2012 Music Lineup

Stay Tuned... 2013 music lineup will be announced Tuesday, May 21st. Expect an inspiring meeting of ancient musical mastery and cutting-edge global bass music from around the planet.

Peruse the lineup from 2012 to get a sense of what to expect.

WHAT IS SACRED MUSIC?

To the mystic, there is no separation between sacred and profane. "Sacredness" is a quality of attention. Focused awareness can elevate a seemingly mundane act into a space of rapturous appreciation. Loving mindfulness is the key to the realm of the sacred within the mundane world.

Devotion to a source of inspiration brings out a special quality in art or music that is produced under its influence. This quality infuses those who join in with the overflowing hearts of both musicians and dancers.

WHY SACRED MUSIC?

We present diverse expressions of sacred music to demonstrate their common origin and our connection as a global community of contemporary devotees.

Through spiritual practices, we listen to the Divine communicate in the language of the Divine; through art and music, we express to humanity in the language of humanity. Each tradition communicates the Mystery and Love of the Divine in the language of a people, place and time.

WHY ONE STAGE?

We understand our stage as a mandala, concentrating and holding the energy of the festival throughout its duration, rather than dispersing the attention in too many directions. This allows for the carefully chosen sequence of artists to tell a continuous story of the Inner Journey, to perform an Alchemy of the Heart.

What the musicians share on stage inspires us to deeper engagement with the spiritual practices that we bring with us or that we discover in the many workshop offerings.

Aurelio Martinez

Aurelio Martinez, the new star of Garifuna music is the foremost ambassador to the world for his unique and threatened culture from Central America. Aurelio is one of the most extraordinary and passionate artists of his generation, and a major tradition-bearer of the Garifuna culture that fuses African and Caribbean roots.

Born into a family possessing a long and distinguished musical tradition in the small Garifuna community of Plaplaya in Honduras, Aurelio began playing guitar as soon as he was old enough to hold the instrument. By the age of six he was regularly playing drums at social gatherings. Inspired by his grandmother and his father, Aurelio gathered a vast repertoire, which later enabled him to develop his own style.

Acclaimed for both his preservation and modernization of the Paranda musical tradition, Aurelio's virtuosity is found in his distinctive, penetrating vocals and his talent as a composer. The result is a natural sound that captures Aurelio’s spontaneous character and intensity. Aurelio Martinez has revolutionized, with fresh elegance, the tradition of Paranda music.

Play Video | Aurelio Martinez Website

Cheb i Sabbah

Hundreds of artists in the world music genre, or for that matter any genre, have come and gone like bottle rockets, but Cheb i Sabbah's light keeps burning and it is his bhakti (devotion) to the spiritual essence of music, and to truth and humanity, that is responsible for his longevity.

Cheb i Sabbah grew up Jewish of Berber (Amazigh) descent in Constantine, Algeria, so the idea of mixing cultures was, you might say, in his blood. He moved to Paris in the 1960s, and, more or less by accident, became a DJ. By the late 1980s, he was pushing boundaries on the dance floor, seeking ways to work African, Asian, and Arabic music into the mix. Then, as the “world music” movement unfolded, Cheb i Sabbah took the inspired step of recording traditional and classical musicians himself and using those tracks to create bold, new creations—effectively, music “composed” by a DJ.

An innovator in one of the most contemporary musical realms, he is clearly committed to creating new forms. “But at the same time,” says Sabbah, “the more important focus for me is to keep the tradition alive. You take Haddarates: there aren’t many people wanting to learn this style of singing and preserve their tradition. There are only two or three Haddarates groups in Morocco at this moment. Once they go, it's over, then what?” From dance floor DJ to defender of ancient traditions, Sabbah is a true musical iconoclast and visionary on the contemporary scene.

Cheb i Sabbah Website

Sierra Leone's Refugee All Stars

Sierra Leone's Refugee All Stars have risen like a phoenix out of the ashes of war and enflamed the passions of fans across the globe with their uplifting songs of hope, faith, and joy. The band is a potent example of the redeeming power of music and the ability of the human spirit to persevere through unimaginable hardship and emerge with optimism intact.

