Thursday, August 13th, 2009
GREAT CONCERT LAST NIGHT at OMEGA!!!
Wednesday evening I had the great pleasure to guest perform on the entire gig (all except the first piece) with "KaleiDhaPhonic", a new World music ensemble featuring Kevin Nathaniel Hylton: mbira, shekere; Salieu Suso: Kora, voice; Tripp Dudley: tabla; and John Ragusa: flutes, conch, jaw harp etc. This was one of the best gigs ever at Omega.... flowing, meditative, complex trance journeying music with much joy, energy and attunement, at times with ecstatic high energy dancing even as it maintained it's meditative center. (I played ashiko, doumbek, melodica, sanza, shakers, and other percussion.)

Friday, February 20th, 2009
FREE LIVE TRACK mp3 "rarity"....
As any musician knows... so many tracks, both studio and live recordings, build up over time with no particular place on an album to share them. So no promises but I'm going to maybe begin offering a random series of free MP3 downloads here for your listening pleasure.

Here's the first one:
The classic YES song "Soon" from their "Relayer" album.
performed live by BEGINNER'S MIND: Rich Goodhart & John Ragusa
in concert at the Omega Institute in 2007.

 

Monday, December 1st, 2008
HOLIDAY "LIVING IN THE PAST" CD and TAPE SALE!!
"Oh, we won't give in, let's go living in the past..." (Jethro Tull)

We've turned back the calendar to the latter half of the 20th Century with special holiday sale price reductions, last century's shipping rates, archaic payment method options and amazing deals on ancient and obsolete recording technology!!!

*** First up: An extra special holiday gift-giving discount sale!!:
3 CDs - "Earth Spiral Water Sound", "The Gathering Sun" & "Divining Signs", all for only $32
(In addition to our ongoing 2 for $25 specials.) That's a regular price of $15 for the first CD, $10 for the second one, and only $7 for the third!!

*** Second: For all of you anti-IPOD Luddite living in the past hippies with 1980's cassette machines and 1990's automobiles, a special cassette clearance sale:
Either of the first two albums, "AFFIRMATIVE REPLY" or "DIVINING SIGNS" on cassette tape format for ONLY $4.00 each, OR BOTH for a mere $5.00 total!!!

***Third: For those who relish the relaxed pace of a bygone era, additional discounts on the old
pay by check option!! Yes, utilize the postal service, send your payment in by hand written check or money order and take $3.00 off the price of any single CD or $3.00 off any "2 for $25" special.

***And Fourth: One low 20th century shipping and handling price of only $3.00 per order, regardless of quantity!!

For more info, music samples and ordering please visit the Recordings page.

Wishing you all Peace, Prosperity, Love, Magic and High
Vibrations for this gift of the present moment and for
the New Year to come...
!!! .....<<<<{{{(((!*!)))}}}>>>>.....!!!

 

Monday, September 29th, 2008
RECENT GUEST APPEARANCES
I"ve recently (within the past year!) made guest appearances on CDs by:
KDZ: The Drummers at Kripalu, album titled "SLANG RHYTHM SPEAK".
Spiral Harmony, album titled "BEAUTY'S WAY".

KDZ is wonderful high energy danceable and tranceable and heavy on the African influenced drumming. I wrote and played most of the instruments and vocal on one track, and played Native American flute on another track. Great ecstatic music to move your groove to!

Spiral Harmony is more contemplative, emphasis on a variety of flutes and piano with some voice. I play percussion and hand drums on four of the tracks. Wonderfully meditative and melodic, tranquil yet uplifting.

Saturday, August 30th, 2008
UPDATES!!
Oh, I am so lazy and negligent about posting updates lately!!
Well, plenty has been happening and plenty is in the works....
And having said that, I don't have time to really talk about it all now!
But the "Concert and Event Calendar" has been updated with some new offerings for September and October..... I hope you can come out and join in and contribute your presence to making any and all of these events a splendid and uplifting experience for all!

More Info and Updates to follow.... sooner than later hopefully!
Peace, Love, Magic and High Vibrations to all!!!

