Recently Racked.com interviewed David about the kind of music that is played in Spas. Our music has been played in spas around the world for over 20 years, so David shared some of this thoughts about this with them.
You can read the full interview here.
Enjoy!
David & Steve Gordon
Michael Breene, the mastermind of Zingaia has released what we feel might be his best album yet.
On his 5th album, Sundari the classic Zingaia sound continues but with a more perfect balance between the different elements. The electronica and world grooves are in total harmony and it's even sensual and tantric in a way that allows you to completely surrender into it's hypnotic call.
There is no question Zingaia's fans will love this new album and people who have never heard Zingaia before will understand why their music is so popular.
Check out the album description:
The sensual beat begins again as Zingaia takes you on a new tantric journey into the delight of the senses. Their signature seductive feminine vocals, ancient Goddess chants, hypnotic rhythms and exotic melodies guide you into an ecstatic trance where electronic music meets the next global groove on this extraordinary CD. Acclaimed world music and electronica guru Mike Breene has outdone himself on this ground-breaking new album. This is a worldbeat masterwork of mesmerizing power that casts it’s goddess spell from start to finish. You’ll feel yourself come alive to sacred pleasure as you enter a dream zone of where you can connect to your own deepest desires. Let go into the light of beauty of your own awareness.
To read more about this mesmerizing album and to hear song samples, click here to go to the Zingaia Sundari page on the Sequoia website.
We highly recommend this album!
Walk in Balance,
David & Steve Gordon
We started Light of Mind back in 1985 together with a team of personal growth therapists, certified hypnotists and doctors to assist people in creating their ideal reality. We worked with our team of experts using our many years of experience in meditation and sound healing/design to create a catalog of over 250 transformational audio products featuring exclusive new-concept guided meditations, subliminals, hypnosis and more.
We were inspired to start Light of Mind because back in the 80s, we had just started Sequoia Records because we were super-stressed LA session players. Dave had anxiety attacks and Steve was having insomnia. We met some therapists who wanted to use some of our relaxation music on their guided meditations for their clients. This led us to create an entire catalog of self-transformation audio.
The Light of Mind direct mail catalog was a huge success, with our audio products helping many thousands of people. Now we are re-launching Light of Mind as a downloads-only website.
We’re planning to make new products soon in the direction of brainwave binaural-beats music, new concept affirmations, plus apps for meditation, sleep and anxiety.
Many of the Light of Mind audio products feature music from the Sequoia catalog in the background, and some have additional alternate mixes as well that are not available anywhere else.
Here are some of the pages on the Light of Mind site to explore:
Light of Mind Website Home Page
Downloads Shop - This lists all products by category
Product Types - This page describes our 7 personal growth audio technologies.
Subliminal Threshold affirmations
About - Learn about Light of Mind and our Team of Mind Power experts.
The Light of Mind website also offers all the same music and nature sounds album downloads as the Sequoia Records site. But as always, you’ll still find the best prices for our music on the Sequoia website. Also, the Light of Mind website sells downloads only, and not CDs.
We welcome all and any feedback! If you like what Light of Mind is all about, please include our link on your websites, Facebook, YouTube page or any other social media to help us reach more people with the positive and self-empowering resources offered by Light of Mind.
Of course, we are continuing our new creations for Sequoia Records as well. We already have a new series of music albums planned that will be coming out later in the year.
Please visit Light of Mind today and let us know what you think!
Walk in Peace,
David & Steve
This is part 2 of our interview with Robert Steve Silverstein of mwe3.com. We got into some really interesting areas about the way we constructed the beats on our last album, Drum Cargo: Rhythms of Earth, the cultural influences and plans for our next music project.
- Steve
mwe3: How many different styles of drumming do you feature on the various Drum Cargo albums? Also, are certain instruments needed or required for certain drumming styles?
David Gordon:
Our intention with the Drum Cargo series was to represent many cultures and styles, to find the connections.. You’ll hear everything from African, Afro-Cuban, Native American, Celtic, Middle Eastern and Brazillian.