From their humble beginnings in West African refugee camps, Sierra Leone's Refugee All Stars have performed on some of the world's most prestigious stages and matured into one of Africa's top touring and recording bands. Brought together by a bloody, horrifying war that forced millions from their homes, and confronting the senseless deaths and illnesses of friends and family and the slimming hope for great change in their country as a result of peace has only strengthened the resolve of Sierra Leone's Refugee All Stars to do what they can to turn their country around. Their weapon in this struggle is music, and their message, while offering critique and condemnation of wrongdoing, remains positive and hopeful. Optimism in the face of obstacles, and the eternal hope for a better future motivates their lives and music.

Play Video | Sierry Leone's Refugee All Stars Website

Tipper

Tipper is a prodigy of electronic music tracing back to the UK rave scene of the late 90s. Signed to Sony as a teenager, his seminal Fuel label was acknowledged at the forefront of the NuSkool Breakbeat genre and was wildly popular during its heyday. Evolving later as a Surround Sound composer, his award-winning Surrounded LP in 5.1 was hailed a masterful sonic achievement.

More recently, his "Tip Hop" and "Wobble Factor" albums inspired the growing West Coast Bass scene that is now influencing popular music. Tipper’s current incarnation as widely respected ‘Grandfather of Glitch Hop’ has him entertaining soul'd out venues and festivals with trademark performances of original music from his unreleased catalogue.

His twilight downtempo set at Beloved 2012 will be an evocative psychedelic voyage; melancholy yet hopeful, celebratory but reserved, pent up and then released, build to a climax subtly and wound down gently. Expect lush live recordings of tabla, guitar or mandolin, uplifting virtuoso keys, strings and horns, complex rhythmic drum and percussion layered over liquid beats, forming modern classical music for twisted minds.

Tipper Website

Bombino

Omara "Bombino" Moctar, a young Tuareg guitarist and songwriter, was raised during an era of armed struggles for independence and violent suppression by government forces.

His electrifying jams capture the spirit of resistance and rebellion while echoing with guitar riffs reminiscent of fellow Africans Tinariwen and Ali Farka Touré not to mention rock and blues icons such as Jimi Hendrix, John Lee Hooker and Jimmy Page. Although Bombino has long been a superstar in the Tuareg community, his numberous "Best of 2011" album charts/reviews (itunes, NPR, etc) has revealed his stature as one of Africa's hottest young guitarists to the rest of the world.

Although just thirty years old, Bombino's life and travels have exposed him to the problems facing his people. He has taken on the mission of helping the Tuareg community achieve equal rights, peace, maintain their rich cultural heritage and promote education. He is an advocate for teaching children the Tuareg language of Tamasheq, the local Haoussa language as well as French and Arabic, all of which he speaks fluently. "We fought for our rights," remarks Bombino, "But we have seen that guns are not the solution. We need to change our system. Our children must go to school and learn about their Tuareg identity."

Four thousand years of living in a hostile environment taught the Tuareg that the will to survive with dignity intact is stronger than any external threat. Bombino puts that sentiment to music, writes its anthem, and gives it a life of its own. He is known as being emblematic of the next generation of Tuareg, a new voice of the Sahara and Sahel, fusing traditional Berber rhythms with the energy of rock and roll and songs about peace. After thirty years of drought, rebellion, and tyranny, Bombino extols his audience to remember who they are, but also realize who they can be.

Play Video | Bombino Website

Ott

Ott was doomed to be a teenager in the cultural wasteland that was the mid-1980s provincial England. After a brief period wandering aimlessly through the hairsprayed deserts of New Romanticism and poodle-rock he found refuge in the warm, inviting sounds of Scientist, King Tubby, LKJ, and Prince Far-I and the effortless grace of European experimentalists Neu! and Kraftwerk. Here he stayed until he felt it was safe to pop his head up again.

The end of the 1980s brought with it a cultural and musical revolution and Ott headed to London to immerse himself in the new energy. Initially unimpressed by the frantic, unmusical clatterings of acid house and “rave” he discovered a new wave of artists who apparently shared his love of organic dub and pristine electronics. Artists such as The Orb, Dub Syndicate, FSOL and African Head Charge. These were people who were unafraid to combine bass-heavy rhythm, abstract soundscape and timeless melody into a huge, ever-shifting sonic universe which reflected perfectly the spirit of hope and positivity which prevailed.

Ott Website

Jai Uttal

Jai Uttal is a pioneer in the world music community. His eclectic east meets-west sound has put his music at the forefront of the world fusion movement. Jai Uttal’s musical roots embrace a rich variety of cultures and traditions that span the globe and the centuries. From the hillbilly music of the Appalachian Mountains to the passionate strains of Bengali street singers, from the haunting rhythms and melodies of ancient India to contemporary electric rock sounds, Jai’s music distills the essence of diverse musical forms.

