New York – October 1/2/3 at Yogamaya

Yogamaya is the hip new hub of Bhaktified yoga in New York, founded by the harmonium-wielding Bryn Chrisman. Friday evening we’ll gather at 7:30pm and have our first harmonium class till 9pm. Then two classes on Saturday – 2:30-4 and 6-7:30pm, and two more on Sunday at the same times. Each participant should have a harmonium; Yogamaya can help participants find/buy/borrow one if need be. No prior musical experience required! $235 – to register & reserve a spot, head over to Yogamaya’s workshop page.

Los Angeles – October 29/30/31 at The Hub

The Hub is an exquisite yoga sanctuary in West Los Angeles, California. Friday evening we’ll gather at 7pm and have our first harmonium class till 9pm. Then two classes on Saturday – 12:00-1:30pm and 3-4:30pm, and two more on Sunday at the same times. Each participant should have a harmonium. No prior musical experience required! $250 ($235 online by Oct 28th) – to register & reserve a spot, head over to The Hub’s calendar, and click the ‘workshop’ tab.

Nashville – November 12/13/14

Music City here we come! Nashville, Tennessee is about to get a strong dose of Bhaktification as we gather together Fri/Sat/Sun November 12-14, 2010 for this three-day harmonium intensive weekend. Amy Barnes, Nashville-based kirtan wallah and yoga teacher, will be hosting, as well as leading a Bhakti Vinyasa Yoga class and an evening kirtan. I’ll be holding beginning harmonium classes, beginning Friday evening 7-9pm and then two one-and-a-half-hour classes on Saturday and two more on Sunday. No prior musical experience required! $185 – to register & reserve a spot, use the paypal link below. If you don’t have a harmonium, Amy may be able to connect you with one to borrow. For that and any other logistical questions, or to pay by check, please Email Amy. (Also, check out Amy’s beautiful new kirtan CD on her website)

About Harmonium Intensive Weekends

Harmonium Intensive Weekends are three-day workshops (Fri eve, Sat all day, Sun morning) held by Daniel in various locations outside the bay area. These in-depth hands-on workshops are intended to rocket-launch your musical practice, and provide a foundation in harmonium playing and kirtan-singing for a group of 10 – 25 beginning harmonium students. All the basics are covered: keyboard fingering, sargam (Indian scale) singing, sargam exercises, sargam notation, playing chords, reading song sheets, vocal warm-ups, and leading a group in call-and-response kirtan. By the end of the weekend, students are able to play a few different kirtan songs, as well as various exercises to support their musical growth on harmonium.

If you would like to bring a Harmonium Intensive Weekend to your community, email Daniel for further info.

“I had a beautiful harmonium practice this morning and want you to know that I am so grateful for what I learned from you. Playing my harmonium has become a sacred practice to me which you have helped cultivate & nurture. You are an amazing teacher, thank you and I can’t wait to study with you again.” – Heidi Rayden

“Thank you for your excellent harmonium workshop Daniel, you clarified an amazing amount of music and theory.” – Masood Ali Khan

“Daniel Tucker has an amazing gift of understanding the needs of musicians and the questions that come up at many different levels of ability. His teaching style is simple, direct, playful and creatively inspired. Throughout the harmonium intensive, he consistently had a plan and always took us to the next level while being ever mindful not to leave anyone behind. Hosting Daniel’s harmonium intensive for three days was one of the most rewarding, easy flowing and fun weekends I can recall. I’m hoping to make it a semi-annual event! For passionate kirtanists who want to learn how to musically support your chanting, having a mini-retreat with Daniel is one of the best gifts you can offer yourself.” – Terra Gold

“Only 2 days after the harmonium intensive workshop with Daniel, I found myself teaching sargam scales to yoga students. A week later I was teaching kirtan in a yoga teacher training program. The combination of Daniel’s musical skills, his ability to clearly communicate the basics of making music for kirtan plus his enthusiasm for sharing his devotional practice makes the process of learning to lead kirtan super accessible and FUN!” – Sarah Bergman

Kirtan Camps

Daniel holds group beginning harmonium classes as part of Jai Uttal’s kirtan camps. Kirtan camps are weeklong bhakti yoga retreats, for those who love to sing kirtan and desire to learn more about this powerful practice. They are held each summer in San Anselmo, California (next: July 17 – 23, 2010), and each winter in some exotic location (most recently Dec 26, 2009 – Jan 2, 2010 in Costa Rica). Daily harmonium classes with Daniel are one hour long, and progress from an ‘orientation to harmonium,’ through playing sargam exercises, to playing a couple simple kirtans of Jai’s. JaiUttal.com for more info.