You have this dream to be able to play a musical instrument. You’d love to be able to play some of your favourite songs on ukulele
You’ve seen people playing ukulele, and it looks like so much fun.
You love singing along to the radio in the car.
But you’ve had experiences that have discouraged you from making music.
You had music lessons when you were a kid, but you never felt like you were any good at it. And you never got to play the music you love.
You’ve learned to play a musical instrument in the classical system. And you were pretty good at it. Now you want to play and sing popular songs, but your skills don’t seem to map over.
You’ve never had any music lessons, and you can’t read music. You were chucked out of the school choir because you didn’t know how to sing scales. You’re wondering if this means you’re not capable of learning to play an instrument.
Other people in your life are musicians: your partner, your brother, your friends, even your kids. You feel like you’re missing out, always on the sidelines.
You’re going through midlife and making music is one of the important things you really want to do. You don’t want to leave this any longer! (But you’re secretly wondering if you’ve left it too late.)
You’ve bought yourself a “teach yourself ukulele” book and tried to learn from it. You’ve tried learning from online videos but couldn’t keep going. There are pieces of information that don’t make sense to you. And you’re wondering what you’re missing.
People I love working with include:
Women in midlife, or approaching midlife.
People living with health challenges (their own or a close family member).
Teachers: early childhood and primary/ elementary school especially, but also high school and tertiary level
Mental health workers
People with family and/or friends experiencing dementia
Some of my values
Music connects us to heart, spirituality (in a general sense) and cultural belonging.
Making music is about expressing who you are directly through sound.
I love sharing music with family, friends, in workplaces and community spaces.
Music is a healing modality, in the widest possible sense.
In Aotearoa-New Zealand, the country where I live, I am especially inspired by playing and singing Māori waiata (songs).
The Māori people are Tangata Whenua – first people of this land. The Treaty of Waitangi/ Te Tiriti o Waitangi (1840) is our founding agreement between the Māori people and the British Crown (which is still our head of state, even though New Zealand is an independent nation).
As a Pakeha (New Zealander of mostly European ancestry) waiata is an important way for me to connect with Te Reo – the Māori language – and with Māori culture more generally.
My intention is to always do this with respect and sensitivity.
I’m actively learning from and listening to kaiako (teachers) and kaumātua (elders) in my local community. It’s an ongoing process.