At the age of 19, Jai moved to California to become a student of Ali Akbar Khan. for traditional voice training and to learn the sarod, a 25-stringed Indian instrument. Later he traveled to India where he was deeply inspired by the Bauls, the wandering street musicians of Bengal. Jai settled among them, communicating only through music, which ultimately helped establish his unique style.

During these early visits to India, Jai also met his Guru, Neem Karoli Baba, and spent time with many great beings of both the Hindu and Buddhist traditions. He became deeply absorbed in the practice of kirtan, the ancient yoga of chanting, or singing to God. This form of prayer became the core of his musical and spiritual life.

Play Video | Jai Uttal Website

Adham Shaikh

Adham Shaikh is a composer, producer and sound designer currently living in slocan, bc. He has been producing music for the past 18 years and has released 5 solo albums (re:alignment, journey to the sun, essence, fusion and collectivity); 3 collaborative full-length albums ( as drift, ekko and dreamtree project); in addition to numerous individual compositions over the course of his career. His solo project Fusion, received a nomination for the best world music album at the canadian juno music awards.

Adham has played across canada and internationally at festivals, film events and clubs - both solo and sharing the stage with a wide variety of accompanying world musicians. Operating from his sonicturtle music studio, he is currently at work on a number of multimedia projects while actively recording his next albums.

As a music producer and composer, Shaikh skillfully weaves organic and electronic sounds into global music tapestries, taking listeners on a sonic journey that transcends both time and place.

Play Video | Adham Shaik Website

Bhagavan Das

Teacher, performer, counter-cultural icon, lover of God: Bhagavan Das is as rich and manifold as Existence itself.

Bhagavan Das is one of the last living cultural icon of the 60's. As Ram Das's mentor (author of Be Here Now) he ushered in the New Age Spiritual Movement being the first Kirtan Artist in America. His groundbreaking album "Ah" (1971) produced by Jimmi Hendrix's manager Michael Jeffrey's was the first World Music album from Electric Ladyland. Bhagavan Das has also toured with Allen Ginsberg, opened for the Grateful Dead and sang with Bob Dylan.

Living as a sadhu in India for six years Bhagavan Das studied the ancient science of Nada Yoga under the guidance and direction of his Guru Neem Karoli Baba. Nada Yoga is the path of devotion to the inner sound current as a means to God Realization. Alan Watt's himself saying in a Rolling Stone review of the Album "Ah" that "Bhagavan Das is truly a Master of Nada Yoga."

To experience Bhagavan Das in concert is to receive Darshan of the Guru himself, to touch and be touched by the immortal essence of his Guru Neem Karoli Baba- as the Light of the Guru is delivered through the mystical and potent voice of Bhagavan Das.His devotion to his Guru as that living inner sound is what he shares and transmits to all that wish to receive this blessing. Bhagavan Das's rare and sacred offering to this world is like a singing open heart heralding the Guru's Grace through the vehicle of Sound.

Play Video | Bhagavan Das Website

Kalya Scintilla

Kalya Scintilla is a benevolent being incarnate from the star system womp. Drawing inspiration from Nature, Love, tribal energy, healing, sacred geometry, and many other of life's wonders, Kalya's music is quite unique in style and is definitely an interesting cross over between Dubstep/ Glitch Hop, the seductive sound of the Middle East and traditional Gypsy. His debut album 'Dance the Spiral Never Ending' has been given a warm welcome the world over, and sits near the pinnacle of Addictech.com's 2012 yearly chart.

Dripping molasses over a fractal tabla, a journey through an enchanted forest, the soundtrack to an epic dream scape. A successful attempt to resonate the heavens and earth channeled through sound waves.

kalyascintilla.bandcamp.com

Dirtwire (feat. David Satori of Beats Antique)

David Satori and Evan Fraser met at California Institute of the Arts where they studied World Music and Composition.

There they formed The Funnies (psychedelic liquid space funk) then after moving to the SF Bay Area, Evan joined Hamsa Lila (hypnotic world groove) and Stellamara (Eastern European) while David helped form Beats Antique, (electronic) and it became the force that it is.