Steve Gordon:
In our combined collection of drums we have everything we needed for all of these styles. We have a great selection of drums from all the cultures needed. It really would not have been possible to create this series of recordings without having this selection of drums. The drums were all authentic and it was a wonderful experience to be surrounded by all of these instruments during the recording sessions. It really gave us a sense of energies within each of the cultures that seemed both different and similar at the same time.
mwe3: What was the writing / recording process like for the Drum Cargo Rhythms Of Earth album? Was there a lot of preproduction and also a lot of improvisation to match the compositional idea
David Gordon:
For each song we started with a rhythm from one of the cultures and played them on the drums from that heritage. Then we combined those rhythms with others from other cultures that would sync well with the core beat for each track. At the same time, we thought of which element we were evoking and selected instruments that would have that result.
Steve Gordon:
Once we have those beats and instruments chosen for each track, we played them together allowing the magic of the moment to guide the interplay of our parts. There is something particularly magical that happens when you improvise using only rhythm instruments. You interlock parts with the other musicians in a way that goes beyond what happens when there are also melodic instruments. Also most of us had played together many times so there was really good chemistry between us which we were able to draw upon.
mwe3: What cultures did you discover are best known for using tribal drumming in their cultural or religious activities and was drumming probably the first music made? Even back to the cave man days. Did it go from the drum to the flute and from there to the infinite?
David Gordon:
All of the cultures included on these albums have rich histories of using tribal drumming in their societies. We found it wherever we looked! Music and dance is universal - at the core of all cultures from the very beginning. Drums were not the first music though, first came singing, then flutes and drums. The power of the drum for entrainment became essential to the shamanistic and meditative aspects of the culture’s spiritual life.
With these recordings, we wanted to dig deep into the rhythmic heritage of the Western side of the globe, ranging from African and the Middle East to the Carribbean, and the Americas – North & South. We didn’t include many beats from the Far East because the underlying meter systems are so different. We’re intrigued by the long cycles of Indian Raga, the interlocking beats of Indonesian Gamelan, and so much more. We’d like to explore those directions in future albums.
mwe3: What is the oldest drum (or other instrument) you’ve every played and what’s the newest? It must be big market to make drums and other percussion gear including all types of drums and drumming gear.
David Gordon:
The oldest ones we had available to play in our studio for these albums were the African slit drums. African slit drums are among the very first drums ever made. They consist of a round log with some slits hollowed out in the side that give the log some resonance and it’s pitch -- fairly high pitched for a drum. They have a sort of clicking wooden sound that you can hear on these albums. They are played with thin carved wooden sticks.
Steve Gordon:
One of the newest ones we played was a waterphone drum that Kim brought which is a series of metal containers with
different amounts of water in them to create different pitches.
We also used unsual sounds from objects found around the house to create the different elements such as metal pots and pot lids!
mwe3: With all the computerized file sounds on drums I think it’s great you’re going back to recording vintage and even ancient drums. Do you think drumming was more popular in the age before computers took over? A lot of the greatest drummers recorded in the 1960s. What drummers from any musical genre influenced your playing? Were the best American jazz drummers black? I’m thinking about Art Blakey, Elvin Jones and Jack DeJohnette to name a few African American giants.
David Gordon:
Acoustic kit drums like in rock bands aren’t as central to pop music as they were back then. I remember going to concerts and the drummer would always take a long solo. The beat is still there now, but it’s morphed into sounds made by all sorts of devices and methods.
Steve Gordon:
The essence of drumming is still just as popular or more so though. Pop music songs are built upon the same legacy beats. Now they’re often composed on computers using software like Ableton Live or Logic Pro, but the rhythms are still mostly from hip hop, rock, blues and jazz, that evolved from African, Afro-Cuban or even Carribean rhythms.
mwe3: What kind of album or albums are you considering making next with the drums as the focus? Are there other directions you and Sequoia Records could go in while keeping the focus on the drums?
David Gordon:
We have a unique idea for a new kind of music that features world drumming at the core, with new sounds unlike anything we have heard before.
But we’d rather share the sound than explain it in words. We’re considering sending downloads of rough mixes of in-progress tracks to our fans through our email list in mid 2015. We’ve never done that before and we’re looking forward to sharing these with our fans.
