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Al Conti is a GRAMMY® nominated musician people worldwide recognize as a composer with a natural ability for producing some of the most vibrant, story based albums in the new age and world music genres.  Al Conti’s ability to intermingle his story based tales of intrigue into every one of his award winning albums, in part, originates from his life experiences and extensive international travels.

Al Conti is a nominee for the 54th GRAMMY® Awards in the Best New Age Album category, selected for his 2010 album entitled Northern Seas.  Along with Al Conti’s GRAMMY® nomination in the new age genre, Northern Seas was also selected in Amazon’s Top 10 list for Best New Age Albums of 2010.  Earlier albums Scheherazade, Poeta & Shadows have made other “best album of the year” and “top 10 album charts” at other organizations.

Northern Seas is the fourth album from Al Conti, and a fine release that highlights his abilities as composer, arranger, and multi-instrumentalist.  The storyline on Northern Seas chronicles the ancestral homeland and Nordic heritage of Scandinavia with wondrous glory.  The rich instrumental landscape captures your imagination, and valiantly stands the high ground on this resolute masterpiece aptly named Northern Seas.

Northern Seas features 10 songs in a fascinating blend of new age and world fusion with a Celtic inscription on several songs.  There is a unique atmosphere by using ancient instruments in parity with traditional instruments.  Al and contributing artists create a unique feel blending kantele, harp, hurdy gurdy, pump organ, accordion, and tribal drums with piano, violin, cello, acoustic and electric guitar.

The folklore of Norse traditions brought to the surface by Al Conti is deep, rich, and intriguing while portraying a tale of Norsemen during a time of Viking sovereignty.  Every song on Northern Seas is crisp, clear and refreshing, as if detailing the pristine landscape and panoramic mountain vistas by the deeply spacious tonal qualities.

New Age Music World host John P. Olsen had the opportunity to conduct a December 2011 interview with Al Conti, a 54th GRAMMY® nominee in the Best New Age Album category.  Today we are pleased to present their up-to-date interview to Al Conti’s fans and to our site visitors – several days prior to the New Year 2012.

GRAMMY® Nominated Al Conti Interview;

John Olsen:  Thank you for consenting to my interview, Al.  First I would like to congratulate you on your GRAMMY® nomination for Northern Seas!  This is great news. It always pleases me when I hear an outstanding artist and their work are given the recognition they deserve.  Northern Seas has many fine qualities, many of which were pointed out by a number of positive reviews at your site, AlConti.net.  I was glad to be among those to contribute an album review, and I hope to have conveyed the award-winning potential, and some of the finer aspects of your work in the album review I wrote earlier.

John:  Aside from the fact Northern Seas is in the category for Best New Age Album, I feel Northern Seas is to some extent the most progressive of the five GRAMMY® nominated albums by a variety of instrumental qualities.  Do you agree, and if so, do you feel having a nominated album that varies instrumentally from the rest will work to your advantage?

Al Conti:  Hello John, it is my pleasure to be here with you!  Many reviewers have commented before on how my work is rather different than much of the New Age music available these days.  Some have called my work ‘cutting edge.’  Personally, I feel that New Age music is very rich in its diversity, and my work is a part of that spectrum. Whether my music’s edge works to my advantage or not, I am not sure.

During the nomination process, I have indeed heard from many peers, mostly from other genres, how they found my music to be so different.  I guess it has, in the end, worked to my advantage.  The ironic thing is I never strive to compose music that is different, per se, but just to be true to myself as an artist and simply create what comes from within me.  The rest is all excruciating work!

John:  On Northern Seas you pair old-world instruments of kantele, harp, hurdy gurdy, pump organ, accordion and tribal drums with modern instrumentation of piano, violin, cello, acoustic and electric guitar.  I am familiar with the majority of songs on your earlier albums Scheherazade, Poeta & Shadows, but I would like to know, if this blend of ancient and modern instruments is consistent throughout every one of your four releases?

Al Conti:  Since my album Scheherazade, I’ve been drawn consistently to rediscovering ancient instrumentation, and this also blends very well with the mystical landscapes I like to explore.  People have responded very well to the use of these instruments.  There is also something beautiful to me in bringing instruments and sounds into a modern content.  It feels like I am in some way honoring the past by bringing these instruments into a more contemporary setting.   I am never quite sure what will come out of me musically and I am always challenging myself as an artist with each release.

John:  Would you tell us about the outstanding artists who performed instrumentals with you on your GRAMMY® nominated release?

Al Conti:  I have been blessed to have worked with some amazing people, and continue to do so.  For Northern Seas I wanted to work mostly with local talent, and except for Francesca Genco (vocals), all are Vermont artists.  Among the contributing talent in Northern Seas there is the immensely-talented violinist Hannah Beth Crary, who was truly magnificent to work with and my trusted guitarist and engineer André Maquera.

John:  You also have a team of music professionals you depend on for technical details and final production.  Would you like to mention the people who helped you finalize Northern Seas?

Al Conti:  While I do a big part of an album’s mixing myself as I compose, I depend heavily on André Maquera, of West Street Digital, in Vermont, for the final mixing and mastering on my projects.  I have worked with him since my first release, Shadows, and feel he understands my approach so well at this point as to know how to work with whatever I bring his way.  Mastering is also a very arduous process and my hearing can only handle so much.  Aside from the actual music engineering and recording, I work with a fantastic team of people that help oversee the other aspects of my career, without whom I could not do what I do.

John:  What do you feel are the most positive attributes of Northern Seas?

Al Conti:  I think Northern Seas went in a different direction than my previous album Scheherazade.  I feel it showcases my versatility as a musician and composer.  My audience can hear a more classically-oriented side of me in my album Poeta, a more exotic and sensual one with Scheherazade and a more aggressive and brooding, yet also fun and hopeful side with Northern Seas.

John:  In addition to your GRAMMY® nomination, Northern Seas made the Amazon Top 10 list for Best New Age Albums of 2010, and  many of your earlier releases were also awarded  “best of the year”, “top 10 charts”, and other “best album lists and top 100 charts.”  What do you believe has been the most important influence that has led to your overall successes as an award-winning composer, arranger, producer and multi-instrumentalist?

Al Conti:  I compose what comes through me, and this changes depending on the project I am working on at any given time.  I tend to go to a certain emotional place when I compose and the right material flows through me.  When a project is finished, it is as if someone has turned the creative faucet off, and nothing else comes through, so I know I am done.  I believe that the key to anyone’s success, especially in this business, is made up of various elements such as what I mentioned above, coupled with hard work, perseverance, gut feeling, luck, timing and fate.

I also believe it is important to follow one’s own path and not be overly influenced by what other artists do.  While there may be a music trend we all follow and music that influences our style, it is good to do what really comes from the heart and not try to imitate someone else. I simply do what I do, surround myself with a magnificent team and we all pull forward in our own way, but in the same direction.

John:  Every one of your new age albums is based a theme or legend and portrays a story.  What is the story based representation or theme behind Northern Seas, and how did you arrive at the concept for Northern Seas?

Al Conti:  Northern Seas is based on Norse mythology.  While my previous album, Scheherazade, was based on the teller of the fantastic Arabian tales, Northern Seas was a little more complicated to nail down as a concept.  I did a tremendous amount of research when the idea for this project first came to me.  I could have based the album on a particular Norse myth, but I felt that there were many important ones that would have been left out.  The album as a concept takes many of the Norse myths and weaves them into one cohesive narrative.

John:  How do you transpose an inspirational or story-based theme into a musical arrangement?

Al Conti:  This is also something that is very hard to describe, because I do not have a specific formula that I follow.  Each project is based on a particular myth or tale.  This already sets the parameters I will work within because each part of the world and its respective culture has a definite music style, which I then follow.

Scheherazade was Middle Eastern; Northern Seas is Nordic, Celtic and Germanic.  But I also do not want to compose an album that is fully regimented by a culture’s musical style and mood, thus I tend to modernize the music to make it more appealing to a Western audience.  As such, I end up with the music I compose, which is peppered with world cultural influences, yet remains primarily New Age.  I do believe my past as an actor also thoroughly influences my approach to my music compositions because I innately tend to approach my music composition as a film.

John:  At your music blog – alconti.blogspot.com – you detail how producing music has changed for you since the earliest years when you first began producing music.  What are some of the changes you have made over the years, and the challenges you face while producing music today?

Al Conti:  Many of the changes are dictated to me by the music industry that I am a part of.  I feel one of the biggest mistakes artists can make is to not accept the fact that the music business is, first and foremost, a business.  Since I came from an acting background, well versed in the complex workings of that business, I simply translated acting to music and brought along with me the same work ethics I had from that part of my life.  I also feel each project I undertake lays the groundwork for the direction of my career.  Because I am also a perfectionist, nothing I compose is ever good enough for me and I always strive to better myself.

John:  Has having your own Shadowside Music label been a major influence with the manner you produce and market your music?

Al Conti:  Absolutely.  I can decide what I want to create without having to answer to someone else’s idea of what I should be creating.  I also have full control over every aspect of my career and creative output.  Because I happen to also be the producer and arranger of my own albums, I can truly follow my gut instinct and move forward from there.  Of course, I knew that the path I chose was plagued with risks and I did not know if these would pay off until they did.

Much like an actor producing and directing his or her own film, producing one’s own album can either make or break you.  For me, luckily, it was the former, not the latter.  It was a great risk, but I took it head on.   I am at a point now in my career where I can honestly say that the path I chose has indeed paid off and I can continue forward knowing I am doing what I am supposed to be doing and that it is working out well.  As people now ask me for advice, I find myself saying, “Hey, my path and how I walked it to this point has worked for me, but it may not work for you at all.”  Thinking of many successful artists, I venture to say you’ll find each got there in very different ways.

John:  Early in life you were determined at a very young age to become an actor.  You appeared in commercials and were an actor in the acclaimed As The World Turns American television series.  By all accounts Al, you had achieved the acting career you envisioned for yourself.  What was the turning point where you decided to change direction to pursue a music career, and how did this change to a new career transpire over the years?

Al Conti:  I do not think any artist will ever say, “Yes, I achieved what I artistically set out to achieve,” because we’re always looking forward to the next creative project.  As an actor, I do not think I ever fulfilled that which I strived to achieve since I was a child, and I believe music has allowed me to express artistically in ways acting did not.  I also came to a place in my life where I did not have the need to play someone else to express myself.  With music, regardless of the project, I am always expressing my truest self through my work, yet I can be an actor at the same time because my projects are pretty much like a film that is being played out musically.

John:  I read you were born and raised in Buenos Aires, Argentina.  Your grandfather was a concert pianist, and your mother was a classical ballerina.  What are your thoughts – do you believe talents in the arts, in fields like theatre or music, are heredity, or, do you feel non-genetic factors play more of a role with inclinations toward an individual’s profession?

Al Conti:  I cannot honestly say.  I know I was born an artist, which as a child created nothing but problems for me in school.  But because my parents and grandparents (and even beyond that to my extended family) were and are artists in their own way, I was lucky in that they completely encouraged me.  I do, however, believe that we are born with the talents we will hopefully hone throughout our lives, whether you are an artist, teacher, lawyer, social worker or whatever. I tried being other things than an artist and failed miserably.

It was clear to me that I could only work in the arts.  This is why I cringe when parents force their kids to play the piano or do anything else artistic if the child really has little inclination in that direction. It would have been the same for me if, say, my parents had forced me to be right handed while my inclination was to be left handed.  As an actor, I saw some sad things happening with parents who would bring their children into auditions.  Not pleasant!

John:  While living in Argentina, you grew up listening to ethnic music from many parts of the world, plus you have extensively traveled the globe.  Would it be fair to say your music is a vehicle that describes many of your life experiences and international travels?

Al Conti:  I think as artists we take everything we have gathered throughout our lifetime and put it into our work, because what we do comes from the deepest fibers of our beings.  Because I was raised in different cultures, this broadened my horizons culturally.  I innately know how one culture can function differently from another.  When I compose music, based on a certain culture, the way that culture expresses itself deeply affects how I compose.

John:  You have led a diverse life compared to many people.  You now reside in the state of Vermont in the United States.  What is it about the state of Vermont you adore?

Al Conti:  I have always felt at home in Vermont.  It is a state with deep French Canadian roots, which in many ways resembles the culture in which I was raised.  Those cultural roots can still be felt in Vermont.  While I have lived in a few different states in the U.S., Vermont is definitely the only one I have ever felt like calling my home.

John:  I read at – alconti.net – you are currently working on your fifth album.  I would love to release some Al Conti news for your fans and our readers today if possible.  Can you release any information about your newest, fifth album project?

Al Conti:  I usually tend to be very private about what project I am currently working on. I blame my past as a superstitious actor for this!  I never want to jinx the project.  There are also the legal ramifications of my talking about it at such an early stage.  What I can say is that the album’s progress is half way, and I am excited that there are some very well-known guest New Age artists that will be participating in the project.

I can also say that the album will be more on the lines of my previous work Scheherazade, and I think people will be very happy about that, even though it is far from that album’s Middle Eastern theme.  As an artist, I never want to repeat myself musically, so I strive to keep moving forward.  While I know that many people loved Scheherazade, and it would be easy for me to fall back into another Middle Eastern theme, I refuse to do so.  My current project is based on yet another beautiful legend and I will let my audience discover it as the time approaches.  It is tentatively scheduled for release in September 2012.

John:  During your work with humanitarian organizations, you teamed up with television celebrities Kevin Bacon, Jessica Alba, and Shelly Morrison for a charitable benefit.  Can you tell us about your contributions with humanitarian organizations over the years?

Al Conti:  As an artist with a certain level of success, I always feel I need to give back.  Because I have been touched by many situations in my life, I feel like those are the ways I can give back.  Unfortunately, we live in a world that has many, many causes we could rally for, but eventually, one can only do so much.

I have chosen carefully the charities I align myself with.  AIDS, Leukemia and Alzheimer’s, as well as breast cancer, have all affected people I care about.  In my own way, I try to raise awareness about these illnesses.  I find that when people like what you do they are more apt to listen and take notice.  When recently asked by a dear friend and fellow New Age artist about how I felt regarding my GRAMMY® nomination, I replied that I feel like this now allows my heart to give more.  I truly mean that.

John:  I read you are also involved in a wellness organization called The Spa Buzz, an organization that helps spread the message of wellness through activities like their awareness-raising bus tour.  Would you like to tell us about your contributions with The Spa Buzz organization?

Al Conti:  Yes, I was involved with this event as they toured the country promoting a message of health and wellbeing.  This is something my team initially brought to my attention and I agreed to take part in it by lending my music to the project and attending events on the East Coast, because I truly believe people can be healthier, pay more attention to and be in tune with their bodies.  The Spa Buzz did a great job for health awareness, and promoted the way music can contribute to wellness along the way.

John:  You have enjoyed a remarkable career as a musician, Al.  What do you find most rewarding as a professional musician?

Al Conti:  I think, as I mentioned before, the more success I find as a musician, the more I am able to give back to others.  Once I heard a saying that went: “When you get to the top floor, make sure to send the elevator back down for somebody else.”  I never forgot that.  While I do not think I am anywhere close to the top floor, I do believe that with a certain amount of success, there comes a responsibility to give back, and the universe sends our way those who can benefit from what we have to give, and vice-versa.

John:  Thank you again for taking time out for our interview.  I wish the best for you in the 54th Annual GRAMMY® Awards scheduled for Sunday Feb. 12, 2012.  In closing for now, is there anything you want to bring up, or express to your fans and the people who have supported you over the years?

Al Conti:  There are always a few things, for sure.  One is something I always speak of when able to, and that is the sad state of music piracy.  Since I have been involved in the music industry, I have become increasingly aware of the ravages that the illegal download of music is doing to artists worldwide.  Many people do not even realize that they are actually stealing music.  While some do indeed believe that we, as artists, should work for free, most simply do not realize the impact they have on the economy with even just one song illegally downloaded.

Independent musicians now form a large part of the music industry and they do not make millions, far from it.  Many can barely survive on the income they receive from their music work.  I would hope the right amount of respect be given to their efforts by actually purchasing their work rather than downloading it illegally.

A fellow artist, Loreena McKennitt, is a big spokesperson for this, and she has actually had to lay off people from her company because the illegal downloads of her work have made it impossible for her to maintain their employment.  This is extremely sad for me to see.  No one would ever accept to work for free, why should artists?

Thanks so much for this time, John, and for the work you do for New Age music!

John:  I get to know many artists personally, and I feel the same way too about the music piracy issue of illegal downloads.  I am pleased to be in a position to help get the message across.  I look forward to writing more about you soon Al.

Visit the alconti.net homepage and his music store where you can sample or purchase all four albums, and keep up with the latest news.  You are invited to visit Al’s official blog at alconti.blogspot.com and Facebook page. Read my Al Conti page.

Photos are courtesy alconti.net and with additional photographer credits of – Michael Mattern, Patrick Cote, John Young, Gerrit Ohm, and Kay Dillenberger.

GRAMMY® nominated composer David Arkenstone is a celebrated new age artist who has produced an extensive collection of great instrumental albums over the course of his distinguished career. David Arkenstone’s popularity as a favorite artist for many persons including myself is clear when you consider he has sold well over a million albums throughout his extensive career as a popular favorite.

The admiration for David Arkenstone and his reputation as a top new age artist is apparent by other benchmarks too, having reached the Top 10 Billboard New Age charts twenty times. He is a gifted musician accustomed to playing a variety of instruments, some of which include electronic keyboards, piano, cello, flute, harp, mandolin and a number of ethnic guitars. David is also a talented percussionist, sings vocals on some of his albums, and regularly performs live music during tours as a performing new age concert artist.