Now Dirtwire is the Beats Antique meets Hamsa Lila Enthnodub Psychedlic Folktronica you've always been waiting for, but never knew it.

dirtwire.bandcamp.com

Meklit Hadero

If Joni Mitchell were East African and met Nina Simone for tea in San Francisco’s Mission District, she might end up sounding like Meklit Hadero.

Meklit is a true modern global artist: born in Ethiopia, raised in US and nurtured for the last several years in San Francisco’s richly diverse arts scene. With a warm and luminous singing voice, lyrical songwriting that moves from the starkly personal to the poetically metaphoric, a jazzy, expansive vibe, and moods that veer from the hushed to the impassioned, Meklit's sound is cosmopolitan, striking and worldly. Meklit Hadero is a female voice so lushly spellbinding it draws you into its world.

Play Video | Meklit Hadero's Website

Birds of Paradise

Birds of Paradise is a collaboration between California-based producers Torin Goodnight (Bird of Prey) and Tyler Gibson (Gibson). Each has a decade of experience behind him, and has been steadily making waves in the electronic music scene. Having a similar aesthetic but still maintaining an individual approach, they combine forces in a new symbiotic project to work towards a common vision and master the art of collaboration.

The duo plays to its strengths- patience, beauty, and depth to offer a truly original sound of rolling percussive breakbeats, progressive melodies, incredible sound design and twisted psychedelic layers. Their fusion of elements, both natural and synthetic, create an engaging bio-digital landscape that leaves little to the imagination. It will take your ears only a moment to realize that you have uncovered something special.

Birds of Paradise on Soundcloud

Rahim AlHaj

Rahim AlHaj, virtuoso oud musician and composer, was born in Baghdad, Iraq and began playing the oud (the grandfather of all stringed instruments) at age nine. Early on, it was evident that he had a remarkable talent for playing the oud. Mr. Alhaj studied under the renowned Munir Bashir, considered by many to be the greatest oud player ever.

In Iraq, AlHaj gave the underground revolutionary movement against the repressive Ba’athist regime its anthem, setting to music a poem written by a friend. The song, titled “Why?” gave voice to ordinary people’s dissatisfaction with the regime and was sung with seditious relish across the country. Eventually, he was incarcerated for two years altogether, he was tortured in an unsuccessful attempt to extract information about the movement.

Deftly combining traditional Iraqi maqamat with contemporary stylings and influences, AlHaj seeks to translate into music the suffering, joy, anxiety, and determination that he has experienced and witnessed in his lifelong struggle against injustice—as an Iraqi, a political refugee, and today as an American citizen. Communicating with a compelling immediacy that bypasses cultural obstacles, his music speaks irresistibly to the heart in a universal language of compassion.

Rahim has performed around the world and is considered one of the greatest oud players in the world. He has won many accolades and awards including two Grammy nominations. Rahim has recorded and performed with other master musicians of varied backgrounds and styles including genre-busting American guitarist Bill Frisell, modern accordion innovator Guy Klucevsek, Indian sarod maestro Amjad Ali Khan and indy-rock pioneers REM.

Rahim AlHaj's Website | Watch Video

Dave Stringer

Initially trained as a visual artist, filmmaker and jazz musician, Dave Stringer's work underwent a significant shift when video editing work brought him to an ashram in India. It has also been informed by a subsequent period of service teaching meditation to prison inmates. An articulate and engaging public speaker, Stringer probes the dilemmas of the spirit with a wry and unorthodox sense of humor.

His work intends to create a modern and participatory theatrical experience of the ancient traditions of kirtan and yoga, open to a multiplicity of interpretations, and accessible to all.

In the last decade, yoga has grown from Indian roots into a global cultural phenomenon, simultaneously, kirtan, an ecstasy-inducing, call and response form of mantra chanting has experienced a worldwide renaissance. Dave Stringer is one of the most innovative artists of the new kirtan movement. His sound marries the transcendent mysticism of traditional Indian instruments with the exuberant, groove-oriented sensibility of American gospel.

Dave Stringer's Website

The Luminaries

From classic feel-good boom-bap, to neo-soul mashed with super charged funk-rock, the Luminaries cover the full spectrum of light and frequency. It's not simply good tunes that get the crowd hyped off this live rap act, the 3 MCs perform with a tight group of instrumentalists to accompany their positive message.

