SUPPORT THINGS YOU LOVE...

 ... and you will always get bonus tracks.  

"It may be a mystery why sound was so important to the ancient yogis, but it is no secret."

Here at Inner Space Yoga we are always curious about the relationship between yoga and creativity. The connection between barriers going “poof” and human creativity seem related. 

One of our great loves - music - pairs with yoga like Abbot & Costello, chalk & cheese, yoga & sound. It may be a mystery why sound was so important to the ancient yogis, but it is no secret.

Because of this, we are a proud sponsor of Season 2 of Improvisations To Go, a podcast produced by Todd Steed and aired on WUOT, the Knoxville radio NPR affiliate. (They are listener supported and through their website, they reach the world. Throw them some love if you can.) 

Improvisations To Go is based on the popular radio show, "Improvisations", aired on WUOT from Monday-Thursday, 6:30-8pm. "Improvisations" is all jazz, and unlike most American radio shows and stations today, it is all locally programmed. No algorithms for this town, baby! (Another way that community and creativity have some unseen bond & (we think) some unseen influence.)

The impetus for the podcast came from Todd Steed, the WUOT music director. He knew how to support things he loved - he married his love of jazz, travel, trains, food and a general joie de vivre (is there any other kind of joie de vivre) in a rambling, fun, quirky love letter to America. Take a listen to get the vibe. One episode features a jazz quintet out of D.C. that plays in a ping-pong hall. You can hear the ping-pong balls going back and forth amidst jazz melodies. Another episode highlights the renowned jazz trumpet player out of New Orleans, Kermit Ruffans, talking about his Picnic State of Mind. And there are new jazz greats too, like Aurora Neeland (a personal favorite at Inner Space Yoga) for example on this episode. 

Here's episode 1 of Season 2, with Baltimore saxophonist, trumpeter, & composer Clarence Ward III pointing out that even in sickness, you express yourself. Now that right there out of the mouth of a jazz musician is yoga words and yoga life.  

Both seasons (11 episodes total) occur right before Covid (they were recorded in December ---- February 2020). You get the sense that it was a different time (well it WAS) and it captures the care-free, free-wheelin’ way we used to hang out, listening to music and talking up a storm.

Improvisations To Go is a lot of fun. It can be quite poignant too. Todd interviews a woman with a cancer diagnosis on the train from Memphis to New Orleans - taking the ride she always wanted to take. And in this episode, we just love the yoga that comes out on a simple city walk (about 6 minutes in):

There are gems of practice and observation throughout.

Subscribe to the YouTube channel here. Subscribe to the I-Tunes Podcast here. Search Improvisations To Go and download all 11 episodes for a ride through America pre-pandemic.

Luckily, we get a bonus episode. Airing on December 22 during the regular "Improvisations" radio show, Todd will revisit one of his stops along the way that didn’t make it into season 1 or 2. It’s a Christmas Parade in Kenton, TN back in the day when attending a parade was as normal as apple pie. Kenton is not on the way to anything else, but it was the winner of Todd’s challenge – pick a little town that is unlikely to have jazz and try to find jazz.  Take a listen next Tuesday at WUOT.org to see if he found it.

And while you are here, shop our Atlas. They are a great all around bolster & particularly good for someone who does not need all that height to stretch their computer bent, future leaning anxiety curved spines (Ho hum... someone REALLY knows of what they speak :)). But you can listen to music on/with/under any of our products.💋