Monday, February 25th, 2008
GRATITUDE
Saruah often liked to say "Gratitude is the Attitude that turns the energy on"....
And as I sit here at my desk on this February winter morning I find the desire to acknowledge all that I am grateful for. (It's a big list so I am not going print it here!)
But I will say that the top positions on the list are all reserved for friends. And particularly all of those magnificent beings with whom I've had the gift of sharing a moment or much more of honest, nurturing, loving heart space and uncovered truth. It is all of you that help to hold me up and get me through this strange game called "Life" that we play here on Planet Earth. You all know who you are. Some are long time friends, some are new ones. With some I shared great depths in the past.... yet the "past" is an illusion as you are with and within me now and always have been. Some I've shared wonder, inspiration and exploration with here in "recent times"... even as you may be choosing now to step back from all that is. Others still I only know through the computer screen and telephone... yet your love, generosity and opened trusting hearts shine your Light through as clear as in any more seemingly "solid" dimension.

I am also grateful for the energies of transformation and letting go, even as it sure as hell/heaven doesn't feel too good when swirling in the midst of them!! (Ha! I tell myself I am grateful for this... though am I really? Do I joyously welcome such often painful fires of change?... well, that I never said...!!)

Dear Friends, if these word were the last words you ever received from me I would feel complete. Complete in knowing that you received and heard my true and heartfelt thank you for all that you are.
Thank you, Thank you.......

Monday, February 25th, 2008
In Memory of SARUAH BENSON, 1935 - 2007
Somehow I completely failed to acknowledge it here on my website last year, but on the evening of April 2nd, 2007 Divine Sound Master Sarah 'Saruah' Benson passed on from this earthly dimension.

At the time I sent out this announcement to my personal email list:
"Sarah was, to me, a dear and close friend of more than ten years, a spiritual mother, sound healing mentor, performance collaborator and trusted Soul Realm Ally. There is so much that I am and will be forever grateful to her for.

Most recently we were twice able to again create our Sounding Celebration Events, one in October and then again in November last fall. Our usual compatriot and Sound Ally Jim Ballard was with us on both events and Molly Scott joined us in November. Of all the many times we worked together in this way, these two occurances were by far the most potent, with the October one truly being in a "category" of it's own. At this October experience all three of us felt as though we had opened up a portal to and entered more deeply into the Spirit realm than ever before. Clearly she was already out front navigating the deeper Soul waters."

For more on SARUAH, please visit here & here.

I wrote this poem two weeks before her passing, inspired by and dedicated to her:

"TAKE THIS SOUND TO THE CENTER" (for Saruah)

Om Ah Hum...
Om Ah Hum.....
Om Ah Hum.......
Om Ah Hum.........

Take this sound to the center
It's a silver flowing road
A clearing path perception
In alliance with your soul

Take this sound to the center
To the well-spring river heart
Running downstream either way you face
In moon seed earth and star

Take this sound to the center
Of the all pervading force
It will hold you in a sound embrace
And return you to the Source

Take this sound to the center
To the place inside of time
Where stillness whispers in the wind
All is one and you are mine

Take this sound to the center
Of the one unfolding dream
Where clearing path perception
Seeds a deeper running stream

Take this sound to the center
It has never guided wrong
We traveled toward the sun, my friend
And Sound brought us along

(Om... Ah..... Hum.......)

Friday, September 7th, 2007
"PLACE OF POWER" ~ Featured Music Of The Month
"Place of Power", the tribal trance journey track from "EARTH SPIRAL WATER SOUND" featuring Daevid Allen and Steve Gorn has been chosen by The Sound Healing Network as the Featured Music of the Month on their MySpace page. For more info also visit their website.

Monday, August 13th, 2007
LATEST NEWS, RECORDINGS... etc...
Recent studio activity includes a couple of guest appearances on the next KDZ: The Drummers at Kripalu album titled "SLANG RHYTHM SPEAK". I composed and recorded one interlude piece for the project and also played Native American flute on a second track. This is their first studio album and is a follow up to their highly successful debut "LIVE" album.

And I've also recently contributed to five tracks for the upcoming Sue Blessing/Jim Ballard CD "BEAUTY'S WAY".

Got back home a week ago from two great weeks teaching and leading Shamanic Sound Journeys, drumming, chanting and a variety of energy work at Omega Teen Camp. Much thanks to all campers, counselors, teachers and staff!!

