We are presently producing two film documentaries of the songs “Tibet” and “Be Kind to All That Live”, both written through the Elders’ Wisdom, Children’s Song process, and featured on Don’t Stand Still.

In 2008 Gyatsho Tshering shared his life story with 3rd grade students at Valley View Elementary School in Columbia Heights, Minnesota, through the Elders’ Wisdom, Children’s Song program. Gyatsho Tshering established with the Dalai Lama the library to hold the archives of the Tibetan people in India.  In December 2010 the sound recording of Tibet was completed.

Artists and community members featured on the sound recording of Tibet include: Venerable Tibetan Monks Gendun Kelsang, Jampa Thupten, and Lobsang Jungnes from the Gyuto Tantric and Gyuto Wheel of Dharma Monastery (Multiphonic chanting) ; Dolma & Yiga Tshering with family and friends from the Tibetan community of Minnesota (choral vocals and prayer), Marc Anderson (world percussionist), Dirk Freymuth (electric guitar),  Billy Peterson (bass), Ricky Peterson (keyboards), JD Steele (harmony vocals) and Larry Long (lead vocal, 12 string guitar).

Film Timeline

David McDonald has been making several trips from Grand Rapids to Minneapolis, Minnesota from January – March 2011 to cover select Tibetan events including:

  1. Gyatsho Tshering’s home
  2. Tibetan Community Cultural Center
  3. Gyuto Tantric and Gyuto Wheel of Dharma Monastery
  4. Tibetan New Year 2011 activities March 5 – 20
  5. March 10 – Tibetan Uprising Day

Documentary Film Release Date: April 9, 2011

The CD release concert at Loring Theater will feature the showing of two music-film productions, produced by David McDonald of DMcD Productions, which feature songs on the Don’t Stand Still sound recording:

Tibet (Honoring Gyatsho Tshering)

Gyatsho TsheringThe song Tibet was composed by Larry Long with Tara Thukral’s fifth grade class of Valley View Elementary School, Columbia Heights. It was created during an Elders’ Wisdom, Children’s Song residency program in the school (with support from the West Metro Education Program and McKnight Foundation). It was written in honor of Gyatsho Tshering, a Tibetan scholar and author.  (For more about Gyatsho Tshering plus video and audio recordings from the school residency click here.)

Artists and community members featured on the sound recording of Tibet include: Venerable Tibetan Monks Gendun Kelsang, Jampa Thupten, and Lobsang Jungnes from the Gyuto Tantric and Gyuto Wheel of Dharma Monastery (Multiphonic chanting); Dolma & Yiga Tshering with family and friends from the Tibetan community of Minnesota (choral vocals and prayer), Marc Anderson (world percussionist), Dirk Freymuth (electric guitar), Billy Peterson (bass), Ricky Peterson (keyboards), JD Steele (harmony vocals) and Larry Long (lead vocal, 12 string guitar).

You can watch a video clip of Tibet here.

Be Kind To All That Live (Honoring Helen Tsuchiya)

Helen TsuchiyaBe Kind To All That Live was written by Larry Long with students at Prairie View Elementary in Eden Prairie, MN, created during an Elder’s Wisdom, Children’s Song residency in 2004. It honors community elder Helen Tsuchiya, a Japanese-American internment camp survivor currently living in St. Louis Park, MN.  (For more about Helen Tsuchiya plus video and audio recordings from the school residency click here.)

Featured on the sound recording is Helen’s son, Todd Tsuchiya, on taiko drums, Larry Long on guitar and vocals, JD Steele on harmony vocals, Pete Watercott on violin and Lonnie Knight on backup guitar.

The music-documentary also features photographs that Helen took while  interned at the Gila River Japanese American internment camp in Arizona during World War II.

Larry Long Talks About Be Kind to All That Live (written in 2004):

“When I was thirteen years of age, my father passed away. My family received help from good neighbors with food and letters of comfort. One of those letters of comfort came from my Little League coach, Mr. Mayeda.

Thirty years after my father’s death I came upon Mr. Mayeda’s letter. I was so moved by his words that I sought him out. He had moved to Oceanside, California. He was terminally ill. I called and thanked him for his letter of comfort to me when my father passed and for his years of volunteering as my Little League coach.

Mr. Mayeda said to me, “Larry, my family was part of the 125,000 Japanese Americans placed into internment camps during World War II. I have one favor to ask. Could you please write a song about the Japanese-American internment camps” I promised Mr. Mayeda I would. He passed away soon thereafter.

