest options in a Seven-Eleven might be trail mix, bananas, and jerky. In Japanese convenience stores a salad lunch is available for ~$7. Junk food is also available, but even the junk food seems better when it’s wasabi peas or seaweed-coated rice crackers.

Soba in broth

Soba, Udon and Ramen noodles comprise the most popular lunch staple. Accompanied by a wide variety of ingredients (including tempura, eggs, fish, meat, vegetables, or various combinations thereof), served hot or cold with a variety of sauce options, lunch counters are shoulder-to-shoulder with the population enjoying a fast, nutritious and tasty lunch based on these staples. Soba noodles are made from buckwheat and are gluten-free (as is rice) and very high in protein; Udon and Ramen are wheat; because of my own problem with gluten, I avoided these. A discussion of the relative health benefits of the various types of noodles is here.

I had Soba lunches a few times;little lunch places offer tempura, gyoza(dumplings), sliced cooked beef, curries, over rice or noodles.

Convenience store salad lunch

Usually I had a salad lunch from purchases at the convenience store, which was less daunting at times than wrestling with the language barrier in a small, busy, crowded restaurant.

Picture vending was helpful

Some lunch shops had a vending machine near the door selling food tickets representing your selection; if the menu had pictures or an English translation available it was easy, quick, and cut down on the embarrassment. Trying to order in a small town without a translator or an English menu could be challenging; eventually I noticed that frequently there were pictures or model food mockups outside the restaurant, and I would take a picture on my iPhone to show the server.

Give me one of these, o kudasai?

As an American health-aware “foodie,” it was surprising to me how many “carbs” the Japanese consume, given the population of millions with low obesity rates. It’s led me to rethink some prejudices that I’ve developed having subscribed to the widespread American cultural indictment of carbohydrates in diet and health information. The big difference is the Japanese eat rice with some wheat, versus our emphasis on wheat with some rice – but, nonetheless, the foundation of the diet is grain. Maybe the difference is in the predominance of rice in Japan! The countries where rice predominates, including Japan, Korea and Southeast Asia (data on China are unavailable), have the worlds’ lowest rates of diabesity and metabolic syndrome. Vegetables are less predominant than one might expect, although sea vegetables are common features of the Japanese diet. Fruit can be hard to find except in a department store in a city or a suburban grocery, and it is prohibitively expensive, often packaged as gifts.

Peaches

Dinners are a revelation. Sushi, tempura, teppan-yaki, shabu-shabu, and many other Japanese culinary styles are known the world over. The food tastes as good and is as nutritious as it looks.

Sashimi

The food industry in Japan uses additives, preservatives, and questionable ingredients such as high fructose corn syrup (HFCS) and trans-fats (hydrogenated oils) like their counterparts in the U.S. Having discovered that glutamate was the savory component of seaweed, the Japanese developed monosodium glutamate (MSG), a common additive in Japanese condiments and commercial packaged foods. Purchases of Japanese products in the U.S. subject to USDA labeling requirements reveal that some packaged sauces and condiments contain HFCS and trans-fats. Packaged natto is an example; it was surprising to see these ingredients listed on the package of this notably healthy food, until closer inspection revealed that these additives are present in the little condiment packets included with every serving (the natto itself is free of these!).

Despite the presence of these undesirable factors in the food supply, Japanese statistics regarding diabesity and metabolic syndrome remain very good. Culture and tradition are strong, and the citizenry can be observed making healthy dietary choices, probably as a result of these traditions. Unfortunately, they’re not so successful in cancer prevention, with the prevalence of cigarettes, second-hand smoke, and alcohol the prime causative suspects.

The Untold Secret to Melodic Bass

- Jon Burr

jbQ Media

$14.99

32 pages

Jon Burr is a noted first call bassist in the New York area, having performed with such jazz greats as Horace Silver, Stan Getz, Tony Bennett, and Chet Baker. This brief but highly informative book is one of a written series concerning melodic bass lines and improvisation. This is not a book for beginners. Knowledge of jazz harmony and chord changes is necessary. Knowing that, through this book Jon will give you many great ideas on how to “learn how to think like a composer of bass lines, how to plan ahead, and make choices that are appropriate to the style of the song.”

