Hello Boston, the Professor World Band is back in town!

Hip hip hooray! It’s been a long cold lonely winter but the ice is finally melting. I’ve been waiting rather impatiently for a warm enough weekend to make the trip into Boston and play in the Public Gardens. I’ve been really looking forward to trying out all the new improvements to the Peace Wave Generator and new songs that I’ve been working on all winter. 

Last weekend I finally got the chance and it felt really good to be back. Although it was bit chilly at times with the wind people passing by were in the mood to stop, look,listen and join in with the Professor World Band. It was excellent hooping weather and all of my hoola hoops were often in use as well. Many of my fans from previous years were in attendance and let me know they were really happy to see me again. And of course many tourists visiting Boston and seeing the Professor World Band for the first time looked on in amazement.

One woman who left me a very generous tip on Venmo wrote in the comment section, ‘Thank you for making my family’s day in Boston so special :) Please keep doing what you are doing. It’s such a gift to the world!❤️🎶

So I had a really fun weekend in Boston and spread lots of joy and peace waves. I’m hoping for many more such weekends in the coming year!

Happy New Year! Welcome 2026!

 Well the Fall busking season was lots of fun for the Professor World Band in the Boston Public Gardens. Perhaps not as many foreign visitors as last year but still plenty of folks stopping to join the band. There’s a sizable group of families that gather every Sunday morning by the Make Way for Ducklings statues and all the kids are regular fans of the Professor World Band. 

December was a bit of a blowout this year. Usually the Christmas season is pretty good for busking but this year it was just too cold. Oh well, so it goes. I’m already looking forward to next spring. I’ve got lot of crazy new sounds and songs to try out! https://www.facebook.com/share/v/1DRrxfDeLg/?mibextid=wwXIfr

Fall is coming, and the show goes on!

It was a beautiful Labor Day weekend in Boston to mark the end of the summer season. The Professor World Band was out in force in the Public Gardens with many people of all ages shapes and sizes stepping up to join the band and make the hoola hoops go round and round.

All in all it was a pretty good busking season. The world really needs the peace waves these days! The beginning of summer was a bit slow. There’s been a noticeable drop in foreign tourism so it hasn’t been quite as busy as last year. And it rained almost every weekend for 14 straight weeks in Boston but the weather has turned and once again we’re in drought conditions. The temperature last weekend was pretty cool; just about ideal for busking although a return to summer heat is predicted for this weekend. I’m looking forward to the fall which brings much more comfortable busking conditions.

The painting pictured above was given to me this weekend by an Asian foreign exchange student. She told me that when first got to the US she was feeling alone and isolated. Then one day she came across the Professor World Band playing in the Public Gardens with lots of folks joining in and making peace waves together she suddenly felt joyful and happy again . She was so inspired that she made this painting of me and gave me a framed copy last weekend. It now hangs proudly in my living room to remind myself, even when times are tough, the work that the Professor World Band is doing is very important and brings lots of joy to the world.

 

Summertime is here!

 Memorial Day has come and gone which means the busking season is in full swing. The weather has been pretty unsettled thus far, especially on the weekends which has made things a bit tricky for the Professsor World Band. I got pretty soaked a couple of times already this year by a sudden unpredicted shower. Luckily things dried out pretty quickly without any real damage to my equipment.

There have also been some really nice days that have been lots of fun with lots of folks of all ages joining along on tambourines and shakers and all the hoola hoops going! The world desperately needs the peace waves these days and the Professor World Band is doing the best we can to provide them. I’ve been working on some pretty unique and crazy new sounds and a couple of new songs that make it fun for me to play. After more than forty one years as a one man band I’m still looking forward to every opportunity !

Last Sunday, playing in the Public Gardens I had the honor to meet Stephen Baird. Back in the early seventies he was arrested multiple times for playing street music in Boston. He went to the library and started reading up on law and decided to sue the city for violating his first amendment right of free speech. He did it and won! Street performing has been legal ever since in Boston. Since then he’s gone on to advocate for buskers in other cities and states around the country. I feel that I owe Stephan a big thank you for paving the way for street musicians in Boston to be able to express themselves and spread good vibes and also to be able to earn a living without worrying about interference from the police. He says he’s not busking much at the moment but is still occupied with helping out other buskers whose rights of freedom of speech have been violated. That’s him by the way in the photo with the giant camera. He’s also doing nature photography these days! http://www.stephenbaird.org/bairdteacherguide.html?fbclid=IwQ0xDSwKtrLtleHRuA2FlbQIxMQABHplXBGNBMG04xMn35oydJUGKatXB-L8yxuuNhCqhfmf0HP6umhOVR-ey902W_aem_ilOYVR1yDkTodJ-HXEQozw

Spring is in the Air!

 The long cold lonely winter is coming to an end! Finally, just in time for St Parick’s Day weekend the weather warmed up enough for me to break out the Peace Wave Generator in the Boston Public Gardens. And the Peace waves are badly needed these days! What crazy scary times we are living in.

This big beautiful Swiss doggy by the name of King really enjoyed the show. He really wanted to play with Olly who always guards my case.