David Arkenstone is a three times GRAMMY® nominated musician, having earned nominations for his three albums In the Wake of the Wind, Citizen of the World, & Atlantis. In addition he has composed numerous recordings for film and television, some of which are shown on the History Channel, Discovery Channel, NBC Sports and many other televised programs.

Echoes of Creation is a new soundtrack he composed for Jan Nickman’s nature inspired film that was aired on PBS stations nationwide. David has also composed a number of top rated computer gaming scores like World of Warcraft, Blade Runner, Lands of Lore, Earth and Beyond & Emperor.

David Arkenstone and his popular album collection are a broad array of ambient, Celtic, contemporary instrumental, world, electronic, and new age fusion. Diversity is a unique characteristic of David Arkenstone’s ingenious skills as a songwriter and his extensive music collection. He also performs live concerts with Seth Osburn and John Wakefield in his world music inspired band Mandala.

New Age Music World host John P. Olsen recently had the opportunity to provide a December 2011 interview for the internationally famous David Arkenstone. Today we are pleased to present their up-to-date interview conversation to David’s fans and to our site visitors weeks prior to the new year 2012.

David Arkenstone Interview;

John Olsen: Thank you for giving everyone a moment of your time David. Like your many fans, I too have been an admirer of your music for many years, so our interview together is especially rewarding to me personally.

I noticed at your website you appear to have a close connection with your fans by easy access and information for them at your website news page, Twitter and Facebook social networking pages.

Over the years, the internet and technology has influenced everyone to some extent, and new technology directly applies to the technique in which you produce music.

John: Would you like to begin our interview by telling us about your life as a musician in the early years, preceding the time when technology changed the way you produce music?

David Arkenstone: I had several different configurations of my rock band, Arkenstone. I played guitar and keyboards. I’ve always loved synths and used them in my music, as well as all kinds of different sounds. So I was doing that. Once synthesizers and computers started communicating, I threw myself into that world and never looked back. I was able to hear things I could only previously imagine.

John: Since computer technology or electronic music has influenced the process in which you compose, what has proven to be the most beneficial aspect of your electronic enhanced orchestrations?

David Arkenstone: That would be all the things I can hear at the same time. Like a fully orchestrated piece with percussion, strings, brass, woodwinds. Or if I’m doing a more non-orchestral piece, I can hear the guitars with the drums, keyboards, generally all the sounds I use. This is so beneficial to being able to shape the piece as I go. There is an endless amount of tweaking until I’m satisfied. This can sometimes take a long time!

John: Many of your releases have bold majestic themes and popular music influences. When composing, do you intentionally set out to merge many influences into your music compositions, and how do you achieve a proper balance of electronic and instrumental orchestrations?

David Arkenstone: I usually try to start with a concept that resonates with me, and then decide which aspects of that concept I would like to illustrate with music. After the pieces begin coming out, I figure out my ‘palette.’ From that I can find a balance of sounds and decide which elements can be computer generated and which should be live musicians. This period includes a lot of exciting exploration.

John: Along with your Echoes of Creation Soundtrack & Ambient World releases, don’t you have a varied collection of Celtic songs?

David Arkenstone: Celtic Journeys is a compilation of my Celtic inspired recordings on the Green Hill label.

John: In your diverse music collection, Visions of Christmas is another relatively new release. With the holiday season drawing nearer every day, perhaps you could tell us about the songs on Visions of Christmas, and how your holiday album was produced?

David Arkenstone: I love the holidays and have been doing holiday concerts for a long time. This album came about because I was playing a lot of arrangements in our Winter Solstice concerts that I’d never recorded.

I really wanted to do another Christmas album and my producing partner, Victoria Paige Meyerink, suggested we combine the concert tunes with some of my favorites for Visions of Christmas. We’ve also filmed several of the concerts and we’re working on a DVD of the Winter Solstice Tour.

John: Again, I am very familiar with your entire discography David. Likewise, I am confident the majority of people reading this interview are too. For those who may be less familiar with your variety of great releases, what 4 albums would you recommend to them as a starting point to begin sampling your discography?

David Arkenstone: Visionary, Atlantis, Myths and Legends & Ambient World.

John: Yes, I certainly agree your 2 disc collection of songs on Ambient World is an excellent choice. This is one of your new albums I would recommend to everyone too. Earlier, Victoria Paige Meyerink informed me that Ambient World was listed in the 25 Essential Echoes CD’s for 2011. In your diverse music collection, I find many of your albums “boldly adventurous” if I can phrase it this way. Many releases including Eternal Champion & Quest Of The Dream Warrior are best described as having epic or majestic themes. Do you begin a project with a predetermined theme or does a project’s theme define itself later on while you are composing?

David Arkenstone: I usually start with a thread of an idea, though also it can materialize after I’ve composed several pieces. That can generate ideas for me, or a more specific direction.

John: You have composed numerous music recordings for film and television like the History Channel, Discovery Channel, NBC Sports and others. The Echoes of Creation soundtrack you produced with Emmy award winning director Jan Nickman is another example of your outstanding film scores.

In addition your numerous computer gaming scores like World of Warcraft, Blade Runner, Lands of Lore, Earth and Beyond, & Emperor. What are some of the challenges and dissimilarities involved with soundtrack, film and gaming scores verses composing music for an album?

David Arkenstone: A music album is completely free. I think of the road I want to go on, what instruments I want to use, and all of the final outcome. With a project involving another person’s vision, I have to determine the palette, style, and mood that will best fit the project. Then I have to please my collaborators and make sure all the elements work together.

John: Would you tell us about your world music group Mandala?

David Arkenstone: I recently started this group with a couple of my friends, Seth Osburn & John Wakefield, to perform more world music inspired pieces that are more improvisational in nature. Some are very danceable, and some are very moody, but all of them have a spiritual aspect. Mandala is evolving and we recently filmed a concert. We will be releasing footage once it’s fully edited.

John: In addition to your numerous album releases, you have been a concert performer for many years, including the renaissance festivals earlier this year. Would you like to provide some details about the musicians who perform with you, and what one can expect when attending a David Arkenstone concert in terms of atmosphere, interaction, and songs you play?

David Arkenstone:  It’s fun to step back in time. Basically, it’s me and the band without synths and sometimes little amplification. We’ve been invited to several Renn fairs and enjoy being in costume and playing some of my Celtic inspired works.

A lot of the World of Warcraft fans attend and I really love performing live to such enthusiastic crowds. It’s a relaxed atmosphere and I have the opportunity to meet with people who’ve been following my career – one person saved tickets from one of my first concerts, brought them to the fair and asked me to autograph them! People bring all sorts of memorabilia.

John: I heard the news you have plans for a new David Arkenstone album with a release date sometime in 2012. Do you have an album title for your new project, and can you tell us about the music you have in mind for your new release for 2012?

David Arkenstone: Well, I’m not ready to say too much about it yet. There are vocals, lots of drums and orchestra, as well as all the other instruments I play. I’m very excited about it. The album is collaboration with Charlee Brooks, a wonderful singer and writer, and it’s one of the most rewarding experiences of my career. We have written it almost as a soundtrack.

John: You have a large international fan base, and you have enjoyed a successful music career practically your entire life. What do you find the most rewarding experience as a professional musician?

David Arkenstone: That’s simple, the most rewarding aspect is that people enjoy my music and because of that, I get to do what I love every day. I’ve been lucky to make music that resonates with so many people, and their support and kind words make every day a musical joy.

John: Your new website looks fantastic! It’s easy to navigate too. I know you have a new album project you are working on and a busy schedule so I want to thank you again for letting me host your most current interview David. It has been a privilege to provide today’s news coverage about you!

I will publish more articles about you in time but do you have any departing words before we close for now?

David Arkenstone: Just that I appreciate your support of music and your efforts to connect musicians with the listeners. I hope everyone will enjoy my new 3-D website and follow me on Facebook and Twitter.

Visit the new davidarkenstone.com website and purchase his music at David’s online store or find at David’s profile page at  domomusicgroup.com. Discover more fine artists at domomusicgroup.com homepage and read my David Arkenstone page. Interview photos are courtesy David Arkenstone.

Multi-platinum pianist Jim Brickman is one of today’s most beloved artists whose selection of romantic piano and Christmas music spans across a wide variety of popular music genres. With 6 of his albums acquiring Gold and Platinum status, it’s easy to see why Jim Brickman is a prominent celebrity in the popular and new age instrumental music genres. Likewise, he is renowned as the greatest pianist in the Adult Contemporary genre category, having charted more than any other male performer.

Jim Brickman is a highly recognized entertainer and recording artist who has thrilled millions of people for years with his award winning collection of popular piano music which can range from solo piano, popular, mainstream music, adult contemporary, and a wonderful selection of Christmas albums, many of which are available in CD and DVD formats.

With 6 Gold and Platinum albums, 2 GRAMMY® nominations, and 30 chart topping adult radio hits, Jim Brickman is accustomed to prestigious awards and recognition. Along with 2 SESAC Songwriter of the Year awards, a Canadian Country Music Award, and a Gospel Music Association Dove Award, he is tied for the most #1 albums in Billboard’s New Age charts. Presently listed in the Top 10 of Billboard’s New Age Charts are three of Jim’s albums; All is Calm, Romanza, & Love.

Jim Brickman is likewise cherished for his countless album collaborations with other popular celebrity artists, some of which include Lady Antebellum, Kenny Loggins, Martine McBride, Olivia Newton-John, Donny Osmond, Carly Simon and Michael W. Smith. During the course of his lengthy career Jim Brickman has become a household name, having crossed over into mainstream piano music that is adored by millions of people worldwide.

The Christmas holidays are a special time of year that symbolizes another period in time when people often associate Jim Brickman, and his special variety of piano instrumental Christmas music. Currently Jim is beginning his 2011 Holiday Concert Tour in the continental U.S. Also recognized for his humanitarian efforts, Jim is involved with many charitable foundations dedicated to improving the lives of children and their families, including Autism Speaks, UNICEF and Camp Heartland.

New Age Music World host John P. Olsen had an opportunity to interview Jim Brickman at the very start of his opening Christmas Concert Tour in 2011. Today we are pleased to present their conversation to Jim Brickman’s international fan base and to our global site visitors.

Interview with Jim Brickman;

John Olsen: Thank you so much for accepting my interview invitation Jim. I realize this is an especially busy time for you. It is truly a privilege to be the host for your most current interview. Currently you are about to begin your 2011 “A Christmas Celebration” Concert Tour, which has numerous concert venues in major cities throughout the continental U.S.

John: When traveling across the country on tour with full entourage I imagine the excitement of every performance takes a lot out of you, and the entire team. How do you and everyone on the team re-energize and prepare for the next concert?

Jim Brickman: Each city, theatre and audience is different. Knowing this helps keep the performances fresh and exciting. It really is like celebrating Christmas every day.

John: During your Christmas Concert Tour in 2011 you have special guest vocalist Anne Cochran and Ben Utecht, with violinist Tracy Silverman. I have heard these artists on your YouTube videos and must say you have a great team Jim! Would you like to tell everyone about the exceptional artists who will be performing with you during this year’s A Christmas Celebration Concert Tour?

Jim Brickman: I’ve been performing with Anne Cochran and Tracy Silverman for many, many years. Anne and I met in high school. I look forward to performing with her, not only because we are close friends, but because she has a beautiful voice and a great personality.

Tracy is a brilliant musician who adds a dimension to my concert that you don’t normally expect to hear. Ben Utecht is new to the tour, but may be a familiar name to NFL football fans. He was a member of the Super Bowl Championship Indianapolis Colts. He has a powerful voice that brings new meaning to familiar songs and old favorites. Ben has a large presence on stage, and he wears his Super Bowl ring!

John: How many seasons have you held Christmas concerts to date, and how do you determine which of the many exceptional artists to choose from will be performing with you? If it is not a secret, can you tell us some of the Christmas songs concert attendees will hear during your 2011 season?

Jim Brickman: This is the 16th year of the holiday tour. I will be playing holiday favorites and a few songs from my latest CD Romanza. Plus the hits, because everyone wants to hear the hit songs. I hope for a few hours the audience can wrap themselves up in the holiday spirit through my music.

John: Over the years you have been Grammy nominated, won countless music awards, in addition to 6 of your releases attaining Gold and Platinum status. It is obvious people adore your music Jim. Do you feel there a specific element about your music that you feel has helped you achieve worldwide popularity?

Jim Brickman: As I write music, I think about where people will be listening to it, and how it will make them feel. Because the majority of my songs have no words, people can listen, apply it into their own lives, and take away what they need to hear.

John: I am confident most people reading this interview are familiar with your music. For those people who may be less familiar with your many albums, what albums would you suggest for a starting point for them to begin sampling your music?

Jim Brickman: If You Believe is my signature song and I think it also best represents my “sound.” It symbolizes my dream of composing and performing, and the belief in myself to bring it to fruition. It’s on the CD Picture This.

John: From your great selection of Christmas music CDs and DVDs, what would you recommend they sample or purchase?

Jim Brickman: That’s like asking which is your favorite child. I have a new CD called All Is Calm that’s available at Target.

John: You have been a successful musician nearly your entire life. Knowing there are other artists reading our interview today, can you give any advice or offer a helpful strategy to those artists who are just beginning their music career?

Jim Brickman: Listen to many different artists that you enjoy and admire. Hear what it is in their music and lyrics that speak to you. Then when you sit down to write, adopt what you like from other elements and make it your own.

So many pianists tell me “Everyone says I sound like Jim Brickman. How do I start my career?” Well, there’s already a Jim Brickman, so I tell them the best way is to create a new, unique sound. Find places to be heard. And don’t be afraid of rejection. Find places to play and show off your talent. Start small and get your style and personality known so that you can grow your career.

John: In regards to your talents as a pianist, would you say you have natural born talents as a pianist, or has it merely taken practice and dedication to reach the level of expertise you have achieved?

Jim Brickman: I started playing piano when I was 4. I begged my parents to buy me a piano. So, that part was natural. I had a lot of piano teachers growing up, and they all wanted me to play in what I call “their style.”

It wasn’t until I studied at the Cleveland Institute of Music, that I found a teacher who helped me develop my own style. It evolved out of my classical training and my love of pop music. That’s what you hear today.

John: You have collaborated on numerous projects with famous artists like yourself over the years. Would you like to tell us about your experience while working with esteemed artists like yourself?

Jim Brickman: I love writing with different people because each one draws something new out of me. As I write I hear a specific sound singing the vocals. I love using new voices that may not be familiar to listeners because they come to me with an eagerness and fresh energy. Of course, many have gone on to become household names like Martina McBride and Lady Antebellum.

John: When visiting your jimbrickman.com website I read you are offering a “Jim Brickman Escape Cruise” in 2013, where you and anyone interested can sail the Eastern Caribbean together. What are some of the cruise destinations you have traveled during your earlier vacation cruises, and what are some of the onboard cruise activities?

Jim Brickman: We have sailed all over the Caribbean, and the Mexican Riviera. Two years ago we took an amazing trip to Alaska, and this year we went to Hawaii. I do two concerts onboard, usually in a cabaret style theatre that lends itself to a more casual performance.

A favorite for the fans is the songwriting workshop where we actually write a song with the help of the audience. My parents have become a popular addition to the cruise, and we have a Q&A session with them where they tend to say more than they should! There are casual get-togethers where we all just hang out.

What’s really cool is that a lot of the same people who come back year after year and have made lifelong friends that they continue to travel with.

John: I saw at your website the CDs and DVDs items in your Christmas store section are generously priced at $10 and under. Even your newest releases Romanza & All Is Calm CDs are on sale. Would I be correct in saying Christmas is a very special time for you, and could you tell us why Christmas holds so much significance to you personally?

Jim Brickman: This may sound corny but, what makes Christmas so special to me is the music. We hear the same songs year after year. They create memories that tie generations together.

The old songs are sung in their original form or updated versions, but the message is the same. And sharing that with audiences every night is a wonderful gift I can share.

John: You are also involved with many charitable foundations for children. Would you tell us about your work as a philanthropist?

Jim Brickman: I try to get involved with charities that are affected by my music. When I heard that children with Autism responded to my music, I got involved with Autism Speaks. After Beautiful World was released, we raised money for UNICEF.

People tell me how my music has helped them through chemotherapy, and really hard times in their lives. It important to me to help raise awareness any way I can. Also, a scholarship has been established at my alma mater the Cleveland institute of Music in my honor.

John: Do you have any news or information to pass along regarding any new album projects you may have or special events you will be announcing soon?

Jim Brickman: I produced a Carpenters tribute show called Yesterday Once More that is currently touring the US. I’d love to do more theatrical type shows, maybe even write for Broadway!

John: Thank You again for spending time with us by way of our interview Jim. I look forward to the day when I can follow-up by another interview together.

In closing for now, do you have anything you would like to express to the people who will be attending a concert this year, and the many fans that have supported you throughout your career?

Jim Brickman: I am most humbled by people who tell me how my music has touched them. You really can’t measure something like that that in awards and sales.

Visit the jimbrickman.com homepage and the Jim Brickman Store. Find more about the topics Jim mentioned like his Holiday Concert Tour schedule for 2011 & 2012, and listen to his radio program at brickhouseradionetwork.com. Read my pages dedicated to Jim Brickman. Photos are courtesy Kirkland Performance Center & jimbrickman.com.