The Luminaries see themselves not just as musicians but as messengers of hope, as they live lives of service, each having played the role of teacher, social worker, activist and other human instruments of positive change in the world. The Luminaries are "here to serve" and do so through their music and inspirational live performance that leaves each audience rejuvenated from the soul down to the cellular level. The outcome is that audiences are left feeling empowered, inspired, and filled with a sense of sheer love as they walk away from this ecstatic experience.

Play Video | The Luminaries Website

Copperwire

When three artists from the West Coast combine their shared Ethiopian roots and colorful solo careers, the end result is electric. For Meklit Hadero, Gabriel Teodros, and Burntface, aka Ellias Fullmore, a highly conductive hip-hop outfit aptly named CopperWire was born.

A self-defined hip-hop space opera, the band formed during a trip to East Africa — Meklit dropping vocal improvisations over the beats of Gabriel and Burntface. With sounds from actual stars (seriously, they joined forces with NASA), to Meklit's dreamy vocal melodies and Burntfaces's ethereal soundscapes, the group takes listeners on an extra-terrestrial, hip-hop flavored journey.

Play Video | Copperwire Website

C.C. White

Capturing the heart of kirtan, C.C. White brings an exciting blend of soul, kirtan, southern blues, old school soul, gospel and R&B. Her recently released first kirtan album, "This IS Soul Kirtan!," debuted at #11 on the iTunes World Music Chart.

C.C. has been rightfully dubbed the "Soul Queen of Kirtan," "Yoga's Mahalia Jackson," and "The Lioness of Kirtan." Her chant gatherings have been bliss filled, uplifting, unique, and full of ecstatic dancing. They will open your soul, lift your heart and spirit, and free your entire being.

For C.C., music is "about a true connection, a pure feeling of love that comes from chanting kirtan and mantras. It goes straight to your heart, and resonates so sweetly. Everyone in that sacred space comes together in Love and becomes friends for life. This is the reason why I sing and chant, because it strengthens my connection to the divine and enables hearts to gather in such a beautiful way..."

C.C. White Website

The Total Experience Gospel Choir

The Total Experience Gospel Choir was organized in September 1973 at the Mt. Zion Baptist Church of Seattle. The core group represented members of the “Black Experience Gospel Choir” of Roosevelt High School and the Franklin High School Gospel Choir of Seattle. United, the choir became known as “Total Experience Gospel Choir”. When the choirs merged, the community’s children were also invited to participate. And, participate – they did! The choir’s numbers grew to 108 within the first two months, with the youngest person being 8 years old. Today the choir’s ages range from 10 to 65. Since their inception, MUCH history has taken place. The choir has become known nationally and internationally. Their travels have taken them to 36 contiguous states as well as Hawaii and Alaska – for a total of 38 states. They have performed on 5 continents and in 28 countries.

Choir Leader Pastor Patrinell “Pat” Wright was born in Carthage, Texas to a Baptist preacher dad and a school teacher mom. She is one of seven siblings. Being introduced to music early, she sang her first solo at the age of 3. By the time of her 14th birthday, she had taught herself to play the piano and was directing two choirs in her father’s church.

Fanna Fi Allah Sufi Qawwali

As the torch-bearers of the Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan lineage, Tahir Qawwal and Amena Qawwal are infinitely blessed to be the foremost disciples of Rahat Fateh Ali Khan, the greatest Qawwali master of Pakistan and only nephew-successor of the great Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan, and of Dildar Hussein, the world renowned tabla master of the Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan party.

Fanna Fi Allah masterfully and ecstatically sing the verses of the Sufi mystics in Urdu, Farsi, Hindi & Punjabi. Each song embodies the mood of the poetry through sophisticated ragas combined with passionate spontaneity. Their youthful mastery has been granted through devoted study with extraordinary teachers.

The booming Pakistani tablas, six voices, tampuras & harmoniums of Fanna Fi Allah have left audiences up and down the west coast and Pakistan, Bali and Hawaii in tears or ecstacy, or both. Fanna Fi Allah has recently returned from their fifth pilgrammage to study with their teachers in Pakistan.

Fanna Fi Allah Website

Lulacruza

Lulacruza is an electronic folk duo at the junction of the hypermodern and the ancient. Their music weaves together hypnotic female singing, South American instruments, found sound objects, field recordings, and electronic manipulation. The result is a cross-genre, world-esque music unfolding with mesmerizing vocals, aquatic textures and up-tempo, handcrafted South American rhythms.

