The Whole Music Experience

Lisa Dillan and Asbjorn Lerheim Love Me Tender (The Quiet Quiet Way) Kirkelig Kulturverksted I have not thought about Elvis Presley in years so I felt surprised when I received a Norwegian recording, Love Me Tender , paying tribute to Presley.   Vocalist Lisa Dillan and guitarist Asbjorn Lerheim headed to Nashville to record in the same studio the late Presley had recorded, and to work with the same musicians as Presley.   While this must have seemed like a dream manifested for Dillan, who became a Presley fan after the legend’s death in 1977, Dillan gives each song unique folk interpretations.   The musicians create a warm, relaxing and quiet atmosphere in which Dillan’s vocals caress every word.   A strong melody and evocative text translates into almost any musical style. Unlike, Dillan, I know little about Elvis Presley outside of the movies I saw as a child.   While you won’t hear Jailhouse Rock or Blue Suede Shoes on Love Me Tender , you will ...

Some music listeners prefer movie soundtracks for escape and healing purposes.  "The Sound of Music" gets the most mentions.  I have heard and read that the "Do re mi" song clears blocked chakras.  You can learn more about this in the late Ted Andrews' book, "Sacred Sounds". While Julia Cameron promotes morning pages (journaling therapy), I promote the concept of the music diary (keeping track of music's effects on your mind and body).  One of the tools that derives from the music diary is a set of power songs.  By tracking different music styles and songs on your mind, body, emotions, and neurological system, you discover at least 5 must-have songs that help you with insomnia, uplifting hour moods, energy-building, or for catharis (unblocking emotions). I give you an example of 5 of my power songs and their uses.  You might include these songs in your music tool kit or choose your own based on your musical observations.  I also mention t...

Lucas Van Merwijk’s Drums Unlimited Heartbeat Tam Tam Productions As with all my Whole Music projects, I sometimes break musical components apart to explore the roles rhythm, tempo, timbre, color, melody, and harmony play.   A musician once told me that I had no sense of rhythm.   At first, I felt angry about this critical observation later, I started attending drum events in Seattle, and found that I could follow along just fine.   My heartbeat taught me all I needed to know about rhythm.   Lucas van Merwijk’s Drums Unlimited know all about those poly rhythmic beats, but this recording does not represent an improvised drum circle, but tightly woven pieces, even drum vignettes with vocals in some cases, and worldview of drum cultures. While I pass on the DJ mix type tunes on this recording, the acoustic drum pieces definitely excite me.   Listen to the effervescent African Dream with Gianna Tam scatting in an African dialect over the...

Stevie Wonder Innervisions Motown/Universal (1973) Ah, Stevie, how did I forget you for so many years? I grew up with Stevie Wonder music surrounding me.   Then when I was in college, I took a dance class and our final performance featured Sir Duke .   However, after I discovered alternative rock, I stopped listening to soul music, and poor Mr. Wonder was relegated to the back closets of my mind.   That was until a few months ago when I heard Sir Duke playing the background at the food coop.   Stevie was back and just in time, since now I decided to include a chapter on soul music for my book-in-progress, Whole Music . Oh, I’m enjoying this. When Stevie released Innervisions in 1973 I was in grade school, but I heard the gritty socio-commentary Living for the City , the catchy Don’t You Worry “Bout a Thing , and the funky Higher Ground on a pop radio station.   However, at the time I did not recognize Wonder’s musical genius.  ...

Photo: By Patricia Herlevi I ask myself what are the chances that I will meet a didgeridoo player, enjoy exposure to crystal singing bowls at a spiritual shop, and encounter someone playing electric guitar on the sidewalk in one afternoon? Yet, one day last week, the sound universe revealed its diversity.  Along with that, I tracked my emotional and physical responses to the diverse encounters.  While I found the frequencies of the singing bowl and the didgeridoo relaxing and uplifting, the electric guitar (performing hard rock) did not appeal to my senses, and in fact, I experienced a fight or flight response.  I chose the flight. On another day, the sun came out and as I walked through a quaint neighborhood, I heard guitar blues coming over someone speakers, the music poured onto the street and some how, this felt like the right music for the right time and environment.  I bring these scenarios up because the majority of humans walk by musical sounds everyday...

Putumayo Presents African Blues Putumayo World Music (Release Date: April 24, 2012) While many world music listeners think of Mali when the topic of African blues comes up, African blues it seems traverses the African continent.  Personally, I’m glad that Putumayo World Music pointed that out to me with African Blues --a compilation that features plenty of groovy Malian blues, but also includes Taj Mahal’s collaboration with Culture Musical Club of Zanzibar, which by the way, is nowhere near Mali.  As it turns out, the track, Dhow Countries by Taj Mahal Meets Culture Musical Club of Zanzibar is my favorite song on the compilation.  Mahal’s dusky signature wed to the Arabic strings of the Zanzibar orchestra hits the spot.  Besides, it is the only song sung in English so I can understand the story in the song. So you’re wondering who else appears on the compilation.  The usual suspects such as Tinariwen (a Tuareg rock band from Mali), who teams up...