Steve Gordon:
When we plan new releases we always search for a new concept we have not encountered before. This is more interesting to us and we hope to our listeners as well! We feel more satisfaction making our contributions to the stream of musical creativity that is flowing.
mwe3: Tell us about the 2014 Karma Cosmic CD release on Sequoia. The band is from Germany and Music For Tantra & Meditation is not their first album right? How would you describe their music, how did you meet up with them and how did the CD release on Sequoia proceed?
David Gordon:
Karmacosmic is an ambient music supergroup featuring three of Europe's most popular electronic music artists; Rüdiger Gleisberg, Matthias Grassow and Carsten Agthe. We became aware of them a few years ago from our European record label associates when we featured some of their tracks on a couple of the Sequoia Records electronic music compilations we created: Yoga Salon, Chakra Healing Zone, and Yoga Salon.
Steve Gordon:
It’s been a pleasure working with them on this release and we are really pleased at how the album has been received. People who were not aware of them instantly loved it and their fans are thrilled. Music for Tantra and Meditation entered our distributor’s top 10 album charts within the first month of it’s release.
The album is instantly popular amoung people into yoga because it creates a very serene yet exotically textured mood that works so well both for yoga and for the yoga lifestyle. It’s the kind of music you can either put on headphones and disappear into or just play it in the background at a mellow party.
We recently sat down with Robert Steven Silverstein of mwe3.com to discuss our latest release, Drum Cargo: Rhythms of Earth and the new Karmacosmic album, Music for Tantra and Meditation.
We share some fascinating details about the making of the Drum Cargo series and lot of other behind the scenes facts.
- Steve
mwe3: How many Drum Cargo titles have been recorded and released on Sequoia Records and can you tell the readers something about the basic concepts of the series and how would you say the recently released Drum Cargo: Rhythms of Earth title is unique from the other Drum Cargo abums? Is there a musical thread running through the series.
David Gordon:
So far we have released 4 albums in the series, one for each of the four elements:
The idea behind this series was to explore creating music using only drums, percussion and a small amount of Native American flute. We wanted to give ourselves this creative limitation and see if we could create music that was as engaging, interesting and satisfying as music that had more melodic instruments.
What we discovered was that it is not only possible, but not that hard considering the richness found in the sound of ethnic drums and how much more you can hear that richness once you remove all the melodic intstruments.
Steve Gordon:
For each of the 4 albums, we created beats and songs that expressed the qualities for that element. So for the new one, Drum Cargo: Rhythms of Earth, we used lots of large deep sounding drums and created beats that were earthy and empowering.
mwe3: How many different types of drums are in play on the Drum Cargo series and who were the other musicians and artists involved in the production of the Drum Cargo: Rhythms of Earth album? Do you always seek out some exotic new drums or sounds to use on a new Drum Cargo recording and for those who aren’t familiar with it, can you explain the concepts of Shamanic drumming? Is Shamanic drumming a form of primal therapy using drums?
David Gordon:
There were over 50 different types of drums played on the Drum Cargo series. But that does not include the different varieties of each type of drum. For example we used Djembes, but there were many different types and sizes of Djembes played. The same applies to many of the other drum types that were used. So even though the number of types of drums was around 50 there were 3 or 4 times that many in our studio while we were recording!
Here is the list of instruments used on the Drum Cargo series:
Taos Log Drums, Djembe, Ashiko, Congas, Tar, Dumbek, Gathering Drum, Tongue Drum, Turtle Rattle, Native American Flutes, Seed Pod Rattle, Palm Leaf Rattle, Rainstick, Kalimba, Souix Drum, Dun Duns, Djembe, Native Heart Drum, Taos Log Drums, Native American Flutes, Frame Drums, Taos Pueblo Rattles, Tongue Drum, Rainstick, Sangba, Talking Drums, Nigerian log drums, Krin, Shekere, Bongo Madera, Batajon, bass Cajon, Timbales, Conga, Bongo,Bells, Caxixi, Tamborim, Repinique, Surdos, Ganza, Seedpod rattle, Frame Drums, Dumbecs, Calabash, Gankogui, Adodo, Ghatam, Gongs, Bowls, Box Drum, Moroccan Bongos, Shakers, water bottle, metal percussion
Steve Gordon:
The other people who played on this series were Kim Atkinson and Bobby Cochran. Kim is an authority on Afro-Cuban drumming, very knowledgeable, and has a large collection of drums and percusssion.When he brought just a small part of his collection to my studio (David and I each have our own studios) and we laid out all of his drums next to our also extensive collection plus Bobby’s drums, it was quite a scene. There were drums and percussion from around the world of all shapes and sizes spread out across the entire studio. It was hard to even walk from one end of my studio to the other, and my studio is over 750 square feet!
