Minneapolis May Day Celebration

Are you going to the May Day Festival? Maybe you’re new to the area, or maybe you’re not from around here. Well, if you haven’t heard about our May Day celebrations, now is your time to learn all about it.

Once a year, when the tulips start blooming, one diverse neighborhood in South Minneapolis puts on a little show. Not just any show, mind you, it’s a celebration of the coming of spring and the return of the season of warmth. It’s a little show that some 50,000 folks break out of hibernation for. It’s truly magical!

Now, we’re not telling you not to come to the store this Sunday, we’re just saying, that if you’re in town for the May Day parade, or the festival, or the ceremony out at powderhorn park, then we hope to see you here, as well, to walk the labyrinth and check out the tulips. Heck, we’re only 2 1/2 miles away. Mapquest says so.

See you Sunday!

Tulips Galore and More!

Wow, it’s getting tough to keep up with all the blooms bursting everywhere.  Here’s a new set of images of those tulips in full bloom, all along the edge of the labyrinth path.  Plus, we have a few crocus blooms in the shady part . . . and what are those funny maroon-tipped shoots coming up in their midst?  Bleeding hearts coming soon to a labyrinth near you.

Celebrate Earth Day Year-Round

Why wait until April to celebrate Earth Day? Earth is our mother year-round, as she tries to tell us with the cycles of growth, harvest, dormancy and then spring again. We invite you to bring that spirit into practice throughout your life.

Walk Deep Within a Faerie Forest with Wendy Rule in collaboration with Californian ambient artist Gary Stadler. This album is a sweet addition to Wendy’s solo work. Light and uplifting, Wendy’s vocals take on a Celtic lilt that combines beautifully with Gary’s piano. Read more

Labyrinth Open for Walking + Tulips!

The labyrinth is now officially open for the season.  All the bricks which were leaning every which way are now in their proper rows, and we’ve got more blooms.  Crocus in the upper part of the garden, plus, Tada! Tulips are blooming, with more on the way.  Daffodils are budding.  It’s going to look glorious this weekend!

Wendy Rule Brings Mythic Music to Minneapolis May 28th

NEWS RELEASE

Minneapolis, Minnesota—April 17, 2008—Eye of Horus presents Australian Wendy Rule, joined by Nordic Roots performer Kari Tauring and special guests Felonious Bosch for an evening of myth-inspired music at the Cedar Cultural Center, 416 Cedar Ave. S., on Wednesday, May 28, 2008 beginning at 7:30 p.m.

Ticket price is $18 in advance and $22 at the door. Doors open at 7:00 p.m. Tickets for the event can be purchased through Ticketweb.com, Cedar outlets, the Cedar Ticketline at (612) 338-2674 ext 2 and the show’s sponsor, Eye of Horus Metaphysical store by phone at (888) 872-1292 or online at Eyeofhorus.biz.

Introduced by Radio Paganistan storyteller Steven Posch, the evening will unfold in three acts:

1. Dark and sardonic, Felonious Bosch sets the stage with music for the New Dark Ages. Meld medieval melody with middle-eastern overtones and add the twisted mystic lyrics of Katy Thomasberg to her powerful vocals, and you get a new old vibe.

2. Move on to the ancient Icelandic chants and Huldre stille tunings of Nordic Roots artist Kari Tauring as she returns to the Cedar stage with her huldre project. “Songs of the Völva” echos with the call of her ancestors.

3. Finish with the dark cabaret of Australian Wendy Rule. Her visionary lyrics draw on astrological and goddess mythologies, and her legendary live performance draws on her love of ritual and theater in a combination which transports the audience into an otherworldly realm of power and Magic.

A note from Wendy Rule: “This is sure to be one of the highlight concerts of this US tour. Both Kari and Felonious Bosch are wonderful acts, and the Cedar is a fantastic venue. The night will be full of Magic, Ritual and Music.”

About the Artists:

Wendy Rule has managed to carve a unique path through the musical mainstream, and has emerged with five major albums and a string of side projects to her name. With the release of her fifth full length album, The Wolf Sky, Rule has firmly established herself as one of Australia’s most uniquely gifted and prolific artists. Her music is a passionate union of her incredible voice – moving from soaring heights to intimate whispers – and her beautifully dark and visionary lyrics referencing astrological and goddess mythologies.

