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MUSIC CAN BE
A GREAT HEALING TOOL AND IS OFTEN USED
IN MEDITATION,
MASSAGE THERAPY, AND RELAXATION. WE HAVE FOUND
CERTAIN WORKS TO BE
SPIRITUALLY AND CULTURALLY EDUCATIONAL AS WELL.
WE ONLY RECOMMEND MUSIC
THAT WE FEEL HAVE A POSITIVE AMBIENCE AND SPIRITUALLY
UPLIFTING EFFECT
UPON THE LISTENER. OBVIOUSLY, TASTES VARY; BUT IF
YOU ENJOY "UNIFIED
SPIRITS", WE THINK THERE WILL BE SOMETHING IN HERE YOU'LL LIKE.
1002 NIGHTS. Djamel Ben Yelles, 1996. Quango Music Group, Island
Records, Inc. (Contemporary Middle Eastern music with a soft, relaxing
feel throughout. Entirely instrumental.)
SONGS FOR THE INNER CHILD. Shaina Noll, 1992. Singing Heart Productions
SHD8201. (Soothing songs for the child in all of us. Excellent for
frayed nerves or poor self-esteem.)
CANTICLES OF ECSTASY. Sequentia, 1994. BMG/Deutsche Harmonia Mundi
77320. (Music of the medieval Christian mystic/composer/author
Hildegard
von Bingen. Latin vocals.)
VOICE OF THE BLOOD. Sequentia, 1995. BMG/Deutsche Harmonia Mundi 77346.
(More of Hildegard's music. Similar to CANTICLES; particularly
calming.)
DIADEMA. Vox, 1990. Erdenklang EMCD0343. (Yet more music of Hildegard,
this with more instrumentals. These arrangements have a more
mysterious,
mystical; very beautiful.)
FAIRY NIGHTSONGS. Singh Kaur and Gary Stadler, 1998. Sequoia Records
X103. (Vocals and instrumental. Soothing, celtic-flavored music for
calming, relaxing - "lullabies for adults". Destined to be a
classic as
it is one of the last recordings of this extraordinary vocalist before
her death.)
DRONE ZONE. Kay Garner, 1996. The Relaxation Company CD3188. (Flute
compositions over other instruments - including human voice - which
produce drones, or deep vibrations, which may work to produce emotional
and physical wellbeing. Comes with extensive informational booklet.)
HIGHER GROUND. Steven Halpern, 1992. Sound Rx SRXD7848. (Slow,
beautiful
instrumental music with a Native American touch. Excellent for
meditation, massage, spiritual healing, or inducing sleep.)
CRYSTAL SPIRIT. Yatri, 1996. Crystal Music Records TMT101. (Lovely
music
created on an instrument called a glass armonica, invented by Ben
Franklin and reproduced for this pianist, Kathryn Root. The music is
slow, supernatural-sounding, and is much like the resonating ring from
a
partially-filled crystal water glass when lightly rimmed with the
fingertips. This music is wonderful for healing, contemplation,
massage,
or sleep. It can easily be put on repeat and played for hours.)
MAHK JCHI. Ulali, 1994. Corn, Beans & Squash Music/Original Vision
Records. (Native American acapella songs by a female trio. This music
is
generally upbeat with a bluesy/gospel-like quality on some of the
tracks. A truly unique recording aimed at representing Native American
peoples.)
UNDER THE GREEN CORN MOON: NATIE AMERICAN LULLABIES. Various artists,
1998. Silver Wave Records SD916. (A really interesting collection of
gentle Native American songs - although I don't know if I'd call them
lullabies exactly. Good thing is, they are traditional, and there are
lots of tracks. A one-of-a-kind CD.)
ROBBIE ROBERTSON & THE RED ROAD ENSEMBLE: MUSIC FOR THE NATIVE
AMERICANS. Robbie Robertson (of course) and various others, 1994.
Capitol Records. (Both traditional and new, well-written songs in
English based on Native American people and their traditions. Upbeat at
times, and somber, but strong.)
TRAIL OF TEARS. Lee Johnson, 1998. Platinum Entertainment 3722. (More
instrumental with the feel of a soundtrack, but beautiful Native
American spirit. Good to put on repeat.)