Lulacruza is made up of Alejandra Ortiz (Colombia) and Luis Maurette (Argentina). Alejandra is an extraordinary songbird and plays the Colombian cuatro, shruti box, tar and kalimba, while Luis Maurette complements with electronic processing and sequencing, as well as percussion, charango and Amazonian flutes. Since meeting at Berklee College of Music in Boston, MA, USA, Lulacruza has performed in over 50 cities in 5 countries and released 5 albums: Do Pretty! (2006), Soloina (2008), an EP of remixes called Canta (2009), Circular Tejido (2011).

Lulacruza’s research on the contemporary state of ritual music took them to their latest project: ESPERANDO EL TSUNAMI (Waiting for the Tsunami), a documentary film and “visual album” made in collaboration with Vincent Moon (considered by the New York Times as the “prodigious French filmmaker who reinvented the music video.”). Created on the road while traveling across Colombia for 2 months, the film follows Lulacruza as they meet and improvise with traditional musicians in their regions.

Play Video | Lulacruza Website

Youssoupha Sidibe

The music of Youssoupha Sidibe is deeply infused with a longing for the full realization of divine love in this world. Youssoupha’s trained as a Kora player at the National Music Conservatory of Senegal in West Africa. His music fuses traditional West African sounds on the Kora, with the Sufi devotional chanting of the Senegalese Baay Faal community.

The angelic sounds of the Kora, an indigenous harp, soulfully carry Youssoupha’s devotional lyrics sung in Wolof, Arabic, French and English. Since his arrival on the international music circuit, he has recorded, performed, and collaborated with artists such as India Arie, Bela Fleck, Charles Neville, Future Man, Michael Franti & Spearhead. His latest collaboration, “Shalom/Salaam” was with artist Matisyahu on the album entitled Youth.

Play Video | Youssoupha Sidibe Website

The Everyone Orchestra

Conductor/founder Matt Butler has taken EO participants, both on stage and off, on improvisational journeys with the most diverse of lineups at festivals, theaters and philanthropic events both nationally and internationally. A laundry list of hundreds of musicians, dancers, singers, guest conductors and community organizations have embraced the experience of EO in single shots of musical adrenaline to the soul. Tuning in to his energy, the band and audience utilize The Conductor as their pivot to the set mood of each passing jam as he communicates with the musicians using hand signs, whiteboard and assorted mime suggestions.

The list of Everyone Orchestra participants is an increasingly wide and intercontinental group including members of The Grateful Dead, Phish, moe., String Cheese Incident, The Flecktones, Club d'Elf, ALO, Tea Leaf Green and Adrian Belew, Taj Mahal, Maria Muldaur, Tuvan throat singers, live painters, dancers, chanters, choirs, hula hoopers, firespinners, jugglers, stiltwalkers, storytellers, a presidential candidate and hundreds of others among a growing legion of other performers.

Marching clearly into uncharted territory, The Everyone Orchestra balances the challenges of live group improvisation with, triumphant tension and release conduits of music which head deep into the soul. This unique collaborative triumph of performance deeply encourages and requires audience interaction ' its edge of your seat enthusiasm for what is next is the forte behind the continuous musical experiment of The Everyone Orchestra.

Everyone Orchestra Website

The Human Experience

The Human Experience is David Block’s debut project as a live electronic composer, multi-instrumentalist, producer. Listeners experience a delicious symphonic blend of prismatic soundscapes and sultry beats.

David is constantly pushing the boundaries of live electronic music. Playing, composing, and conducting his own electronic symphony live on stage, his performances are brimming and layered with human emotion, world exploration, and sacred sounds. Whether performing by himself, or with a live band, “The Human Experience” always delivers an emotionally charged show.

Play Video | The Human Experience Website

Jaya Lakshmi & Ananda

Jaya Lakshmi and Ananda’s music is a glimmering reflection of what is possible in the realms of transcendental love. They sing and play music that initiates deep healing and opens the heart to divine joy, sharing the grace they have been given through their partnership.

Alternating guitar, harmonium, bass, tabla and vocal weaving, they create a magic together that sets the stage for the Devas and Devis to dance upon. Offering a combination of kirtan (call and response singing) mantra repetition, bhajan and original songs, they mix English, Sanskrit and Gurumukhi as a bridge for all those who have been mysteriously called to Yoga and teachings from India.

