This is the 9th track from Ch'Lu's Arts Council & Help Musicians funded album "The Goddess Within", due out on May 10th. (Album out June 9th, for Global Wellness Day). This album was made possible with generous grants from the Arts Council of England, Help Musicians UK and the Oppenheim John Downes Memorial Trust.
This track is the experience of the first sound in the word “Om” – “A” - which represents the conscious waking state. It is also first sound in the Sanskrit alphabet and therefore the first sound in existence.
Composed, performed, recorded, mixed and produced by Ch'Lu in her home studio, "The Goddess Within" album is a fusion of binaural field-recordings, hypnotic Sanskrit vocals, classical guitar arpeggiation and electronic soundscapes. It is using the ancient Sanskrit texts of the Mandukya Upanishads, which create the experience and journey of "Om". It is the ultimate Sound Medicine.
A polyglot polymath, Ch’Lu has been studying Sanskrit for the last thirteen years, alongside her teaching and practice of Vedic meditation, which fuels her drive to expand consciousness through creativity and performance. As a classical guitarist, singer, actress, linguist (13 languages) and martial artist, her creative vision is to fuse the ancient with the voice of the Zeitgeist, throwing in a contemporary edge, humour and the element of surprise.
Here's a link to the music video of an earlier version of the opening track - Aum:
youtu.be/OuQh8NDY6lo
released May 10, 2023
Photography – Steve Ullathorne
Artwork - Ch'Lu
Mastering – Jessica Thompson
Composed, performed, recorded, mixed and produced by Ch'Lu
Acknowledgements:
Thank you to my Mum for giving me a space to create my home studio. Immense gratitude to Hari also, for his guidance and encouragement over the years as friend, Jyotish expert and mentor. Thank you to Garuda for the introduction to the Mandukya Upanishads and my first steps into deeper Sanskrit study. Thank you Isobel Anderson for developing my self-recording, mixing and producing skills and confidence, especially introducing me to binaural field recording. And again thank you to both the Arts Council of England, Help Musicians UK and the Oppenheim John Downes Memorial Trust for your generous grants to finance vital elements of this album.