Suzanne Doucet is an award winning composer, producer, recording artist, and conceivably the worldwide leading authority in the new age music industry today. Beginning with her early founding innovations in the new age music business while living in Germany, Suzanne Doucet’s extensive career which spans a number of decades has played a vital role in the New Age Music genre. This is a point that remains true today, and one that simply cannot be overstated.

Suzanne Doucet continues her important leadership role by specializing as a creative consultant to artists, producers and record labels, radio programmers, distributors and music retailers around the globe. The New Age Music Circle is another venue where people of all nationalities have an opportunity to meet Suzanne Doucet, and participate in open dialogue at the forum she hosts from her home in Los Angeles California.

The New Age Music Circle is an international online community forum and discussion platform where top new age artists, industry professionals, and music fans alike can share music, videos, post information about events and participate in forum dialogue that cover a wide range of topics. Suzanne Doucet’s Music Circle is the leading international forum where all interested people and artists have an opportunity to join and meet new friends, exchange ideas with one another, and find out more about many of your favorite artists.

In this comprehensive 2011 interview, review publicist John Olsen has asked questions that detail many biographical aspects of Suzanne Doucet’s life and early career, up to her present day leadership role for which she is recognized today.

Suzanne Doucet Interview;

John Olsen: Thank you for consenting to my interview Suzanne. People want to know more about you, and it is truly an honor to present your most current interview to your many fans, colleagues, and the over a thousand New Age Circle Forum members currently on the membership roster. As a forum member myself I recognize membership extends to people from all parts of the world internationally. Would you like to begin our interview by telling everyone about the Circle, in terms of how the New Age Music Circle began, its mission, and plans for the future?

Suzanne Doucet: Thank you John for giving me the opportunity to have this interview with you. I feel very fortunate to be able to express my views with someone so experienced and prolific like you. To answer your question about the New Age Music Circle, this is how it actually began. Many years ago, in 1987 when we, (my husband James and I) opened the first and only new age music store in the world in West Hollywood/Melrose district, I also started an organization called “The New Age Music Network.” This organization was designed to support our genre and to bring our community closer together.

Somehow our store very quickly became a busy center and hub not only for customers, but also for artists and industry people. It was a time when new age music became very popular and we had monthly gatherings and events in our store for the new age music community. This eventually expanded into the International New Age Music Conference in 1989. Two more conferences followed and the First New Age World Music Festival at the Wiltern Theater in Los Angeles. We also had New Age Music Awards. Our early members included Stephen Hill, Peter Baumann, Steven Halpern, Michael Hoppé, Peter Kater, Richard Burmer, Michael Stearns, Paul Horn, Jai Uttal, Steve Roach, Matt Marshall from Higher Octave, the Radio Station 94.7 The Wave, Suzanne Ciani and many others. During the recession in 1992 we had to close our physical store after 5 years but quickly took Only New age Music online. We registered NewAgeMusic.com in 1995.  However the New Age Music Network was dormant after our last conference in 1991 until 2008. Then in 2008 the idea surfaced to reactivate the New Age Music Network online and to reconnect with all previous members, along with many new members, so I started the New Age Music Circle under the Ning Social Networking site online at: NewAgeMusik.Ning.com.

I guess it was just the right time, because many of my old friends and colleagues including Frank Schenker, Lloyd Barde, Steven Halpern, Kit Thomas and Michael Hoppé asked me why don’t we reactivate the New Age Music conference. I thought before we reactivate the conference we have to recreate the “official membership organization.” Now in terms of reactivating a New Age Music Conference I am suggesting to focus more on an event. This could be the New Age Music Awards (NAMA) followed by the conference. These are our plans for the future. Many members of the circle have responded very enthusiastic about this idea. I hope we can manifest it in 2012 or 2013.

John: Sounds from the Circle is a 3-album collection of releases from Circle member artists who submitted their New Age, or related sub-genre music to you for the 2009, 2010, and 2011 compilation albums. Would you tell us about the 3 Sounds from the Circle releases?

Suzanne Doucet: When I started the New Age Music Circle, a lot of artists placed their music on their pages, and in order to be able to listen on a continuous basis I featured my favorite tracks on the front page at the Circle Forum. I was amazed how much new music and great new talents were there, whom I was not aware of. I thought that their music and the music of all circle members should be made available to a broader audience and should also reach the industry and the media. My friend Beth Hilton and I came up with a concept for an MP3 compilation versus a regular CD. We were able to lower the cost for the participants and expand the listening time as well as having an innovative approach that might catch people’s attention for our genre. I invited the artists of the circle to participate for a small fee and the response was great!

We also made the Sounds from the Circle I, II & III available on iTunes as a play list, so the general public can purchase the compilations and every artist is receiving digital download income. We are sending the compilations to the media and we are distributing them at major tradeshows such as INATS or MIDEM. Right now I am preparing Sounds from the Circle IV, which should be available in early 2012. We are reaching a lot of people and we are able to promote the music from the artists of the circle as well as the New Age Music Circle itself and last but not least, the New Age Music genre!

John: You have an extensive career Suzanne, which began during the years you lived in Germany.  What was your earliest introduction to music, and at what point did you decide to pursue a career in music?

Suzanne Doucet: The earliest introduction to music I can remember was singing a Christmas song on stage when I was 2 ½ years old. I remember very clearly standing there seeing the audience and singing this beautiful song which translated said: “I am coming from heaven to bring you a message.” Later I would grab any instrument and try to play it. I recall my mother teaching me how to play harmonica when I was 5 and later I was given a violin at the age of 8 by my grandfather, but I was not allowed to practice in the house where we lived. So, I would go into the forest and play there. When I was eleven I was able to practice piano and started piano lessons, which also included me starting to write my first compositions. I was very fortunate to have a piano teacher who was quite “new age” in her approach. The book we used in the lessons was called The Inner Listening. In the beginning I had to play one tone after another and listen to it until the sound vanished into silence. Only many years later I understood the value of those lessons and what a great teacher I had.

However I studied all classical composers and played Mozart, Bach, Beethoven, Schuman, Schubert, Chopin, Bartok and many more of the popular classical and modern composers. My mother who was an actress had the most incredible vinyl music collection you can imagine and played continuously classical, jazz, Folklore and what we today call World Music.

When I was 16 I lived in Switzerland. I really missed the piano and wished for a guitar. I taught myself to play the guitar and learned over 300 folk and pop songs in many different languages. I also started to write my own songs and when I moved to Munich Germany and later to Paris France, I would sing in clubs, in the streets and parks. I was also very involved in painting. My family always thought I would become a painter. I started drawing when I was 3 and painted in oil and aquarelle later until my music career took over and I concentrated more on composing, writing and performing. I actually sold a few paintings at the age of 16 and financed my “independence” by moving to Munich Germany on my own without any financial support from my parents!

John: Early in life as it turned out, you became a very popular artist who achieved rock star status with several #1 hits in the 1960’s and 1970’s. Would you tell us about this period in your life, and the effect this had on your music career from then on?

Suzanne Doucet: It was really not my intention to become a recording artist. It just happened. I went to Munich to go the Academy of Visual Arts and I was planning to maybe go to acting school as well. However I missed the enrollment and made a living partially with selling newspapers in the arts quarters of Munich, mostly in the evenings in clubs. It was much easier to sell those papers when I sang a few songs with the bands.

There was also song competitions going on every week and I won first place most of the time, which got me my first job as a singer in an American Forces Night Club. That was a great training because I had to learn 40 plus American standards (songs) in two weeks and I had to play percussion, guitar and sometimes piano in the band. A few months later a colleague of my mother asked me if I wanted to do an audition for the main German TV station NDR in Hamburg. They were looking for completely unknown talents and planning a series of improvised shows. Improvisation was one of my passions and I loved to do standup comedy, sketches, and improvised scenes.

I went with a very talented young actor and friend Martin Luettge, and we had no expectations whatsoever to get the gig. We were very excited just to have a chance to see a television studio. Actually that was much more important to us. We were very surprised that we were the only ones invited, and we had a contract for two years in our pocket when we left. That first show was a success and a few other TV shows followed. In the same year I received an offer from a record company to do a single. I wasn’t too crazy about singing German pop songs, but I made a deal with Leif Kraul who was the president of Metronome. If I had a hit record I would then be able to record an album with my own songs. He agreed to my proposal not knowing that my second single (the German version of the U.S. hit Be my Baby) went to the #1 charts in Germany. After 2 subsequent hit singles I went to Leif in 1965 and asked him about our agreement. He was not too happy about it and said that “we should not confuse the public now.” This was his way of saying no. So, I offered to produce my first album myself, and with my own money. The only condition was that Metronome would release the album. He agreed, probably thinking that, I would never do that but six months later I put the finished master on his desk. That was the album Rot wie Rubin. This changed my status in the entertainment industry in Germany completely.

John: I found your career as an actress and television entertainer very impressive Suzanne. You were in fact a star! I read during your role as entertainer and hostess for popular, prime time television shows in Germany and Switzerland, guests on your prime time televised programs included the famous superstars; Bee Gees, Grateful Dead, Keith Emerson, David Bowie, and many more star celebrities. Do you have some memorable stories you would like to share while you were an entertainment hostess, and would you tell us all about your career as an actress?

Suzanne Doucet: I always worked as an actress throughout my career which included plays, theater and musicals like Godspell with Donna Summer in Munich, TV-Plays and doing voice overs, directory assistance, script and film editing. I also started directing and producing when I was 19 – 20 years old. Because of my mother being an actress, mostly theater, I performed on stage very early at age 11 and played my first main role on stage when I was 17.

Pretty much everything I did in my career happened unexpectedly. All of a sudden I found myself a singer, appearing in major TV shows next to celebrities and being on cover pages, getting hundreds of fan letters per day. It was a great time and I took the opportunity to learn as much as I could, but I was never really attached to this world of glitter and fame.

Something in me was always pointing to a deeper reality and my vision was to express those thoughts and feelings through art. One of the greatest opportunities for me was that I could travel the world through my ability to perform and enjoy experiencing many different countries and cultures. I came to the U.S. for the first time in 1968.

My main interest was not to be in the spotlight, but to produce and direct. I had a passion for film as well. My vision of an ideal art form was music combined with visuals. So, I took every opportunity to learn wherever I was. While shooting TV shows I studied what the camera was doing, went to the editing room and discussed production topics with the producer and director. How can entertainment be improved? How can we bring in more quality and important messages?

Swiss and German TV asked me to become a host in their top music shows and I happily accepted. Being a host for 2 of the most popular European shows at the time was another opportunity to do things differently! I was able to co-create the concepts of the presentations in the format of innovative sketches and of course there were many interesting encounters with great artists, managers, musicians, directors and industry executives. One of the shows I did was in Switzerland was called Hits a gogo. It was a live TV show, which I liked much more than taped shows. There is something amazing for me in the “irreplaceable moment” and the uniqueness of “this is it.” Even if the walls are falling or someone is not showing up in time, which happened in my shows several times, you have to pull through. It is like playing theater or performing on stage. You never know how it will turn out and that brings in the magic. I had to speak 4 languages in this show. German, French, Italian, and English. I think the funniest show was one in which I addressed the UK artists in Italian and the French guys in German, the German artists in French and the Italian artist in English.

I remember having David Bowie in 1968 with his first hit Space Oddity in my show and the progressive rock group Yes and so many other great performers. Unforgettable was for me Keith Emerson with his group The Nice as my guest in the first color TV show in Switzerland. He played the song America. It was an awesome performance! You can see this video on You Tube. Several years later I saw him again with Emerson, Lake & Palmer in New York, at Madison Square Garden. That was one of the greatest concerts I have ever seen in my life!

John: Early on you established your own record company (Isis Music International) and had introduced new age music in Europe for the very first time by songs from your album entitled In Essig und Oel. In fact, many of your songs and albums like Red as a Ruby & Reisefieber were very innovative. Could you tell us about your groundbreaking songs, albums, and releases you produced with other artists?

Suzanne Doucet: Yes, after having been signed to various Indies and major labels of Metronome, Liberty, Prom (CBS, TELDEC), Phillips and EMI. Still struggling with the industry about quality and commerce, I finally decided to start my own label. My first release was my last album as a singer with what you could call “new age songs” in 1979. I was singing songs about my own “spiritual journey.” This endeavor was quite successful and I received a lot of applause from the audience, the media and the industry! I was organizing my own PR, radio and retail tour, which was challenging. But most of the TV and radio hosts were supportive and embraced the idea that an artist would start their own label with enthusiasm. I was able to get onto the music charts and do well with my first release Reisefieber, which was also my last album as a singer.

I had started already in 1970 to break out of the traditional pop format by releasing a psychedelic Krautrock adventure on Phillips. A triple album called Zweistein (artist/group) Trip, Flip Out, and Meditation. You can see from the titles where I was heading. I went from psychedelics to spirituality like many other colleagues from my generation. In 1974 I recorded In Essig & Oel which was my first album with new age songs and poetic songs describing a deeper meaning of life and searching for truth.

Musically I believe that I was fortunate to always work with the most outstanding musicians, arrangers and sound engineers. And as a producer I always pushed the envelope. The result was that these productions stood out and received raving reviews for what they were. You could not really compare my albums with anyone else. That was on one hand a great advantage on the other hand seemed an obstacle for the industry. They could never seem to place me in one particular category.

I was always looking for the best possible way of expression and I never liked to conform to certain preconceived ideas or concepts. This was already apparent in my first album production Rot wie Rubin with Rio Gregory. The best description for this album is probably “Ethereal, Poetic Songs and Sound Paintings.” These elements always remained in my albums. I was looking for something new and innovative, and later with artists such as Christian Buehner, Gary Miraz, Chuck Plaisance or Tajalli, I explored new sounds and new ways of composing, performing and recording in the instrumental world of new age music.

John: You have numerous collaboration and solo albums, many of which were groundbreaking at the time like we have talked about earlier. Of your latest recordings and re-releases, what are some albums you would suggest people to sample, for those who may not be as familiar with your music?

Suzanne Doucet: My first collaboration with Christian Buehner was the album Transformation in 1982. From my solo albums I would recommend Reflecting Light & The OM Sound. With Tajalli I recorded Tantra Zone and with Chuck Plaisance over 40 albums of Nature Sounds and Nature Sounds with Music. I would recommend The Sounds of Nature Sampler and the Tranquility Series Sampler. Resonance with Gary Miraz is one of my favorites because it was created so effortlessly. Sireena in Germany recently released a compilation of my singer, songwriter era. The album is called Wo sind all die schoenen Jahre. It has songs from 4 albums. The songs can be sampled at Tunes.

John: You moved to California in 1983 and later founded the very first new age music retail outlet store in the world called Only New Age Music. Would you tell us about your business experience and events during this time in your life?

Suzanne Doucet: The idea to open up a store dedicated to the New Age Music genre came from my own experience by having to go to 5 different stores to find 5 different albums. I thought there should a place where people can find everything they are looking for in new age music. My husband and daughter Natascha, who was 7 years old at the time, drove cross-country twice and we visited every bookstore and every distributor of new age music we could find in 1983 – 1984. We also visited and met with many artists and upcoming record labels. We went to new age communities and centers and shows like the Whole Life Expo and others. It was exciting for us to see that there was a real community, much larger than in Germany or Europe at the time. We started selling our own cassettes from Isis Music in Venice at the boardwalk in 1986 and we wanted to expand into a retail outlet. It took us 6 months to find the right place. My son Shaman was 6 months old, and Natascha was 10 years old when we sold cassettes at the beach.

John: I read many customers of your Only New Age Music store were famous celebrities. Steve Martin was one celebrity. Who were some of the other regular patrons of your business?

Suzanne Doucet: Robert Redford, Sylvester Stallone, William Schatner, Prince, Sonja Braga, Shirley Maclaine and many others. They all bought new age music from our store for various reasons. I guess we had opened the store at the right time in the right place. The day after our official opening we had the LA times, Billboard magazine, Eyes on LA, CBS News, and in the weeks and months following, Japanese and European Television as well as Life Magazine and many more. Two months after our opening the mainstream Radio Station KTWV – The WAVE started playing new age music and sent every listener who called our way. We were able to co-sponsor concerts with The WAVE like Suzanne Ciani at the Roxie (which was a FIRST) and so we became the center hub for new age music. It all just happened naturally.

John: Another first you are credited with is your production and direction of the very first 3 international New Age Music Conferences. Plus you organized the very first New Age World Music Festival featuring 22 international bands and musicians in Los Angeles. Please Suzanne, would you tell us all about your leadership role in these historic events involving the New Age Music genre?

Suzanne Doucet: As I mentioned before the new age music network that was formed in 1987 evolved into these conferences and the concert at the Wiltern. I had this vision that the public did not really grasp the multitude of diverse influences from various cultures and musical styles that new age musicians would incorporate in their music. I felt a concert bringing as many different expressions of this music on stage would be the driving force behind the idea for the store, for the conference, and the concert.

John: Today during your present position as marketing strategist, consultant and online retailer, you assist hundreds of musicians, producers, record labels, radio and radio programmers, and music retailers. It seems you offer assistance to nearly everyone! This is a really broad question but would you outline your responsibilities, professional services you offer, and the corresponding websites?

