The problem with the fanaticism

This time I want to write about the fanaticism.

There are many different forms of fanaticism. I don't want to write about the usual/daily one here. If you take a great interest in something for example playing video games or watching soccer then you are a fan. And a fan is the short form of fanatic. Being a fan is OK. This is no problem, except you are spending too much time for your hobby. In this case you disregard yourself, your family and friends and so on. This is a problem. Although this could be a great problem for some of you, I don't want to write about this aspect of fanaticism here. I want to focus on the narrow sense of the fanaticism, mainly on the religious fanaticism.

What is the religious fanaticism?

A simple answer is:
For the religious fanaticism you have to think that your faith/religion is the only one which is right and all the others are wrong. The humans all over the world have to believe the same like you.

I think several of you would have answered this question in a similar way. Of course this answer isn't wrong. It contains several right aspects. But it only explains the ramifications and not the reasons for it.

For all of you who are looking for a new hobby, here's a short guide how to become a religious fanatical: ;-)
To become a religious fanatical, you need a faith and a religion. If you don't find a religion which fit to your faith found your own one. To found a religion and to find members isn't easy, but if you want to become a religious fanatical, you need a very strong faith which gives you the strength to pass difficult times. In the case your faith isn't strong enough, you really should have choosing another hobby in contemplation. After you convinced a few persons to think the same way like you, finding new members who will follow you will become easier. In the case you meet someone who don't want to think the same like you, kill him/her. This is the fastest way to handle dissidents. If you are a very successful religious fanatical, every survivor of your proselytizing will believe the same like you and you will live in your own perfect but very boring and empty world. Isn't this the wish from all of us? ;-)

In the case you didn't understand the last chapter, this was only a joke. But is this really only a joke? If you take a look at several people around this world, you unfortunately will see that they are doing or at least trying to do something very similar.

Some of you perhaps think at the conflict between the Christianity and the Islam. Both religions are thinking that each of them is the only one which is right and the other one is wrong. That's why they are fighting since centuries and are still fighting today.

But is the different faith really the reason for this conflict?
It's right that both religions have a faith which is a little bit different from each other. But this doesn't cause the conflict. Both religions were leaded by humans who wanted to get more power, influence and so on. But of course the leaders never fight themselves. They need people who will fight for them. If they would have told the people to fight for them because the leaders want to have more power or influence, no one would have fought for them. That's why they told the people that the members of the other religion are unbelievers and they are doing bad things. And they told them that if you combat these foreign persons, you are a good person and that your sins will be forgiven. Unfortunately many people believed them and combat the foreigners. Many of the fighting people really believed and are still believing that they are doing something good and that they are fighting to protect their face.

What shall you say about these very stupid persons?
Like I wrote above, the fastest way to handle people who are thinking/believing something different than you, is killing them. But unfortunately many of these people who are thinking so, don't see, that you never will solve a problem with fighting. For each enemy/dissident who you kill, you creates many more. With fighting you always creates more enemies than you are able to kill. There is only one way to eliminate an enemy. Becoming friends! Of course this isn't easy or works fast, but only if an enemy becomes a friend, you eliminate the conflict. And the first and most important step on the way becoming friends is talking with each other and trying to see the problem from the point of view of the other one.

Today of course only a small minority of the Christians and Muslims are still combating each other. A huge part of these minorities are religion fanaticals.

But why are they doing these terrible things?
To find the answer you have to take a closer look. You have to take a look at the individual person and not at the whole conflict.

If you have a faith, of course you think that this is right. In the case you think it would be wrong, you wouldn't believe in it. :-)
And even you have a very strong faith and this faith is the most important part of your life or even from you, this is no problem. Everything is OK.

But when does a strong faith becomes a religious fanaticism?

As I wrote above you have to think that your faith is right. This is necessary. But you always should know that you perhaps misinterpreted some aspects of the Bible, the Koran or howsoever your religious book is called. You and also the leaders of each religion are only humans. And humans are making mistakes.
But if you are a religious fanatical, you think that your interpretations of the religion texts are completely correct, that you didn't make any mistakes. And this is the main problem. Persons who are thinking so, are too self-centered. They never would think that they are perhaps wrong. And this is the most stupid and most dangerous way of thinking. As long as these people are thinking this way, they aren't able to find or correct their mistakes. They aren't able to develop.

In the case you are thinking that your interpretations of the texts are perfect, the stringent conclusion is that all the persons who are thinking different are wrong. Even if you are a peaceable person and you don't do anything against the dissidents, you are a religious fanatical.

But if you are already thinking this way it's only a very small step trying to convince or even to combat the dissidents. Even if you are trying to convince the dissidents only with words, this is force. You never should try to convince someone else. The other person is an individual and free person like you. If he/she believes something else, this is OK and you have to accept this.

Don't misunderstand me. I don't want to say, that you shouldn't talk with others about your faith or religion. You really should do this. Without talking with others about your thoughts, you never will be able to find your mistakes and to develop. Talking with others is very important. But there is a big difference between talking with someone else about your faith or trying to convince him/her!

Perhaps some of you are asking now how you could accept all the different faiths/religions without thinking that your own one is better or more right than the other ones.
This is a problem and everyone has to find a way to handle this.

