Christian Howes

My first gateway beyond classical music was via a garage rock band in high school.

After that, I wanted more, so I got interested in chromaticism.

Not for the sake of sounding weird.

But as a whole melodic universe.

Chromatic language is natural to musicians who have spent time with composers like Bartók, Prokofiev, and Stravinsky- or Ornette Coleman.

It’s also a natural next step for improvisers who want to go beyond diatonic, familiar licks.

Because once you break the ice

Your ears open up.

Your sense of tension and release gets more flexible.

And you start trusting your own melodic voice.

That’s what The Chromatic Universe ( hi.switchy.io/Chromatic_Universe_Multimedia )is designed to help you explore.

Inside, you’ll get:

→ a 45-minute interactive masterclass
→ etude eBooks for violin, viola, and cello
→ 10 short original compositions for unaccompanied violin

You’ll work with new approaches to improvisation.

Break away from clichés.

Gain comfort playing outside obvious scale choices.

And expand your ears, technique, and sense of musical possibility.

This is for you if you keep circling the same shapes, patterns, and “safe” melodic decisions and want...

A way to add color.

A way to create surprise.

A way to move through the harmony with more freedom.

And a way to make your lines feel more personal.

***Ironically, chromaticism is also incredibly useful for musicians who struggle with conventional harmony.

Today is the final day to get the masterclass, etudes, and book of mini-compositions at the current price.

Tonight, the price doubles.

If you'd like to get it before that happens:

hi.switchy.io/Chromatic_Universe_Multimedia

2 days ago | [YT] | 26

Christian Howes

“Brilliant Corners” is a Jazz saying,

but it also reminds me of the moment a fiddle tune becomes a free improvisation-

something known to happen often in the late hours during 24 years of Creative Strings Workshop.

This clip is 3 minutes, and it only takes about 30 seconds for the group to turn the corner.

​fiddles gone wild​: hi.switchy.io/Fiddles_Gone_Wild

​

Camp is one of a kind for lots of reasons, but you don't technically have to come to camp to grow and learn stuff.

In June, I’m offering TEN live Zoom play-along classes.

for every time zone and schedule (all times below in US Eastern).

The first of which is happening in a few hours

And if you are coming to camp, this is a way to prepare.


Monday, June 8 — 5:00 pm ​
Guest Teacher (spotlight on theory)
​

Tuesday, June 9​
11:00 am — Gentle Guided Practice
11:45 am — Advanced Guided Practice

Thursday, June 11​
7:00 pm — Gentle Guided Practice
7:45 pm — Advanced Guided Practice

Wednesday, June 17​
12:00 pm — Gentle Guided Practice
12:45 pm — Advanced Guided Practice

Thursday, June 18​
5:00 pm — Gentle Guided Practice
5:45 pm — Advanced Guided Practice

Tuesday, June 30

5:30 pm Eastern​
Guest Teacher Play-Along

Plus six additional guest teacher slots.

All classes are recorded too.

If you want to try it:

swiy.co/CommunityCreativeStrings

3 days ago | [YT] | 20

Christian Howes

After 18 months of walking on eggshells at the Yoga studio, I finally started to feel comfortable in my skin-

not quite like I owned the place, but not like a walking apology either.

Then I noticed a pretty embarrassing thing about myself.

It wasn’t how ridiculous I looked in nothing but my stretchy shorts

It was my loud, weird breathing.

I had one of those uncomfortable self-awareness moments:

How loud am I? And how long have I been doing this?

Yesterday Natalie directed the class:

"Look for the effort and the ease in each pose."

That landed.

Whatever you do in the pose, you probably do somewhere else in life.

If you force, grip, strain, and hold your breath in the pose…

There’s a good chance you do that in your music.

work.

relationships.

business.

practicing.

They’re all poses.

So in the middle of these hard-ass yoga shapes, I started remembering to Look for the ease.

And some stuff relaxed.

She asked:

"Where are you expending effort in your life — and where can you bring ease into it?"

That’s a beautiful question for musicians.

Because practice is one of the places where a lot of us bring nothing but effort.

We grind, judge, tense up.

try to force our way into getting better.

And often walk away frustrated.

How can you find the ease behind the effort?-

The breath inside the structure. The groove inside the repetition.

Looking for this ease beyond my own resistance is partly why I decided to return to making play-alongs (Yes, I do them for me, too.): hi.switchy.io/Play_Alongs

They give you something to lean into where you can find that ease.

Whatever you're doing or feeling, ask:

“Where is the ease in this?”

Then look for it.

In your sound, your breath, your body.

In the way you let the phrase move instead of forcing it

In sitting with whatever you feel.

Chris

​

P.S. The Chromatic Universe goes up in price this week after years at its current rate.

If you want to get it before that happens:

hi.switchy.io/Chromatic_Universe_Multimedia

4 days ago | [YT] | 33

Christian Howes

My first gateway beyond classical music was via a garage rock band in high school.

After that, I wanted more, so I got interested in chromaticism.

Not for the sake of sounding weird.

But as a whole melodic universe.