Suzanne Doucet: I have been assisting other artists and record labels with the help of my husband James since 1987. Because I have a broad view of the new age music market being an artist, publisher, label owner, retailer, promoter and producer myself, I can put myself almost into anyone’s shoes. I am very often looking at campaign strategies from various aspects to make sure it works for the artist, but also for the media person, the retailer or the distributor. Whether we are talking about production, packaging, promotion, sales or advertising it has to work for everyone involved. Many artists see everything from their own perspective only, so I am coaching them and assisting them in whatever their project is.

I have been very fortunate to work with amazing talents such as Alex de Grassi, Patrick O’Hearn, Liquid Mind, Omar Akram, Christopher Franke (TG), Paul Avgerinos, Golaná, Ray Leonard, Michael Hoppé, Fiona Joy Hawkins, Lia Scallon and Hennie Bekker, to mention a few. I also worked with various record labels in the capacity of a creative consultant.

I assisted Soundscan with their New Age genre definition and programmed several DMX music channels. What I am offering is assistance with audio and video production, packaging, graphics, promotion and marketing. I provide innovative ideas and new solutions in any area of the project. You could also call me a project director and/or project manager. I believe one of the most important aspects of my work is that I fill in the gaps. I usually find out very quickly what is missing and help provide the missing components. My strengths also involve strategy, campaign planning and looking for creative ways of enhancing a project. I love graphic arts and filming. Whenever needed I create artwork, and together with my husband and Beth Hilton to produce videos, interviews and visual music clips. You can see some on YouTube.

I still don’t have any formula and look at every project with fresh eyes. I work with a team of professional promoters, marketing experts and distribution channels. I believe I am quite flexible with my services and I am willing to talk for an hour with someone and give him or her, the information he or she can use with no strings attached, or work on a continuous basis, monthly, or sometimes for years. One of my clients has used my services for almost 20 years on and off. I can take on tasks myself and do work for the artist but I prefer that the artist learns everything I know, so they can do it themselves and they won’t require my assistance anymore.

John: I read you serve on the GRAMMY® committee. If the NARAS (National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences) guidelines allow, can you tell us your role while serving on the GRAMMY® Awards committee?

Suzanne Doucet: I am not allowed to specifically talk about my role at NARAS (National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences), but I have to say that I enjoy very much what I am doing there for the past 25 years.

John: Your career so multifaceted and diverse Suzanne! I am sure there are many topics I am leaving out. Is there anything you would like to tell about yourself?  Perhaps you could tell everyone about the recognition and achievements you have been honored with during your career?

Suzanne Doucet: It might be important to mention that through immaterial gifts from my parents I was able to learn a lot very early in life which enabled me to have trust in whatever I was doing. My mother being an actress introduced me from infancy on to theater, art, music, literature, philosophy, healthy living, yoga and metaphysics. My father, a Jungian Psychologist introduced me early on to the most important questions in life, for example who I am, what life is all about, and how can find understanding of this existence. Without them I would not have been able to accomplish the various things I did in life, so I am very grateful to my parents for their support.

I would also like to mention that I was always conscious of the spiritual reality as long as I can remember, but never attached to any religion or group. I studied many spiritual traditions and I also studied psychologists such as C.G. Jung. Through my father’s (Dr. F.W. Doucet) studies in parapsychology, and super learning in the late sixties and early seventies I slowly integrated metaphysical elements into my work, and that’s how I really came to create new age music. My father inspired me to study Pythagorean Harmonics, which to me is one of the most fascinating subjects on earth and this study naturally gave me the understanding why music created with a certain consciousness and understanding is so essential for everyone on this planet.

I also have to thank my musical mentor Rio Gregory, an incredible pianist, arranger and composer whom I met when I was 16. He guided me musically for many years and we wrote many songs together. Also Anja Hauptmann, my lyrical collaborator and best friend was instrumental in many ways. There were numerous other friends and colleagues who inspired the work I am doing and every one of them has a place in my heart.

There were a few awards. I remember in 1966 I won second place at the Song Festival in Knoggke, Belgium. I received an award in Italy even earlier in 1962, which was the Golden Margharita in Viareggio Italy, and there might have been a few other festivals in Europe. In the U.S., I received a Silver Award for best Music Video at the Houston Film and Video Festival for Starflight, a visual music piece produced and directed with Christopher Toussaint. I received a COVR award for Feather on the Wind – an album a co-produced with Golaná. I also wrote the title song and won an award for Best Mediation and Best Electronic Album for my collaboration with RAY (Ray Leonard). The album is called Celestial Touch.

John: Thank You again for taking time out for our interview Suzanne. I trust we will find time to interview again in the future. For now, is there anything you would like to express to your fans, colleagues, or Circle members?

Suzanne Doucet: Many thanks to everyone I was able to meet, and for sharing their music and experiences with me. I am blessed to have met so many wonderful people in my life, many of them in the new age music community. I love my fans, colleagues and Circle members. I am grateful to be part of such a creative and talented community, and I truly do not perceive myself so much as the doer but more as an instrument among many others in this fabulous orchestra of existence. Thank you too John for this interview.

You can visit Suzanne Doucet & Circle members at NewAgeMusik.ning.com & her personal SuzanneDoucet.com website. You can find more great music for sample or purchase at her NewAgeMusic.com & NewAgeUniverse.com sites. Visit her YouTube Channel & her New Age Music Channel and my Suzanne Doucet page. Photos are courtesy Suzanne Doucet.

NewAgeMusicWorld.com is honored to be a helpful source of information to visitors searching for top new age albums, songs, videos and the very best music available today. Along with my role as review publicist, I regularly feature many of today’s top artists by an interview publication. Writing interview and review editorials for my website visitors are just part of what I do while offering free support to the many independent and label musicians I represent worldwide.

I have 19 interview publications at New Age Music World presently, plus I have several interviews scheduled with artists almost everyone will recognize. I will keep these esteemed new age musicians a secret for now, but I do want to tell you about my most recent interview. While my name is far from a familiar name, the site host for The Music Explorer, Alvaro Villa André from Spain requested an interview with me. During my interview I answer his questions related to the great musicians I feature at New Age Music World.

The interview with John Olsen if anything gives insight about my responsibilities as a site host and the artists I represent. I am not here to promote myself so I basically give my viewpoint as an artist representative and music site host. Rather than publish this interview at my website, visit The Music Explorer to find out more about my responsibilities if you would like.

Visit the-music-explorer.com homepage and read Alvaro Villa André’s – Interview with John P. Olsen, plus you can read his New Age Music World pages. Then read my musician interviews with today’s best artists. Two future editorials I have are a “Best Christmas Albums” and “Best New Age Music Albums in 2011” articles, so visit New Age Music World again soon.

Coburn Tuller from Springfield Missouri is a New Age artist releasing an innovative new album that is capturing the attention of many review publicists, and the buying public upon its initial release. One reason for the increasing interest given to his debut album is undeniably the relaxing qualities of his music. Another reason could be related to the unique melodic intonations heard on his first album which were produced from a musical instrument he invented and has named The Tones.

Coburn Tuller’s first album release is entitled Butterfly Tones. It is a rare occasion when an artist can discover a completely new and original sound identity for themselves, but this is the given circumstance with Coburn Tuller.

The exclusive Butterfly Tones release which features 9 songs of melodic bell timbres has proven to be an innovative source of musical harmony, and one of the most original arrangements available in recent memory.

New Age Music World host John Olsen recently had the opportunity to meet Coburn Tuller in person for their interview which covers topics about Coburn’s first release and his one of a kind instrument. Included are accolades of praise made by some of the industry’s top New Age review publicists. Music World is pleased to present this interview to Coburn Tuller’s fans and to our site visitors.

Interview with Coburn Tuller;

John Olsen:  It was truly a pleasure to meet you and your family for the first time Coburn. My wife and I also had a great time meeting some of your friends and the impromptu concert you performed for everyone on the unique instrument you invented and have aptly named The Tones.

Coburn Tuller:  Glad you enjoyed it. It’s always a pleasure to have good friends over and playing the Tones is always fun.

John:  Would you like to begin by telling everyone the circumstances of how your idea for The Tones first began?

Coburn Tuller:  It was during one of my midnight walks when I heard the sound of wind chimes wafting through the evening air. I’d heard the tinkle-tinkle kind of chimes before, but these were the new generation of beautiful sounding wind chimes that had just come out. That was in October of 1996. The nest day I was passing my favorite metal store and just cruised in to see what they might have in the left over bin. Among the chunks of aluminum was a round tube that when struck with a mallet sounded for almost 2 minutes. I was mesmerized. So I went back to get some more and soon had 7, then 14 and then 20 Tones to play and experiment with. Thus began 12 years of various designs and many detours until the present set emerged.

John:  Our interview together includes pictures of your instrument, but to give everyone a better idea of what is involved, could you describe the materials and dimension of The Tones?

Coburn Tuller:  The present set was completed in 2008. It consists of 90 tones of aluminum and brass ranging from 7 in. to over 6 ft. in length. The three wooden pyramid frames are slightly over 8 feet high and the entire set is 7 feet deep x 9 feet across. All together is weighs almost 750 pounds.

John:  You were telling me that over the past 15 years you have devoted a lot of time perfecting your instrument which must have been a real challenge at times. What were some of the early prototypes like, and could you describe some of the challenges involved with fabricating a new musical instrument?

Coburn Tuller:  There were a variety of early designs. At first I simply suspended each Tones in cradles of fishing line at each node. After a few months I rigged a set of 25 Tones into a frame with two layers, one on top of the other like a marimba or two layer amadinda. I tried simply bolting the Tones in place but found that they had almost no ring at all, so I went back to the string idea experimenting with various types of cord and eventually went back to heavy duty fishing line for this model. I played this design all through the first winter and following spring until I had more time to experiment.

I next tried other kinds of metal, copper, aluminum conduit and stainless steel-whatever I could find at the salvage yard. The stainless sounded more like hitting a pipe but the other two had promise. Mind you, I had to work my normal business as a set builder so there were weeks and even months when we had a big set to build that I had absolutely no time whatsoever for Tones.

I suppose the biggest prototype was the five layer instrument I began around 2000. It was to have 2 layers of aluminum thick wall, one of aluminum conduit, one of copper and a fifth of brass if I could find it at the scrap yard, which was where a good portion of the metal came from.  I did get the first two layers built including the damper system designed to allow the Tones to be muted by degrees depending on how hard you pressed on the pedals. But I suspended the project when it failed to ring like I knew it could if only I could build it correctly. You see, the main impetus has always been the sound and even when other people would complement me on the sound it made, I always knew there was another dimension of sound in there somewhere.

About this time I noticed that I was playing one note more than any other. At first I thought I just liked the G tone best, but eventually I noticed that particular note had vibrato as well as sustain. This caused me to rework the entire set and replace every note with one that had vibrato. Quite the chore since only one in 5 or 6 Tones has that quality.

In 2002 we started a yoga studio and I built a set of 7 Tones that hung vertically from a simple sweeping Zen type frame. We used it for om meditations before and after yoga practice. It was a little tricky since the Tones would swing and clang together if you were not real careful how you struck them. One day, one of the strings broke and the Tones crashed to the floor. In frustration I asked my then sweetheart Ellen, “What should I do now?” She leaned over and peered at the wreckage and said,”What if you hang them horizontal.” Brilliant! Then I saw that they could have a pyramid shaped frame and I was off and running in the direction that led to the present set. It took another 2 years to build the first pyramid set and an additional 3 more years for the other two pyramids, but the sought after design was finally coming together.

The biggest challenge all along has been that there is nothing else like it so I had no one else’s experience to go on. I just had to keep at it until either I stumbled upon the right course or, as so often happens, someone else suggested something that turned out to lead to the best way to do it.

John:  Was tuning each aluminum tube to a true pitch one of the most challenging aspects, and could you tell us the tuning scale or harmonic pitch of The Tones?

Coburn Tuller:  Tuning was very involved. I had design a tuning device that consisted of a strobe tuner like what piano tuners use along with a frequency counter so I could know exactly each tone’s vibration. I would cut and listen, then trim by degrees until the note was right.

Shaving off too much, even the thickness of a sheet of paper, meant the Tone was too sharp and went to recycling. Even shooting a coat of clear finish on a Tone could make it sharp. My final method was to rough tune, finish, then fine tune and hope I didn’t go over. All in all, to get the 90 Tones I have now, I have been through more than 600 pieces of tubing.

The scale, too, is tricky because I wanted to tune to what is called Just Intonation, the scale that early classical music was played in and that is closest to the vibration of the major chakras. That way, the Tones would have a healing and relaxing effect. Since no other instrument is tuned to this scale, that was also a rather involved process.

John:  I can see how involved the development has been. Now we have a better idea of the instrument you performed on for your first album entitled Butterfly Tones, could you tell us your early music history and educational background in music?

Coburn Tuller:  I started playing guitar as a young teenager and especially liked open tunings.  I built my first dulcimer at age 17 and even made a few for sale over the years. In 1978 I joined a Belly Dance Troupe called Arabesque. I was the leader of the band on a special two neck dulcimer/guitar instrument I fashioned from my Grandfather’s old Harp Guitar.

In college I took up piano and synthesizer as part of a music and dance major.  In 1979 built a special 3 neck dulcimer I called the Dulcitar, following that in 1982 with a Yang Chin or Chinese Hammer Dulcimer, both of which I used to write the music for some of my dances and video pieces while at the university. I also wrote the songs and incidental music for a children’s production while there.

John:  Knowing your earlier experiences as a musician, was it easy to make a transition and begin composing music for a completely new instrument, and how did you compose the music for your first album?

Coburn Tuller:  Actually, I originally thought I would build and sell Tone Sets, but there was always one more improvement to make and when I had the present set completed, the music just started coming through. Fortunately, I had done recording before so it wasn’t a completely new and overwhelming proposition. It did take almost 3 years, however, to compose the 9 tracks on this CD. Sometimes it was merely waiting for inspiration but often I would get a new idea while fine tuning a particular note or I would hear a train whistle in the distance and hum a counterpoint which would begin a new piece. Sometimes I just hit the Tones and let them ring and played with melodies under the sustained notes. One day my sweetheart Mary said, “Just play the low and high C note,” so I did and that developed into Mystic Dream. I guess the short answer is various ways of composing.

John:  When you composed Butterfly Tones, did you write the musical notations for the 9 songs on a music sheet, or do you compose and perform by memory alone?

Coburn Tuller:  I perform entirely by memory.

John:  You and I had talked about the many possibilities in which your music can be applied to instrumental scores simply because of the unique intonations of your instrument. If the opportunity arose, would you consider collaborating with another musician by having other New Age artists utilize your music for a combined project together?

Coburn Tuller:  Definitely. I would welcome collaboration and would love to be part of another project.

 John:  Given the fact there is a lot involved in composing, producing, and marketing an album, do you find being a recording artist who has marketed his first album a rewarding experience, and what are some of the challenges to marketing an album yourself?

Coburn Tuller:  Fortunately, I published a book in 1995 so had some experience with marketing then. This introduced me to the major New Age distributors and magazines. The internet, however, has changed almost everything about the marketing game so it’s been rather a steep learning curve with much more to come. The biggest challenge is obtaining album reviews and seeing them published so that potential fans can learn about the music and be encouraged to listen to the clips online. I also have ads in the major magazines that go to buyers for the New Age Bookstores and boutiques. As always with doing anything yourself, it takes a lot of time but is rewarding when a project becomes successful like this one is becoming.

John:  I read some great reviews on your website reviews page.  Would you like to tell us what some of the other review publicists like me have said about The Tones and the innovative musical arrangements you have created on Butterfly Tones?

Coburn Tuller:  The reception from major reviewers has been extraordinary!  All in all, I couldn’t be more pleased with the excellent reception this CD is garnering.

Michael Diamond called the Tones “a stunning work of art” that “produces exquisite sounds that reverberate and sustain creating a sea of harmonic overtones.”

Kathy Parsons suggests the music as “an ideal accompaniment for massage, meditation and relaxation by taking a person’s focus into a new musical realm altogether.”

Bill Binkelman describes the music as “rich, resonant bell-like tones with amazing, sustained durations that overlap like ripples in a pond.”

Steven Ferrino said “I am noticing the ambiance of my office coming to life with the vibration of the notes filling the room. The playful notes seem to have a life of their own as they bounce off the wall.”

Alejandro Clavijo of ReviewsNewAge.com wrote my newest album review. Alejandro said; “Coburn Tuller has created a lovely album, unlike any other music CD on a percussion instrument. The instrument has a fascinating harmonic richness, depending on the intensity of the blow, the brightness and sound can vary in intensity and this creates a beauty that resides in each composition.”

John:  I agree with them totally! The positive statements from these review publicists are a superb reflection of your work! Recently you told me you are planning on another project. Is your second release going to be similar to your first or do you have something else planned on your second recording?

Coburn Tuller:  I have been talking with one musician friend in particular about putting some violin and/or mandolin tracks on my upcoming CD I plan to begin this fall.

I think the next CD should have something new that expands on what has come before. As such, I have just completed the addition of a set of copper Tones to the main set which brings the count up to 120 Tones. The copper Tones have an almost Asian quality to them and a shorter sustain which allows for a different kind of melodic interplay.

John:  Sounds wonderful! We look forward to your second release. Coburn, I enjoyed meeting you, and hope we can arrange another get together soon. In closing, is there anything you would like to comment on that we haven’t talked about?

Coburn Tuller:  Just to say I love the music The Tones can create and I am thrilled I can share it with your special audience.

Visit Coburn Tuller at his butterflytonescd.com homepage and visit his CDBaby.com or Amazon.com to sample or purchase. Read what others are saying on Coburn’s reviews page, and find more on our page dedicated to Coburn Tuller.