I like the following idea:
My own faith is good but not perfect. There are still certainly many mistakes. That's why I always continue thinking and talking with others about it to find these mistakes, to develop my faith and myself. And the members from all the other religions are doing the same. Everybody has his/her own incomplete faith, his/her own view. But in the end, if you found and corrected all your mistakes, developed your faith, you will see that everyone is right. Everyone is believing at the same God and is talking about exactly the same. The only reason why there are so many different faiths and religions, is that we are only humans. We aren't able to see the whole picture or to interpret all the details right. We are making mistakes all the time but we are always thinking that we are perfect and all the others are wrong. We finally should see that we are all the same. All of us are humans who are doing their best to interpret the details. Instead of combat the dissidents we should talk with them! Perhaps they see some details we didn't see till now? Only if we are working all together, we perhaps will be able to see the whole picture.

That's why always remember:
Having a strong faith is good and very important. But always remember that you aren't able to see the whole picture yourself. You need all the dissidents too. Only together you perhaps will be able to see the whole picture and to solve all the problems in our lifes.

I was inspired by Lindsey Stirling to write this blog post. She has a very strong faith which gives her the power to pass all the bad times she had to go through. But even she has such a strong faith, she accepts all the dissidents. She is always thinking about herself and is trying to become a better person.

This photo shows Lindsey Stirling and two of the main aspects of her life: Faith and Music.

Written by Andreas S. Janke

Love versus Hate

This time I again want to write about a difficult topic: The well known opposite feelings Love and Hate.

At the beginning I want to ask you two simple questions:
What is love and what is hate?

Everyone probably is able to answer these questions immediately, because these feelings are the most important and strongest ones in our whole life. All of you heard about them or even already felt them.

A few simple answers to these questions are:
Love and hate are two opposite feelings.
Love is responsible for everything what is good and hate is responsible for everything what is bad in this world.

But are the answers to these questions really so simple? I don't think so. Love and hate are more complex than this.

In this blog post I want to explain my thoughts about what love and hate are. I again want to emphasize that the content of this blog post is only my own opinion and that there are certainly many other persons around the world who have other opinions. And this is good so. The world would be a very boring and sad place if everyone would have the same opinion. :-)

Before I'm able to explain my thoughts about love and hate, I have to explain two assumptions which I made.

My first assumption is that everything (the dead world around us, the plants and animals and also the humans) are made of energy. Some of you probably will think that I'm wrong “The world isn't made of energy. It's made of matter.”. Yes you're right. Everything is made of matter. But matter and energy are exactly the same. Matter is only a particular appearance of energy. Albert Einstein proved this.
My second assumption is that each human has a soul which is also made of energy. I know that there is no proof of the human soul till now. Perhaps there never will be a proof. But I believe, I KNOW, that there is a human soul in all of us. These souls are the most powerful but at the same time also the most sensitive objects in the universe. There is nothing similar like them. A human soul is the sum of all your experiences, decisions and so on. It is your personality, the soul are you!

When a human is born, he/she already has a soul, but it's unspecific/unfinished. Only because of the life, all the experiences and particularly because of the decisions which you made during your life, your soul becomes a unique strong individual character.
During a life a soul comes in contact with many other souls. It's connected with them or even with all souls around the world. That's why all of your decisions always impacts other persons you are connected with.

After you know my assumptions now, I'm able to answer the question what love and hate are. First I will potter at the love.

I think, that love is also an energy. But this energy is different from the one the whole world and also the humans are made of. This energy appears because of such a connection between two souls. There are many different kinds of love, for example: the love between the parents and their children, the love between friends, the love between two lovers and also the love for a foreign person who you meet randomly on the road and help him/her.
These are only a few kinds of love. There are many more. But all kinds of love only appear because of a connection between two souls. This love helps people to make the right decision, to help others, even they have a disadvantage because of this. The world only works because there are always people who are doing the right things because of love.
Without love you aren't able to survive. Love is the “food” for your soul. It heals the wounds and gives you the power to pass bad times.

But there is one big problem. When love is created by the connection between two souls, how could you create such a connection?
There is only one solution. Both persons have to be willing to give love, even both of them don't know if the other one will reciprocate this love. It's a risk without any guaranty. Sometimes you have luck and sometimes you have bad luck. No one will ever know this before risking it.

In the case you have luck and the other one is willing to reciprocate your love, a very powerful connection appears between these two souls. Love is born! You could say that love is born because two souls are interacting with each other. This love is the most powerful energy. It is able to heal each wound and gives you all the strength which you need to pass the bad times in your life. There is nothing similar like love.

But in the case the other person isn't willing to reciprocate the love, no connection/interaction appears. This hurts. That's why there are some people who don't risk this any more. They were disappointed too often. But they still want to be loved like all of us. Of course I see their problem but unfortunately there is no other way than risking it again and again. Don't loose hope. Even it will last a very long time till you find a person who deserves your love who will reciprocate the love. The love you will experience then is worth everything.

Unfortunately there are some people who were disappointed too often. These people aren't able to feel the love anymore. And one day they begin to hate all the other people, especially the ones who are still able to feel the love.