“Wendy Rule creates dark, sensual sonic theatre… compelling stuff.” – Rolling Stone Magazine, Australia

“Every so often Melbourne throws up a singular talent, someone previously hidden amongst the well-established musical tribes, someone possessed of a unique vision. Wendy Rule, the vocalist, songwriter and visionary, is such an artist.” – Beat Magazine, Melbourne

“If twilight has a voice, then that voice is Wendy Rule.” – New Witch Magazine, USA

Kari Tauring returns to the Cedar stage to present her huldre project, “ Songs of the Völva.” From Rune chants to Latvian lullabies, original tunes set to ancient Icelandic texts, and new twists on Norwegian folk standards Tauring’s work spans time and space. Her performance of Nordic vocal techniques, kulning, kveding, huldre loll and lokk accompanied by Stav (stick rhythm) and guitar resonate through the tap root of Norse heritage.

When asked, Kari explains the huldre:
“Huldre are a fairy folk of Norway and Iceland. Huldre stille is a tuning based on the langeleik (primarily a women’s instrument) which is tuned in A and D with a C or G added. I use ancient Danish texts, Icelandic chants, Rune songs and American story telling in the same tunes! It’s so much fun. It stretches us as musicians as well as giving us a deeper spiritual connection to our ancient past.”

Dark and sardonic, Felonious Bosch begins the evening with music for the New Dark Ages. The powerful vocal style of singer Katy Thomasberg floats and soars over the rhythms of bassist Drew Miller and percussionist Renée Bracchi. Shaken up and blended with Nemo’s dynamic riffing on bouzoukis, cittern and guitar, David Stenshoel’s fiddle and Steve Clarke’s reeds, you get music that sparkles, with a centuries-old aftertaste.

“…Katy Thomasberg reinvents herself as a quasi-mystic probably headed for hell as she genre splices ancient sounding melodies from many cultures with dark lyrics sung by her soaring voice. A delightfully schizoid recording that shakes you up with its light-seeming sound floating through the heart of darkness.”
– Midwest Record Recap

“…intriguing, appealing… the Bosch mixes and matches Middle Eastern and Celtic folk music with (Katy) Thomasberg’s siren songs to create often mesmerizing tracks… …there’s a lighter-than-air quality to these songs, even as they often revolve around drones. Unusual and unusually attractive, Felonious Bosch gives folk tradition a 3.0 upgrade.”
– Michael Toland, High Bias

For interviews, or to find out more about the artists see:

Wendy Rule: www.wendyrule.com / email Wendy
Felonious Bosch: www.feloniousbosch.com / email Felonious / phone — 612-481-2320
Kari Tauring: www.karitauring.com / email Kari / phone 612-729-4019
Steven Posch: www.stevenposch.com / email Steven

The Cedar’s state-of-the-art sound system provides excellent sound quality anywhere within the 465-seat capacity hall, with the clean aural experience augmented by clear sight lines. There will be room on the perimeter for dancing. More information about the venue and the show can be found at www.thecedar.org, including directions and parking information.

Sponsored by Eye of Horus Metaphysical:
Since it’s inception almost 5 years ago, ‘the Eye’ has been a resource for Myth, Ritual and Centered Living. With a Mythic Art Gallery, Garden Labyrinth, Classes, Drum Jams and Bardic Circles, the Eye has supported the exploration of Spirit and Myth. With this concert, this same vision remains, only the venue has changed. According to owner Thraicie Hawkner, “The truth is, we simply couldn’t resist the opportunity to see Wendy Rule live. We love her music and jumped at the chance to bring her to town.”
Eye of Horus will close early May 28th so the entire staff can go to the concert.

Eye of Horus contact:
Jane Hansen, Creative Director / email Jane
2717 Lyndale Ave S.
Minneapolis, MN 55408
612-872-1292 / 888-872-1292
EyeofHorus.biz

###

Discover Your Psychic Self

Long-time Eye of Horus reader Christine Schroeder has been asked numerous times if she could teach a workshop, and we finally convinced her. But it’s not just any workshop. When she was starting out, one of the things she didn’t like was going to an instructor who thought everyone should fit into a single mold . . . the instructor’s.

Chris understands that we all have different experiences and experience levels when working with intuition, and her class will not be a cookie-cutter how-to-be-psychic class. It’s more of an in depth training course of sharing her insights, tools, and techniques. She will help you to discover your own intuition–in whatever way is most natural for you.

As a result of this personalized approach, the class size will be small, and it will meet three times to allow for practice and follow-up.