Photos are courtesy butterflytonescd.com.

Fionnuala Sherry is the celebrated violinist and fairer side of the music duo Secret Garden, along with becoming the most current artist to be featured by a musician interview at New Age Music World. While Fionnuala’s fame and success as a music partner with Norwegian composer and pianist Rolf Løvland of Secret Garden has earned them both admiration by millions as a team, Fionnuala Sherry who resides in Ireland, can claim a brilliant success of her own by the release of her first solo album entitled Songs From Before.

Songs From Before is Fionnuala Sherry’s unique and personal revision on some of the most beloved melodies of Irish heritage. In addition, her contemporary instrumental album with 10 songs total also includes some unreleased original compositions that beautifully highlight her expertise as a violinist and vocalist.

Her instrumental CD in entirety is a moving experience and inspirational beacon showing her in a new light, yet her solo release continues the true to character tradition, in regards to the fine violin melodies for which she is famous.

Fionnuala Sherry’s solo album Songs From Before also happens to be a very popular album that had risen to the number 2 position of the Top 25 for June on Echoes radio program within days of the release. Her solo release was also awarded Echoes CD of the Month for July on Echoes radio, a popular online radio program that is broadcast on 130 radio stations in North America.

Review publicist, and New Age Music World host John Olsen recently had the opportunity to interview the internationally renowned violinist Fionnuala Sherry, so today we are pleased to present their conversation to her fans and to our site visitors.

             Interview with Fionnuala Sherry in 2011.

John Olsen:  Let me begin by expressing my gratitude for approving of my interview request on short notice Fionnuala. Your first solo album is now available in North American markets after a successful earlier release in Europe.

I have read Songs From Before was a project in the planning stages for many years, and you have wanted to introduce your contemporary revision on traditional Irish classics for some time now. Why did this album become such an important artistic statement you wanted to express musically?

Fionnuala Sherry:  I am so happy now to have produced this CD as I have lived with these old Irish tunes for all my life and the strange thing is that as a professional violinist I never had the opportunity to perform them.

I think they have always influenced me as these beautiful airs have been a musical backdrop to my growing up and it felt just right for me to revisit them. I felt I had now learned so much over the years that I could this time hopefully bring all I have learned to the table and give them a new and contemporary edge.

John:  What were the circumstances that led you to produce Songs From Before at this point in time?

Fionnuala Sherry:  The timing was right. I had taken some down time away from Secret Garden in fact I stopped playing for nearly 2 years. I guess I was just burned out. Slowly the passion returned and I felt if ever I was going to record these beloved songs it was the perfect time.

John:  Songs From Before is an album comprised of mostly traditional melodies of Ireland, which is somewhat in contrast to your Secret Garden arrangements. Did you find performing modern revisions of familiar Irish melodies more of a challenge or merely a variation in how you regularly compose music?

Fionnuala Sherry:  I approached this CD with the same discipline as to other Secret Garden albums. The key for me in producing the right kind of sound was teaming up with Kjetil Bjekestrand. A wonderful Norwegian composer and programmer who “got” what I was trying to do. He also came with fresh and innocent ears to these tunes having no earlier knowledge of them. Through him he helped to give me the freedom to write around the airs and to approach them in a new way.

John:  I have to admit I am less familiar with traditional Irish melodies so wondered if you give everyone some historical context of the songs you have re-created. Are they primarily hymns or ballads?

Fionnuala Sherry:  They are really neither, Irish airs were just that they could be sung with sometimes added lyrics, or they were simply played on a fiddle, or whistle or harp etc. When these tunes were handed down from generation to generation they were in the form of verse only which was repeated and repeated.

We are more familiar nowadays with songs having the form of verse, chorus, maybe bridge chorus etc. So the challenge for me to work these simple (one verse only) airs into a more substantial composition was with the additional writing and arrangement which Kjetil and I worked on together.

John:  Do you plan to release another solo album someday Fionnuala?

Fionnuala Sherry:  Yes I would love to and hope that will happen.

John:  I understand you were raised at home with a family of musicians. Could you tell us about some of your early experiences growing up in a house full of musicians?

Fionnuala Sherry:  It was great fun most of the time as there was always something going on and my parents gave loads of parties and in true Irish form everybody always had a party piece, so there was lots of singing and playing.

But like all kids there were also times when I was very envious of my friends out on the road when they were out playing and kicking a ball etc. when I was stuck in rehearsing. Many are a time I would have loved to have swopped places!

John:  With your Secret Garden album Inside I’m Singing being your second most current release, I am sure everyone would like to know if you and Rolf Løvland have another Secret Garden project planned in the future?

Fionnuala Sherry:  We are about to release our latest CD which is due out on November 7th. It’s called “Winter Poem.”

John:  This is great news your new Secret Garden CD is nearing the release date! The title Winter Poem has a very nice ring to it. Even before your celebrity prominence with Secret Garden you had projects with music superstars including Bono of U2, Chris de Burgh, Sinéad O’Connor, The Chieftains, and many more popular artists. Would you tell us about your associations with these great artists?

Fionnuala Sherry:  The good thing about growing up and working in Ireland is how small the country is and so it’s easy to get to know everybody. I was lucky that when I turned pro I began to work a lot in the different studios as a backing musician to these amazing artists and it was a wonderful time as there was such a dynamic feeling everywhere with fantastic people producing brilliant music. I am still amazed that when I tour all over the world as we have been fortunate enough to do so how many Irish acts appears in the charts! For such a small country the output is incredible!

John:  Along with the respect people have of you for being one of Ireland’s most successful songwriting musicians, you have also had stars like Barbra Streisand, Josh Groban, Westlife, 11 Divo and Celtic Woman making popular hits with your song compositions. I imagine this must be pretty gratifying to you and Rolf Løvland?

Fionnuala Sherry:  Rolf is the master of the writing; I am there as his guiding hand and co-producer, but it has been an incredible journey for us and especially with the song “You Raise Me Up.” It feels like only yesterday when we first began teasing out the melody to that song and now 10 years have passed! But even back then we knew it had something magical – and it has been a rollercoaster all the way.

John:  Speaking of your Secret Garden arrangements, I truly enjoyed watching numerous music videos of your concert performances including the orchestral DVD titled; A Night With Secret Garden. During these concerts you seem so energetic yet relaxed and poised, all in one motion. I take it you are quite comfortable performing live on stage in front of a large audience?

Fionnuala Sherry:  I suffer from the worst stage fright you can imagine, every night is as terrifying as the previous one and there are nights I don’t think I will make it. For me it’s like doing an enormous bungee to get out on that stage! But then something special always happens with the audience and once I relax it becomes magical. I wish it could be easier for me but accept now that I will always be nervous.

John:  I read your concert and studio instrument of choice is an English John Edward Betts violin from 1790 time period. When did you acquire this violin, and can you tell us some of the history behind your vintage instrument?

Fionnuala Sherry:  When I got my first full time pro job in the RTE Concert Orchestra, the first thing the principal conductor said to me was to get a better instrument! He hated the sound of what I had. So my eldest brother kindly lent me the money as I was broke and a wonderful old German violin dealer I knew helped to locate this instrument for me.

It was instant love as it is smaller in size than normal which suits my small hands. It didn’t sound very good at first as there were a lot of dead spots as they reckoned it had not been played for nearly a 100 years before me! So I had to work very hard with this instrument which still gets better and better, I love it.

John:  You have so many achievements for you to choose from on this question Fionnuala, but I would like to know what you find most rewarding as a professional musician?

Fionnuala Sherry:  I think it’s been able to communicate through the language of music which is just about emotions and feelings and when I see the effect it has on people, and if it helps them get away from all their daily grind for even a moment – that is the most satisfying thing.

John:  Thank you again for giving me this opportunity to present our interview together as a feature Music World publication. I look forward to providing more news coverage about you in the days ahead. Before we close for now, is there anything you would like to tell your friends and fans that have supported you over the years?

Fionnuala Sherry:  I am so grateful to everybody that has supported me over these last years. Without you, I or Secret Garden would not exist, so from the bottom of my heart a thousand thanks and hope you will all continue to enjoy this musical journey with me.

Visit the fionnualasherry.com homepage and valley-entertainment.com music store to sample or purchase her solo album – Songs From Before. You may also find her music at Amazon.com or iTunes. Then visit Fionnuala Sherry and Rolf Løvland at the secretgarden.no homepage and web shop page. You can read more on our pages dedicated to Fionnuala Sherry.

Photography courtesy Andreas Pettersson – FionnualaSherry.com – SecretGarden.no.

Randy and Pamela Copus are the husband and wife duo that is the complete heart and spirit of 2002. It was nineteen years ago when 2002 first began producing music with their first album titled Wings. From the beginning and throughout their careers, it’s as if their popular celestial melodies have soared in an ascending flight of their own.

The 2002 music duo Randy and Pamela Copus are without a doubt, one of the finest musical groups producing music today. Many would agree, and their popularity is pretty apparent by the number of times 2002 has been listed as a favorite musical group on the Billboard New Age Charts over the years, and their constancy of producing fine releases.

Presently, Randy and Pamela are nearing a significant milestone in their music careers by an upcoming 20 year anniversary. Review publicist John Olsen has interviewed Randy and Pamela in which many topics were covered. NewAgeMusicWorld.com & NewAgeMusic.nu are pleased to present their conversation to fans of 2002, and our site visitors.

John Olsen:  I want to thank you both for taking time out of your schedule for our interview together. I have been a big fan of your music for years so our interview together is even more rewarding to me personally.

You are approaching a significant milestone by your upcoming 20 year anniversary as 2002. Given your ever-rising popularity as New Age music producers, have you had much time to reflect over your roles as musicians and many achievements during the past 20 years?

Randy:  Wow, 20 years! It seems like just yesterday we were producing Wings, and watching the 2002 sound take on a life of its own. We don’t spend much time reflecting on our past because we’re always moving forward, constantly trying to improve our music and how we produce it.

John:  I find it impressive that 2002 has made the charts 9 times at Billboard within the past 10 years with the long list of albums; Chrysalis, Land of Forever, River of Stars, Across an Ocean of Dreams, The Sacred Well, This Moment Now, The Emerald Way, Deep Still Blue, and Christmas Dreams. This is the equivalent of 270 weeks total on the Billboard New Age charts. I wondered if winning awards and making the Billboard chart is really that important to you, and whether you consider these achievements a true measurement of your success?

Pamela:  It’s still important, though perhaps not as much as it used to be. In the past, it helped us know whether or not we were connecting with our audience. It validated hard work and helped us measure each album against its predecessors. However, the music industry is changing and there are plenty of new ways to measure those things now.

Randy:  I still get excited when I see our music on the charts, and awards are wonderful, of course. These help give us confidence that we are moving in the right direction. However, when we create the music, we’re not setting out for those kinds of achievements. We have as a single goal to make the best album possible, regardless of reviews and accolades, and even charting.

John:  You have a brand new release titled Damayanti, which I published a  positive review about recently. When compared to earlier albums you have produced, do you feel Damayanti is your finest release to date, and have you two received additional input from fans or other review publicists about the high quality of your most current release?

Pamela:  And thank you for that review John! Yes, each album has been special in its own way. It’s amazing how I can look back over the last 19 years and see reflections of our lives in our music and remember vividly what was going on during each album. Damayanti is no different. It’s a snapshot in time that freezes so many memories.  We had a great number of setbacks while creating that album and we certainly did work harder to get through all of that to bring it to the world.  It has been a stellar release for us and we have been overwhelmed with positive feedback from our fans, colleagues and reviewers.

Randy:  The reviews have been really great for Damayanti, and some of our fans are saying it is the best release ever from us, but we have enough records out there now to make it difficult for me to determine which one is the “best”. My personal favorite changes almost daily!

John:  What makes the melodies on Damayanti different from earlier albums?

Pamela:  It’s a microcosm of the 2002 career. The many avenues we’ve explored over the past 19 years are all represented in this one release. It brings it all together.

Randy:  Our music has always had great commonalities with film soundtracks. The new album takes this style to a new level for us. Many of the albums we’ve produced over the years, particularly the earlier works, have been centered on stories. We returned to this form with Damayanti. There are lush string orchestrations and those emotional “moments” in the music that are the hallmark of movie scores.

John:  If it’s not a trade secret, would you provide some details about the instruments and equipment you use, along with the process in which you construct a 2002 album?

Pamela:  I play a McKenna flute, specially made for me. My alto flute is a Jupiter. I also play a wind controller by Yamaha called a WX5 as well as a Thormahlen Swan 36 harp and miscellaneous keyboards.

Randy:  We use Apple computers and MOTU Digital Performer software. We also prefer to use a real recording console, rather than to do everything in the computer. Our microphones, preamps, speakers and effect processors are all high-end, and are an important part of the trademark sound we produce. Several people have written and asked us what vocal mic we use for all of the vocal layering that is so much a part of our sound. That is a custom made Pearlman TM-1, made by our friend Dave Pearlman. It is a tube microphone, and we run that into a Groovetubes VIPRE preamp. We try to leave our performances as natural as possible, without relying too much on the software to perfect everything. Sometimes there will be a slight timing error or errant sound, or even a mistake that we will leave in because the performance was where it should be. It seems like so often, using technology to perfect a musical performance takes the life out of it.

John:  Did you begin playing music with the intention of becoming top New Age music artists, or did you find your music is best defined as Contemporary Instrumental or New Age music?

Pamela:  Wow – well actually I started playing music when I was 4. My first instrument was piano, then violin, flute, bagpipes and oboe. Later, in college I moved on to piano. I joined various bands in a variety of styles and spent years playing live and touring. I played in bands performing everything from 60′s covers to industrial rock. I like all good music, regardless of genre.

Randy:  We almost fell into the new age genre by accident. Years ago we were both at a point where we had left our respective rock bands, and some friends of ours suggested that we create a solo flute album to sell at the wellness seminars they were conducting.  It sold well, so we made another solo flute recording, and then a third album that had more synthesizers and other instruments. All of this came to a head when we produced Wings in 1992, and the 2002 sound was born.

John:  You have DVD/CD collector’s editions for the albums A Word in the Wind & Deep Still Blue, plus your music videos. The cinematic aspect of your music is very apparent when viewing your DVDs and music videos. Do you have more DVDs or music videos planned and how did producing your own music videos originate?

Pamela:   Producing videos to accompany every song of an album is very time and labor intensive. It really increases the length of time it takes to complete a project.  It was a great experience, but I don’t see us doing only that in the future.

Randy:  After Deep Still Blue & A Word in the Wind, it was amazing to me how much easier it was to do a straight music album! I’m so glad we did those projects, though. They allowed us to stretch ourselves in new directions and discover what we were artistically capable of.

John:  Last year you had introduced your own Galactic Playground Music label. How has this changed the way you produce and market your music?

Pamela:  We started our first record label in 1992 (Dreamtime Records). Later, as we evolved into producers we realized that we needed to extend our abilities and began Galactic Playground Music as our publishing arm. When we found ourselves free of outside record labels, we transformed our successful publishing company into a new label and re-released the 3 Gemini Sun Records albums as well as our 2 newest albums, Wings II – Return to Freedom & Damayanti.

Randy:  It is great to be in control of our careers, but with that comes the responsibility of having to get everything done, and there are a million little things. It used to be we would get to the finish line of completing the album and then immediately turn our sights to what we would create next. Nowadays, finishing the record is only the beginning. There are promotions that must be done, deadlines that must be met, and decisions about where to spend money or not. Still, it’s very satisfying to take the reins and be in charge of our own destinies.

John:  Both of you produced and performed on Marc Enfroy’s Unconditional album, which turned out to be an excellent album by the way. Is producing an album for another artist comparatively straightforward, or are there many challenges to creating a quality product everyone is happy with?

Randy:  In the case of Marc’s album, Unconditional, we felt we had a good fit. We were able to bring the elements together with what he already had, to take it to another level. This is the prime consideration we have for producing another artist’s record – what can we bring to it to make it better? Marc had a very good collection of songs and wanted to make a more atmospheric, new age sound than in his previous works. I think it came together nicely, and in the end, everybody was happy with the result.

John:  Let me be the first to publically congratulate you both on your approaching 20 year anniversary as 2002. B.T. Fasmer and I wish you both continued success! Before we close for now, is there anything you would like to mention that we haven’t talked about yet?

Randy & Pamela:  Thank you so much John! I just want to let you both know how much we appreciate all you do for the music community. We are so grateful that there are people like you helping to get the word out!

Visit the 2002music.com to homepage and then sample / purchase at their music store or go to their Amazon.com page. Read more on our pages dedicated to 2002.

Photos courtesy 2002music.com.

Jon Anderson of Yes fame is the top music celebrity we are pleased to present here at NewAgeMusicWorld.com & NewAgeMusic.nu. With a successful music career spanning five decades, John Anderson’s presence as a vocalist and instrumentalist has made an admirable impression on millions of people over the course of many years as a musician.

This can be said regarding his lengthy tenure as lead singer for the Progressive Rock band Yes, during his numerous collaborations with other celebrated artists, and while performing throughout the years as a popular solo artist.

Jon Anderson’s influence and starring role in music over five decades is legendary. It is estimated over 38 million records were sold during his years as the dynamic lead vocalist with Yes, and throughout his successful solo career.

Today, Jon Anderson is preparing for his North American concert tour in support of his new CD release; Survival & Other Stories.