There is one important question left: Is hate the opposite energy of love or is it only the absence of love?
My opinion is that hate isn't the opposite energy of love. It's only the absence or the lack of love. Hate is something very bad. And bad things can't survive. Only the good things like love or the souls are able to exist forever.
Some of you perhaps think at all the terrible things which were done because of hate. You perhaps think that you need a powerful energy to do such terrible things. These are interesting thoughts. But take a look at the world around you. There are so many things happening only because of the lack of something for example if there is a lack of food, resources, lifetime, faith, love or whatever. It isn't important if the lack is there because of nature, because of another person who stole something from you or because you are living too high standards. The reason for the lack does not matter.

The lack of something is one of the two most powerful motivators to do something. The other one is love. I even think that the lack of something and the love are the only motivators which exists.

That's why I think that hate is only a feeling because of the lack of love. Perhaps “Love versus Lack” would be the better title for this blog post? :-)

Always remember:
Always live your life open-hearted, no matter how often your love wasn't reciprocated. Don't loose hope and try it again and again. This is the only way to find the persons who deserve your love and to be loved. The alternative, a life without love, can't be worthwhile by no stretch of the imagination.

I was inspired by Lindsey Stirling to write this blog post. Even she passed very bad times and lost her very best friend Jason Gaviati, she never stopped living her life open-hearted. I try to follow Lindsey's example and I hope that there perhaps will be other persons around the world who also will follow her example.

Here you can see Lindsey Stirling, Drew Steen and Jason Gaviati in Australia. The photo was taken 2013.

Written by Andreas S. Janke

Differences between women and men

In my last post you could read my thoughts about "The problem with the obsession with beauty".
Now I want to write about another interesting topic the “Differences between women and men”.

All of you know that women and men are looking different and why this is necessary. That's why I won't write about the distinction between the female and male body. But women and men are also different in their inside. (I don't mean the organs here. :-))

I want to start with one interesting example, which I saw in a German documentary movie a few month ago.
You probably know that girls usually play with dolls and boys usually play with toy cars. But why is this so?
You probably will answer ”It's the fault of the society.”. Yes you're right. The society tells the parents that girls should play with dolls and boys with toy cars, because this is normal and everybody is doing so. And the parents think “Why changing it? The society certainly know what's the best.” And this was so for many many years.

Nowadays in times of equal rights of men and women parents often offers their children both dolls and toy cars so that the children are able to choose themselves. But even today girls usually choose dolls and boys toy cars. Why?
This time you again could argue with the society, for example that the society needs more time to change, ….

But is the society the real reason for this?
Several scientists wanted to know if this is so. Are girls only preferring dolls because the society and their parents told them this?
But how could you test this? There are no children who grew up without the influence of the society. Even children from native tribes don't grew up without such an influence.
Then the scientists had an idea. They could test it with apes. Apes are very similar to humans and they aren't influenced by the human society. That's why they took several female and male apes and put them together into one big cage. Then they put some dolls and toy cars on the floor and left the cage.

What do you think happened?

The female apes preferred playing with the dolls and the male apes preferred playing with toy cars, although apes don't know what a doll or a toy car is. Now it's very difficult to argue with the society. :-)

Unfortunately the scientists don't know till now why it is so. An obvious reason why female apes and girls prefer playing with dolls is that they will get children and usually they are responsible for raising them. But why are male apes and boys preferring toy cars? This is really a good question. They scientists think that they are interested in moving things through the space. In the past men were hunting while women stay in the cave and look after the children. For hunting you need the ability to see moving animals and so on. This would be perhaps one answer for this but till now you don't know it exactly.

Another interesting example for the differences between women and men is the way of thinking. Scientist watched several brains from men and women solving problems. And they discover something very astonishing. If men are solving a problem they use the left or right part of the brain depending on what kind of problem they are solving. All their thoughts are only moving in one of the hemispheres. This of course is an advantage to solve a problem very fast. The signals only have to travel short ways in your brain. But the brains of women work different. They are always using both sides of their brains. They think more complex and involve more aspects while solving a problem. This way they are able to find better solutions but they need more time to find them. Unfortunately schools, most jobs and also most intelligence tests only focus on the speed of solving a problem. If the solution works, everything is OK even if there would be a better one. This is completely mad.

Please don't misinterpret me. I didn't write this blog post to tell that men are better than women or the other way around. But there are differences between both sexes and it is very interesting and necessary to explore them. For example most of the medicines are developed by men for men because most doctors thought that the male and female body are working mainly the same. But this isn't so. If a man and a woman takes the same medicine it could operate completely different. Even the symptoms from a disease could be completely different between men and women. One example is the heart attack. Men have clear and well known symptoms like a violent pain in the chest. But women don't have such clear symptoms. That's why many women and even doctors don't realize that a woman had a heart attack.

Now you perhaps see why it is important to explore the differences between women and men.

But even many differences between men and women are already and will be discovered, it's a silly and wrong point of view to think that men are better than women or the other way around. Even today in times of equal rights of men and women there are unfortunately many people who are thinking that their own sex is better than the other one. There are still much more men working in responsible and well-paid jobs, studying science, and so on. As I already wrote before the society and the companies are still focusing on the speed of solving a problem instead on the quality.