Chromatic language is natural to musicians who have spent time with composers like Bartók, Prokofiev, and Stravinsky- or Ornette Coleman.

It’s also a natural next step for improvisers who want to go beyond diatonic, familiar licks.

Because once you break the ice

Your ears open up.

Your sense of tension and release gets more flexible.

And you start trusting your own melodic voice.

That’s what The Chromatic Universe is designed to help you explore.

Inside, you’ll get:

→ a 45-minute interactive masterclass
→ etude eBooks for violin, viola, and cello
→ 10 short original compositions for unaccompanied violin

You’ll work with new approaches to improvisation.

Break away from clichés.

Gain comfort playing outside obvious scale choices.

And expand your ears, technique, and sense of musical possibility.

This is for you if you keep circling the same shapes, patterns, and “safe” melodic decisions and want...

A way to add color.

A way to create surprise.

A way to move through the harmony with more freedom.

And a way to make your lines feel more personal.

***Ironically, chromaticism is also incredibly useful for musicians who struggle with conventional harmony.

Today is the final day to get the masterclass, etudes, and book of mini-compositions at the current price.

Tonight, the price doubles.

If you'd like to get it before that happens:

christian-howes.kit.com/products/chromatic-univers…

1 week ago | [YT] | 4

Christian Howes

In come inquiries from strangers asking for stuff.

passive-aggressive:

“It would be amazing if you shared my upcoming book.”

flattery:

“I love your free play-alongs. Could you send me the sheet music?”

playing to kindness:

“A friend of mine needs help. Would you give them advice?”

And this:

“We are motivated. Will you give us free tuition?”

I’m not going to rant about the charitable work we do.

Or how we’ve been burned when people ask for things, receive them, and then don’t value them.

Or why we have a process now.

Because rants are tacky.

Instead, I’ll try to help you discover something useful about yourself — and get a little closer to the thing you say you want.

Let’s look at it from both sides.

First: the one asking.

If you consider yourself motivated — or for any other reason, deserving of someone going out of their way for you — know this:

Values are measured through behavior. Not feelings.

If your behavior reflects motivation, you'll put in the work to learn, grow, and get support.

If not?

You have a feeling.

Your feeling + $7 gets you a latte at Starbucks.

The good news is, this can be fixed.

By setting boundaries with yourself and honoring them.

By keeping promises to yourself before asking other people to override theirs.

​

the one being asked.

Boundaries are yours to set or not.

If you’re unhappy, overextended, or resentful at people for asking…

you may have a boundaries problem.

I say this as someone guilty of being a people-pleaser.

So this is for me just as much as it is for you.

Your and my suffering will both be mitigated by setting better boundaries — with ourselves and others.

Speaking of which:

​The Chromatic Universe doubles in price tonight — Sunday.

If you’re motivated to become a more informed, capable musician…

Grab it while you can here:

​christian-howes.kit.com/products/chromatic-univers…

1 week ago (edited) | [YT] | 38

Christian Howes

My favorite line from Kung Fu Panda 3 comes during the final fight scene:

“Chitty-chitty-chat-chat.”

As in: Are you gonna stand there and talk, or are we gonna get it on?

Which resonates for me around my own tendency to put off practicing.

Just thinking of it is enough to make me start laughing out loud.

Because a lot of musicians don’t really need another explanation.

We don’t need another thing to feel guilty about not doing.

We just need a reason to pick up the instrument for 10 minutes and play.

That’s the spirit this new series is coming from

Today’s play-along is built for intermediate to advanced players.

It's 10 minutes.
No “I need to clear my afternoon before I can practice.”

Just press play and follow along.

Sometimes the goal is simply reconnecting with the music before another week disappears.

And when it’s done, you can honestly say:

“I practiced today.”

Which is a small thing.

But also not small at all.

👉 here you go: hi.switchy.io/Flamenco_Inspired_PlayAlong

1 week ago | [YT] | 17

Christian Howes

Giddiness made me send that text to Colleen.

She would have encouraged me not to leave the house, let alone go to the airport, looking like that.

But I did.

I left the house with a backpack and a gorgeously ugly Aldi grocery bag.

No violin, suitcase, or 150 lbs. of gear.

For the first time in years, I can remember going to the airport without feeling like a sherpa.

I was on tour to show our film, so no gear was required.

And I found myself skipping and laughing.

That’s a feeling I wish for you.

Skipping and laughing is what happens when you return home to yourself for a minute.

And one way to find that feeling is to do something different.

Something a little rebellious.

Small rebellious:

Big rebellious:

Fill in the blanks. Make a list of things that catch your eye, especially the ones you’ve resisted.

You might be surprised by the skipping and laughing that follows.

And if there’s fear attached to it, that might be the exact reason it sets you free.

On a larger scale, that’s what sharing our film Redemption Time has felt like for me.

This week in Albuquerque, Española, and Santa Fe, people came out, reflected, shared stories, poetry, and talked vulnerably about healing and coming home.