Knowing Jon Anderson’s significant influence in music it is our privilege to present this interview so that everyone can find out more about a fascinating artist with a long and enduring music legacy.

Review publicist John Olsen recently had the opportunity to interview the personable Jon Anderson prior to his tour in 2011. We are pleased to present their conversation to Jon’s fans and our site visitors.

Jon Anderson interview April 2011:

John P. Olsen: Thank You for agreeing to this interview on short notice Jon. We realize our interview request arrives at a time interval just days prior to your opening concert, so we do appreciate your enthusiasm for this interview, and your willingness to take time out of your schedule for us.

You are beginning your concert tour publicized as “An Acoustic Evening With Jon Anderson.” Would you like to give some insight to concert goers about the atmosphere and variety of music they will experience during an evening with Jon Anderson?

Jon Anderson: Well, it’s really like being in my ‘front room’. I’m singing Yes songs as I originally wrote them, singing ‘Jon and Vangelis’ songs, telling stories, how songs came together, the meaning behind the songs, talking about my life so far, and doing new songs from my new album.

JP Olsen: Your new release Survival & Other Stories is due to be released April 2011. Can you provide some details about your new release, and how Survival & Other Stories varies from other albums you have produced?

Jon Anderson: This album is #1 of 3 albums I will release over the next 2 years. I put an ad on my website saying ‘musicians wanted’… I was finding it hard to get the guys in Yes interested in using the Internet to write songs, I put the ad out there, I got so many people sending me their musical ideas, it was like this musical ‘door’ had opened, and I found myself writing so many great ideas, with some very talented peeps…. I still do this every week. Music is endless.

JP Olsen: You have collaborated with other celebrated musicians like yourself, including Vangelis, Kitaro, Rick Wakeman, Mike Oldfield and a host of other talents. Every artist has their own strengths, along with their individual viewpoint about an album production, so when collaborating with other musicians, how does a “meeting of minds” customarily transpire during album composition and production?

Jon Anderson: It’s very simple really, it has to be Fun, an element of Trust and a feeling of Adventure, I sing melodies and find lyrics to the music I hear, it’s a very instant thing, and if it’s working great, we tend to trust ourselves, and let the music take us on the journey.

JP Olsen: Recently you teamed up with Mike Oldfield for a Kanye West sample track titled Dark Fantasy, which topped the Billboard chart as the #1 album in the country. In addition you just produced a great album with colleague and Yes member Rick Wakeman titled The Living Tree. Do you find teaming up with other esteemed musicians just as rewarding as your solo projects?

Jon Anderson: I feel thankful to have these connections, they don’t come all the time, they are rewarding on so many levels. I’m singing on Jonathan Elias’s new ‘Prayer Cycle’ along with Sting and others, released June 1st, that song I sang was right in the middle of my illness in 2008, it was such a gift to sing with that music, very inspiring.

JP Olsen: To me and many others, the voice of Jon Anderson is one of the easiest to identify in an ocean of vocalists. Did you have professional vocal instruction, and what point in your life did you choose to pursue music as a career?

Jon Anderson: No, I just sang since I was a kid, sang as I went to school, sang when I worked on the farm, and just kept singing about the joys of life.

JP Olsen: Early in your career you were leader of Yes, a phenomenal and popular Rock group, yet you also produced music in less mainstream genres, including New Age and Contemporary Christian music. What is the reason you performed in respected but less mainstream music?

What 2011 concert goers can expect to hear during “An Acoustic Evening With Jon Anderson” - Well, it’s really like being in my ‘front room’. I’m singing Yes songs as I originally wrote them, singing ‘Jon and Vangelis’ songs, telling stories, how songs came together, the meaning behind the songs, talking about my life so far, and doing new songs from my new album. Jon Anderson

Jon Anderson: Music takes on your Sacred Journey, I have a deep belief that we are changing for the better again, and music can be a sign post to what is happening around the world, people all over the world ‘love’ music, so why not enjoy being a part of the ‘new age’….

JP Olsen: You wrote the song lyrics during your tenure in Yes, and likewise during your solo career. Your lyrical phrasing is beautifully expressive, and positive in nature. Do you have a lyrical theme or message you want to convey to your audience?

Jon Anderson: Like most people I am seeking for Truth to Life, and singing about this helps me, I live to understand the great mystery, and how we are part of Mother Earth, and ‘why’…. so lyrics dance around me every day, I do feel honored to be a musician.

JP Olsen: During the early Yes years some music critics downplayed the influence Yes was achieving as a music act. I believe it would be accurate to say many people didn’t realize at the time that Jon Anderson, and a handful of others, were essentially inventing a music genre we identify today as Progressive Rock. Did you and other band members recognize at the time you were making such a profound impact in the music scene?

Jon Anderson: We hoped that Yes Music would stand the test of time, and it seems to have done, but 40 years, wow!! I meet so many young people who have just bought ‘Close to the Edge’, they find out how exciting the music is, and they will go on the same musical journey as I did, it’s amazing to realize this.

JP Olsen: Your contribution as lead vocalist was an important factor, but why do you believe Yes as a Progressive Rock group so successful?

Jon Anderson: I worked hard within the Yes band as the musical director of sorts. I was surrounded by so much talent, I would come up with plans for the music, sing ideas constantly, and the Music we created is unique. I never dreamed it could become so wonderful, I kept on coming up with ideas, and Yes Music will last forever, Weeeeeee!

Jon’s reply on the major influence Jon Anderson and progressive rock group Yes had in music; We hoped that Yes Music would stand the test of time, and it seems to have done, but 40 years, wow!! I meet so many young people who have just bought ‘Close to the Edge’, they find out how exciting the music is, and they will go on the same musical journey as I did, it’s amazing to realize this. Jon Anderson

JP Olsen: You have been a very successful vocalist and instrumentalist practically your whole life. Do you believe your life achievements are due to your musical talents, hard work, a combination of both, or do you believe in destiny?

Jon Anderson: Practice, Practice. Well I just have fun playing every day, I sing every day, think about the ‘great work’ to be done, as for destiny, hummm, not sure what that means, I believe that I will be part of a great Awakening.

JP Olsen: What do you feel is your greatest achievement or most rewarding experience to date Jon?

Jon Anderson: Still being around, feeling valid in this world music scene, not getting carried away with fame. Singing with the school of rock and youth orchestras, and I enjoying being around ‘young’ musicians while helping to create some very good and interesting music to date.

JP Olsen: Earlier I read on your Facebook page you rarely do endorsements for advocacy groups but are involved with 600million.org, a non-profit organization created by the co-founder of PETA, Alex Pacheco. Would you like to tell us about your contribution and charitable endorsement for the animal protection advocacy group 600million.org?

Jon Anderson: My youngest Daughter Jade introduced me to the project earlier this year. I was really sad about the plight of our fellow creatures, dogs are truly man’s best friend, and they can be so healing and funny to be around, so to see so many millions in distress, made me want to help in any way I could, so I made a short video to help.

JP Olsen: Thank You again for spending time with us by way of our interview Jon. We look forward to the day when we can follow-up by another interview together. In closing, do you have anything you would like to express to the people who will be attending a concert this year, or the many fans that have supported you throughout your career?

Jon Anderson: Have fun!!! And thanks for all the support, and enjoyment I have at the concerts I do, I cannot thank you enough…. Cheers!!!

Again everyone, Jon Anderson is beginning his 2011 North American concert tour billed as “An Evening With Jon Anderson.” We wish Jon and every concert goer an enjoyable evening together during a live concert event that is sure to be memorable.

Visit the jonanderson.com homepage for news and concert tour information. Read our pages dedicated to Jon Anderson.

Concert photos courtesy Robin Kauffman & jonanderson.com.

On the eve of the Grammy Awards scheduled for February 13 2011, review publicist John Olsen has just conducted an in-depth interview with award winning composing musician and 2010 Grammy Nominee Dr. Michael Brant DeMaria.

In this second interview with Dr. DeMaria, we present to our visitors defining insight into the life of an esteemed New Age and World influential musician whose music career is very much in the forefront of today’s music scene. In fact, Michael was a recent award recipient by placing third in our NewAgeMusic.nu Best New Age Album Awards for 2010.

John P. Olsen : Thank you Michael for taking time away from your work and agreeing to our interview on short notice. You are a clinical psychologist, recognized poet, author, public speaker, and now a twice Grammy Nominated musician with your 2010 Ocean album currently under consideration. Were you anticipating the Ocean album would turn out to be your second Grammy Nomination this year, and with the awards ceremony soon approaching, what are your expectations for winning a Grammy in the New Age category with Ocean ?

Michael Brant DeMaria : First off, I want to thank you John for taking the time out of your very busy schedule to sit down with me as well. It’s always a pleasure to hear from you and I have great respect for the work you do. As always, your question goes right to the heart of the matter. As you know the New Age category is an extremely competitive category. However, in the back of my mind I knew Ocean was number 1 on the New Age chart for 3 months and did win two very prestigious awards, Best Ambient Album of 2009 and Best Relaxation/Meditation Album of 2009. I knew it was possible, but I did not think it was probable. Not only was Ocean competing with luminaries and legends in the New Age world, Ocean happened to be up against albums by Olivia Newton John and Tina Turner who both had their entries in the New Age category this year.

As far as winning, I have no expectations. Once again, the other nominees in my category are true legends in the world of New Age music, Paul Winter, Kitaro, and R. Carlos Nakai. Each of these men have influenced and inspired me over the last 25 years. I am very humbled just to be in their company. At the same time, I try to live by the Samurai warrior saying, “Expect nothing, be ready for anything”.

John : You have studied and performed with friends and past Grammy Winner David Darling, along with Grammy Nominated R. Carlos Nakai. What are your connections with colleagues David Darling and R. Carlos Nakai over the years ?

Michael : R. Carlos Nakai is responsible for me picking up a Native American Flute 17 years ago. I was traveling through Glacier National Park in Montana on my way to enact a very traditional vision quest. I found a copy of Nakai’s Earthspirit and put it in my tape player in the car while I was driving. It was the first time I had ever heard the Native American Flute and it literally brought tears to my eyes. Although I had played piano, synthesizers and percussion most of my life, as soon as I heard the hauntingly familiar sound of the flute I knew I had to play it. When I finally did find one to play – it was like finding an old friend. Years later I joined Nakai’s organization, INAFA, The International Native American Flute Association – and have been a member for over a decade. It was at INAFA conventions in Taos, NM and San Francisco, CA that I finally had a chance to meet and play with him. Not only is he an amazing talent, but a very generous man with his time and knowledge.

Likewise, David Darling’s life, teaching and music have been and remains a very strong influence in my life. I had been listening to his music for many years when I heard about his Music for People program which trains people in the art of improvisation and facilitation. I took my first workshop with him back in 2005 and was immediately hooked. I apprenticed in the program for 4 years and graduated in 2009. In my opinion, he has done more than almost any other musician to teach the finer and deeper aspects of the art of improvisation. He is truly a master in his craft and actually is teaching much more than music – but actually a way of life based upon compassion and creativity. The highlight for me last year attending the Grammy’s as a nominee was having the opportunity to see him win, in person, his very long overdue Grammy for his amazing album, Prayer for Compassion.

John : I read an article by the prominent author and past entertainment editor for the LA Times Richard Rushfield, where he mentions your name when giving his assessment of the 2010 Grammy choices. What was your reaction to his article titled Handicapping the Grammys : Best New Age Album ?

Michael : To be honest John I was a bit overwhelmed by it. Someone sent me a link to the article and my first thought was, “Boy I bet they don’t even mention me”, being the relative unknown in the category this year. After I read it I was very moved and appreciative of his kind and generous words, particularly about the track Moonlit Sea on my album Ocean. Of course, he admits I am a long shot, but a long shot nonetheless, who he thinks actually has a chance.

John : In your professional life Michael you are an equally devout music professional and psychotherapist. Would you ever pursue one profession over the other at some point in your life, or is it safe to say you are, and always will be recognized as a recording artist and a therapist ?

Michael : You’re not the first who has asked me that question John. For me, an artist does for a culture, what a therapist or healer does for an individual. In this way, I feel they are two sides of the same coin. I also find they inform and balance each other in my life. Composing and writing are very solitary and deeply self-absorbed tasks that can take a lot out of you. After 4 days of that kind of intense work I’m really ready to sit across from somebody and be totally there for them. Of course, after 3 days of really being there for others I’m ready to dive back into the solitude of the creative process. I find one replenishes what the others depletes, like crop rotation – it has been a blessing in my life how they have woven themselves together. Now I don’t know what the future holds – but in some way I will always be active in both – although the format for how that may evolve remains to be seen!

John : Michael, you have already realized many achievements in many aspects of your life and I wondered if you would answer a more personal question by telling us what has been the motivating force in your life ?

Michael : The primary motivating force in my life is love. Love in the sense of what the Greeks called agape – which is a love for life itself and humanity. I love life, I love people, and I love to create. I feel very blessed that I have been given the opportunity to express what is nearest and dearest to my heart. For me, love is about connection – and unfortunately we live in a time where most people feel a profound disconnection from life, nature, each other and even from their own hearts. The Cherokee say our first teacher is our heart – and unfortunately in our culture we leave that teacher far behind too early in our educational system and in our society. It’s very much my mission in my life to bring a bit more heart into the world through my writing, speaking and music.

John : During the past several years your music career has noticeably gained momentum and taken flight so what do you believe are the reasons your music compositions have repeatedly been granted numerous honors and award considerations over the years ?

Michael : You are so very kind John. To be completely honest I really don’t know. What I can tell you is this. My music comes from a very humble and sincere place. When I go into my studio to record I have no interest or desire for any recognition or awards. It’s the furthest thing from my mind. I have no interest in impressing anyone – only in being true to my journey and the experience of the moment. I’m still that 6 or 7 year old boy who went to the family piano to take a sonic adventure – and to help me connect with a greater presence. In that way, it’s a spiritual practice for me. In this way, my albums are all crafted to take the listener on a journey. Each journey actually begins where the last one ended – they build upon each other. In fact, in many ways The River, Ocean and Gaia are a trilogy. They are also part of the larger Healing Sound Project which I have been dedicated to for the last 8 years. It has been a joy for me to see how this music created with the intent of making the world a bit more peaceful, soulful and heartfelt has been embraced so deeply.

John : In our earlier interview everyone had a chance to learn you have donated your time and talents by performing at fund raising benefits and concerts including the Gulf Oil Disaster in 2010 so could you tell us about the charity work you have been involved with over the years ?

Michael : I have always felt John that it’s important to give back and whether it has been donating to Native American charities from Siyotanka or wildlife recovery from the gulf oil spill from Ocean, I try to make the project connect to something greater – something more than just about me. I love to play, create and record – so it is simply an added bonus when concerts or albums bring attention to well deserved programs. The world is in a state of great need today – and I believe artist have a unique ability to draw attention to worthy causes. Just as all my albums are concept albums – they are all designed hopefully to teach as well as to be enjoyed for the pure joy of listening.

John : Thank you again Michael for the opportunity to learn more about your amazing career. It has been an honor to get to know you personally while providing coverage of your lifework and career achievements for our visitors. Is there anything you would like to mention before we close ?

Michael : The honor has been mine John. You do a great service to all of us in the New Age music world through your many efforts. I did want to mention I’m working on a new album – I don’t want to say too much about it, and the title is even in flux at this point – but I hope it will be available for release in late 2011. Let us just say that it is a project I’m very excited about and will be another very unique sonic journey for the soul, this time exploring the mystery of creation itself. Thanks again John and wishing you, B.T. Fasmer, and all your readers a happy, healthy and joyous 2011!

Visit ontos.com homepage and then sample / purchase on his albums page and CDBaby.com page or Amazon.com page. Read our earlier interview and album reviews on our page dedicated to Michael Brant DeMaria.

Copyright images courtesy Michael Brant DeMaria.

Gandalf is an internationally acclaimed composing musician and producer from Vienna Austria identified as a New Age, Contemporary Instrumental and World music artist. During the past 30 years of his career, his progressive music and global persona has helped neutralize the customary social borders in multicultural music for years.

Gandalf is currently planning a future orchestration to celebrate his 30 year Anniversary in 2011 and this composition will become the centerpiece to mark the celebrations.

There is a live performance in Vienna scheduled to accent the occasion of his milestone achievement. The Vienna concert and new release is the first topic of their interview conversation during this comprehensive 2010 interview published just prior to his 30 year anniversary.

The website hosts for NewAgeMusicWorld.Com & NewAgeMusic.nu are excited to bring our visitors the present day interview John Olsen has conducted with this global musician and invite all visitors and fans to learn even more on our respective website pages dedicated to Gandalf.

Interview with Gandalf

John : I wanted to first thank you myself Gandalf, and on behalf of our visitors for taking time away from your more creative endeavors. I feel certain our visitors and your fans do appreciate this present day opportunity to learn more about you and the outstanding music you produce.

Many are already anticipating your 30 year anniversary you have slated for 2011 which will be here before long, and currently you are planning a new orchestration project with live performance in Vienna to accent your milestone achievement. Is everything being kept a secret for now or can you provide some details about your next orchestration and the live concert event scheduled for 2011?

Gandalf : At this stage I don´t want to tell much in detail about the new project, this will all be presented due to the launch of the album and the concert in 2011.

The composition is meant to be the essence of my musical excerience and development in the past three decades. The leading instruments are guitars, piano and percussion, a small symphonic orchestra (woodwinds and strings) and a male choir.