Stop thinking that one sex is better than the other one. God (or the nature) created two different humans, men and women. They belong together and not only because of biology. In my mind women and men are the perfect match. The differences between the sexes aren't a disadvantage or a reason to discriminate each other. They are very important advantages! No one is able to solve all problems alone. For living a happy and successful life, you need the ability from men and women. Women and men complement each other on the best possible way. There is no better match. That's why I think that all responsible jobs in politics, companies and also in religions should be done by a couple, a man and a woman who work together. Only this way you are able to solve all problems on the best way.

Always remember: Women and men belong together! There is no need do discriminate each other!

I was inspired by Lindsey Stirling to write this blog post. She is talking regularly in front of pupils to help them finding their way in life. She is mainly focusing on girls and young women because they are still discriminated in our society.

Written by Andreas S. Janke

Lindsey Stirling talking to a school class.

Lindsey Stirling performing for a school class.

Photos from "Worldwide Candle Lighting for Gavi"

Sunday December 13th 2015 was the "Worldwide Candle Lighting". It's the worldwide commemoration day for deceased children. At this day every family who commemorate a deceased child lights a candle and put it in a window at 7 pm. This causes a wave of candlelight which goes around the world.
Here you can read more about this amazing tradition:
https://www.compassionatefriends.org/News_Events/Special-Events/Worldwide_Candle_Lighting.aspx

Many Stirlingites took part in this event and lighted a candle for Gavi. Here you can see some of the taken photos:

This photo was taken by Janine Bräuninger. She's the winner of my competition.

This photo was taken by Céline Helmreich..

This photo was taken by Maureen van Dam.

This photo was taken by Almin Felker

This photo was taken by Pavla Ngoová

This photo was taken by Lien Timmerman

This photo was taken by Marine Krebs

This photo was taken by Rüdiger Knabe

This photo was taken by Valerie Bondar

And at the end my own photos:

These photos were taken by Andreas Janke

If you want to see more photos taken by Stirlingites for Gavi, klick this LINK

Written by Andreas S. Janke

Worldwide Candle Lighting for Gavi

Sunday December 13th 2015 is the "Worldwide Candle Lighting". It's the worldwide commemoration day for deceased children. At this day every family who commemorate a deceased child lights a candle and put it in a window at 7 pm. This causes a wave of candlelight which goes around the world.
Here you can read more about this amazing tradition:
https://www.compassionatefriends.org/News_Events/Special-Events/Worldwide_Candle_Lighting.aspx

To take part in this event you have to light a candle for Gavi and put it in a window Sunday December 13th 2015 at 7 pm. You also could decorate the window and the window board with photos, edits, drawings from Gavi. Everything is allowed.
Of course you also may take a photo from this and post it here:
https://www.facebook.com/events/1112989292046858/

If you also want to take part in the competition, you have to take a photo from your lighted candle and send it to Andreas Janke. Only photos which are sent to him will take part in the competition.
You can win one of Lindsey Stirling's #WeAreGavi-shirts size S and one size XL, music sheet from Lindsey Stirling's cover from "Oh come Emmanuel" and some other Lindsey and #WeAreGavi stuff.

I created a Facebook event for "Worldwide Candle Lighting for Gavi". Please join and share this event:
https://www.facebook.com/events/1112989292046858/

If you shouldn't know who Gavi is or what happened to him, you can read my blog post about him:
http://asjstirlingite.blogspot.de/2015/11/rest-in-peace-gavi-this-week-is-very.html

Prizes:

One of Lindsey Stirling's #WeAreGavi-shirts size S
One of Lindsey Stirling's #WeAreGavi-shirts size XL
Music sheet from Lindsey Stirling's cover from "Oh come Emmanuel"
Further Lindsey and #WeAreGavi stuff

Duration:

The preparation for the event and the competition starts Friday November 27th 2015.
The event/competition is run Sunday December 13th 2015 7 pm.
The last possibility to send your photos to Andreas Janke and to take part in his competition is Sunday December 20th 2015 at 23:59 o'clock (CET).

What do you have to do?

To take part in this event you have to light a candle for Gavi and put it in a window Sunday December 13th 2015 at 7 pm. You also could decorate the window and the window board with photos, edits, drawings from Gavi. Everything is allowed.
Of course you also may take a photo from this and post it here:
https://www.facebook.com/events/1112989292046858/

If you also want to take part in the competition, you have to take a photo from your lighted candle and send it to Andreas Janke. Only photos which are sent to him will take part in the competition.


There is one possibility how you can send your photos to him:
1)
You can send it directly to Andreas Janke as a private message in Facebook. Here you can find Andreas' private account:
https://www.facebook.com/lindsey.stirlingger.9

Who may take part?

Every Stirlingite may take part even if you don't live in Germany.
Only photos which will be sent to Andreas Janke after Sunday December 13th 2015 7 pm will take part in the competition.
Because this is a private competition run by Andreas Janke , the admins from the fan page/group "Lindsey Stirling GER" also may take part.

What will happen after the competition finished?

