Eclectic Musician and Teacher

BIOGRAPHY

Eclectic musician Seabury Gould is a singer, multi-instrumentalist, storyteller and music teacher. He performs on the guitar, bamboo flute, Irish bouzouki, piano, and percussion. He plays solo and with other musicians in a variety of styles including Irish/Celtic music, original songs, contemporary folk, blues, classical music of India (Bamboo flute, vina, vocals, ragas and kirtan), and Beatles songs.
Seabury also performs the poetry of the Sufi mystic Rumi either solo with his own musical accompaniment or with other musicians using percussion, flute, and stringed instruments. His quartet gave a well received Rumi performance at the first Ojai World Music Festival in 1997 as well as several repeat performances at local venues. He has also performed at presentations by Robert Bly, Coleman Barks, and Deepak Chopra.
Seabury has studied World Music extensively and has made musical journeys to Ireland, India, Bali, Bhutan, Bolivia, Tunisia, Cuba & Mexico. He lived in India for two years where he studied Hindustani and Karnatic music. He has also studied with master teachers such as Ali Akbar Khan and Dr. K. Subramaniam. He is trained in the Kodaly concept of music education which develops singing and ear development through folk songs, singing games, solfege, and sequential teaching.
“The multi-faceted multi-instrumentalist Seabury Gould is an amazing musical chameleon adept at Celtic, dabbling in Indian Kirtan, leading Folklife song circles and playing keyboards in Saint John and the Sinners.” (North Coast Journal)
In his extensive work with diverse music for adults and children, he facilitates musical wholeness through exploring how the ear, heart, hands and intelligence can be cultivated.
One of Seabury’s specialties is Celtic music which he has played & recorded with fiddler Evan Morden and with his former band Scatter the Mud in Humboldt County, northern California. He has performed at many St. Patrick’s Day celebrations with traditional songs, tunes, and stories, incorporating guitar, bouzouki, tin whistle and flute. He played flute on the album “Green Autumn” which was produced by Celtic music luminary Donal Lunny. Seabury’s own CD “Irish Journeys” released in 2001, is a collection of Irish traditional music presented with spirit, imagination, and an unwavering respect for the tradition. Joining him on this album are Eddie Guthman on bass, cittern, and mandolin; Phil Salazar on fiddle, and multi-ethnic percussionist Aaron Plunkett who played percussion for the film “Titanic.
In 1998 Seabury released “Times and Places,” an enchanting storytelling CD of traditional tales from around the world accompanied by music played on a variety of ethnic instruments. Seabury was a member of the National Storytelling Network and performed at the “Swapping Ground” of the 1998 National Storytelling Festival in Tennessee.
In his role as a children’s music teacher for 40 years, Seabury has incorporated storytelling into his classroom work. He has also integrated his Kodaly training into his teaching via traditional songs and singing games. He has taught pre-school through high school at such schools as The Ojai Montessori School, Monica Ros School which is an elementary school specializing in the arts, and Oak Grove School which is associated with The Krishnamurti Foundation of America. He participated in the Ventura County Artists in the Classroom Program as a resident.
He was a member of the Children’s Music Network and has performed at their National Gatherings. Seabury also gives private lessons in guitar, piano, and vocal music. In 1988 and 1991 respectively, he recorded two cassette albums of traditional folk songs for children, “The Mushroom House” and “Tadpoles are Growing.”
During his fourteen years as musical director of “Illusions Theater,” a community theater group in Ojai, California, Seabury wrote original compositions and arrangements for “The Frog Prince,” “Jack and the Beanstalk,” “Folk Tales of India,” and plays based on Native American tales, among many others.
Seabury gives private lessons in guitar, piano, vocal music and World Music Appreciation