The Whole Music Experience

Toumani Diabate in concert (wikipedia) Taj Mahal and Toumani Diabate Kulanjan Hannibal Records Released at the tail end of the last century, Kulanjan has already become a classic in my book. Bluesman Taj Mahal had been exploring his griot heritage--could feel it in his genes. The renowned musician teamed up with Malian kora player Toumani Diabate, Malian vocalists Kassemady Diabate and Ramatou Diakite and other Malian musicians. The end result takes us to the crossroads where American (U.S.) blues and West African blues intersect. While it is not the only recording out there that marries these traditions, it is my personal favorite among the West African-American blues recordings. Kulanjan provides one fantastic track after another, with no weak ones in the bunch. It opens with Queen Bee , a duet sung with Taj Mahal and Ramatou Diakite. Taj's gruff vocals gravitate around Ramatou's sweeter one. The following track, Tunkaranke features Kassemady singing soaring gr...

The Meditation Music of Deva Premal Into Silence Sounds True German classically trained vocalist Deva Premal has been gifted with one of the most beautiful, healing and soothing voices out there. Along with her partner, Miten and the who is who of Kirtan chant composers, Deva has entranced thousands of listeners, most of them devoted followers, with her perfectly calibrated vocals. Not only that she also contributes her training in various energy healing modalities. Into Silence features some of her favorite work from CDs released during the decade of 1997 to 2007. She sings simple to pronounce Sanskrit chants (mainly) with Buddhist chants brought into the mix, such as Om Mani Padme Hum ( Love is Space ). She delivers each chant with reverence and grace. This CD arrived to me on an incredibly stressful day--everything that could go wrong, did go wrong and not just for me. Fortunately, I kept this music on in the background while I attempted to solve problems and go about...