Since we had decided that each Drum Cargo album would be for a different one of the four elements, we made lists of which drums would be used on each album based on if the drum either sounded like a particular element or sometimes we even used one of the elements such as when we used a bowl of water as a drum for Drum Cargo: Rhythms of Water. Kim also had an ocean drum which had sand inside it.
We’ve been into Shamanic Drumming since the 90’s. Through all-night drum circles in the mountains we experienced first hand the power that drumming can have as an entry into the trance state of consciousness. It is in this state that it is possible to heal your spirit, your mind and even your body since the body is effected by the quality of your thoughts.
This is the Shamanic state. Ancient people used drumming as a portal for the Shaman to enter into what they called the spirit world, or the lower world, in search of healing and vision for themselves and their people. We explored these themes deeply in our albums such as Sacred Spirit Drums, Shaman’s Vision Journey and others. Now we are using the pure accompianed sound of the drums themselves to access the Shamanic world with the Drum Cargo series.
mwe3: When did it inspire you to first start creating an album of only drumming? I hear a lot of African kind of rhythms in the Drum Cargo: Rhythms of Earth tracks. I also hear some of Ginger Baker’s drumming style. Are some core concepts of drumming related to African rhythms and tribal rituals?
David Gordon:
The inspiration for this goes back to when we recorded our earlier world fusion albums, Sacred Earth Drums, Drum Medicine and others. Those albums grew our of our experiences with the drum cirlces in the forest. They were sort of cinematic, a journey through layers of sound -- Native flutes, acoustic and electronic instruments, guitars, piano and some vocals and chanting.
The drums were always the foundation and heartbeat. When we mixed the drum tracks for those albums, we were amazed to find that even with the focus so completely on the drums, we could still hear and feel the essence of the melody and musical composition coming through the beats themselves. So way back then, we started planning some albums that bring forth the essences of the drums, in a way we hoped would allowe people to really connect with them directly.
Steve Gordon:
When we were at those all night drum circles in the mountains and experienced how expressive world drums and percussion can be and how the musical conversations you can have with them are every bit as engaging as melodic instruments.
The way that different beats interlock together can create different states of conscisousness. Tribal cultures from around the world have used drums and rhythms like this to journey into other realities as a source of healing and strength for their people.
When you play these rhythms you feel connected not only to each other but to your ancestors and to the universe. The mind becomes entrained by the beats and it becomes a form of meditation. You can experience this by playing in the drum circle or by just listening, if you focus on it.
Stay tuned for Part 2 of our interview soon...
Here is the second half of our recent interview with AmbientVisions.com. It's one of our favorite sites that features the finest in Ambient Music. They have over 2 million readers and are one of the best places online to discover and learn about great music.
We were interviewed by their very knowledgable editor, Michael Foster.
Ambient Visions Talks with David & Steve Gordon
Michael: In 2014 is the general public more receptive to “new age” music than they were 30 years ago when
Misty Forest Morning first came out?
Steve: At the time we started, the idea of ambient meditation music was brand new so it took time to explain what it was. Now after 30 years, there are more people who do get this, especially with yoga becoming so popular recently. There is also a challenge due to and misunderstandings or stereotypes about the music, maybe due to the genre being called “new age”, that some people see it as part of some kind of silly metaphysical woo-woo. But for those who want the benefits that this kind of music brings, it’s easier now for them to find it than any time in the past.
Michael: Tell me about the evolution of Sequoia Records over the years and how it has changed to meet the needs of listeners and the artists that you work with besides yourself.
David: When we first started our original focus was on ambient meditation music and music combined with nature recordings, to create the peaceful feelings of a natural environment in any situation. Over the years our interest in music performed in nature led us to world drumming and native fusion music. We like how the entrainment effects of rhythm can be another way of meditating with music, and our downtempo electronic recordings grew out of combining those worldbeat drums with the approach of ambient music. Each time we felt the desire to go in a different direction musically, we ended up having to push the envelope of what kinds of music were still considered new age or healing but as we did so those new styles were accepted and other artists started doing them as well.