After the competition finished Andreas Janke will score your photos and he will choose several winners. Then he will announce the winners at the fan page "Lindsey Stirlin GER" at Facebook and at his fan group at Twitter. He also will contact the winners to get their addresses. so that he is able to send the prizes to them. Taking part in this competition is absolutely free.
Because noone knows how long the voting will last, please have patience. The winners will get the prizes

Good luck

 This is one of the #WeAreGavi-shirts your are able to win.

This is a #WeAreGavi-ribbon which is one of the other Lindsey stuff you can win.

Written by Andreas S. Janke

Rest in Peace Gavi

This week is a very black week for all Stirlingites, Jason Gaviati's family, friends, crew and especially for his best friend Lindsey Stirling. Certainly most of you already know that Jason Gaviati also called Gavi passed away November 21st 2015 at 5 pm PST.

For all of you who don't know who Gavi is or what happened to him, here are some short facts about him.

Gavi was a touring musician, songwriter and producer who lived in Los Angeles. But most of us will know him as the world's best keyboard player who go on tour together with Lindsey Stirling. He had a sister called Beverly Gaviati.

Everyone who knows or at least met him knows that he was a very likeable, optimistic and happy guy. I had the honor to meet him once during the Meet&Greet in Cologne, Germany October 17th 2014. Unfortunately I didn't take a photo from him then.

Here's my photo with Lindsey Stirling from the Meet&Greet in 

Cologne, Germany October 17th 2014.

Gavi began learning how to play the keyboard late, but he mastered it very well. Several years ago he met Lindsey Stirling in Los Angeles and they became friends. In the autumn of 2012 Lindsey started her first tour ever in the USA and Gavi was part of her crew. He was her keyboard player. Since then they also went on tour together all over the world several times. They were touring of course in the USA but also in Europe, Asia, Australia, Mexico and even South America. Only very few people had such a live. Over the years Gavi and Lindsey became best friends.

Here you can see Gavi and Lindsey in a train near Cologne, Germany. 

The photo was taken January 2013 during the first European tour. The tour started in Cologne.

 

 Here you can see Gavi, Lindsey and Drew standing in the monsoon in Asia summer 2013.

 Gavi, Lindsey and Drew in Australia summer 2013.

Gavi also made music videos together with Lindsey.

Here you can watch Lindsey's and Gavi's amazing "Les Misérables Medley"

 Till summer 2015 everything went well. When he was in Germany during his last tour he went to a doctor because he found an enlarged lymph node on his neck.

Here you can see Gavi, Lindsey and Drew during the Meet&Greet from his last concert in 

Germany July 17th 2015. Because of the high temperatures the concert was canceled.

After Gavi returned back to the USA he got the diagnose that he had Burkitt Lymphoma. Of course this was a shock for himself, his family and friends, Lindsey and her crew and for all Stirlingites. As soon as possible he began with the chemo.

Here you can see Gavi in hospital watching for the beginning of the chemo. 

As you can see he always was a very optimistic person even in such bad times.

The first round of chemo was very awful for him. There are no better words to describe it than his own ones.

Here you can read Gavi's post after the first round of chemo. 

 Even in this bad time he never forgot us and posted news.

Here you can see Lindsey visiting Gavi in hospital.

Finally he mastered the last round of chemo successfully and could go home. The doctors told him that he is cancer free.

Here you can see Gavi leaving the hospital. Even after the chemo he stay strong.

Although he was on the mend something awfully went wrong November 21st 2015. Suddenly he got difficulties with breathing and he lost consciousness. Immediately he was brought to the Emergency Room. He had several cardiac arrests. But the doctors could help him several times till his heart stopped working completely. Gavi passed away November 21st 2015 at 5 pm PST.

But all of us who believes in God like I do, know that the death isn't the end. It's only a door to another (the next) part of everyone's way of life.

Although some of us know this, but loosing a friend is the worst and the hardest in life. There is nothing which could prepare you for such a situation. You are always shocked and all your problems seem to be unimportant compared with this. You don't know how you could live your life the same way as before.

Even if this is very hard to say for me, life is going on even if you don't want this. This is unfortunately a very hard fact. You have to find a way to handle this situation. And the one and only way to handle it is to mourn this person. There is no other way.

Of course there are many different ways of mourning. My preferred way to mourn a person is to meet family and friends to talk with them about the person who passed away. Tell them what a person he/she was and how he/she had changed your life. When you speak about this, your soul and mind are able to find a way to handle it, because you have to realize your feelings and the fact that the person is gone. And there's another positive aspect from this way of mourning. You keep the person who passed away in your heart and thoughts. You are able to re-experience all the good times with him/her again.

This edit was made by Janine Bräuninger.

Rest in Peace Gavi. 

You always will stay in our thoughts and hearts.
#WeAreGavi

Written by Andreas S. Janke 

Who is Lindsey Stirling?

There is nearly no one in the whole world who doesn't know the successful and talented Dubstep violinist Lindsey Stirling. During the last years you could watch much advertising for her albums “Lindsey Stirling” (released 2013) and “Shatter Me” (released 2014) on TV. She also take part in several German telecasts like “Klein gegen Groß”, “Willkommen bei Carmen Nebel” or “Die Helene Fischer Show”. In the years 2014 and 2015 she won the German Music Award Echo in the category Crossover each time. Her songs were already used in German movie productions like “Terra X”. In July 2015 Lindsey Stirling again was on tour in Germany for the fourth time.