As with many authors of education books, Jon uses his own terms to describe his musical ideas. These terms work very well in defining his methods of developing bass lines. There are two sections of the book. In section one, Jon lays out his ideas on what notes to use for bass lines, starting with “Anchor Notes (the root),” “Pivot Notes,” and “Lead-ins.” A fascinating insight used in this book is the introduction of the use of rhythmic accents in even the most basic of bass lines. In his first example, which is the repeated root note of the chords that make up the first four bars of a twelve-bar -blues, the second and fourth beats are written as accented. As stated, “The use of accents is an essential parameter in establishing ‘feel,’ or style.” Though only hinted on in the beginning, the idea of accents is developed very convincingly throughout the book. Most books teaching bass lines stay within the harmonic aspects of the development of the line, and discuss the use of rhythm in the context of style (latin, funk, etc.). Jon brings both concepts together, showing us how rhythm and accents can make a more supportive, musical line.

Jon uses the concept of “tension and release” in discussing his ideas of melody. Through the use of the aforementioned “Pivot notes” and “Lead-ins,” these notes are used to develop your melodic bass line, and there are many good examples in this section. Section two begins with a very convincing argument about “swing.” In brief, instead of pulling against the pulse of the music, Jon shows how to create tension and release through the use of accents and regrouping of rhythms for a more effective line. By analyzing where accents are and what goes before and after, and the placement of offbeat notes as compared to the downbeat notes, the book makes a very compelling thesis in the art of swing! Also discussed in this section is what Jon calls “Rhythmic Overlays;” rhythms that come from lyrics, “second line” rhythms, or the “clave” form found in Afro-Cuban music. From these rhythms, the bassist can come up with lines that complement and support the music. The last concept, called “Harmonic Dynamics,” deals with dynamics, techniques of how to achieve them, and the use of note placement to bring out dynamics.

This book would be a great addition to anyone’s library as another way of looking at how to develop bass lines that are interesting, imaginative, and above all musical and melodic. The section on swing is highly recommended for study, not only for bassists, but all jazz musicians. Jon’s comments on the “Basie” style of swing are very eye-opening and informative. You can also read about the book on Facebook, and catch up with Jon ‘s blog at jonburr.com.

- Review by Lou Pappas, Bass World Magazine

(Available for purchase here)

Led by bassist Jon Burr (check out his website for his full résumé, but make sure you’re sitting down) and vocalist Lynn Stein, they’re joined by an amazing array of talented individuals, including jazz-violin protégé Jonathan Russell, guitarists Nick Russo and John Hart, and renowned percussionist Carlos “Go-Go” Gomez. Their energetic approach to the material seems squarely aimed at the dance floor – they’d go down a storm at any number of UK folk festivals – but they’re equally concerned with quality songwriting, which is understandable considering they’ve a singer with a near-perfect voice.

Standout songs skip along at regular intervals. “Liquid Summer” has all the appeal of Eddi Reader’s Fairground Attraction, “Tell Me About Your Life” is rootsy and organic, and their version of “Fever” just maybe unique. Well worth checking out.
www.giantcicada.com

Rob F.

[purchase]

Giant Cicada is a group that makes music in the cracks. Is this jazz, folk, Americana, what? Some of my favorite music doesn’t fit neatly in any genre, and I will add this to the list. The rhythm section of this band is a cajon, (a hand-played box drum), and bowed bass. On top of this, add guitar, fiddle, and the wonderful vocals of Lynn Stein. There is also bottleneck guitar on some tracks. Gonna Get Through has a Brazilian lilt, both in the playing and in Stein’s vocal. But the song also has the propulsive drive of 80s rock. Giant Cicada’s gift is to take these incongruous elements and have them make sense together. Stein is an emotional singer who never has to shout, and that really puts this album over the top.

- Darius Rips, Oliver di Place Music Blog, June 6 2011

The Giant Cicada, led by bassist Jon Burr, has an EP release on June 1.

Metro NY dates in support of the release are:

June 3^rd – Jules Jazz Bistro 8PM  212 477 4560 8PM No cover 65  St Marks Pl

June 9^th – Thalia Café at Symphony Space 10PM 212 864 5400 No cover 2537 Broadway at 95th Street

June 10^th – Starving Artist Café (City Island) 8PM 718 885 3779 No cover 249 City Island Ave

June 15^th – Feinstein’s Late Night Jazz (Feinstein’s at the Regency) 10:30 PM (212) 339-4095 540 Park Ave

June 29^th – Miles Cafe 8:30 PM (212) 371-7657 212 E. 52nd St. #3Fl.

EP for review:

http://jonandlynn.bandcamp.com/

The Jon Burr Trio (jazz) will also be appearing every Monday 7-9 PM at The Pizza Place, 92 Main St,Yonkers, including June 6, 13, 20 and 27

This year’s core trio includes trumpeter Tim Ouimette and pianist Mike Eckroth.

YouTube video from the Opening May 12^th:

http://youtu.be/-JA-RZGBmuU