Happy to announce the world premier for the Will Parrinello film “Water for Life” at the 2023 Mill Valley Film Festival.
Happy to announce the broadcast of my latest original music score for PBS NOVA .
From Kikim Media:
We're writing to share the exciting news that Kikim Media's latest documentary, Secrets In Our DNA, will be nationally broadcast on PBS's NOVA series on Wednesday, January 13 at 9 PM (8c). Our film explores the fascinating world of direct-to-consumer DNA testing. Some 30 million of us—in search of genetic clues to our family relationships, ancestry or health—have swabbed our cheeks or spit in a vial so we can have our DNA tested by companies like 23andMe and Ancestry.
But how well is all this testing backed up by science? What is it in our DNA that the companies actually look at? How do they interpret the data, and how accurate are their results? And with the genetic data of millions of us piling up in computer databases, how worried should we be about our privacy?
In our film you'll meet people whose encounters with DNA testing have changed their lives...pulled them into the investigation of cold case crimes...forced them to confront the risk of life-threatening disease...even called into question their most basic understanding of who they really are. Secrets In Our DNA is a dramatic and thought-provoking hour, and we hope you can watch.
You can click here to check your local PBS station's schedule for more information about broadcast times and reruns. The episode will also be available to stream for free on the NOVA webpage starting on January 13.
HACKING YOUR MIND PREMIERES SEPTEMBER 2020 (Check Local Listings) In this riveting 4-part series from Oregon Public Broadcasting, airing consecutive Wednesday's starting September 9, 2020, you’ll find out why it’s easy for others to hack into your mind and how you can defend yourself.
https://mbongi.hearnow.com
Titos Sompa and I have been musical partners for life. It’s surprising then, that our first collaboration was never released. Its time has finally come. This wonderful project was years in the making and features our great friends and Grammy winning singers Skyler Jett and Jeanie Tracy.
After midnight in New York… Chico Freeman, Olu Dara and the late jazz legends Arthur Blythe and Hamiet Bluiett joined us at Marathon Studios to play on our record. They played until dawn and the beautiful sound rings throughout this record.
We are so happy to finally make this music available to everyone. If you are one of our friends and family, you may have heard this before, but it has been re-mastered and refreshed for it’s actual release… FINALLY!
Very proud to announce the premier of our new program on PBS - NOVA.
After years of anticipation, autonomous vehicles are now being tested on public roads around the world. Dozens of startups have sprung up alongside established auto and tech giants—which are also testing the waters—to form what many hope will be a transformative new industry. But as innovators rush to cash in on what they see as the next high-tech pot of gold, some experts warn there are still daunting challenges to overcome—like how to train computers to make life-and-death decisions as well as humans can.
I share the original music credit with John Paul Labno, a brilliant composer who is working with me at the Magic Shop these days. Check your local listings! It’s a very interesting show. Also check out the creative team at KIKIM Media for the full story.
Announcing the release of “Himalayan Sessions” with Keola Beamer, Paul Horn, Christopher Hedge and H. H. the Dalai Lama
Joe Holiday plays on the 1987 release "Metropolis" from the record "Traveler" by Paul Horn and Christopher Hedge. Dedicated to those who are at the center of the fires in Sonoma and Napa in California, October 9-10, 2017
I was listening to this tune from a while back and thinking of my partner in music, Titos Sompa. We met when I had my first studio on Miramar Beach and we've been tight ever since.
This one is a nice piece called "Ju Ju". The saxes are Chico Freeman, Arthur Blythe, Hamiet Bluiett and trumpet by Olu Dara. Backing vocals are the wonderful Jeanie Tracy.
Just a bit of joy for a Thursday.
Click Mbongi if you would like to hear the rest of our record. Cheers!
With all the sadness in the news these days, I felt like re-posting this piece for you.
The opening theme for The New Heroes features sounds and instruments from different times and places, but all seem to have a common thread of hope and salvation. The voice of Titos Sompa from the album "Mbongi". The flute of I Sing Lama, the player who walked from India to join Paul Horn and I in a session in Nepal, the children from an open air girls school in Fiji with birds flying in and out of the room... all were moments that left me in awe of the power of humanity for good.
Imagery - Mitch Wilson
You and I
Friday Tune for October 24, 2014
Here is a little something from the archive.
I don't often write vocal songs, but when Titos Sompa and I created "Mbongi", we had the talents of not only Titos' voice, but Grammy winning singers Skyler Jett and Jeanie Tracy. Simple message, "you are a part of this world..."
In the Shadow of Saturn
When my son was in grade school and my daughter was in High School, I asked them to help me with the filming of a couple of public service announcements. They were asked to be in a group on camera and discuss their hopes and fears about the world. One of my son's hopes was to take his bike and ride around the rings of Saturn. That's my daughter's beautiful laugh in response.
Titos Sompa
I'll post one of these "Friday Tunes" now and then... something for you, for fun.
Kailash Satyarthi
Yesterday, the Nobel Prize for Peace was awarded to Kailash Satyarthi and Malala Yousafzai for their courageous work on children's safety, rights and freedom.
I had the honor of writing this song for Kailash. That is his voice at the beginning, describing his passion.
Featuring Alam Khan - Sarod, Debopriyo Sarkar - Tabla, Paul Horn - Flute, and Julian Smedley - Violin
I met Kailash Satyarthi while composing the music for a documentary about him with directors Carl Byker and Mitchell D. Wilson. He had come to a gathering to celebrate the release of our television series "The New Heroes - with Robert Redford" and my record "The New Heroes".
I remember speaking with him while standing in a small crowd. He was dressed in white and looking very still and frail. When he was filmed, he was raiding a quarry in India where people, mostly from the "untouchable" caste, were enslaved. He appeared much stronger.
It turned out that, between the time the doc was made and when we met him, Kailash had been trying to free a group of children who were circus slaves from Nepal. He was ambushed during the attempt and beaten into unconsciousness. When he woke, he refused to be taken to a hospital for treatment. Rather, he demanded to be taken to the steps of the city center, in front of the corrupt officials who were complicit in his beating. He refused to leave, eat or get desperately needed treatment until those children were freed. They were. He survived. The man we met was recovering from near death.
Alam Khan
At last... a new webpage at christopherhedge.com. More music, more adventures, all in a clean new setting that actually works. I hope you enjoy it!