 This is Lindsey Stirling's first album which is called "Lindsey Stirling".

This is Lindsey Stirling's second album which is called "Shatter Me".

Because the enthusiasm for Miss Stirling and her music is still unabated all over the world, it's time to potter at the feisty musician who is full of the joys of life.

Who is Lindsey Stirling and how did she arrived to become so successful?

Miss Stirling was born September 21th 1986 as a second-born daughter from Diane and Stephen J. Stirling in Santa Ana, California (USA). There she grew up with her four siblings in an ordinary family relationship, till she moved together with her family to Gilbert, Arizona (USA) in the age of eight. Now she is living in Los Angeles.

Already at the age of six years Lindsey Stirling felt like playing the violin. However her parents weren't able to afford her real violin lessons. That's why Miss Stirling was taught only a quarter of an hour weekly from a student. To be able to play the violin well she had to practice a lot by herself.  Furthermore she learned dancing by herself per watching YouTube videos. When she was invited to America's got talent in 2010, she combined playing violin with dancing for the first time. But at this time she still was unpracticed combining both. That's why she was knocked out at the quarter finals. But she didn't lose hope. She strenuously continued practicing. In the meantime she tried to establish herself in the music industry. She contacted several record labels but at this time no one was interested in a dancing Dubstep violinist. But she still didn't lose hope.

Because of a happy coincidence with Devin Graham who is a professional photographer and videographer she realized that she didn't need any casting shows or record labels to make her music.  Together with Mr. Graham she began to produce her own music videos and released them on her new founded YouTube channel LindseyStomp for free. Already her first music video “Spontaneous Me” which was released in 2011 was a big success. Now this video has round about 21 million views. She accomplished her international breakthrough with her original music video Crystallize which was released 2012. Now this video has more than 130 million views. Her YouTube channel LindseyStomp was visited more than one billion times and she has more than 7 million subscribers. Furthermore she runs the YouTube channel LindseyTime which informs her fans about her live as a musician. This channel was visited more than 25 million times and has nearly 400,000 subscribers. Of course she is active at all famous social networks like Facebook, Twitter, Google+ and Instagram. There she stays in touch with her fans nearly every day and informs them about news in her live. This close contact between the musician and her fans is certainly one main reason for her constant rising international popularity.

Here you can watch Lindsey Stirling's most famous music video "Crystallize".

For everyone who is interested to deal with the violinist Lindsey Stirling now, is able to visite her website here: http://www.lindseystirling.com/ . There you find the links to all her other pages.

Furthermore there are a vast number of fan pages and fan groups on Facebook and Twitter which welcome every interested fan. On these pages and in these groups you find lots of additional news about the musician such as interviews, fan arts and many more. But even if you aren't looking for news about Miss Stirling, the fan groups may be interested for you because there you are able to talk with other fans. One of many German fan pages is “Lindsey Stirling GER”. You are able to find it at
Twitter: https://twitter.com/LS_GER
and at
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/LindseyStirlingGermany

I hope you like this article about Lindsey Stirling.

Please wirte your comments below. 

Written by Andreas S. Janke

Second interview with Lindsey Stirling

In summer of 2015 our team again had the possibility to interview Lindsey Stirling. Here's my second interview:

Lindsey Stirling GER:
What do you do to avoid or to work off stress during your tour?
Lindsey Stirling:
I try to plan fun activities to do with the crew, film LindseyTime videos, play games, call my mom, sleep :P read scriptures, exercise, and meditate.

LSG:
What does your mind crosses right before the Meet&Greet?
LS:
I actually like to say a special prayer before I go out; I ask for strength. It surprised me when I started doing Meet and Greet events how much it actually takes out of me; I’m pretty wiped out after meeting 50-100 people. I understand that the people coming have sacrificed their time and funds in order to attend the event, so I want to present my very best self and make each person feel important and special, even just for the few minutes we have contact.

LSG:
What was the best gift from a fan which you get till now?
LS:
OOo that’s tough…I’ve received a lot of thoughtful gifts. I always enjoy unique food, and I’ve gotten some t-shirts over the years that I love to wear over and over again. The Czech Republic/Slovakia Fan Group adopted red panda from the zoo in my behalf a couple of years ago; totally made my year!

LSG:
Do you remember a special moment during one of the Meet&Greets?
LS:
I absolutely love getting to meet little kids. They’re just so little and cute and pure and genuine and their honesty makes me laugh.

LSG:
What is your biggest fear (except sharks :-) )?
LS:
Dropping my violin most definitely haha; sigh…no actually I would have to say my biggest fear is my influence…and the fact that I am, in fact, a very imperfect human being. I want to be an example of staying true to myself amidst a world that often attacks old-fashioned honesty, modesty, and morality. And believe me it’s hard! It’s really hard sometimes to uphold my faith and live up to those values in a career that puts so much emphasis on appearance and popularity and entertainment value. I’ve noticed how easy it is for me to rationalize and to allow subtle, often imperceptible changes to chip away at my conscience. And so I’m constantly reminding myself of why I started doing this in the first place and strive to do the simple things like pray, read scriptures, and go to church because it helps keep me grounded and reminds me to look to the man who gave me my gift; the man I’m really working for (God).