Michael: When you began this journey there was no internet to speak of and now we are socially connected on multiple levels via the internet. How has that changed or expanded your vision of what Sequoia Records can be and how far it can reach?
David: The internet has been a great way for us to keep in touch with our fans through sites like Facebook, Twitter, Youtube etc. Now we can easily answer questions from fans and get the word out about our latest releases.
Michael: Is there a spiritual component to the music that the two of you compose?
Steve: As we had mentioned earlier, we have been into meditation and yoga for over 30 years now. Our goal is to bring mindfulness, inner stillness and wellness into the process of creating music so that those qualities will be transmitted to the listener as well.
Michael: Talk to me about your latest release called Chakra Balance and what the aim is/was for the music that you composed for this release?
David: This album was conceived on two levels. On a functional level it was recorded and intended to align and heal the sacred energy centers of the body through a sate of deep relaxation. On a musical level, we wanted to bridge the two worlds of healing meditation music and ambient electronic music. There is a lot of really good ambient electronic music out there that has much in common with meditation music but is not made with that intention. So our aim was to express the intentional aspect of meditation and mindfulness within the form of ambient electronic music.
Michael: Sequoia Records isn’t just about David & Steve Gordon’s music as you do put out music from other artists. How do you decide on who to bring onto your label and do they have a similar view as you in regards to the style of music that listeners have come to expect from Sequoia Records over the years?
Steve: In the 90s we started releasing music by other artists as well who also developed their own followings such as Gary Stadler, Sophia, Jaya Lakshmi and Shajan. All of the artists on Sequoia have a similar or compatible view about healing music but work in different musical genres. We have found that the genre of music is not what unites the sub-genres of New Age music, it is the intention behind the music and the way the music makes you feel, both in your body and in your mind and spirit.
Michael: Sequoia Groove was a 2nd label that you created to handle a different style of music than your original label. Tell me about the purpose of this secondary label and why you felt that you needed to create it?
David: We started Sequoia Groove in 2001 when we first released the European hit downtempo electronica album
Buddha Lounge, after we updated it for an American audience by changing some of the songs.
Our approach with Sequoia Groove is to release positive world-fusion and electronic music for pure pleasure, for parties or for just chilling out, without our usual focus on the meditative aspects. Having said that though, none of the music on Sequoia Groove ever goes in a dark or depressing direction. In that way it is similar to Sequoia Records. There are many songs on both labels though that could be said are powerful or cosmic, for example some of the songs on our native fusion albums like Sacred Earth Drums, but even those still feel life affirming and empowering.
Michael: After 31 years walking this musical path do you still feel as strongly about the music you compose and do you see yourselves doing this for the next 30 years as well?
Steve: I could never see a time when we would not create music. There is both the pleasure we that comes from the composing and recording process itself as well as the fulfillment that comes from knowing how many people’s lives are touched by what we do. We stay in touch with our fans on our Facebook pages (There is one for Sequoia Records and one for David & Steve Gordon) so we hear from people constantly about what our music means to them. There is also the effect of composing and recording this music has on us in the sense of feeling less tension, more centered and in touch with our own inner peace.
Michael: What have you learned about yourselves over the course of the last 31 years and how has your music affected the quality of your own lives?
David: We’ve experienced and learned that the things that have worked for us to stay in touch with the deepest parts of ourselves, the inner quiet and peace of mind we get from being in nature, meditating, doing yoga and practicing mindfulness can be transmitted to other people who need the same things through our music. We’re grateful that when we create music that is an expression of these things for us, other people feel it too when they hear our music.
Michael: With 30 years under your belt what would you like to accomplish in your second 30 years of creating music?
Steve: There are many different kinds of music projects we are inspired to do. We’re developing ideas for an album that would feature Sanskrit and Buddhist chants produced with a unique ambient approach and an album series of ambient music that will contain brain entrainment-tones for various purposes such as concentration, creativity, relaxation, sleep, and other uses. We are also planning a follow up to our popular Native American Flute album, Gratitude, but this time featuring more acoustic guitar and piano.