Jaya Lakshmi's Website

Craig Kohland/ Shamans Dream

Craig Kohland is a talented multi-percussionist, performer, DJ, music producer and ecstatic dance facilitator driven by the healing rhythm of the drum and the creative expression of the sacred.

Since 1995, Shaman’s Dream, Craig's multi-faceted music collective, has been at the forefront of the yoga and ecstatic dance music scene and has produced some of the key albums used in the yoga and dance industry. As a producer and the musical director of the “Shaman’s Dream World Groove Ensemble”, Craig has facilitated hundreds of ecstatic dance/ “live” world music concerts, plus countless live music for yoga classes and ritual retreats. Craig is also the co-founder of Yogitunes, an online digital music store that features a huge selection of yoga inspired music from all over the world.

As a percussionist, Craig has performed with Krishna Das, Dave Stringer, David Starfire, FreQ Nasty, Dub Kirtan Allstars, Bluetech, Desert Dwellers, Donna De Lory, Suzanne Sterling, Tina Malia, Jaya Lakshmi, Michael Kang, Chris Berry and many others. The New Shamans Dream Album called "Prana Pulse", produced by Craig and Bluetech, is due to release in early 2013.

Craig Kohland's Website

Anjali & The Incredible Kid

Anjali & The Incredible Kid have played a transformative role in the Portland, Oregon club scene for nearly a decade, presiding over two of Portland’s longest-running and most successful dance parties, as well as hosting a popular radio show on KBOO community radio. They are most known for igniting dance floors with the South Asian sounds of Bhangra and Bollywood, but the duo scours the globe for any hard-hitting music that combines local musical traditions with window-rattling production. After making a name for themselves in their hometown’s raucous house party circuit, DJ Anjali & The Incredible Kid introduced the Portland, Oregon nightclub scene to the sounds of Bhangra and Bollywood on New Year’s Eve 2000. After a series of residencies, beginning with a six-month residency at the legendary Blackbird, the duo began hosting sold-out ANDAZ dance parties in July of 2002. The party’s focus on hardcore Panjabi Bhangra and the latest electronic confections from the Bollywood film industry continue to pack the dance floor after nearly eight years.

While ANDAZ was still in the bloom of youth, Anjali and The Kid founded the popular monthly ATLAS (with co-host/DJ E3) at Holocene in November of 2003, in order to share more of their musical passions. The ATLAS parties provide a forum for the duo to feature other sounds in their repertoire including: UK Asian Garage and Drum’n’Bass, Middle-Eastern electronica, Balkan Beats, Kuduro, Reggaeton and international Hip-hop. Since introducing Portland club audiences to the amazing sounds of the South Asian diaspora and more the duo have remained in constant demand playing any number of one-off events nearly every weekend of the year

Together and separately they have supported artists as diverse as Digable Planets, Balkan Beat Box, Pink Martini, The Decemberists, DJ Spooky, Tigerstyle, Boban i Marco Markovic Orkestar, Delhi 2 Dublin, State of Bengal, Karsh Kale, DJ Rekha, CeU, Antibalas, Dengue Fever, Rupa & the April Fishes, DJ Marcelinho Da Lua, Toy Selectah, Extra Golden, Maga Bo, Quasi, Ming & FS, Joro-Boro, Kultur Shock, Ghostland Observatory, J-Boogie, and Nickodemus from Turntables on the Hudson.

Anajli & The Kid Website

Michael Stirling

Michael Stirling began the study of North Indian classical vocal music with Pandit Pran Nath (Guruji) in 1983, subsequently traveled with him to India and became his disciple. After Pandit Pran Nath’s passing in 1996, Michael has continued study and practice of this celestial art form with Guruji’s senior American student, the highly regarded composer and performer, Maestro Terry Riley. Michael has accompanied Pandit Pran Nath and Mr. Riley in classes and concerts in America, at the Rothko Chapel in Houston, Texas; in India at the dhargha of Sufi Hazarat Inayat Khan in New Dehli; at Diggi Palace in Jaipur; in California and elsewhere.

Michael has also studied and performed with sarangi virtuoso Ustad Hafizullah Khan, with gifted Khyal and Dhrupad vocalists Sri Karunamayee, Ustad Mashkoor Ali Khan, Uday Balwalker, the Gundecha Brothers, Lakshmi Shankar and with the American bansuri artist Steve Gorn, tabla/esraj artist Benjy Wertheimer, Gurubhai tabla player and gifted vocalist Rik Masterson, kirtan artists Shantala (Benjy & Heather Wertheimer), Gina Sala and with renowned poet and Sanskrit translator Andrew Schelling (Naropoa Institute, CO).