Two days ago accompanied David Newman/Durga Das on one of the best kirtans I've ever participated in!! Such great spirit and energy coming through from David and Mira!!

Various projects in the works that will remain secret until the appropriate time for their public revealing!!

Also, the June Interview on WRPI with Gary Goldberg, which was cancelled due to a weather induced power outage is now rescheduled for October 4th. (See "Concerts & Events" page for details.)

Thank you and wishing to all peace, magic and high visions for this continuing summer season!!

Monday, June 25th, 2007
LIVE RADIO INTERVIEW & NEW MUSIC SOURCE
This Thursday, June 28th, at 12:10pm (just after noon) I'll be doing a live in-studio radio interview as a guest on WRPI's "IN THE SPIRIT", hosted by Gary Goldberg. Located at 91.5FM in the upstate New York region, and Live on the web at wrpi.org

Also, my two most recent albums are now being carried by CROW AND WOLF MUSIC.
Crow and Wolf carries an exclusive line of unique and often hard to find high quality World Music, Native American, Celtic, Folk, Instrumental Acoustic, Americana etc....
They are also now carrying the great high energy drumming CDs by my good friend David Macejka.
(I co-produced and engineered some of the tracks on David's "Poi for Gadje" CD.)

Wednesday, February 14th, 2007
5th ANNUAL WORLD SOUND HEALING DAY
Participation is simple:

Find 5 minutes, anytime during the day or evening, and chant the "AH" sound, the sound of the heart chakra, while focusing first on and within your heart, and then with extension outward to your, family, friends, community, the planet. As you do this also hold within your being the feeling of unconditional love and peace. So when you are focusing the intention of your sound within and outward, you are also holding and transmitting this feeling through the sound.

If you are alone, do it alone.
But if you can do it with others, the feeling and power of this simple practice is magnified exponentially.

And know that you will be joining in with thousands of others around the planet in creating, holding and magnifying this vibration.

Saturday. January 27th, 2007
NEW SITE UPDATES & ADDITIONS
~ A professionally filmed concert video clip of BEGINNER'S MIND: Rich Goodhart & John Ragusa has been added to the MUSIC CLIPS page. Check it out, it's a great piece of concert footage!!

~ There is now a page devoted to my Sound Healing and Qi Cultivation work under the guise of
The Musing Moon Mystery School. This page is currently just a beginning and will expand over time with more in depth information and relevant articles.

~ In order to cut down on spam, the email links are no longer active. The addresses are still valid but you will have to manually copy them into your email program. Sorry for the inconvenience but you'll have to blame the spammers - the amount of automatically generated spam coming through the website has been absurd in recent months.

~ Several other navigational and informational updates have been done as well. All too numerous and way too boring to mention here specifically!!

Peace, magic and high vibration visions for this new year!!

Wednesday, November 29th, 2006
NEW MYSPACE PAGE
I've just gotten up my new MySpace Musician's Page.... in case you are a MySpace enthusiast, or have your own page and want to be a Friend.
myspace.com/richgoodhartmusic

It has a few photos and some information not found on this site.
Also some YouTube video coming soon....
And some new additions are coming soon here too... a Sound Healing and Qigong page... maybe more under the mantle of The Musing Moon Mystery School...!!

October 20th, 2006
DAEVID ALLEN COMING TO WOODSTOCK IN NOVEMBER!!!
YES!!! Beginner's Mind Productions is proud to announce that the wizard supreme of Planet Gong, the amazingly inspired DAEVID ALLEN will be returning to Woodstock, NY for a SOLO CONCERT on SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 12th at 7:00pm

For details and info please visit: Bearsville Theater Calendar

Don't miss this very rare opportunity to see and hear this multi-dimensional, vastly prolific creative and influential force in a magical and intimate upstate New York (or for that matter North American) setting.
Bearsville Theater, 291 Tinker St., Woodstock, NY 845-679-4406

August 15th, 2006
UPCOMING SPECIAL & RARE EVENTS...
~ On Saturday September 16th, I'll be doing a Solo Concert at the Albany Kripalu Yoga Center in Albany, NY. Believe it or not this will actually be my first ever entirely solo performance!!! See the CONCERTS & EVENTS page for more details on this and other upcoming performances.