SURA. Chloe Goodchild, 1998. Raven Records. ("Sura" is
Sanskrit for
musical note or vibration. This is a collection of sacred songs from
various religious traditions, all vocal with only minimal
accompaniment.
Goodchild uses her voice to create the drama or "sura" of this
work. A
prominent voice teacher from the UK, her voice is strong and, at times,
reminiscent of that of Annie Lennox. This is a rather stark but really
impressive work.)
DEVI. Chloe Goodchild, 1996. Naked Voice Music/Raven Records. (This
recording is similar, but a bit shorter than Goodchild's later release,
and with a bit softer sound; nevertheless her strong voice is what
carries it. Again, vocals with minimal instrumental accompaniment,
although these are more chants than songs - devotional in nature - from
Hindu, Christian, Buddhist, and Sufi traditions. "Devi" means
goddess.)
DIVINE RITES. Vox, 1999. Hearts of Space. (This CD was originally
released on the German Erdenklang label 71002 and entitled "X
CHANTS
FROM THE CHRISTIAN ARAB TRADITION" - THE "X" undoubtedly
meaning 10. It
has been re-released with a slightly different cover, different liner
notes, and different track order. These are early Christian women's
chants which have amazingly survived time - women were banned from
singing the liturgy in the fourth century [can you say
"chauvinism"?].
They are sung in Middle Eastern dialect by a classically-trained
Lebanese female vocalist and are set to modern electronic music. This
is
an extraordinarily beautiful recording and well worth getting. So is
the
original release. Some of us are obsessive and had to have both.)
PASSION: MUSIC FOR THE LAST TEMPTATION OF CHRIST, A FILM BY MARTIN
SCORSESE. Peter Gabriel, 1989. Geffen Records 24206-2. (A great CD to
introduce one to sounds of the Middle East. Haunting, spiritual,
entirely instrumental with some wails and such; breathtaking, and a
masterpiece of Peter Gabriel.)
MUSTT MUSTT. Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan, 1990. Real World Records, Ltd.,
Carol 2314-2. (This is Peter Gabriel's label for good samplings of
world
music. Nusrat, who recently passed away, made an appearance on Peter
Gabriel's PASSION, and enjoyed more American exposure from the film
DEAD
MAN WALKING. Once you've heard him, his incredible voice in
unmistakable
in his Quawali style, the devotional music of the Sufis. This
particular
CD is more westernized than his other more traditional
"wild-wail"
recordings, and it's easier to listen to, with more distinct melodies
and structured songs. It's a "mustt-mustt"! Besides, it's my
favorite
one, except for REVELATION, Interra Records IN5712, which I like
because
it has a really great cover and CD design: open palms covered in black
mehndi designs. Too late, Madonna!)
TIGERS OF THE RAJ. James Asher, 1998. New Earth Records NE 9805-2. (A
first class ticket to India; native music - carefully modernized - at
its absolute best.)
ETERNAL DANCE. Atman, 1998. Amiata Records ARNR 2598. (The window seat
on the first class ticket to India; again, mixed and modernized. Upbeat
and fantastic; good liner notes; plus a really good image of Shiva on
the front, too.)
FOOTPRINTS FEATURING DON CHERRY AND LAKSHMI SHANKAR. Jai Uttal, 1990.
Triloka Records 183-2. (This may be the first of Uttal's India
recordings, but I still think it's the best. His later recordings are
excellent but incorporate more of Uttal's own English lyrics which
slightly disrupt the flow. This recording flows beautifully with mostly
traditional music with a hint of westernization in the beat and the
melodies, plus lovely female vocals.)
SEASON OF SOULS. Tulku, 1998. Triloka Records 314 558 007-2. (Upbeat
world music. See also Tulku's first CD as well - TRANCENDENCE, 1995.
Triloka Records 7215-2. That one's a bit more flowing and gentle, but
both are great selections.)
THE ETERNAL NOW. Richard Bone, 1996. Marrow Music, QUIRK07. (We don't
know what this is. Entirely instrumental with some delightful
voiceovers. This one is soothing, weird, creative, spooky, good to work
to, etc. Quirkworks is Bone's own label, and this is definitely quirky,
like all his others!)
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