Michael: Any final thoughts you would like to share with your listeners about the journey you have been on thus far with your music?
David: We consider it an honor to be in a position to bring a little serenity into people’s lives through our music and we continue to be grateful for our listeners for allowing our music into their lives. You can find us on Facebook or on the Sequoia Website.
We would like to share a recent interview we did with Ambient Visions, a fantastic site devoted to the very best in ambient music. With over 2 million people in their audience, they have become one of the most trusted voices for music.
We were interviewed by their intrepid editor, Michael Foster.
Ambient Visions Talks with David & Steve Gordon
Michael: Music seems to supply the soundtrack to many of our lives from a very young age to the day we die. Tell me about the role that music played in influencing and shaping you during your younger years.
Steve: There was a lot of music in our house when we were young. Our parents enjoyed the 60’s and 70’s folk music revival and were also into ambient music. The two of us started performing at our family gatherings as early as 4 or 5 years old.
Michael: When was it obvious to you that music would play a larger role in your life than just listening?
Dave: By the time we were in high school we starting jamming together and playing in bands. Around this time we started to think about doing it professionally too. We soundproofed our garage and had musicians over to play with us.
Michael: Did you ever have any formal training in music? How does your classical training shape/influence the music that you compose?
Steve: We both studied music in college and attended the Dick Grove Music Academy in North Hollywood.
Michael: What is your instrument of choice for creating and making your music and why were you drawn to that instrument?
Steve: Even though we both have become proficient on many instruments, I still enjoy playing the guitar the most, both acoustic and electric and David prefers acoustic piano.
Michael: When did you start composing your own music and how would you characterize those early compositions in terms of style?
David: We started writing music in our teen years. Our first songs were rock music - a combination of psychedelic rock and progressive rock. We didn’t record anything that long ago but we do have some recordings we made in our early 20s on an old 4-track tape machine. They don’t sound too bad either!
Michael: Tell me about the Sequoia National Forest and how much of an inspiration it became to the music that you composed?
Steve: We discovered Sequoia National Park was a pretty accessible place to go from Los Angeles to decompress from living in the city and doing lots of session work. We had been into meditation for a while and especially liked to meditate sitting by the river in the mountains on back-packing trips. It was during one of those trips when we got the idea to compose ambient music to interact with recordings of the nature sounds in the forest. We’d been listening to the first couple Brian Eno albums around that time and that influence helped us to sort of find and bring out the musical environment from within sounds of nature.
Michael: When did you decide to form your own record label rather than trying to get your music onto an existing label? Did you have any experience with the business end of the music industry before diving in with Sequoia Records?
David: It was a natural decision for us to sell our early ambient music albums on our own label since it wasn’t anything like the music on the radio. We didn’t have any music business experience other than studio session work, so we just made the albums and started selling them.
Michael: Your compositions also incorporate nature sounds that you recorded into your music beginning with your very first release Misty Forest Morning in 1982. What were you hoping to achieve by this blending of your music and the sounds of nature?
Steve: Our intention was to transport stressed out people to a peaceful place in nature using music, for people who didn’t have access or time to visit the wilderness. We believed then, and still do, that being in nature can quiet the mind and create the inner stillness so important for reducing stress and being well.
Michael: Was it difficult to get good quality field recordings to incorporate into your music in 1982? How did you go about capturing those sounds?
David: It was a challenge, especially on our small start-up budget! We needed the recording equipment to be battery powered and small enough to fit in a backpack -- back then the only option for that was cassette tape. We used a Nakamichi professional-grade cassette recorder that had VU meters and separate record level controls for each channel. Wind was the biggest obstacle because it overloaded the inputs. We used a couple vocal mics from our studio and improvised wind screens of fabric and foam. We learned to record at times of day when the wind was at a minimum and by finding sheltered spots to place the mics. Once we got everything set up, we put on the headphones, pressed the record button, and meditated while the tape ran.
Michael: At the time of your first release (Misty Forest Morning) did the genre of new age even exist? Who was your music aimed at back then and in 1982 how did you go about reaching those listeners and letting them know about your music?