~ Additionally, I am pleased to announce that another Solo Concert with DAEVID ALLEN, wizard supreme of the Planet Gong, is in the works for Sunday, November 12th in Woodstock, NY. More info to be posted soon on the CONCERTS page. Daevid is a true artist, true original, guitarist, singer, inspired poet, psychedelic innovator, a rare being of vast and vibrant colours. Any show by Daevid is a special occasion. One in upstate New York is not only special but exceedingly rare. If you have ANY inkling to come to this show, PLEASE DON'T HESITATE!!! I believe you will be more than glad that you came.

August 14th, 2006
OTC, THANKS AGAIN!!
~ Once again GREAT THANKS to ALL the campers, counselors, directors and teachers at this year's OMEGA TEEN CAMP who participated in my workshops, concert or shared in great conversations or even just extended a few good heartfelt words of appreciation. In fact some of the most deeply expanding moments for me were from those of you who took a moment to come up and express gratitude for whatever bit of Spirit and experience you may have received from something I offered. EXTENSIVE AND GREATEST OF GRATITUDE TO YOU ALL, TRULY!!!

Best wishes and highest vibrations of Spirit and Light to everyone. May you perceive and receive the *MAGIC* that flows through your life always. Everyone of us is a mysterious and magical universe, a celebration of this Mystery of Life. I hope to see and create with all of you again next year.

August 10th, 2006
"Those who dream by day are cognizant of many things which escape those who dream only by night."
~Edgar Allan Poe

July 2nd, 2006
SPIRIT WORDS.... from Ram Dass
~"Truth is scary, but it's better than the numbing deception of making believe reality is real."

~"When we're trapped in our minds we're always one thought away from where the action is."

~"We are the consciousness that defines the reality we are moving into."


April 27th, 2006
SPIRIT WORDS... from Carlos Castaneda
"There's a primary knowledge that we all carry, directly connected with the two-million-year-old person at the root of our brain. And we do our best to suppress it..... (which makes us ill)."

He (Don Juan) said... "relying on something mechanical only makes us more and more sterile." "It curtails your magic", he said. "Better to learn with your whole body so you'll remember with your whole body."

August 15, 2005
OTC THANKS!
~ GREAT THANKS to ALL the teenage "campers" (and unadulterated adults!) who participated in my workshops, concerts, music jams and/or shared a simple word or other interaction with me during the three great weeks at the OTC!!! (Omega Teen Camp). If not for you it would not have been what it wonderfully was! And it was, wonderfully, it. Peace and joy to everyone!!

************^*^************
Wisdom, truth, growth, expansion of being through pain and suffering is possible (though not guaranteed) but is NOT the only way. Wisdom, truth, growth, expansion of being through love, joy, radical trust, participation in high and open hearted experience, and sharing of unrestrained appreciation is not only possible, but is as EQUALLY VALID as the path of suffering - and it's a heck of alot more enjoyable. So why not choose and share this path whenever possible? We have the free will to recognize, and our eyes will see wise such splendor of being!!
Wisdom is found in nature. Please respect what we have remaining - before it's too late. Endeavor to know it's truth, and PLEASE don't cut the trees down!!

August 12, 2005
A FEW BITS OF NEWS
~ The Gallery is up with a few PR photos plus several images from the 2003 concerts with Gilli Smyth and Gong Matrices, and also some photos I took of Daevid Allen and Nic Stephanz from the Woodstock show I produced for them in 2003. For more on Gong's goings on (and there are many), visit the green Planet Gong!

April 25, 2005
RANDOM UPDATES
The status of the album with Deepak Chopra, "Soul Offerings: The Yoga of Love", appears to be that of indefinite shelf-sitting. The victim of corporate economics and too small potential profit projections. If anyone wants to finance production costs I'll gladly publish it on the Beginner's Mind label. There really is some good music and words on it, I still believe. (yes, "indefinite shelf-sitting", trying saying that 10 times fast...)

I'll be teaching another "Explorations In Sound Healing" workshop at the Kripalu Center in Lenox,MA on Thursday, the 28th. If you've any interest in this aspect of my work, enquire within.

And finally, for all you 12 to 17 year old fans, I'll be teaching again at the Omega Teen Camp this summer. Creatively influencing the open minds of some of our brightest and most adventurous youth and inheritors with esoteric energy alchemy and the powers of sound and chi.