LSG:
What does your mind crosses when you are on stage and watching the reveling fans?
LS:
Joy, awe, an overwhelming sense of love and gratitude for those who came to watch me perform, and lots and lots of adrenaline.

LSG:
What do you face first when you enter the stage?
LS:
I always get super nervous before I go on stage, but once I hit front and center the adrenaline kicks in, I find my focus, and then I’m just able to give my all and have fun up there.  There’s honestly nowhere I’d rather be.

LSG:
Do you have any wishes for the Meet&Greets and for the shows in the future?
LS:
More kids in attendance. And one of my dreams is to play for sold-out stadiums.

LSG:
Do you prefer outdoor concerts or concerts in buildings? Why do/don't you prefer one of them?
LS:
I prefer indoor usually because weather isn’t a factor. I’ve performed some outdoor shows where wind, humidity, and heat made things pretty uncomfortable. It also tends to be easier to manage sound/projection/lighting indoors.  However, some of my biggest shows have been outside and I love the energy of the crowds!

LSG:
What are you doing right after a show?
LS:
Whew! Cooling off, drinking water, trying to tone down and relax.

LSG:
Do you already have ideas for your next album?
LS:
Yes ;)

LSG:
Do you like singing?
LS:
I do, although I’m not super confident in my strength as a singer (I’m not trained in that area at all), I do like to exercise my vocal chords from time to time and give my violin fingers a break. I like to push my limits and try new things as an artist/try my hand at new things. Most recently I decided to feature my own voice on my new single “Firefly.”

LSG:
Of course you are very busy and you have many dates. But are you in general a morning person or a night owl?
LS:
Night owl…even off tour I’m always up doing projects.

LSG:
If you have a day off without any dates, when do you get up and when do you go to bed usually?
LS:
Off tour I usually get up before 9 am and go to bed before 12 midnight.

LSG:
Could you imagine to make a music video in a German castle one day?
LS:
If the opportunity presents itself; sure!

LSG:
Did you make your Bachelor's degree or are you going to make it? Which topic does your Bachelor Thesis have?
LS:
I literally just signed up and paid for my Internship this semester haha; been trying to do it for years, but it’s been a little tough do an internship while on tour. BYU wants to add me to their alumni list so they are now working with me so that I can complete my internship in L.A./on the road and I’m grateful. Looking forward to finally graduating!

LSG:
Do you have a favorite flower?
LS:
I love the combination of yellow, orange, and pink flowers in a bouquet. I think it’s pretty and fun/perky.

LSG:
Are there fruits, vegetables and meals you absolutely don't like? It would be great if you would mention two things in each category (fruit/vegetable/meal).
LS:
Papaya is kinda ick, I’m not a huge fan of okra but it’s ok. I used to despise bacon but I actually love it now haha. Meat in general I’m not crazy about, but I like it in small amounts, like in a teriyaki bowl or salad.

LSG:
You like Mexican food. Does that mean you like spicy food?
LS:
I prefer mild spicy, not toooo hot.

LSG:
What is your biggest weakness?
LS:
Will work for ice cream.

Here's a photo from Lindsey Stirling and me (Andreas Janke)

Written by Andreas S. Janke

First Interview with Lindsey Stirling

2014 our team had the chance to interview Lindsey Stirling. Here it is:

Lindsey Stirling GER: 
What is your favorite violin?
Lindsey Stirling:
I prefer the sound of acoustic violins, like my Roth.  As for electric violins, Yamaha’s newer models just keep getting better and better.  I’ve been really happy with them.

LSG:
Which hair color do you prefer most? We know that you asked your fans if you should keep your original brown hair or if you should dye them orange and the fans chose the orange hair.
LS:
Right now I’m fond of the orange; it’s spunky and reminds me of my grandma, who dyed her hair orange till the day she died.  She was so cute and happy and I really miss her.  I was actually thinking of going purple, but as much as I’ve done to my hair lately I’m a little hesitant due to the damage bleaching, etc. would cause.  We’ll see.

LSG:
Are you going to have brown hair again one day?
LS:
I don’t see why not.

LSG:
What is your inspiration for your costumes?
LS:
Shannon Cheek was my main designer when I first started out; we would toss around ideas and eventually come up with a concept we both loved and go with it.  Coming up with modest costumes definitely isn’t easy, but it certainly gets the creative juices flowing haha.  I do the same thing now with whoever I’m working with; I like to have a lot of say/creative control over the final product.

LSG:
In which music video could you implement your original idea for the video best? Before you create a video for one of your songs you have an idea what you want to show in this video. Then you try to interpret your idea in the video. But of course you have to compromise because you don't have the money or something like that to interpret completely your idea.
LS:
Early on I definitely had to improvise and think realistically how I could pull certain things off on a very limited budget.  Ironically though, despite my limited funds at the time and inability to pay 3-D animators at the time, etc., I’m the most proud of the concept behind “Shadows,” and I consider it my most creative work.  I came up with the idea to have a “violin duel” of sorts between myself and an un-cooperative shadow.  All we had to work with was an empty garage, Devin Graham and his film equipment, and a green screen.  Super low-budget haha, but it worked!

LSG:
Do you do any special sports like yoga, kick boxing or something like that?
LS:
I have done both sporadically just for fun, but not consistently.  I used to run cross country and I played soccer in high school.

LSG:
What are your favorite fruits (2 indications)?
LS:
Strawberries and I love apples and bananas with peanut butter. Sometimes I’ll even have a peanut butter and banana sandwich.

LSG:
You are a long time on the road because of your new album and tour. Where do you get all this power?
LS:
Honestly touring is incredibly energizing for me; I love it more than any other aspect of my career.  I think that my lifestyle facilitates my ability to perform as much as I do (I pray for help and strength often, I eat a lot of fruits and vegetables, I don’t drink alcohol or smoke, I don’t eat a lot of meat, I don’t drink caffeine or soda, I exercise regularly).  The one thing I could use more of is sleep.

LSG:
Are you able to cook and do you like it?
LS:
I’m a decent cook when I take the time to do it.  I’m no master chef, but I’m pretty good at coming up with simple, healthy meals.  When I have time to cook I enjoy it, as long as I have someone in the kitchen with me to talk to.

LSG:
Where do you see yourself and your music in 10 years?
LS:
I’m not sure; I mean right now I’m focused on short/medium term goals, i.e., the things I want to accomplish in the next year or so.  I would love to see myself still touring and creating music ten years from now, but who knows?  I would love get married and have a few kids.  Maybe do some public speaking.  Or help motivate and change lives of troubled youth through a foundation of some kind….


LSG:
Do you have a technique to reduce your jitters?
LS:
I like to be alone in a room alone where I can focus and warm up, I snack on fruit, and I always pray before I go on stage.

LSG:
Do you already have plans what you want to do after your tour?
LS:
Spend time with family, relax, go to Disneyland, write a Christmas cover, make another YouTube video, and I quite a few publicity things have been set up and are waiting for me when I get back home.

LSG:
What is your most difficult/elaborate music video?
LS:
I think Stars Align took the most time and effort due to all of the special effects and animation; but as far as production, Roundtable Rival definitely took the most organization and collaborative effort as a whole.


LSG:
What was your favorite show in Germany?
LS:
Impossible to choose; Germans are an amazing crowd all around!

LSG:
When is your biography going to be released?
LS:
It’s hard to say; Brooke is still tweaking it and we are working on finding a publisher right now.  If we can’t find someone to publish it in the next year or so I will probably self-publish.   Brooke is a master; the way she writes and how she tells the stories is hilarious!

Written by Andreas S. Janke

My second #WeAreGavi competition

Create a “Get well soon”-fan art for Gavi. The fan art has to contain the words “#WeAreGavi” and an encouraging saying like “Get well soon Gavi”, “Stay strong Gavi”, “Don't loose hope Gavi” or .... Then send the fan art to Andreas Janke. He will choose one winner. The winner will get one #WeAreGavi shirt size XL which was bought at Lindsey Stirling's online shop.

If you want to support Gavi financially, you can do it here:
https://www.gofundme.com/2nv6ujw4
This is the official appeal for donations which was initiated by Gavi's sister. Each dollar helps him.

Prize:

You can win one #WeAreGavi shirt size XL which was bought at Lindsey Stirling's online shop.

Duration:

The competition starts Friday November 6th 2015 and ends Sunday November 29th 2015 at 23:59 o’clock (CET).

What do you have to do?

Create a “Get well soon”-fan art for Gavi. The fan art has to contain the words “#WeAreGavi” and an encouraging saying like “Get well soon Gavi”, “Stay strong Gavi”, “Don't loose hope Gavi” or .... Then send the fan art to Andreas Janke.
All kinds of fan arts are ok (drawings, digital ones, …).
When you’ve created the fan art, send it to Andreas Janke. There are several possibilities how you can send it to him:
1)
You can send it directly to Andreas Janke as a private message in Facebook. Here you can find Andreas' private account:
https://www.facebook.com/lindsey.stirlingger.9

2)
You can send it to our fan group Lindsey Stirling GER at Twitter:
@LS_GER

Who may take part?

Every Stirlingite may take part even if you don't live in Germany.
Everyone is only allowed to create one fan art.
Because this is a private competition run by Andreas Janke, the admins from the fan page/group “Lindsey Stirling GER” also may take part.

What will happen after the competitions finished?

After the competition finished Andreas Janke will score your fan arts and he will chose one winner. Then he will announce the winner at the fan page “Lindsey Stirling GER” at Facebook and at his fan group at Twitter. He also will contact the winner to get his/her addresses so that he is able to send the #WeAreGavi shirt size XL to him/her. Taking part in this competition is absolutely free.
Because noone knows who long the voting will last, please have patience. The winner will get Lindsey's #WeAreGavi shirt size XL.

Condition:

There is one more condition to win one of Lindsey Stirling's prizes. There have to be at least 5 participants. If there are too less participants, this competition will be canceled and there will be no winner.
These competitions cost real money. The prizes and the shipping have to be payed. There should be enough participants so that it's possible to choose a winner.
Hopefully you see the sense of this condition.
That's why tell all your friends about these competitions so that enough fans will take part.

Good luck

Written by Andreas S. Janke