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About Nicholas Breeze Wood |
Nick is a musician, artist, writer and shamanic practitioner.
As a musician, he is inspired by music that seems to come somehow - in someway - from 'another world', often with a slight feel of trance. Nick also has a great interest in early medieval music, especially the music made between the 11th and 13th centuries, such as the troubadours from the South of France and the Cantigas de Santa Maria from medieval Spain. He tries to combine some of the feel for this sound world into his own music, using medieval instruments and sometimes medieval, as well as Arabic, Balkan and North African melodies and musical forms.
He's a self confessed 'stringophile' - collecting plucked stringed instruments of the world, and has an extensive collection of them. He also has modern copies of many medieval musical instruments.
He records in his own studio in a small valley in Pembrokeshire in West Wales, where he lives, and rarely performs, although in the past he has been an occasional member of the medieval group Misericordia, was a member of the Freedonia State Orchestra, and has played informally with members of the medieval group Sinfonye on occasions.
Nick is the publisher and editor of Sacred Hoop Magazine, a leading international magazine about shamanism first published in 1993, and a well known maker of ceremonial craftwork such as shamanic frame drums, beaded feather fans and other ritual shamanic objects. He runs an on-line gallery of original antique shamanic and Tibetan Buddhist ritual objects called 3Worlds, which is also home to the world's leading podcast on the subject of shamanism. He is the author of 'Voices from the Earth' and 'The Book of the Shaman'.
In his spare time he tries to remember to eat and sometimes even sleep - but mostly he creates (art, a mess, a nuisance, a noise, an eyesore and many other things....)
Musical Influences
MUSICAL STYLES
Medieval Troubadour Music and the Cantigas de Santa Maria, North African music, Various World Music, Traditional Folk and Rock Music.
BANDS AND ARTISTS
Sinfonye • The Dufay Collective • Eduardo Paniagua • Malandanca • Troubadours Art Ensemble - Gérard Zuchetto • Tinariwen • Martin Best Medieval Ensemble • Paulina Ceremuzynska • Ensemble Lucidarium • Yusuf Islam (Cat Stevens) • Ali Farka Touré • Alla Francesca • Ani Difranco • Peter Gabriel • Dave Matthews Band • Ekova • John Mellencamp • Kristi Stassinopoulou • Neil Young • Nic Jones • Patti Smith • Patty Griffin • Planxty • Porcupine Tree • Robert Plant • Steve Earle • The Stone Coyotes • Tartit • Tom Petty • Vigilantes Of Love • Yes • Afro Celt Sound System • Dandy Warhols • Death Cab for Cutie • Devendra Banhart • Garmarna • Hedningarna • Laura Veirs • Loudon Wainwright III • Mari Boine • Mountian • Oh Susanna • Sufjan Stevens • Marc Bolan • The Tragically Hip • Tori Amos • Tracy Chapman • Van Der Graaf Generator & Peter Hammill • Alanis Morissette