Dvorak Zigeunerlieder Songs and Duets Bernarda Fink, Genia Kühmeier and Christoph Berner Harmonia Mundi I was not familiar with Dvorak’s song cycles and duets prior to reviewing Zigeunerlieder .   I am familiar with Dvorak’s bigger works and I heard recordings featuring mezzo-soprano Bernarda Fink in the past.   Of Dvorak’s smaller works, this recording features Gypsy Melodies sung by the young soprano Genia Kühmeier and accompanied on piano by Christoph Berner, Moravian Duets with the addition of Bernarda Fink and Biblical Songs sung by Fink and accompanied by Berner, who plays beautifully on this disc. According to the liner notes, Moravian Duets launched Dvorak’s career and attracted the attention of the esteemed composer Johannes Brahms who at the time was a member of a jury that awarded the Austrian State Stipendium “for young, talented, and impoverished musicians”.   Dvorak had composed the songs originally for his private mus...

The Michael Treni Big Band Boy’s Night Out Bell Production Co. The Jens Wendelboe Big Band Fresh Heat Rosa Records When I think of big bandleaders, I think piano.   Yet, here are two new releases by trombonists leading modern-era big bands.   You won’t find rehashed covers of Ellington or other American jazz legends, but both the Michael Treni 16-piece big band and The Jens Weldelboe Big Band swing low and high.   First, there is Treni who began his jazz career with promise, almost landing a touring gig with Art Blakely that at the last moment fell through leading the musician to a new direction of arranging.    Trombonist Jens Wendelboe, on the other hand, has run the gamut between jazz, pop, and movie soundtracks.   He leans heavily on a strong melody. Opening with Leonard Bernstein’s Something’s Coming Treni and his musicians provide robust jazz on the album, Boy’s Night Out .   The musical personnel however, does...

You might have noticed that Whole Music Experience now has a logo.  Dana Dryg of Bellingham designed the logo for the blog. I hope you like it.

Louie Gonnie Pathway to Destiny Songs of Healing and Contemplation Canyon Records Native American traditional singer Louie Gonnie’s latest CD Pathway to Destiny begs to be listened to outdoors and near a body of water.   My intuition told met to take my portable player to the park and listen to Gonnie’s harmonized songs near the bay.   While I have not done this yet, I recommend this practice for anyone listening to this recording.   I tried to listen to the recording on my computer and it just didn’t make sense, given the titles and intent of the 14 prayer songs.  No, this recording begs for an outdoor listening experience. Gonnie pays homage to the natural world and the spirits that reside in this world.   He sings in a voice that ranges from bass to high baritone, while harmonizing with his own vocals.   If you listen to the recording through headphones, the reverb behind the vocals might conjure someone singing in a deep cave. ...

Ravi Shankar & Tanmoy Bose The Living Room Sessions, Part 1 East Meets West Music/Harmonia Mundi Release: April 10, 2012 It’s not every weekend I get to sit down and listen to new ragas performed by a 91-year old master musician.   Pandit Ravi Shankar turns 92 this month and his raga performances sound equally fiery as they do thoughtful and tender.   The master Indian classical musician gives the impression in his liner notes that The Living Room Sessions was a casual get-together with his friend tabla player Tanmoy Bose, but even one listen to this recording and we can hear the formalities of the Indian classical music tradition shining forth.  “This rather a different recording when, at almost 92-years, I was fooling around at home in Encinitas.” Also in the liner notes, “... Raga Malgunji has both a slow Vilambit gat and a display in Jhaptal of ten beats in complicated, rhythmic patterns and finishes that conveys sadness the sadness of not bein...

Elin Furubotn New Path Ozella When I hear the term Norwegian folk music, I usually think of traditional Norwegian music heavy on the hardanger fiddle and medieval folk ballads.   However, Norwegian folk can also refer to singer-songwriters such as Kari Bremnes, a Norwegian musical star, or so many others ranging from 20-years-of-age to well beyond that.   Elin Furubotn follows in the tradition of folk-fusion.   She composes more subtle tunes that range from jazz to folk to rock (the title track) on her album New Path .   She possesses a good ear for melodies that she sings in a near-whisper.     However, don’t be fooled by the softer timbre of Furubotn’s vocals, since she appears passionate about the themes that appear in each of her songs. I admit that it took me a few listens before New Path grew on me.   While I have heard many recordings graced with Norwegian vocals over the years, for some reason, I was having a difficult time ...

Imagine yourself eating a ripe orange. Imagine the tangy taste on your lips and tongue, your teeth biting into the orange’s texture and the feeling of your grateful heart. And if you ate that orange with conscious thought you might feel your body radiate with the essence of the citrus fruit throughout the day. While we don’t think of food as containing vibration, everything we touch, taste, feel, hear, or see possesses a vibration and when we connect with those vibrations, an alchemical process takes place within our bodies. Now, imagine listening to a Bach composition played on a cello. Imagine the low and throaty sound of the instrument vibrating in your chakras.   Allow your mind might wander to a memory associated with that piece of music. Your feet might tap in time and if you have developed consciousness in regard to your body, you might feel subtle vibrations moving through you and you might feel a slight crackle of energy in the room. And what if you were listenin...

Music of the African continent leans towards earthy and robust with rich polyrhythms, soaring voices and rife with tribal traditions.  From the fascinating nature-based music of the Central African pygmies, to Malian blues, to Cape Verdean morna, and the ancient calls of Senegalese griot, “the dark continent,” provides music in abundance.  You could spend your entire life exploring the music of Africa and still not get past the tip of the iceberg. Here are a handful of African recordings from my music library.  Many of you have amassed 100s of recordings, but I only have a small collection.  While I would imagine that every culture on the planet provides us with music for dancing, I find that African music and Afro-Latin music provides us with deep grounding.  Not only that, but nothing like moving that energy out of your hips, and thighs.  Here is my list. 1. Cesaria Evora, Nha Sentimento, LusaAfrica The late Cape Verdean singer Cesaria Ev...