At the request of his teacher, Michael offers performances of and instruction in North Indian classical vocal music to individual students and small groups. Mr. Stirling has taught at Marylhurst University, University of Portland, Portland State University, Reed College, Community Music Center, Amrita: A Santuary for Yoga, Yoga Shala, Beloved Festival, for Living Yoga at the Oregon State Correctional Institute, Brietnebush Retreat Center (for the 40th Anniversary Celebration of the publication of Ram Dass’s essential book, “Be Here Now” and elsewhere. Mr. Stirling is on the faculty of Lewis & Clark College teaching Hindustani Classical vocal music (Raga & Tala class and private lessons). Michael has served on the Boards of Directors of Kalakendra and Living Yoga.

Michael Stirling’s raga singing offerings are accompanied by tambura, the majestic and indispensable drone necessary for Indian Classical Music and tabla, the set of two, highly refined, tuned hand drums, also essential for Indian Classical music. Michael offers his deepest pranams with great humility for the countless blessings of his teacher and Guru. Michael Stirling Website

SaraTone

From the Heart of Cascadia, SaraTone offers up the music of and for the land. Salmon Nation, Mountain Streams, Rivers and Creeks back to the Ocean, Back to the Sea.... This is Musical Medicine for the People. To Inspire and Unite, Unity through Sound, CommUnity through Music….

Exploring the Realms of Deep Roots, Gospel~Kirtan, Acoustic Mystical Soul Dub with some deep Rainbow Inspiration... Music to Sing, to Dance, to Laugh and to Cry.... May this Music Stream in Peace, Songs of Blessings & Thanks, Healing and Remembrance. Come open to this Big Love Emanation~ In Peace and Unity~This Powerful Music has been involved in Sacred Arts, Healing and Sustainability events through out the NW, West Coast and Hawaii.

SaraTone Website

Michael Manahan

Michael Manahan is an essential and vital element of the Left Coast electronic music community. Hailing from Seattle, he nourishes the underground not only with his deep and tribal oriented tech house sets but also with his immense contributions to the exploration of consciousness and spiritual evolution through art and music.

Currently working as the Lead Producer of Starborne Producitons, Co-Producer of the world famous Decibel Festival, Co-Producer of Photosynthesis Festival, Co-Producer of the Dance Safe Stage at Seattle’s Hempfest, Co-Owner of the Re-bar (Seattle Theatre/Night Club) and Co-Owner of Starborne Sound (high end concert sound systems, specializing in KV2 Audio). He has also recently released Singles and Remixes on Uniting Souls Music and Activated Records. His performances always up the love whether he is spinning tribal, house, techno, breaks, spacey downtempo, or just hanging out being himself.

Michael Manahan on Soundcloud

Peia

Peia ~ Jessyka Luzzi is a vocalist, composer and sacred song preserver of traditions from all over the world. Over the past ten years she has studied Indian Classical Raaga, Opera, Medieval Chant, Renaissance Music, and songs from the native peoples of North and South America. With a broad, soaring vocal range and bell like tone she sings with depth and beauty, accompanying herself with Tambora, Harmonium and Charrango.

Born in small town Connecticut, Peia moved to Boston in 2002 where she attended New England Conservatory of Music, studying vocal performance, vocal pedagogy, composition, and improvisation. In 2007 she made the long trip west to Portland Oregon where she began a deeper study of Indian Classical singing and joined Trillium Voices – An Estonian choral ensemble. In 2009 Peia made her recording debut with Grammy Nominee Ronn McFarlane for the Album Ayre Heart and the following year released Semi Somnus - a beautiful and eclectic collaboration with guitarist Chris Mosley.

After a brief hiatus from performing and journeys to Brazil and India for studies, Peia has returned to the west coast to complete her first solo album The Dance of Devotion (2012) She currently resides in the lush, wild hills of Williams OR where she teaches Voice Cultivation and the Yoga of Sound. Peia performs regularly on the West Coast with a diverse ensemble of musicians from various traditions . Her performances draw upon her knowledge of ancient, sacred sound to create ceremonial space for healing and celebration. Peia is a member of the Rogue World Ensemble and can be often heard singing with Prema Mayi and Windsong Martin.

Peia Song Website