Steve: When we made our first few ambient music albums, we were not aware of any other new age artists, we only knew about Brian Eno’s early albums like Music for Airports and Day of Radiance with Laraaji. Once we had made our first album, we starting contacting local metaphysical book and gift stores to see if they wanted to carry it. That’s when we found out there were a few other artists who already had some albums in those stores. I’m not sure, but I think one was ”Zen Waterfall” by Paul Lloyd Warner. At the time, most of the store owners would keep the albums near the cash register, they didn’t even have a real music section. Initially it was through these kinds of stores that people discovered our music. This was before the internet so we included a mail order form in our albums for people to contact us to send them a catalog. We also approached book distributors and convinced some of them to offer our music to their retailers as well.
Michael: What is your philosophy about what your music can accomplish in a person’s life beyond just entertaining and distracting them for the stress of 21st century life?
David: Of all the arts, music is the most subtle and the most powerful in its power to transform. Music is literally made of vibrations - when people are exposed to those sound waves, their entire body/mind can be affected on a deep level.
Of course, music is great for entertainment, and we enjoy listening to lots of different kinds of music. But we believe that music created with deep intention can bring people wellness and inner peace and balance, and help them cultivate mindfulness.
Our music is used in this way by many health practitioners, body workers, spas and healing centers. But we don’t focus on those practical thoughts when we create the music. Instead we do our best to create music from a centered place that we access through meditation and through being in nature. We feel that when music arises from that peaceful state of being, those transformational qualities are naturally expressed in and through the music.
Michael: How do the two of you mesh your individuality into a cohesive whole when it comes to composing music that will be on each of your albums?
Steve: Since we are brothers we have been fortunate that our musical chemistry has always been something that we don’t have to think much about. We do have our own tastes and different approaches, but when we work on something together, once we decide on the overall direction for the album, our contributions complement each other’s really well.
Michael: Do you think listeners fully appreciate the potential of music to bring about changes in their lives?
David: There are some people that do. I know there are many who follow our releases and our record label Sequoia Records who look at it that way. But of course that’s is not a mainstream view. We hope that every record we release will reach people who need and are ready for that transformation in their lives, one that brings peace of mind and overall well-being.
Stay tuned for part 2 in our next blog post...
We were happy to see this new review come in from DailyOM of our influential world fusion album, Sacred Earth Drums. When it came out in the 90's there had never been anything quite like it. It became extremely popular, creating years of albums from many other artists that combined traditional world music instruments with modern electronics, electric guitar, chanting and keyboards as we had done. In many ways, this album started the whole 90's world fusion music explosion. After all these years it is still one of our most popular albums. - Steve
"Prolific and profound, brothers and musicians David and Steve Gordon incorporate colors and textures from all over the world in their music, capturing the spiritual root beneath all sounds, be they drums, flutes, bird calls, rain, or guitars. Sacred Earth Drums finds them bridging the gap between Native American shamanic-style drums, with play-along-at-home melodic signatures and a steady parade of natural color and instrumental shading. Pan pipes, wooden flutes, and classical guitars parade through the mist on their way past the sacred fire, which is surrounded by a solemn circle of drummers. The music here is healing and mysterious, rooting, comforting, and yet ancient and uncanny. Surrender to its moods and there's no telling how far you can dance into the outer space of the inner self.
The Native American pounding drumbeat and melodic wooden flute of "Sunset Ceremony" are so strong it takes awhile to realize that the shakers and cricket noises have blurred imperceptibly together over rain sticks and spirit rattles. "Call of the Medicine Drum" sets up a nice call-and-response between whispering wooden flute and classical guitar playing over low, rumbling synth chords and the thunderous drums of the title. Underneath it all the nighttime menagerie of birds and crickets and other natural ambience precede and end each track, giving the proceedings a campfire calmness; all of nature is with you. The birds are recorded so well you might feel they are inside your apartment, and so might your cats.