On the Road Again!

My mechanic finally found the part he needed to fix my van just in time for me to make it to Boston this weekend. I had a blast playing in the Public Gardens once again with lots of folks dancing and singing along. Even the National Park service horses, Otis and Remington, came over to check out the Professor World Band!
 

Stuck at Home!

 Sorry to report that my van has been in the shop for the past weeks so I’ve been chilling at home and amusing myself playing in the living room. Hopefully I’ll be back on the road soon! https://www.facebook.com/share/v/USgrRp2E7VKTxQNx/?mibextid=WC7FNe

Celebrating 40 years of Professor World Band

 Wow! I never thought back on November 17th 1983,the day of my 30’th birthday when I first performed with the very first incarnation of the Professor World Band on the Green in my hometown of New Haven Connecticut that I would still be at it over forty years later. Yet here is a photo that some fans just sent me of the band in action in the  Boston Public Gardens a couple of weeks ago.

From that fateful day the Professor World Band has continually progressed and evolved. Since the very beginning its been designed to be a Peace Wave Generator, attempting to achieve world peace through street music, because as Einstein once said,”Only those who attempt the absurd achieve the impossible.” We haven’t quite succeeded yet but we are having lots of fun trying and are determined to carry on. We’ve played in over 40 countries and made countless people stop and smile and even pick up a tambourine or a shaker or a hoola hoop and join the band. And forty years later are still going strong. And the world really needs peace waves these days!

Whenever it’s warm enough on weekends I’ll be out in the Boston Public Gardens playing with the Professor World Band. Come on down and join along and help us make Peace Waves!

Last Weekend of Summer

 I’m just getting back from my last trip to Boston this past Labor day weekend. Labor day itself was a washout but we really needed the rain. Its been a hot and very dry summer.

Saturday and Sunday were pretty nice days, a bit on the hot side perhaps at times but the fan that I added to the Peace Wave Generator helps keep me cool.

I also added some blinking LED lights and a rotating motor on the antenna to help better distribute the Peace Waves. The world needs it more than ever these days.

In any case it’s been overall a good and encouraging summer for me. It’s good to be out there once again doing my thing and making people smile. People have been kind and appreciative and it’s clear they are happy to see me back once again.

I intend to go on playing in the Boston Public Gardens most good weather weekends straight through fall and hopefully through the Christmas season and New Year if it’s not too cold. Admittedly that’s a pretty big if.

I also plan to start work once again on a new more portable version of the Professor World Band however it remains to be seen if I will be playing in the Boston T this winter. I’m hoping that Covid will soon no longer pose a serious threat and I’ll feel comfortable playing in a more contained environment. Lets see what the futuristic brings. Whatever the case I hope to go on playing and generating Peace Waves as long as I am physically capable!

Back in the Saddle Again!

 After a prolonged absence due to the pandemic I am happy to be able to finally announce that the Professor World Band is once again performing in the Boston Public Gardens on weekends when the weather is amenable. Actually I’ve been back out there for the past couple of months now so I must apologise for taking so long to get around to updating my blog! 

I have to say that it feels really good to be doing my thing once again after such a long break. And the response has been wonderful so far. I guess many people are thrilled to see live music and entertainment out on the streets once again. 

But I also have a brand new show

and a completely new sound that I’ve been working on and practicing for many hours most every day for the past year or so. All that work and effort seems to finally paying off. One of the things that has kept me going for so long is that the Professor World Band is constantly evolving and hopefully improving steadily over the years. 

I’m still taking precautions because the pandemic isn’t over yet. I probably won’t play indoors in the Boston T this winter and I no longer put instruments out for the kids to join the band. That’s one aspect of the show that I really miss.  But they can still clap their hands and dance around and that they often do.

Last sunny Sunday in the Public Gardens two toddlers started moving and grooving to the beat and then a couple of kids joined in and then a bunch more and before you know it the whole audience was dancing to the sounds of the Professor World Band. That’s the kind of spontaneous joy that makes me feel that my job is important and worthwhile.

So once again, a big thank you to all the folks who’ve enjoyed my show and felt moved to put a little something in my tip bucket to keep the Professor World Band going and the peace wave generator spinning for 38 years as of next Wednesday, which also happens to be my 68’th Birthday! The first performance of the Professor World Band was on my 30th birthday in my hometown of New Haven Connecticut. We’ve been generating peace waves ever since and the world needs them more than ever now. See y’all next weekend in the  Boston Public Gardens!

Looking forward to a better new year in 2021

Wow, what a crazy, mixed up, spooky year it’s been. I’ve been very lucky thus far. None of my close friends and family have been seriously ill with Covid and I’ve been very healthy as well. I have been spending my time at home practicing, writing and learning songs and working on my new music machine. I’m not abandoning my old machine but it is refreshing to have an alternative as well. Perhaps the new contraption is not yet as spectacular but it’s still developing. Once I get the opportunity to test it out in public more thoroughly I’m confident it will improve rapidly. That’s another reason to look forward to the coming season. Hopefully by then, with more and more people getting vaccinated, there will be an end to this crisis that we are in. The world needs Peace Waves more than ever now.https://www.facebook.com/100026352192473/posts/687208695500864/?d=n

My first social distancing gig

https://www.facebook.com/614823869/posts/10157249478643870/?d=n

And Suddenly the Whole World Changed....

