Interview: Joanne De Luca

Joanne De Luca is the mastermind behind Live Music Yoga, a unique event that blends local music and relaxation. She's also an avid music lover, and is dedicated to supporting local artists. FoundSound Music interviewed Joanne to talk about the local music scene and her upcoming events! 

1. How are you involved in the local Pittsburgh Music Scene? 

I go to a TON of shows.  By that, I mean about 2-4 a week.  Yep, it’s pretty much the meat of what I do with my free time.  Live music keeps a smile on my face at all times and is always a blast when my friends come out to enjoy it with me.  Being in the music scene constantly has allowed me the great opportunity to meet and befriend a ton of local musicians as well.  It’s so exciting to watch insanely talented local musicians like Max Summerville blow huge crowds away in his band “Wreck Loose”, or see a collaboration with some of Pittsburgh’s most talented musicians come together in the band “Arkesh”.  The newest band in Pittsburgh on my radar is “Chalk Dinosaur”.  Every time I see John of “Chalk Dinosaur” performing it’s to a bigger crowd than the last and is completely blowing minds every time.  When there is so much talent to enjoy right at our fingertips I feel like it’s my duty to spread the word. 

2. Can you explain the idea behind Live Music Yoga? 3. What was your inspiration for this event? 

I was at a Lotus show with my friend and we both started to cramp up from the amount of dancing we were doing.  We went to the back of the venue and started stretching out.  It hit us both how cool it would be if we started doing yoga and people just started joining in.  Although we didn’t actually do that in the moment, I realized at that I needed to make that a reality.  The next morning I was on the phone getting the ball rolling.  It’s so exciting to see this idea blossom into a full blown successful event.  

3. Why did you decide to hold it at James St.? 

I’ve always loved James Street.  Kevin Saftner constantly has really fun and unique events going on so I knew the Live Music Yoga would fit right in.  When I told Kevin about the idea he was instantly just as jived as I was about it.  The upstairs ballroom is the perfect space for this event too.  The band and yoga teacher will be set up on the stage so that everyone will be able to see effortlessly.  There are also super large windows in the space which will allow the class to be taught in the natural sunlight. 

 James Street just started offering an incredible brunch menu on Sunday mornings that is out of this world.  I figured what better way to spend a Sunday than with friends, grabbing some brunch, Bloody Marys and getting in a really great yoga session while listening to an incredible musician play his soul out.

4. How do you find artists for this event? 

This first class was easy; Christan had a previous interest in being part of a live music yoga event after bring inspired by Mike Remple of the band Lotus who had done it at The Catskill Chill music fest one year.  When I talked to him about my idea he was on board right away.  I’ve also always enjoyed the music he’s been playing with “Sweet Earth” for many years now, so to be able to have him play his side project tunes for the first class is an honor!  I think that a class with his ambient songs will be just what the doctor ordered for all of us!

 I have already had a few other musicians reach out to me about playing future events and also know many local Pittsburgh musicians that could be perfect for a future class.  I’d love for any musicians that are excited about the idea and are interested in contributing reach out to me so we can line something up.

5. If an artist is interested in playing this event, how can they contact you? 

Any interested musicians can either message me through the Live Music Yoga Facebook page here: https://www.facebook.com/livemusicyogaPGH/ or email me at LiveMusicYoga@gmail.comI’m open to the idea of any kind of music that might be cohesive with yoga, so don’t be shy and reach out to me if you’re interested in playing in a future event!

6. How do you think music and yoga are connected? 

I believe yoga is all about finding your perfect flow at the same time as keeping your mind focused on the pure elongating movements.  I think that adding the right music to yoga practice really aids in finding a smooth transition between the poses. Also, when you’re used to constantly being on the go, it can be hard to stop your mind from constantly thinking about what’s next on the “list” of things to do.  Having music playing really helps keep your mind clear and focused on what you’re doing right then and there.  

7. Why do you think this event is important to the larger Pittsburgh Music Scene and Community? 

Any event that brings people together is important in and of itself.  I’ve found a wonderful love for the sense of community Pittsburgh has to offer in the local music scene, and to have the opportunity to strengthen it is tremendous.  It’s exciting to be able to introduce the local music community to the local Yoga community.  Hopefully this will be a continued growing bond to create an even stronger sense of community throughout Pittsburgh.

To learn more about Joanne and Live Music Yoga check out https://www.facebook.com/events/1698970353674530/

The first Live Music Yoga event will be held on April 10, 2016 at the James Street Gastropub and Speakeasy in the North Side!