Aeoliah

ANGEL'S TOUCH
(Oreade Music)

This is music for the heart chakra that opens one to the loving grace of those celestial beings that have guided, comforted and enlightened humanity through the ages. Visionary artist Aeoliah began each of these 31-minute aural excursions as impressionistic, improvisational textures, but as he layered rich harmonic overtones of crystalline sound, he discovered that the music was evolving on its own, becoming more melodic. The final result is two majestically profound and deeply moving instrumentals that tune into the magical music of the spheres, celestial sounds that positively radiate with compassion, healing and love. When played during gemstone meditation (kunzite or rose quartz), the soothing effect unfolds to bring balance and more love energy to the listener. INSTRUMENTATION: keyboards, harp.

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Deuter

GARDEN OF THE GODS
(New Earth)

Become child-like, restore your lost or forgotten innocence, and allow yourself to play in the GARDEN OF THE GODS as this divine music dissolves all cares and strife. Light-seekers will be enfolded in Deuter's gentle sounds as angelic voices balance the earthiness of drums, and a slumbering Gaia awakens to sing a spontaneous melody from the heart. Clear in her compassionate interpretation of Divine Feminity, singer Annette Cantor's exquisitely supple voice is the perfect compliment to the rich soundscapes that Deuter creates with perfect spaciousness. This is music to nurture the spirit, to mend the wounded heart, to remind one that it is always possible to return to the playful, joyous state of hope eternal. INSTRUMENTATION: voice, guitar, flute, keyboards, drums.

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Various Artists
BALKANS WITHOUT BORDERS
(Omnium Recordings)

The bombs may have stopped falling in Kosovo, but music from the former Yugoslavia is just beginning to ignite. These 21 traditional Balkan tunes are spiritedly interpreted by the Klezmatics, Boiled in Lead, Brave Combo, Garmarna, Mike Watt, 3Mustaphas3, The Reptile Palace Orchestra and stellar Eastern European performers to benefit the medical relief organization, Doctors Without Borders. Check out Szeki Kurva's "The Stars are Shining" with its racy breakbeats and gypsy lyrics, or sensuous songstress Usnija Redzepova's Serbian-language flirtation "Like A Belt I'll Wind", for a glimpse into the renewed soul of the Balkan culture. All artists and labels donated their music, and the label donates 100% net profits from sales goes to aid victims of war, epidemics and natural disasters. INSTRUMENTATION: vocals, guitars, basses, drums, percussion, bouzouki, cimbalom, keyboards, samples, fiddle, brass, more.

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(To listen to the samples below, you must have RealPlayer)

Dali Tzerni - Charming Hostess • Sjaj Mjesece - Zabe I Babe
Hosa Dyna - Brave Combo • Surfin' Albania - Immigrant Suns
Esma - Slobo Horo

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James Asher

RAISING THE RHYTHMS
(New World Music)

Just in time for the millennium comes this vibrant exploration into the sizzling, soulful sounds of the Caribbean, Latin America, India, Africa and the Middle East. This music is bubbling and spirited, weaving pure ethnic elements and exotic vocal textures with smoldering layers of snappy percussion to ignite this year's hottest album. Asher's approach to making the music is essentially one of integrating world influences in a spirit of celebration without frontiers. Each track has an intriguing hybrid chemistry based on its happy collision of cultures, yet the whole album hangs together seamlessly for pure listening pleasure from beginning to end. If only people could co-exist as joyfully as this music! Let's hope next year we can all dance in spirit while RAISING THE RHYTHMS! INSTRUMENTATION: dholak, tablas, djembe, congas, bata drums, harmonium, sax, guitars, flutes, keyboards, Native American flute, voice.

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Steve Haun
MUSIC WITH NATURE:
IMPRESSIONS OF THE ROCKY MOUNTAINS

(SNH Productions)

Composer-keyboardist Steve Haun delivers a sound as big as the great outdoors, yet manages to retain a sense of warmth, intimacy and delicacy as his music transforms effortlessly from heroic themes to reflective interludes, sweeping across vast flower-studded alpine meadows to lofty snow-capped glacier peaks. Interspersed with nature soundscapes recorded on location, this project is the first to utilize state-of-the-art Wave Dance spatial audio technology that takes the listener on a multi-dimensional journey for unsurpassed realism (even without headphones!). Two dozen guest musicians -- including members of the Colorado Symphony Orchestra -- help heighten the drama and poignancy of the majestic Rockies transformed into music. Note: Purchase of this album helps protect and preserve the National Parks. What a great way to help the spirit of Nature that nurtures us all! INSTRUMENTATION: piano, keyboards, full orchestra.