I am still at a loss for words about the Covid19 virus. It will hurt a lot of people and cause untold suffering; an invisible enemy that physically isolates us from one another when comfort and working together is required.
Alas, at a difficult time, when so many are hurting and afraid, I have reluctantly decided to temporarily halt my street performances with the Professor World Band, hopefully not for too long.  Our best defense against the virus seems to be social distancing and frequent hand washing and decontamination of exposed surfaces.
If everyone cooperates we can flatten the curve and keep our health infrastructure from collapsing.
Eventually it will pass but it's too early to say how soon. In the meantime I will work on perfecting the Professor World Band and maybe writing some new songs and perhaps posting them online.
I will sorely miss the street performing.Aside from being my only source of income it also keeps me happy and physically fit. I put my heart and soul into it and I've been doing mostly that for over forty years now.  I'm hoping that it wont be too long before I am out there once again playing music on the corner. When this is winding down, people are really going to be needing something to make them smile. Wether that's in a month or more than a year from now, the Professor World Band will be ready. A big part of my job is giving hope to people. This will eventually pass and we will hopefully be stronger and wiser for it. Perhaps people will wake up and start taking better care of the Earth?
Peace Waves,
Ramblin' Dan

Halloween is coming!

Halloween is just around the corner and the Professor World Band is ready. To celebrate the occasion a senior member of both SAW, Skeletons Against War and PFWP, Pumpkins for World Peace are joining the band for the run up to the holiday. it's a pretty scary world out there and we need to generate all the Peace Waves we possibly can.

I'm sorry to say that due to some technical difficulties that this blog went down for a while and when it came back up it seems that a couple of my latest updates seem to have been irrevocably lost in cyberspace. So it goes.

It's been a pretty good year so far though for the Professor World Band with several new additions and upgrades. I will continue on playing weekends in the Boston Public Gardens until it gets too cold for my audience to stand and watch. Hopefully there will be a few more warm weekends before Christmas and the New Year. After that I will carry on playing and singing in the Boston T with Digger the Dancing Dog and the mini Peace Wave Generator.

It may be getting cold outside but over the winter the Professor World Band is still ready to go and available for parties and festivals.

Back from Mexico!

Actually , I’ve been back a couple of weeks now. Perhaps I should have stayed a bit longer. There is still plenty of snow here in Western Massachusetts.
Mexico was an absolute gas. I flew to Cancun to have some dental work done at less than half the cost that it would have been here. The clinic did an excellent job and since everything is so inexpensive there I more then saved the cost of the trip while tanking up on sunshine while I was there. I managed to find a room in the center of town for only $250 for the whole 16 days of my stay. It wasn’t a luxury suite but it was plenty fine for me. And the food was delicious and so affordable.
While I was there I also did some busking. I brought Digger my dancing doggie and a whole pack of smaller hounds with me. We entertained people in the nearby Palapas park and Mercado 28; both places I had played at with my Hang drum when I visited ten years ago. I was pleasantly surprised to find that some of the market people recognized and remembered me from back then! Here’s a photo of Digger and I playing at the beach on Isle Mujeres. In the photo below taken in Mercado 28 I am playing with my band.

It’s been pretty cold and snowy since I got back so I haven’t been out busking much. It is still February after all. In the meantime I’ve been working on a new show which shall soon be ready for it’s first trial run. More on that I hope in my next update.

Here's the latest documentary about the Professor World Band made by a film student in Boston. Thank you Maya! this is one of my favorites

America's Got Talent asked me to send them a video of me singing an original song about peace and love. So I wrote this song and recorded it in the basement. If they were like it you may see the Professor World Band on your TV screen next year sometime.
recorded in my basement for America's Got Talent

Another recent article about the Professor World Band

https://thevalemagazine.com/2018/07/07/meet-bostons-most-playful-one-man-band/

Thirty Five Years of The Professor World Band!

      This Coming Saturday, November 17'th, marks the thirty fifth birthday of the Professor World Band! Since it all started officially on my 30'th birthday, this Saturday will also be my 65'th birthday! That's quite a milestone and both the Professor World Band and Ramblin' Dan are still going strong. To celebrate I hope to be playing in the Boston Public Gardens if the sun is shining and it's warm enough. Come on down and join the band and help us make some peace waves on this special day! If the weather is wet and cold we will be playing somewhere in the T, probably somewhere on the Red Line.            

 Even the squirrels in the public garden want to join the band! 

   

Digger came with me to do an interview for Harvard Radio last week.

I'm working on a more portable show with Digger the Dancing Dog to travel with this winter.

Playing at the Amherst Ma farmers Market last weekend.

My niece, who recently moved to the area did an excellent job of filming me at the Amherst Farmers market last weekend.https://www.facebook.com/614823869/posts/10155820780263870/