J.P. Granillo:

"When we talk about prison we're looking at it through steel and concrete. But there are different forms of prison we can live in as we work on ourselves;

I can call myself an artist because I paint and I sculpt. But there's another part to it...

Loving yourself is an art.

Loving the next person is an art."

You can see more here: hi.switchy.io/w4M1

​

And on June 16th, you can watch the film during our one-day-only online event, with two showtimes at 2 pm and 8 pm Eastern.

​Click here to get tickets​: hi.switchy.io/w4M2

​

Maybe watching this film is one of those small rebellious things.

or a way to sit with something real.

Maybe it helps you come home to yourself a little, too.

2 weeks ago | [YT] | 26

Christian Howes

for this other story: There’s something about getting away from your normal routine that makes music easier to hear.

Not easier to play, necessarily.

Just easier to hear.

Your habits get quieter.

The same old self-judgment loses a little power.

You’re not in the room where you usually procrastinate, overthink, or tell yourself you should already be better by now.

You’re somewhere else.

In our case, the Blue Ridge Mountains.

And that matters.

Because a lot of musical growth doesn’t come from forcing yourself harder.

It comes from creating better conditions.

A better room.

Better support.

Better people around you.

A better reason to pick up the instrument.

That’s what we’re building at Creative Strings Workshop in Asheville.

A small group of musicians.

Teachers, pros, adult players, curious people.

Improvisation, harmony, groove, styles, jams, concerts, meals, walks, conversations.

The whole thing.

Not a giant conference.

Not a competition.

Not a place where you have to prove you belong.

A place to practice being more of the musician you already are.

If that sounds like something your musical life could use right now,

come to Asheville.

hi.switchy.io/CSW_Asheville_CommPost_2026

Chris

2 weeks ago | [YT] | 24

Christian Howes

The amount we grow is directly related to the amount of discomfort we can tolerate.

And our ability to tolerate discomfort partly depends on whether we resist it… or learn to lean into it.

This idea has been a major throughline in my personal work lately: learning to stay present with discomfort instead of immediately trying to change it, fix it, or run from it. That shift continues to change me for the better.

Once you start to see this dynamic, you see it everywhere.

I’ve shared versions of this with Suzanne Alfandari and Evan Gregor; this weekend, there’s a great podcast from The New York Times about it.

If the ideas of personal peace and/or personal growth appeal to you,

​Check it out: hi.switchy.io/vuEx

Namaste:)

​

Last chance to register for the summer Creative Strings Workshop in Asheville: hi.switchy.io/CSW_Asheville_CommPost_2026

***

2 weeks ago | [YT] | 10

Christian Howes

Hey, I wanna take the time to apologize to you.

Sometimes the things I’m most sorry for are the things I fail to do.

And this has bothered me for a while now.

I can’t stand to wait,
so anyway,
here’s what I need to say...

That’s the opening of a beautiful song ( hi.switchy.io/Christian_Apology ) by one of my favorite musicians in the history of the world,

Hamilton Hardin.

In the song, Hamilton shares what’s on his heart — the thing he regrets holding back from sharing sooner, more often, harder, better.

The ONE thing he attributes to all his herculean feats of musical accomplishment.

And when I say herculean, I mean:

Singing.
Guitar.
Bass.
Keys.
Sax.
Trumpet.
Drums.
Flute.
Composition.
Recording.
Producing...

All 25 songs on one album.

You don’t need to believe what Hamilton believes in order to be inspired by him.

I know, because despite my name, I do not necessarily consider myself a Christian.

Hamilton is talking about the reason behind everything he writes and plays:

When he plays instrumental music and can’t say the word, he wears it on his chest: hi.switchy.io/vuEp

I’ve mentioned Hamilton Hardin several times in these emails, but honestly, I’m sorry I haven’t mentioned him more.

Sooner.

With more fervent encouragement.

Because if I really wanted what’s best for you, I’d probably tell you more to go listen to his record and watch his videos.

Not because you need to share his faith.

But it might inspire you to practice, gain perspective, stop holding back, follow through...

Kind of like watching Alex Honnold freestyle epic rock faces gets me to take my dog around the block.

If Hamilton can play ALL the instruments, write the music, record it, mix it, and release 25 songs on one album…

we can practice one instrument.

We can write four bars of a melody.

We can take the next step.

Also, I’m really sorry I didn’t share this sooner:

Hamilton Hardin will return as a teacher at Creative Strings Workshop this summer: hi.switchy.io/CSW_Asheville_CommPost_2026

And for the first time, we’re officially opening the workshop to non-bowed-string players.

That means if you play guitar, flute, saxophone, drums, penny whistle — whatever — you are invited.

Yes, bowed string players are still very much invited.

But this summer, the circle is getting wider.

And with Hamilton there, it’s going to be an epic camp.

Check out Hamilton’s full album, Filled With Wonder: hi.switchy.io/Filled_With_Wonder

And if it inspires you to want to be around this kind of musical energy in person this summer…

​Come to camp: hi.switchy.io/CSW_Asheville_CommPost_2026

***

2 weeks ago | [YT] | 6