The vibe gradually grows mystical and otherworldly, with lonesome whippoorwills and rolling, whispering desert winds fading in and out of the steady, relentlessly flowing Native American drums for "Return Journey." When the return is made home, the journey over, there's still time for one last jam, with fretless bass and happily chirping morning birds with "Sun Rise in Peace," a final track to send everyone off to bed in a merry mood, the rhythms and pleasant feeling of physical exhaustion moving blissfully with the funky steel drum and rattles. No one is thinking about what tomorrow will bring; they're still in the moment, gradually disappearing into their tents until all that's left is a fire still burning fairly well, and the glimmer of pink along the eastern tree line slowly turning the black night on fire with the coming day. Whatever happens next, you'll be fine with Sacred Earth Drums coiling like a sleeping serpent in the warm nest of your CD changer, ready to! wake and work its rooting magic at a moment's notice." - DailyOM
This recent review from Common Ground magazine is a good description of Yoga Moods 2. It's great to see how well received this album is since we really enjoyed mixing it. It's really been embraced by the yoga community too. If you have not heard it yet, you can hear sound samples on the Yoga Moods 2 product page. It's also available on iTunes and Amazon. — Steve
Common Ground magazine review:
"The very idea of yoga music has emerged full force in the past few years, with the presence of Yogi Tunes, Bhakti Fest and literally thousands of practitioners benefiting from this broad new musical genre. And anything goes, musically, whether serene and peaceful, rhythm-based, tribal or shamanic or simply groovy. The growing kirtan family has also spread the word in their call and response manner.
Sonoma-based Sequoia Records has been a healthy contributor to these compilations, and on their latest Yoga Moods 2 they once again team up with YogaFit founder Beth Shaw to present a relaxed, mellow atmosphere within which your yoga practice can flourish. Shaw picked these songs (mixed by David & Steve Gordon to follow the flow of a typical yoga session, featuring songs with breezy beats, spiritual flavors and a touch of groove to give your postures a boost. This music is often enchanting and mystical. The use of Middle Eastern drum beats will keep you captivated all through the album, and nods to Enya or Enigma enhance rather than overwhelm. The sequencing and sound are very well edited and mixed, while the performances are excellent and engaging.
Yoga Moods 2 begins with the sensual "Water" from vocalist Helene Horlyck, followed by some trendy lounge-flavored electronica from David & Steve Gordon. Jaya Lakshmi and Opera to Relax provide a spiritual touch midstream through the album with their chilled vocal pieces. The albums end stretch features luxurious ambient music from Europe’s Peter Mergener in addition to tracks from David & Steve to provide a soft, ethereal environment for your savasana cool down. Besides yoga, the music on Yoga Moods 2 also would make great background music for personal relaxation rituals or even while entertaining. It's lush and mesmerizing, yet cool and mood-enhancing."
— Lloyd Barde
It's been great to see how popular our latest release, Chakra Balance is. It is now in it's second month at #1 with our largest distributor! This music had a deep effect on us while we were creating it so it's very gratifying to see that people are also resonating with it's healing energy.
Check out these new reviews. You can listen to sound samples on the Chakra Balance product page of our website. - Steve
Music Design in Review
Award-winning musicians/composers David & Steve Gordon once again display their mastery of healing music with CHAKRA BALANCE, a dose of sublime music designed for use with meditation practice, yoga and relaxation The musical atmospheres presented here provide a rich blend of drone sounds and dreamy swirls of synthesizer, dotted with subtle guitar and flute sounds. The sound is both graceful and otherworldly, lifting the mind out of the mundane routine of life into a place of eternal bliss. David & Steve used especially composed notes and frequencies during the production of the album to provide brainwave entrainment and aid in chakra balancing (the tracks were composed to capture the energetic essence of each chakra), making the album a great tonic for healing activities. The pieces of music on the album are arranged in such a way that they flow into one another and provide an aural meditation session – either two short meditations or one longer, more profound experience.
Retailing Insight
Chakra Balance is unlike anything I have previously heard from David and Steve Gordon. The album is decidedly more ambient and textural in nature yet still fits in nicely with their canon of work. Divided into two parts, each half contains tracks meant to align with the seven chakras. While technically the album presents a mixture of guitars, keyboards, and flutes, the real key here is the "sound design" which fashions the musical instruments (through studio wizardry) into cohesive ear-pleasing, soothing tone and drone pieces. Ultra-spacey in mood and evocation, Chakra Balance reveals an entirely new side to the Brothers' abundant talents. — Bill Binkelman