This workshop series will meet on Tuesday evenings (7pm – 8:30pm), 4/29th, 5/6th, & 5/20th. The class is almost full, so we recommend you call the store now at 612-872-1292 to reserve your spot, or register online for Your Psychic Self.

Crocus Line

We’ve gone from one to many little crocus flowers. Here they are, all lined up next to the labyrinth path, and the wind is showing them how to dance. I got a picture of the whole line as well as a couple of closeups. Click on the images in the gallery below for full pics.

Bloomin’ Crocus

Fickle Flower

I thought I was clever to catch the crocus before it bloomed.
I took my picture and posted it at noon.
But if I had only waited an hour or two,
I would have caught this happy view
drinking the sun to show off its bloom.

It’s the first flower of the season. Happy Spring!

Happy Poetry Month!

What’s popping up at the Labyrinth

The labyrinth is clear for walking, if you don’t mind that some bricks are slightly askew. We’ll get those reset in the next couple weeks or so. As you can see from this image, the garden is pretty barren. We’re still doing cleanup, but what you don’t see are all the perennials just below the surface. We’re waiting on hostas, bleeding hearts, and Lilly of the Valley. Some of the perennials are starting to shoot up, though. There are daylillies galore on the sunny side of the garden. It even looks like they’ve spread a bit, some we will have to move, because they are at the labyrinth’s edge.

But the bit we’re really excited about are those tiny show-offs, the crocus. We put those in a year ago last fall, but nothing came of them last spring other than shoots. So I had low expectations. But I guess they decided to settle in, because we’re already getting a couple of buds.

I’m thrilled, because these guys are supposed to naturalize, and we’ll keep getting more each year. There are only a couple of tiny buds so far (about 1″ or so), but for those of us aching for blooms (and not the hothouse variety), they are huge. I expect we’ll see some blooming in the next week or so, and hopefully, they’ll be joined by many, many more.

We also see the beginnings of Daffodils coming up, but I didn’t get a picture, it’s just a few tufts of green, and I want to wait until there’s something more substantial.

We’ve got tulips starting to break ground as well. Here’s a shot of some wildflower tulips starting to shoot up. These are not like the tall-stemmed hybrids most people think of when talking tulips. These guys stay pretty close to the ground, and the blooms don’t stay closed. They’ll open up in the sun. I’m looking forward to getting pictures of these when they come out. They are incredibly lovely. I’m also pleased to see how well they are multiplying. The labyrinth is mostly a perennial garden, and last year was our first time trying out any bulbs. I’d heard stories of how difficult they could be, and how they are often more annuals than perennials, but we got lucky. The walls around the garden tend to stabilize things and create a bit of a micro-climate.

In Minneapolis, we are a Zone 4, but this hardy Zone 5 Holly has weathered three winters so far. We got this at Tangletown Gardens, and it included both the male and female in one pot for planting, so there are berries. At the time, they recommended a treatment for the leaves to help it weather the winter, but I never picked it up.  It weathered the last two seasons just fine.  But this last winter was much more of the traditional Minnesota sub-zero variety, so we lost some leaves, and had to prune back a few branches so the plant could focus on new growth. But despite this, the holly looks in pretty good shape.  We’ll plan ahead next fall and pamper it a bit more with the leaf treatment and extra mulching.

Well, that’s it for now.  I’ll post again when we have blooms.

Bardic Circle Starts Saturday, at the Eye

April is national poetry month, and Eye of Horus is celebrating by launching a bardic circle, hosted by Frothin’ Bard.

You are invited to come join the circle of Bards! It’s an open mic without the mic. Musicians, Poets, Storytellers, all are welcome to come and be part of the circle.

When: 2nd & 4th Saturday each month
Where: In the upstairs Gallery at Eye of Horus, 2717 Lyndale Ave S.
Event Time Details: 5pm to 7pm
Cost: Free – though donations to cover costs welcome.

Event Details: Join the gathering of the clan to share stories, chants, music and even humor. What clan?

Well, you could be Jungian, Norse, Pagan, Celtic, Wiccan, Gothic, Hindu, Buddhist, Folkie or what have you. At the Eye, all paths are welcome in an open circle. Although traditionally done around a bonfire, we keep the flames to a minimum in the gallery. Anyone can show up, sign up and give it your best.

Listeners are most welcome, you don’t have to perform. Just let us know if you do want some time. There is some structure, we try to make sure everyone gets their turn. This is not a jam, unless the performer on the live seat says it’s okay to join in. The Bardic Circle meets every 2nd and 4th Saturday of the month.

Next Page »