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The Tools at Hand with Harrison Gardner
Paul Noonan & Brian Crosby: From Bell X1 to Pilgrims, Music Therapy & Breathwork
Paul Noonan and Brian Crosby have been making music together, in one form or another, for decades.
From Juniper and Bell X1, through 16 years of separate creative journeys, they eventually found their way back into a room together. What started with Brian’s solo piano record Imbrium and a voice note from Paul during COVID became Pilgrims — a new project built from everything they had learned and experienced in the years apart.
In this conversation, we talk about what it means to return to a creative partnership after so much time, the vulnerability of making something new with someone you have a long history with, and how Pilgrims grew from remote recordings into a live project.
We also get into the very different paths they took along the way. Brian talks about leaving Bell X1, moving to Berlin, composing for film, building recording studios from scratch, and training in holotropic breathwork. Paul talks about his work as a music therapist, working with people with dementia, brain injuries and children, and what music can make possible in those settings.
And underneath all of it is a bigger question about creativity: what happens when we stop trying to be perfect, become willing to be vulnerable, and allow other people to change what we're making?
This is a conversation about music, collaboration, fear, connection, and finding your way back to making things.
Support the podcast on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/cw/HarrisonGardner
Connect with Harrison:
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/_harrisongardner
Website: https://www.harrisongardner.net/
Books: https://www.harrisongardner.net/bookstore-1
Pre-order my new book HEAT-SHELTER-WATER-FOOD
https://www.harrisongardner.net/heat-shelter-water-food
Explore Pilgrims and their music:
Chapters
00:00 – Teaser
00:51 – Intro: Creating Something People Are Ready to Receive
03:50 – From Bell X1 to Pilgrims
05:42 – The Voice Note That Sparked Pilgrims
07:31 – Finding a New Musical Voice
08:17 – Two Very Different Journeys
09:17 – Why Brian Left Bell X1
16:40 – Building a Creative Scene in Berlin
19:28 – What Is Holotropic Breathwork?
23:45 – Fear, Self-Doubt & Creativity
30:55 – Paul Noonan on Music Therapy
32:00 – Music & Brain Injury
32:45 – Creating a Safe Space
34:20 – From Performer to Facilitator
40:55 – Building the Wicklow Studio
45:00 – Why Small Venues Matter
52:34 – What's Next for Pilgrims?
55:37 – Outro
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