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Bill Douglas
EARTH PRAYER
(Hearts of Space)

When common dialog will not suffice, it may takes a bard to express the pure poetry of the soul's inspiration. Here, Douglas (with the help of the Ars Nova Singers) has gathered the lyrical writings of Alfred Lord Tennyson, William Butler Yeats, Percy Byshe Shelley and the greatest troubadour of all - William Shakespeare - and set them to lavish sound. Starting with the universal "Earth Prayer" (words in Latin: "Grant us peace"), the splendid words take wing as voices and richly embellished melody intertwine in dream-like procession, each piece following the last growing ever-more gorgeous and involving, reminding us that "we are such stuff as dreams are made of…" INSTRUMENTATION: piano, keyboards bassoon, clarinet, flute, piccolo, cello, violin, trumpet, French horn, tabla, frame drums, percussion, choir.

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(To listen to the samples below, you must have RealPlayer)

Earth Prayer • Spirit Dance • Splendour Falls, The • Clouds
Wind Of Delight • Veil Of Stars, The • In Lovely Blue • Circle Of Stones
Minstrel's Wish, The • Iona • Magic Circle • Chalice
As Dreams Are Made Of

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Melissa Phillippe

HEALTH AND SECOND CHANTS
(Presence Production)

These two recordings were created by a talented new artist in order to "serve you in your spiritual journey." A blessing to us all, her heartfelt lyrics and honeyed voice remind us that we are not alone in remembering who we are; and, that if one rises up with spirit and chooses to believe that heaven can be found in one's own heart, that Divine light and love are sure to follow us all the rest of our days. These are words to live by to which anyone can relate. What makes them so outstanding here is the passionately sincere and unendingly hope-filled way in which Phillippe sings them, accompanied by elegant ensemble arrangements. Her irresistably optimistic attitude translates into a music-ignited cleansing of the soul, leaving one feeling fresh and new and happy in one's own skin, perhaps for the first time in a long time. INSTRUMENTATION: voices, piano, keyboards, guitars, bass, drums, percussion.

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Howard "Hamsavatar" Beckman
ANANDA: ENTER THE SPIRIUAL WORLD
(Balaji Publishing)

This beautiful benediction is a wonderful introduction to the world of sacred music, for it includes a spoken word explanation of each mantra before the piece is performed, as well as English-language translations of the original Sanskrit lyrics so one can easily follow along. Created as a celebration of the eternal bliss that results from spiritual piety, these beautiful mantric chants and devotional Bengali bhajans have the power to invoke divine images within the subconscious with the proper mind-set. While newcomers might not immediately understand the words, one's soul will soar nevertheless as a sprightly mix of traditional ethnic Indian and contemporary instruments raise the joy-quotient substantially. INSTRUMENTATION: voice, guitars, keyboards, cymbals, drums, flute, percussion.

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Continuo
MEDITATIONS ON PACHELBEL'S CANON

(Six Degrees)

Pachelbel's supremely simple hymn of praise is quite possibly the most recognizable piece of spiritual music in the world. You hear it on the radio, in retail malls, during television shows, even on airplanes! Yet for some unfathomable reason, its haunting theme and memorable tune manage to consistently capture the attention and lighten the soul no matter how many times it is heard. Here, the best-loved canon is creatively put through its paces, with Victor Friedberg's arrangement being interpreted through Indian meditation vocals, a soprano aria, and a fascinating mix of Middle Eastern, Indian and Western instrumentation. The results are dazzling, inspiring, visionary and utterly enchanting. INSTRUMENTATION: voice, ney, bansuri, suling, darabuka, frame drum, piano, guitars, keyboards.

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(To listen to the samples below, you must have RealPlayer)

Intro • Meditation 1 • Meditation 2 • Meditation 3 • Meditation 4

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Submissions for review consideration may be sent to: PJ Birosik, MUSIK INTERNATIONAL CORP., 154 Betasso Road, Boulder, CO 80302-9606. Since 1977, Birosik has been a music industry consultant specializing in marketing, promotion, publicity and A&R/foreign licensing; she is a member of NARAS, NARM, NAIRD, CMC, IMA, and a past Board of Director of Los Angeles Women In Music who has been profiled in 11 international editions of Who's Who. Calls may be placed to her at (303) 444-9575 between 9:30am - 5pm MST regarding review criteria, consulting services for signed & unsigned musicians, and data list rentals.