The work is in good progress, a lot has already happened, but there is still much to do. Currently I am finishing the orchestral score, the recordings are planned in October. The album producton shall be finished until the end of this year.

John : Thank you for the insight you have provided. Your 20 year anniversary was quite extraordinary which included your first live performance in Vienna and the CD / DVD collection on the BSC Music label titled Live In Vienna. Would you describe what your first live concert had felt like on a personal level and was your first stage performance the positive experience you had imagined?

Gandalf : Actually, this DVD/CD is the first official release of recordings from a performance in Vienna, of course there have taken place a lot of performances prior to this one. My really first big performance in Vienna was in 1982, when the album Visions was released. I had just started my career a year before and the reponse from the audience was a real sensation, the concert was completely sold out (more than thousand people) and the album climbed up to #2 in the album charts over night. This was far beyond my imagination! It was just great and lifted my motivation to continue with my work.

John : In addition to your studio recordings you began venues of live solo concerts on acoustic guitar and piano in the United States, along with live concerts in Austria, the Netherlands, and during Woodroot Festival in Germany. With the increasing number of venues, are live performances more rewarding for you as a musician than studio recording, and if so why?

Gandalf : A live performance can not be compared to anything else, this is where the music happens in the very moment. Today performing live is more important for me than ever. If you record an album in the studio you spend much time to get your performance recorded as perfect as possible, on stage you only have this one chance and that is the fascination about it, no song sounds exactly the same twice, you never know what is going to happen every other night. And sometimes there is real magic and you can feel it from the first note you play and the audience can feel it. I would not want to miss this.

John : What was the early turning point where you decided to pursue music as a career and could you tell us about your music history throughout the years?

Gandalf : After having played in various Progressive-Rock lineups during the Seventies I found out that I had a musical vision which I could not realize with a conventional band so I started experimenting in a very simply equipped studio at home just on my own, playing and recording all instruments by myself. And this was the first time I really felt satisfied about my work so I recorded my first album Journes To An Imaginary Land and my friends were so enthusistic about the result, that I played the material to someone from a record-company and I got a contract.

That´s how it happened, I just followed my intuition and after some time I realized that I was able to make my living from making exactly the music I played out of my heart.

John : The Gates to Secret Realities was the transitional album during your move to World music influences. What was the defining moments or reasons for your decision to begin composing World influenced music?

Gandalf : My travels to India and other countries opened up my horizon and I found out more and more, that music is a universal language. It has the ability to dissolve borders between different cultures. There were so many elements in music from other parts of the world that inspired me and I wanted to integrate such influences and expand my personal style, trying to create some kind of a Global Music.

John : During your continental travels, what experiences and ethnic cultures have led you to discover and then recognize music as the unifying source that indeed helps abolish the boundaries in various musical styles and categories?

Gandalf : The first special encounters I had in India when I jammed with musicians there. We were not able to communicate much by words because of our different languages, but we had so much fun communicating through music.

Also on my Brazilian tour in 1995, I could not speak Portugese at all, but the music opened up the hearts of people and the feedback was amazing.

This was where I met Emily Burridge from England. She had lived with a Tribe of Indians for a while and was very inspired by there way af looking at the world and their rituals. So when we played together in Brazil, we decided to record an album together, and this was Gates …

John : You are referred to as The Painter of Musical Landscapes plus your music has a story to tell. What thoughts, images or message do you hope your listeners will acquire from your music and what are the ideal circumstances where you are most productive in composing music?

Gandalf : Nature is the most imortant source of inspiration for me, this is where I find my balance and open the channels of my creativity.

Over the years I found out, that the music already tells its story, whether I am aware of this or not. It reflects my inner landscapes and feelings. If you for example play it to children and let them paint, the pictures that come out show symbols of love, peace and hapiness, so there is not much else I need to tell people besides the music itself. Sometimes a story that accompanies the music is nice but not really necessary.

John : Your music has been featured in television and video media productions. I wondered if you find visual scores more challenging to produce than your more traditional album compositions, and how do they differ when you begin composing?

Gandalf : It is just, that your inspiration is initialized by a different source. If there is a certain story you want to express by your music, you first must get fully into the story and then, the pictures or the words will evoke musical ideas.

Sometimes books can be inspiring, I did project with lyrics from The Prophet by the Libanese writer Khalil Gibran, and also wrote a soundtrack to the book The Stones Of Wisdom by a friend of mine, Ronald P. Vaughan.

John : In the early years you were highly regarded mainly in Europe and other countries prior to your current widespread recognition and status in U.S. markets. Did acquiring a presence in broader international markets influence your music style to fit European or American tastes or was your transition to each country non apparent in your music identity?

Gandalf : I never really cared much about such matters, it happened more the other way round. When my musical style changed throughout the years it became more or less interesting for different markets. For example, back in the Eighties when I had some Spanish guitar on the opening track of the album The Universal Play it suddenly was released in Spain and South America.

Over all the years I tried to follow my musical vision as honest as possible and did not try to adjust to any market or trend-situation and I think this is one of the reasons, why I am still here. If you try to bend your personal way due to fast changing marketing situations, you may soon get lost.

John : Again, Thank You Gandalf. B.T. Fasmer and I do appreciate this present day opportunity to present our visitors this interview. We wish you well, and we will continue writing more about you in the future. Is there anything you would like to tell your fans or bring up before we close?

Gandalf : I just want to thank you and everyone who helps promoting my works and all my fans for purchasing my records and thus helping me to carry on with the music.

We now invite everyone to visit the gandalf.at homepage then read his biography page. Visit the BSCMusic.com website to purchase / sample his music, then read our pages dedicated to Gandalf.

Photos are courtesy Klaus Rautenberg and gandalf.at.

Steve Orchard is our interview guest today at NewAgeMusicWorld.Com & NewAgeMusic.nu. We welcome our visitors and Steve’s fans to read the recent interview John Olsen has prepared with this outstanding musician from the UK. We would also like to take this opportunity and invite everyone to read more on our pages dedicated to Steve Orchard.

John Olsen : Thank You for sharing a moment of your time with us today Steve. B.T. Fasmer and I appreciate this opportunity and I am certain your fans are excited to have this chance to find out more about you too. Steve, would you provide a description of your music studies beginning with your earliest introduction to the present?

Steve Orchard : Yes, Well I probably go back to piano lessons at 7 years old and then combining guitar lessons at 8. My one fault would be that I have always been an impatient, inquisitive player of various musical instruments always wanting to discover how things worked quickly and then improvise. As my Father would say, “Jack of all trades and master of none”.

I played a pretty mean trumpet in the school band and enjoyed singing in the church choir. My family was very musical. I had an aunt who was a piano teacher. When she regularly visited us, from Birmingham, she would want to hear my progress. She once nearly keeled over when I produced the sheet music for What a Day for a Daydream by The Lovin’ Spoonful ! Outrageous !!!

One side of the family were very properly trained with piano & violin playing and into classical and show tunes, whereas my other granddad was a pub pianist. He ‘vamped’ and ‘boogiewoogied’ his stuff and played harmonica at Christmas parties…. It was hilarious when I think back. It seemed to me that he was more joyous in his approach to music. It’s a belief I still hold today that made me a little rebellious in my approach to making my own music. At an early age I bent a wire coat hanger so I could play harmonica & guitar at the same time, just like Dylan & Donovan. It only resulted in me nearly losing an eye and breaking a tooth. I was the school ‘show-off’ doing plays & pantomimes and guess I fancied a career in something to do with the performing arts. Like most kids I was influenced by the pop of that generation.

I have made so many friends all around the world with the release of Raindancer. It has been a privilege to be able to share my music with so many enthusiastic people. This is what encourages us composers to continue to ‘up our game play’ to continually raise the standard, stretch, and find the best we can be.

In my teens I enjoyed the diversity of progressive rock, like Yes & The Moody Blues, also the gentle folksy guitar melodies of Joni Mitchell, James Taylor, plus the piano troubadours Billy Joel & Elton John & also, the early electronic sounds of Tomita & Mike Oldfield. I was into that ‘Hippy’ thing and meditated, burnt incense and read a lot of Buddhism…. Took myself a bit too seriously! I was a bit of a ‘geek’ and lived for my music writing little tunes with terrible pretentious lyrics from about 15, spotty, years old.

John : You are a member of the Medwyn Goodall circle of friends as a MG Music label artist. Can you tell us some of your experiences as a member and what it is like to be a MG Label artist?

Steve Orchard : I first heard Medwyn Goodall’s Druid in the July of 1991, in an art gallery in St. Ives Cornwall. It just blew me away and couldn’t put it in any category that I recognized. It was more than music… It was an awesome soundscape and I just knew that it fit me like a glove. I bought it instantly from the gallery on cassette, to play on my ‘state of the art’ Walkman!! When I returned from my holiday I bought it again from New World, on CD. And so began a long period of buying up anything to do with Medwyn Goodalls music.

My wife Julie & I started to correspond with Medwyn and he graciously autographed all our CD’s. He was very open and quite funny. I’ve kept everything he ever sent me, every doodle and every ditty, including all the Christmas cards ( worth a fortune on Ebay …. only joking ) In our early letters ( this was before emails ) I never told Medwyn that I was a musician, thinking that he may feel I was “chasing my own ambitions”…. unthinkable I know but musicians have been known to do it !!!

I think I broke the news very humbly, without wanting to sound ‘pushy’ and tarnish this rather lovely correspondence that we were enjoying. He invited me to send anything anytime …. WELL !!! Boy, did I send him some rubbish, poor guy. I hadn’t found my NEW AGE feet yet and although I enjoyed this new genre, I couldn’t quite capture it in my own compositions. He was my mentor, DEFINITELY. He guided me, no doubt, to where I am today. After a few stumbles, falls, and many experimental tracks, I sent song Lull in The Storm from something I was working on called The Consequences of Kisses album. He invited me to produce a new project for MG Music !!!

You can imagine that this was a dream come true. To be working for the man that I had held in such high esteem for so many years. I soon discovered the family at MG Music is a wonderful bunch and all the other artists swap ideas and tips generally between us. The amazing Paul Sills soon became a great friend & Charmaine, his wife & Meina, his daughter, travelled down to spend an enjoyable weekend with us. We had discussions late into the night and played each other’s new or experimental tracks whilst the rest of the world slept.

I realize how unpretentious and genuine all the MG artists are. Chris Green and I talk on the phone regularly ( very clever & funny guy ) then Simon Lovelock & Clifford White have spent ‘time out’ to critique and give ‘sound’ advice, both brilliant technicians of the art. In the past I have found musicians to be very protective and guarded with their work but not here. The wonderful thing is, we are all so different and diverse yet all the same family, producing a vast mix of choices within the same genre, all under the safe and knowledgeable direction of the man himself, Medwyn Goodall. Be warned budding New Age composers, he will not accept second best on his label.

John : In your own words Steve, how would you best describe your music and what are the main components that uniquely sets your music apart from not only MG label artists, but so many other New Age musicians?

Steve Orchard : My music almost always originates from a guitar base and is then transcribed onto keyboards. I find the guitar a comfortable friend that I can embrace quietly without any sense of rushing to ‘lay down’ on paper or in the studio. Sometimes I live with a melody for months before it develops into a workable phrase or shape.

I have a terrible bad habit of not documenting tracks I have recorded. I have folders, in my studio, bursting with hastily scribbled chords and lyrics…. Someday I may return to them for inspiration, that’s if I can decipher them, but I hate going back. I prefer to always look forward with my writing. In the making of Raindancer I did a lot of research into the South American rainforest and I story boarded ideas & concepts onto the walls of my studio. Another strict rule I have is I never ever go into the studio unless I am in a happy, contented mood. I like to think that when you listen to a Steve Orchard album that, my positive optimism shines through. Sundancer was almost entirely written in my garden during the summer of 2009. It’s sunnier than a ripe melon !!! As Medwyn says, it has lots of energy & warmth. I think his buzz word for the album was ENERGY !!

John : During the early years in Bristol your music was played on BBC Radio and utilized in music scores for various media programming. In what ways has your music been featured?

Steve Orchard : It seems like a life time ago now but in the 70′s I was in a very popular duo of the time called Mossy, with musical partner Barry Webb ( he’ll be pleased I mentioned his name. ) We played a residency in the cellar bar, at the notorious Bristol Arts Centre. It was a mixture of folk covers and our own written ‘offerings’. We earned a lot of respect locally and had a loyal following amongst the local artists, musicians & regional TV personalities ( I seem to remember being invited and attending a lot of crazy parties ) We were also good ‘fodder’ for the colleges and festivals. At that time we did 3 half hour shows for BHBS radio which led to a spot on BBC’s Friday Folk Nights. BHBS were still playing the jingle we did for them up until a few years ago ( probably when the tape finally disintegrated ) We had a lot of fun but mutually called it a day in 1980 when we both had growing family’s. We remain great buddies.

Unbelievable now with all this technology, that I sent out my first demos on ‘spool’ tape. Perhaps most ended up in the bin but one hit home and I was invited up to Apple’s old offices in St. James Street London for an interview/audition. They gave me a good look over and I felt optimistic but, sadly nothing ever became of it. I still have the letter though, dated 6th September 1972 and at the bottom are the printed names of the two directors…. Yes, you guessed, J O Lennon & G Harrison. In the ’90′s I was asked to do the incidental music for ‘Star Runners’. It was a short promotional sci-fi film directed by Andrew Dymond who, I believe, went on to produce ‘Star Hyke’ which was sold to American TV. I wrote about an hour’s worth of instrumental music but only half of it finally reached the finished movie….. My son Daniel & I had a lot of fun going on an all night shoot for the film, eating Mars Bars and drinking Coca Cola all night to stay awake!! The studio day was also fun where we recorded my work, with the help of a prehistoric sequencer, onto video tape and mini disc ( very nostalgic ) Later, with the advent of Channel 5′s birth I was asked by an agent to go up to their TV studios in London to perform one of my own compositions for a forth coming daytime TV show, which I did….. The day flew by in a blur and all I can remember is the hideous cost of car parking on the Tottenham Court Road…. Scandalous !!!

I was invited up to Apple’s old offices in St. James Street London for an interview/audition. They gave me a good look over and I felt optimistic but, sadly nothing ever became of it. I still have the letter though, dated 6th September 1972 and at the bottom are the printed names of the two directors. Yes you guessed, John O. Lennon & George Harrison.

John : You were a band member earlier in life and in addition, widely recognized as a soloist in South West & London England during the 1990’s. Could you tell us about this time period of events you experienced and I just imagine there are some good stories you could tell everyone?

Steve Orchard : Blimey… How long have we got ? I worked a lot. Mainly covers for the pubs, clubs, hotels and summer seasons at holiday parks. I also did gigs for Army & Navy bases. If you are into performance then it is an incredible apprenticeship. You learn a lot about audiences. I spent 8 consecutive New Years Eve’s away from my wife & kids entertaining 1000′s of drunken party people. When the nights success relies on only YOU…. that’s quite a responsibility ( oh and the bingo & raffle ) I performed all over the South West with 3 nighters in London gigs sleeping in theatrical digs above a pub (not something I can recommend) It’s like an athlete. You build up muscles. You know when to be funny and when to keep your mouth shut!! ( Did I mention I did stand-up ? Don’t do it if you want to retain your sanity ha ha ha !!! )

I’ve known great musicians who were lousy entertainers and great entertainers who were rubbish musicians. In 2001 I realized that this was not what I wanted to do anymore. I wanted to return to my roots which was writing & recording. It was in my heart and the only way I could ‘look at myself in the mirror’ as a serious musician. Continually gigging, performing other people’s material makes you slightly morose and can leave your creative side sadly lacking. True, I do miss the adrenalin rush of an audience but what I do now feels right for me and hopefully my audience is out there still enjoying my performance.

John : Recently I wrote a review for Raindancer and have made plans to review Sundancer & Moondancer when released. Could you tell us more about your Dancer Trilogy and what each individual album illustrates?

Steve Orchard : Yes, they are companions to each other. I hope my listener/audience hear Raindancer and think, ” Wow! I liked that I’d like to taste some more of that.” Raindancer is very jungle/tribal with some twists and turns in its rhythm’s. I had this picture in my mind of cutting ones way through dense foliage to find a clearing populated by remote civilizations ( does that sound crazy ? ) The indigenous animals and fauna were all playing a part in my composing. Raindancer is where I discovered my New Age capabilities. With the generous direction of Medwyn, I am proud of this album. Sundancer, as I mentioned is all about energy. Islands in the sun and deep tropical seas yet cooling sounds in the midday heat. Rhythms play a big part of this album also and will make people want to move and children dance. My youngest son David is a gifted illustrator having produced many published children’s books has preliminarily designed both, Sundancer & Moondancer album covers. Obviously this is still to be confirmed but his work on all my other albums can be seen on my website.

Moondancer …. Is still under wraps. Suffice to say, this is the cool of the evening. The Moon is out in a cloudless night and a billion stars lead us to imagine what life could lay beyond them. This album is entirely recorded on my new studio and at this date still has to be completed but I have some ‘can’t quite keep still’ ideas in my head. I would just say, “Watch This Space!”

John : There is a lot of great instrumentation on the Raindancer album. In addition to acoustic guitar what are the instruments you play, and you told me about an upgrade to your project studio, so could you tell us the story behind this recent upgrade?