April 17, 2005
MUSIC FOR HEART'S SAKE
I have little interest in music for music's sake these days - music for the sake of playing a bunch of complexly arranged notes and little else. (Though I'll admit it can sometimes be fun, though in those cases it's probably inherently music for the sake of pure joy and levity, which I do dig.) I also have no interest in music for business's sake. Music "product" influenced or designed by soulless corporate money men who don't seem to have a clue as to the deeper and truer purposes of this exquisite and amazing life gift of music.

What I am interested in is music for spirit's sake, music for heart's sake, music for beauty's sake, music for nourishment of soul, body, mind and spirit. Music for awakening, connecting and tuning into the deeper levels of consciousness, spirit and love.

Of course I am selling my music at this website, and that is a form of business. But the business is designed to serve the music, not the other way around.



April 2, 2005
RANDOM WISDOM
"Ever tried. Ever failed. No matter. Try again. Fail again. Fail better."
~ Samuel Beckett

The domain of love expands intelligence.
The domain of fear restricts intelligence.

According to all the shamans of the entire earth, one establishes communication with the spirits by way of music.

"I think we will collectively need to abandon some of the rules we have been given on how to live a life ~ like not making waves and pretending that everything is alright and that we can continue to live like we are used to."
~ Tom Kenyon

October 31, 2004
NEW ALBUM, FINALLY!!!

My new CD, "Earth Spiral Water Sound", is finally in manufacturing and due in stock later this week, on or near November 5th.

Representing a more than two year recording effort and drawing on and bringing to fruition more than 25 years of rich musical experience (pun or not), I can honestly say that this is my best and most musically and spiritually evolved recording yet. If you like the style, vision and spirit of my previous recordings, then I can proclaim with good and clear conscience that this is the one to have if you want to experience realization of the music that all the previous ones were aiming for. (Gee, what will I say about the next album??) (Hey, it really isn't easy to convincingly appraise one's own work, you know!)

For more info, list of guest artists and instrumentation and on-line or mail ordering, please visit the Recordings page.

June 11, 2004
NEW RECORDINGS UPDATE
THREE PROJECTS:
1. The final mixes are FINALLY done for my new solo album!! Mastering still needs to be done, then artwork, graphic design and manufacturing. I've got quite a few guest artists and several are well known very special guest musicians and singers. Most notably, Native American singer and supreme vocal goddess JOANNE SHENANDOAH and psychedelic art-rock legend and GONG co-founder DAEVID ALLEN!!! Both are people that I've long admired and have been an inspiration and a dream come true to work with. A mid-summer release is the current projection. More details as things continue to develop.

2. Last year's concerts with GONG co-founder and shakti goddess GILLI SMYTH were digitally recorded by Mike Lopez and also video taped. A DVD project is being considered for eventual release, hopefully later this year. Many highly attuned improvisations which find Gilli in a very supportive and dynamic ethno-acoustic setting. Some of the most expansive work I've ever heard from her, and well, I'm all over it too!

3. The poetry and music project with DEEPAK CHOPRA that I produced has been finished for quite some time now. There have been a couple of plans in the works to secure it's release, but the uncertain forces of the record business have not yet coalesced into an actual release date for this fine recording. In short, it's Deepak reading the poetry of Tagore, Hafiz, Mirabai and Kabir in an organic flow of acoustic world instrument based music part composed and performed by myself and part performed live in concert as a trio with John Ragusa. To all who have heard the pre-release airings and wanted to buy a copy I apologize for the repeated delays. I can only be patient for it's eventual release at this point.

June 2, 2004
A Poem by HAFIZ

"IT HAS NOT RAINED LIGHT"

It has not rained light for many days.
The wells in most eyes look drought-stricken.

Thus friends are not easy to find
In this barren place

Where most everyone has become ill
From guarding nothing.

On this primal caravan
Careers and cities can appear real in this
Intense Desert heat,

But I say to my close ones,

"Don't get lost in them,
it has not rained light there for days.

Look, most everyone is diseased
From 'making love' to nothing."

Translation by Daniel Ladinsky from his book "The Gift".

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

~ Rich teaches various workshops and also privately. If you're in the Northeast/New England area or beyond, and are interested, please contact by email for more information: