The Whole Music Experience

Kiran Ahluwalia (Canada/India) Wanderlust Time Square Records On her previous debut recording, Canadian-Indian vocalist Kiran Ahluwalia introduced the world to the sensuality of traditional ghazals. Wanderlust reveals the vocalists expanding upon the traditional form, with an eye for globetrotting. She marries the heartfelt fados of Portugal, to soulful ghazals of South Asia, while adding flourishes of African percussion. On the track, Teray Darsan Kiran's lush vocals are backed by light blues guitar and exotic beats. Kiran and her producer Rez Abbasi add more elements than on the previous recording, without harming the rich tableau of stories, or the South Asian atmosphere. The djembe, talking drum, Portuguese guitar, accordion, Portuguese bass and electric guitar, all seem to make a nice home for themselves here, embellishing stories about wisdom gained through love won and love lost.   However, it is Kiran's strength as a vocalist that take center stage...

Feeding the Fire with Music Conversation with Mary Youngblood Native American all-around musician Mary Youngblood's third CD, Beneath the Raven Moon arrived on my doorstep on a warm September evening of 2002. The timing couldn't have been more perfect since I had just performed my music on stage in between sets of a musical group I greatly admire. And I hadn't performed music for anyone in 6 years. No one until now, will know how long and hard I worked to get my chops up to par and how difficult it was to sing my songs in Spanish instead of the usual English. Yet, I believe as a musicians we must stretch our talent and give our best to others who care to hear our songs. When I read the press notes for Mary Youngblood's recording, especially about how she was developing confidence as a performer by including her poetry and singing on one of her albums for the first time, I could relate. I stayed up late that night listening to Mary play her flute and sin...

A nders Rogg & Audun Myskja Videre Kirkelig Kulturverksted My former reaction to sound healing recordings was a great big yawn. This wasn't because I did not believe in the healing potential of sound and music, but that most of the sound healing music I had heard was filled with clichés.  However, Anders Rogg and Audun Myskja of Norway have delivered an intriguing double CD, Videre of healing songs that entertain my mind, soothe my body, and allow my soul rest for a bit. Now, I have an extremely short attention span. For those of you who know astrology would know that someone with a mutable T-Cross and a Grand Trine in the water element is not the type of person that can sit still for long. Yet, I have found myself sitting through both CDs a couple of times now and the subtle music took the restless edge off of me. Is this healing? I think so.   So why are these CDs different than the usual new age healing music? First of all, the music here i...

Marjorie de Muynck In The Key Of Earth Sounds True Diana Rogers Love Reigns (Kirtan Chants) Sounds True In the liner notes of her CD, In The Key Of Earth , sound healer and musician, Marjorie de Muynck (de monk), tells us that "Ohm" is the vibration of the earth. She cites, "Ohm (aum), exists in the harmonically rich valley between the musical notes of C and C sharp, an alternative, or "cosmic," tuning that predates keyboards or modern Western music. Ohm is felt in nature, in the cycles and rhythms of the Earth, and the movement of the cosmos." Marjorie de Muynck combines her background as a jazz performer, (Billy Tipton Memorial Saxophone Quartet), with an MA in music education, and her own therapeutic work, (she is the creator of Ohm Therapeutics ™). Her lifelong journey with the earth's sounds, music, and vibrations began at an early age and her life story presented briefly in the liner notes proves immensely fascinating to me. In T...

Clark Tenakhongva (Hopi) Po'li (Traditional Songs of the Hopi) Canyon Records Clinton Denny with Gerald Primeaux, Sr. (Chippewa Cree) Prayers for My Father Canyon Records I find listening to Hopi renaissance man, Clark Tenakhongva's chants to be an immensely enjoyable experience. Clark's gentle spirit comes through in all of the chants, as he pounds on a large drum with one hand (which resembles a Mexican bombo), and shakes a rattle with his opposite hand. His songs act as prayers to Butterfly and other helpful Spirits. Po'li marks the third of Tenankongva's recordings that I have heard. And well, how do you describe a spiritual listening experience? I could tell you the facts of the Hopi tradition in which I am only vaguely familiar or I could send you to Canyon Records' site where you can learn more about the artist. And if you Google "Hopi" you should be able to glean information online, including information about Hopi Prophecies. My...

Here is a brief list of Gregorian chant recordings in my collection. If you would like to see reviews of the following CDs you have two options. Some of the recordings were reviewed at World Music Central and all were reviewed on the pages of Cranky Crow Whole Music. 1. Peregrine , Gregorian Chant, independent release, Seattle, Washington (Peregrine gives a contemporary interpretation of Gregorian chants, in that this choir embraces other spiritual practices which the chanters blend with the Gregorian chant. And sometimes they sing the chants in English instead of Latin).   2. Medieval Women's Choir , Margriet Tindemans, Director, River of Red, independent release, Seattle, Washington ( Although the Medieval Women's Choir does incorporate the chants of the medieval German Benedictine abbess, Hildegard von Bingen in their work, this choir goes beyond just singing Gregorian chants. Some of the choir's work includes modern compositions, and also polyphony).   3...

Habib Koitè & Bamada (Mali) Afriki Cumbancha People have waited a long time for a new studio recording by Malian singer-writer-guitarist Habib Koitè and his band, Bamada--6 years to be exact. Fortunately, his fans' hunger was satiated with the live recording, Foly! released on World Village a couple of years ago. Afriki acts as a new chapter to the 2001 studio recording, Baro (Putumayo). Koitè still tells us stories backed by his blues guitar, and the extraordinary musicians in his band. You still hear Kèlètigui Diabatè's balafon shimmering throughout, Mahamadou Konè's talking drum smiling sunshine, and the other musicians adding warmth to the mix. In fact, warmth succinctly describes Afriki . The music here feels comforting and even consoling to those seeking some kind of protective balm. Koitè sings about his mother who passed away recently, he sings about the tradesmen and other workers in Mali getting organized in the song, Barra (Work) . And while Mali is consi...