In his honor, I visited the Manzanar Internment Camp in California and read books about the Japanese-American experience with hopes of inspiration. Nothing came in the way of a song, until now.

During one of my residencies at Prairie View Elementary, Mrs. Helen Tsuchiya, the grandmother of a child in one of my classrooms, shared her Japanese-American internment story with the children. After she spoke, I discovered that her husband and she were best friends with Mr. Mayeda and his family. Not only that, but her husband had coached with Mr. Mayeda in the Babe Ruth League.

Through Mrs. Tsuchiya, I was able to fulfill the promise made to my Little League coach, Mr. Mayeda. Forever grateful.

About David McDonald, producer of Don’t Stand Still music/film production

Before returning to Minnesota to raise his family, David McDonald worked throughout the world as a cameraman for the Reuters News Agency. Presently, David lives in Grand Rapids, Minnesota with his family and is an independent multimedia producer, as well as instructor of mass communications at Itasca Community College and Leach Lake Tribal College.

About Community Celebration of Place and Elder’s Wisdom, Children’s Song

Elder’s Wisdom, Children’s Song is a program of the nonprofit organization, Community Celebration of Place. Larry Long serves as the Executive Director. For more information about their work in schools and communities across the U.S., visit their website at www.communitycelebration.org.

Larry will be working with filmmaker David McDonald in the coming months on a new documentary featuring Larry’s song, Tibet (Peace, Lovingkindness, Compassion), written in honor of Gyatsho Tshering and the Tibetan people.

The film project, which will feature members of the Tibetan community in Minnesota, is in preparation for the upcoming visit by the Dalai Lama to Minnesota.

Download MP3 of Tibet (rough mix) by Larry Long

Larry Long wrote the song Tibet with 5th grade students in honor of Mr. Gyatsho Tshering.  Mr. Tshering worked directly with the Dalai Lama in India for over 30 years after Tibet was invaded and hundred of thousands of Tibetans were thrown into exile.  The lyrics (which are posted below) speak for themselves. The English translation for the chorus to Tibet is “Peace, Loving-Kindness, Compassion”.  The video podcast will be up soon and is of Larry and the kids singing “Tibet” for Mr. Gyatsho Tshering at an Elders’ Wisdom, Children’s Song celebration in March of  2008.    
 
Larry Long is working on a new CD collection of original works, tentatively entitled “Old Ways”. The song Tibet will be featured on this collection.  This recording of Tibet is a “work in progress. The chorus and additional instrumentation is yet to be added”. Larry is featured on vocals and 12-string guitar.  Featured on percussion is Marc Anderson and on electric bass is Enrique Toussaint. 
 

 

Tibet
Peace, Loving-Kindness, Compassion
(Honoring Gyatsho Tshering)
I was born in a beautiful country,
In the mountains of Tibet,
In the land of the Dalai Lama,
In the land of Consciousness.
 
Growing up along the border
Beneath a ripe orange tree,
Sitting with my grandfather,
Words of kindness, he taught me.
Peace, Loving-Kindness, Compassion  

Through 14 Dalai Lamas,
We were taught to do one thing,
At a time with 5 senses,
A diplomat, I chose to be.
 
Then from across the border,
Like a colony of ants,
We could smell dead bodies burning,
For days and days after that.
 
Peace, Loving-Kindness, Compassion

Burning books by the millions,
They took everything they could steal,
Destroyed 6,000 monasteries 
Beneath clothing we concealed.
 
The sacred text of our people
Held tightly against our chest,
As we fled across the border,
To India from Tibet.
 
Peace, Loving-Kindness, Compassion

 
Without land, without a country,
One hundred thousand refugees,
One million killed, so many orphaned,
The Dalai Lama called for me. 
 
Will you be there to help the children,
To build schools, clinics, libraries,
Will you be there to help the people,
Serving others, I agreed. 

Peace, Loving-Kindness, Compassion

What can we do but to be mindful,
Where can we go but to be kind,
Compassionate, 
to soothe those who suffer,
To keep hope alive.
 
For Tibet, for the children,
For those in whom, yet to arise,
May love grow, May love prosper,
 May Tibet never die. 
 
Peace, Loving-Kindness, Compassion

Words & music by Larry Long 
with Children of Minnesota

© Larry Long 2008 / BMI