Shweta Jhaveri Huge 21stCentury Cosmos The first CD I received of Khayal vocalist Shweta Jhaveri's was anahita , (Intuition Music & Media), several years ago. This recording introduced me to Jhaveri's contemporary Khayals embellished by violin, bass, guitars, dobro, drums, and percussion. Jhaveri formed her own label, 21stCentury Cosmos which she released to traditional recordings, Avishkar and Khayal-Saga . Her newest recording, Huge marries English lyrics to Indian classical vocal techniques, (alaap or improvisation). The end result suggests ethereal pop with an exotic locale. Drums, percussion, electric bass, acoustic bass, and keyboards ( New Age Morning ), lightly support Shweta's warm vocals. The music feels accessible without the cloying new age tendencies. The 7 compositions feature uplifting spiritual lyrics. I am assuming that some of the songs were composed late winter or early spring since the lyrics reflect on sun and new beginnings, but that coul...

Michel Camilo & Trio Jazz Alley Seattle, Washington September 13, 2007 I wasn't planning on reviewing the Michel Camilo Trio concert since I had previously written a concert preview for World Music Central. However, the trio's performance superseded anything I expected, and begs for a review. And drummer Cliff Almond was substituting for Dafnis Prieto for the Jazz Alley gigs. The concert commenced with my favorite Camilo composition, From Within . The electrifying performance with all of its musical twists, turns, detours, and flights of fancy left me wondering how the musicians were going to top their opening number! Watching the drummer Almond ride beats,Camilo attacking the keys of the grand piano, and bassist Charles Flores holding down the center of the stage, gave my heart and my eyes a workout. I cannot even imagine the exhaustion that the musicians must have felt. I felt energized. The trio kicked into some New Orleans jazz which Camilo was inspired to...

Gulizar Turkish Music Ensemble Whirling Dervishes (800 Years of Mevlana Rumi) Arc Music Alan Shavarsh Bardezbanian & His Middle Eastern Ensemble Oud Masterpieces Arc Music When I first started researching spiritual practices and music from those practices one of the images that has stuck with me is that of whirling dervishes. Similar to flowers opening up in midst of a whirlwind, a dance that starts out slow and picks up speed until it mesmerizes, whirling dervishes capture the attention of the poet at heart. Whirling dervishes, an aspect of the Sufi sect of the Muslim religion, is greatly influenced by the poetry of the Great Sufi Mystic Poet, Mevlana Rumi. Similar to the early Franciscans of the Christianity, Sufis also lived a bare bone existence during the era of Rumi. Their quest was to unite with God through music, dance, and poetry. The Gulizar Turkish Music Ensemble led by kanun virtuoso Tahir Ayodgdu, captures the essence of whirling dervishes and the medie...

Transkapela Klezmer Carpathian Music Arc Music Oddly enough, a few days after I received Transkapela's recording, Klezmer Carpathian Music in the mail, I heard another Carpathian folk group, (Carpathian Folk Quartet), featured on a community radio show. Prior to visiting Arc Music's site and checking out their new releases, I had never heard of Carpathian folk or otherwise. Yet, this music which can be described as bright, warm, and a frolic in the snows of the Carpathian mountains, threatens to lift any dark mood. Try it! Transkapela plays mainly Eastern European Jewish klezmer music spiced with some wild gypsy punch. Ewa Wasilewska handles violin duties, and in her hands, that violin sets this thundering music ablaze. Maciej Filipczuk plays violin and trumpet fiddle (see the photo in the liner notes), Piotre Pniewski switches between cello and drum, and you can hear Robert Wasilewski's cimbalom (hammered dulcimer), shimmering throughout the recording. He a...

Dobet Gnahore Na Afriki Cumbancha/Koch At the age of 12, vocalist-composer-dancer-percussionist Dobet Gnahorè told her father that she would not be attending school any longer, but instead would pursue a career in music. At the time of her declamation Gnahorè lived in an arts cooperative-village co-founded by her musician father in the capitol city of the Ivory Coast. And now at the age of 24, Gnahorè appears to be taking the musical world by storm. She draws comparisons to Zap Mama's Marie Daulne for instance--another trailblazer. Her pan-African-multidisciplinary approach, which includes dynamo drumming, turbulent dancing, and vocals that set souls on fire, certainly places her on the same pedestal as Angelique Kidjo and Miriam Makeba, two other performers in which Gnahorè draws comparisons. Her second recording, Na Afriki (not to be confused with Habib Koite's Afriki , out later this month), hops and skips around the African continent. Sometimes, she drops down...

poster from http://www.thionediop.com Spirit of West Africa Seattle Center Seattle, Washington August 18, 2007 I had one of those weeks where everywhere I turned I ran into some kind of roadblock--from my professional life to my personal one. So by the time the weekend rolled around, I was prepared to witness some first-rate West African music. I headed to the Spirit of West Africa event held at Seattle Center. When I first arrived, the Center House seemed sparse of African music aficionadas and a few tourists were milling about. By the time, Guinean griot Prince Diabatè hit the stage and his cora vibrated throughout the cavernous space, onlookers crept up to get a closer look. Eventually members of Seattle's West African community, and African music aficionadas began filling the seats, and they were very much aware of the fact that they were in the midst of an international performer, associated with the Malian legend, Salif Keita, (who produced one of Diabatè's a...