Steve Orchard : Raindancer is a completely ‘live’ album. By that I mean that it is layered onto a hard disc in the same way as working with analogue ‘tape’. That’s not to say it suffers from sound quality but I felt I needed to embrace a tiny bit more technology going forward. My main keyboard friends are my trusty Korg Triton & Roland Sonic Cell, with expansion boards, plus some other concoctions!!! On with a story…

By now Medwyn and his lovely wife Wendy had become my good friends. He invited me down to his home in Helston, in Cornwall, for a visit and to look at his studio with perhaps, an insight into the more sophisticated way he works. WOW !!! I only say that because a lot of your fellow members and readers of this site will be saying WOW !!! He was considering completely re-building his studio and giving me the opportunity to ‘adopt’ & ‘adapt’ his studio. This is ‘THE STUDIO’ which is responsible for selling over 4 million albums. It was January and the worst winter the UK had seen in 30 years. I was doubtful whether I would be able to make the journey as heavy snow had fallen over most of the South West. I travelled the day before our meeting and the journey was a little ‘hairy’ ( that’s a British expression for OMG !! …. another icey patch!!! ) I just had to go and meet this man face to face. He had a reputation for being ‘very private’ and not conceding to personal visits to their beautiful Cornish home.

I have to say, that information could not be more wrong. From the outset he was warm and friendly, and we spent the long day in his studio exchanging much humor and banter. I felt relaxed in his company immediately. To be sat elbow-to-elbow in the studio with him was an unforgettable experience. Such ease of understated talent was remarkable ( no, not me, him…. only joking ). Wendy arrived home from there very busy offices and warehouse in Helston and they were gracious enough to take me out for a memorable meal that evening. Suffice to say, I returned the following day with the ‘HEART’ of Medwyn’s studio and since then have amalgamated it into my own studio I think, really successfully ( you will need to wait for the completion of Moondancer to make that appraisal ) I personally can’t wait… It’s going to be special !!

John : On behalf of our visitors and your fans Thank You again Steve. Before we go is there anything you would like to bring up or tell your fans?

Steve Orchard : I have made so many friends all around the world with the release of Raindancer. It has been a privilege to be able to share my music at last, with so many enthusiastic people. This is what encourages us composers to continue to ‘up our game play’ to continually raise the standard, stretch, and find the best we can be. In the spirit of all MG Music Artists I will always try to answer all emails and help other budding musicians in their quest. Everything is possible. It has been a long journey but I still feel opportunities lay ahead of me. So many friends & family ( my closest love & confidant Julie, my wife of 31 years. She’ll be pleased I mentioned her name again! ) have supported me over the years even when I may have floundered. A good friend told me, ”The thing with you Orchard, is that you are PERSISTANT” Oh Yes!”… & keep smiling!

Visit the steveorchardmusic.co.uk homepage and sample his albums on his music page and learn more about Steve on his about page. Here is where you will find our pages dedicated to Steve Orchard.

Sundancer & Moondancer covers by David Orchard. Raindancer cover by Medwyn Goodall. Copyright Steve Orchard.

Davol is our interview guest at NewAgeMusicWorld.Com & NewAgeMusic.nu. Knowing the positive nature of his music, we hope to create a little excitement of our own today. Davol is a widely popular musician easily recognized by his Electronic Contemporary Instrumental melodies that readily elevate the mood sensation and their highly melodic rhythms in turn offer an inspiring upbeat atmosphere.

Davol’s music eloquently brings a positive and energetic influence to the forefront of New Age music, and today we hope to encourage every visitor to learn more about him.

Review publicists B.T. Fasmer and interview host John P. Olsen have published earlier reviews of his current album Good Sign and we invite you to read these reviews on our pages dedicated to Davol.

Interview with Davol;

John : Thank You for sharing your time with us Davol. Your April 2010 release Good Sign is an excellent album and another fine release of the 6 albums total you have produced since your decision to pursue music as a new career in 1989.

Good Sign is successfully making waves with your large fan base and ZMR charts presently have listed at # 2 for May. This is great news naturally, but I personally believe much more recognition may be in store for Good Sign. What are your thoughts on the direction this album is heading and do you set out to win awards and earn top recognition?

Davol : Although I always try to keep my music at a high standard, I was pleasantly stunned to see how this album has taken off! This is the first time I’ve worked with the renowned promoter Ed Bonk, and it’s been quite rewarding. Every aspect of a creative project is educational, including the promotional side. As for awards, we’ll see what is possible … maybe you could help me out with a Grammy nomination ? !

John : Hey, B.T. and I will see what we can do …. Lol!! What you said about Ed Bonk is true. We consider Ed a good friend and hear the exact sediments from his clients all the time. Everyone speaks pretty highly of Ed Bonk ( Lazz Promotions ).

Your scholastic training in jazz, classical piano and harpsichord were early prerequisites in your move toward the more modern music influences you produce today. Would you provide our visitors an outline of your studies and music history?

Davol : When I was quite young I started with the trumpet. But the monophonic nature of it frustrated me, so I became interested in piano at the age of 12. I studied classical piano a bit, and harpsichord a little in college. I’m actually now studying jazz piano with a local jazz master. It’s challenging and fun. I’m probably his most remedial student, still learning the basics! In a sense, I kind of feel like my compositional work exists very separately (in my brain and heart) from my previous musical training. Obviously there is some kind of relationship and influence, but I really feel like the electronic music I write is more influenced by my love of pop music.

John : You have a PH.D and had begun an already successful career as a medical researcher and microbiologist until 1996 when you then chose to begin a commercial venture producing multimedia music. What were the timeline of events that led to your decision to pursue music as a new career and was this career move an easy choice for you to make at the time Davol?

Davol : Oh gosh no, it wasn’t easy. I had worked so hard to become a medical researcher and get my doctorate, but I was also very burned out. I was doing music professionally WHILE I was finishing my PhD in microbiology and continued doing both simultaneously over the years. The problem was that to be a really good scientist, one must be very focused. In other words, you work in the laboratory in the daytime, and you’re expected to read journals and write papers in the evening. I wanted only to write music in the evening! So there was sort of a mutual incompatibility with the two careers. When I left science, I felt that I had learned a great deal and had published significant work. That was satisfying. I actually did return to science in the last 5 years, sort of in a roundabout way; I was a public health educator for a Hepatitis C non-profit organization. I was giving educational talks about HepC, mostly to ex-convicts who were on parole. It was a very unusual and educational experience.

John : I read at your website that many of your albums are designed with a theme in mind based on events during the time period. What themes are behind Mystic Waters & A Day Like No Other?

Davol : Mystic Waters was released in 1989, a time when “fantasy” albums were all the rage. So, it was conjured up with that genre in mind. There was a sense of peace and tranquility, a sense of fluid movement, like water.

A Day Like No Other marked a pretty big change in my life, sort of a reinvention, as I hadn’t released an album for 7 years (since Open Book). I wasn’t sure that I would do any more albums, frankly. I was burned out and was now producing on my own label. Also, ADLNO was the first album I ever wrote and produced without any co-producer. In other words, I had to finally trust myself, in a very singular sense, and believe in what I was doing! Also, ADLNO was the first album I wrote in a completely software-based studio environment, so the toolset and sound palette was utterly different from the past. It moved me more into a guitar-based sound that I find very appealing for the pop-style in which I write. So, the ADLNO album represented everything “fresh” and “new” to me, hence the name.

John : Nice reinvention Davol since A Day Like No Other happens to be one of my favorite albums! There were some particular circumstances happening during the production of Good Sign. What was going on at the time and how did you maintain the Davol can do attitude?

Davol : Yes, some challenging things … a couple of close loved ones struggling at the end of their lives and passing on, I had to move my mother into a retirement home, find a home for her dog, empty her house and sell it, etc, and a 14-story high-rise was built directly across the street from my home. That meant 1.5 years of incessant noise, my street closed off every day, etc. It was overwhelming. Oh, and I almost forgot, the interior of my house flooded, TWICE.

Due to the construction, I ended up working on the Good Sign album in the evenings. I would start work after dinner and finish at 2:00 am. It was a very unhealthy lifestyle for about a year, but hey, I got it done!! I think the album truly was my catharsis, so the focus was JOY, OPTIMISM, and POSITIVITY!

John : After listening to several prior radio interviews at your website and it’s pretty easy to recognize you are a positive and upbeat person as you were saying and just like your music reflects. Is it your intent to instill a positive influence into all of your music and just how exactly do you transfer a positive personality trait into musical notes?

Davol : I guess I have always tried to keep a positive outlook in life. It’s easy to get wrapped up in the tedious minutiae of the day-to-day, but important to never lose sight of the fantastic gifts we all have.

Certainly I try to convey that optimism in my music, but hopefully without being cliché or trite. That can be a fine line, I know. It probably sounds like a really old fogey thing to say, but I’m so glad that I was young when I was! Fashion ads were largely about people with smiles on their faces when I was young. Nowadays, so much of the advertising looks like a bunch of mean, unhappy people wearing sunglasses and deadpan looks – so much pretense and attitude. I like the concept of “hope”, so I would never make a good Buddhist

I think there is also often a slight tinge of melancholy in the music I write. Sort of a mix of bright optimism blended with a small amount of “reality/regrets/disappointment/loss”. I prefer that 90:10 mix. I can certainly appreciate very dark music, it’s just simply not my forte to write in that genre, so I typically don’t.

John : Yes, I love the dramatic notations you infuse into your work. Has today’s technology made a big impact in regards to the way you have composed music in the past, and what electronic equipment do you use?

Davol : Yes, definitely. I work on a Mac, using the sequencing host Logic Studio. My sound set includes instruments from every major software synth manufacturer. I’m particularly fond of MusicLab’s RealGuitar product. It’s the BEST for acoustic guitar strums that layer so beautifully with my synth textures. It gives everything a wonderful energy and feel. Using a software-synth studio has advantages and disadvantages, but I’ve chosen to simplify my life by not using any hardware instruments anymore. I could never turn back now.

John : Good Sign features a song called Truth 2010. This is the first time you have made the Truth song available on CD and is the remix of your conceptual Truth Video that created a dramatic reaction among many people and considered political in nature. How and why did you produce the Truth Video, and what where the political and competition events occurring during production?

Davol : That was a creative vanity project that appealed to me at the time. And I had never done a video and wanted to learn how to create and edit video. Needless to say, THAT took a great deal of time, but was fun. That was back in 2007 and there was so much political discontent in the US, that I wanted to take a few steps backward and comment on the fact that so much of our “reality” is based on media stories that, for all we know, may have very little to do with the truth. If the past is any judge, everything should be suspect. But we pick and choose, deciding that story “x” is reasonable and we believe it, but story “y” is crazy and we reject it. We do this in history and have created a revisionist history that is written into textbooks. If we know that about history, why don’t we view current events reporting with the same skepticism? So, to return to your question, my focus wasn’t so much on the current politics of the time, but taking a glimpse at the last 100 years or so of US history, in particular.

John : Do you plan to release more CD albums and song videos in addition to the current ones featured on YouTube, and I ask this half joking Davol, but do you consider yourself a political activist in a sense after the Truth Video?

Davol : No more politics! Read my lips! I really want to focus on what I do best, simply write music. And that is where my heart and head truly reside. So, no more detours or distractions from the music.

Videos take so much time, that I don’t care to be involved in that either, although others are certainly welcome to consider such a project using my music – I’m open to that. Albums are definitely my focus for the future. As for CDs, well, they will soon be obsolete

John : It has been a pleasure to meet you Davol. B.T. Fasmer and I will keep our visitors informed on the latest news about you so let’s keep in touch. Before we go today, is there anything you would like to tell your fans or bring up that we haven’t talked about?

Davol : I came so close to abandoning my music career before the A Day Like No Other album, that I just want to thank everyone over the years who has emailed me or left a comment on my Guestbook page. It is truly those supportive words, stories of moments in people’s lives where my music touched their hearts that have kept me creating. I thank you all, and hope to keep providing music that will intrigue and touch listeners in a meaningful way.

John and B.T. Fasmer, thank you so much for supporting independent artists and this opportunity to share with fans.

We encourage our visitors to learn more about Davol and the place to find him is his davolmusic.com website homepage. Read his biography page and go to his music page to purchase / sample or at CDBaby.com page. Then read our reviews of Good Sign here at our pages and at our NewAgeMusic.nu pages dedicated to Davol.

Bryan El is the artist recognized for producing Classical Symphonic New Age music in a highly effective format that makes a grand impression while shedding new light on each and every one of his modern day electronic interpretations. You will find his compositions readily capture your attention right from the first few measures up to the final notes.

Bryan El is our featured interview guest where the topics of Bryan’s 2 albums, Out of This World & Spiritual Evolution, and his stunning song videos are open for discussion. In addition we take a detailed inquiry into what makes Bryan El’s individualistic approach to music so appealing.

Interview host John Olsen had the opportunity to visit with Bryan El. Today we publish their conversation so that our readers can learn more about the ambitions of this New Age musician many have come to recognized by his remarkable electronic symphonies.

Interview with Bryan El;

John : Thank You for taking time out for our interview Bryan. Recently I wrote album reviews and posted several song videos from Out of This World & Spiritual Evolution because I felt our readers would find your projects are boldly unique from many other forms of electronic music just like B.T. Fasmer and I did. I have read many comments from your fans that support my statement too. It was only logical to ask for an interview so everyone, including your fans could learn more about you.

Let me ask you this first. Many times an artist will say they have another musician’s influence or they “sound like“ another more recognized artist. I personally feel you break new ground with electronic music in many respects and do not “sound like“ another artist. Do you agree and share the same thoughts or do you feel your music closely resembles another artist?

Bryan El : Many people have a habit of comparing the sound of one artist with another. I believe each individual composer is trying to find their own “sound”. This can be based on several different songs and styles they have heard throughout their lives and have been unconsciously inspired by them. Of course I have my own sources of inspiration as any artist does but I feel I am still evolving my own “sound” as I keep producing new projects.

I honestly couldn’t say what my music will sound like ten years from now and that’s what makes it so exciting. You will always be able to identify similar instruments being used by different artists like pianos, strings and violins, but what matters to me most is the way an artist mixes these together into something unique…. A melody which expresses an emotion like a story that has never been told before.

John : What exactly sets your music apart from so many others Bryan. Is it because your music is Classical Symphony styled, or could it be your upbeat modern day songs are the reason you rise above the crowd from other electronic composers? What are your thoughts Bryan?

Bryan El : Good question. It’s hard to give your own music a “stamp” of its own kind and I don’t really like to compare my music with other artists in terms of “uniqueness”. Each artist is trying to capture emotions in their own way and the beauty of it is…. there are no rules how to do it. It allows composers to experiment by tweaking their own sounds and combining different styles into one to create something new and original. Eventually it’s up to the listener to determine what sets a specific type of music apart from others.

John : Out of the many genres available for a musician to explore, what led to your decision to embrace New Age and then explore the surreal Classical Symphonic music?

Bryan El : It wasn’t a decision really. It’s not like at some point I decided “hey let’s try the electronic new age category for a change”. I actually experimented with different things never knowing where I’d end up before I started a project. I’m not trying to fit a certain “genre” either. It has never been my intention to compose symphonic electronic music as people may call it. It’s just the global mix of so many different aspects and influences in my life that led me to create this and I am continuously searching to expand my boundaries.

John : Since the artist music of Bryan El consists of you alone, how exactly do you construct your projects to acquire a full orchestra sound, and do you mind telling everyone what equipment you use while recording?

Bryan El : Except from the hardware sounds I get from my Motif 6 synthesizer I am using a mix of VST plugins which I load into my Cubase sequencer. The orchestra sounds like violins & cello’s come from an amazing VST plugin called EastWest’s “Symphonic Orchestra”. The sounds from this VST have been individual-note recorded giving me the freedom to bend the notes to my own will with every detail. The choir vocals come from EastWest’s “Symphonic Choirs” which has a speech utility where you can actually type what the VST plugin should sing in any desired composition. It’s state of the art. Most electronic sounds come from the ReFX Nexus plugin. The Nexus is really awesome. It lets you tweak your own sounds in detail. I don’t know what I’d do without it. Finally the groove is done with Stylus RMX.

John : Would you tell us about your introduction to music starting from your earliest introduction up to present day?

Bryan El : The earliest I can remember is my mother playing these cassettes with very melodic new age/electronic music when I went to bed as a child. I remember it relaxed me so much and some of those tunes are burned in my memory for life because they had such a deep impact on me. I believe some of those tunes were by Vangelis, Tangerine Dream, Karunesh and Aeoliah.
It’s no surprise that when I got a little keyboard for my 10th birthday I couldn’t stop playing with it. Then came the Playstation era. Apart from the many cool games it had there was this awesome music program for it called “Music”. It opened my eyes to all possible things that could be done composing music. It was a basic sequencer which allowed you to freely place your own notes and adapt everything to the smallest detail.

Of course when I listen back to some of the tunes I made on it, I find the sound is quite poor compared to professional sound studio’s but it was a great start for me. When I was about 16 I got hooked on this cool midi sequencer called “Fruityloops” and made some dance tunes with it which I played at my friends parties. The Fruityloops was a next generation for me and much more sophisticated, far better sounds and effects. I was mostly inspired by dance-trance artists like Tiësto, Paul Van Dyk and Armin Van Buuren at the time and I learned a great deal by listening to their sounds, but it wasn’t until I got my Motif 6 synthesizer along with Cubase SX that I started to do some serious composing. I was 20 years old and could finally do what I always dreamed of and make it sound exactly the way I wanted it to. It was only a matter of time I discovered the internet would become a great tool of sharing my music with the world and I was surprised by the amount of positive feedback. I never taught I’d ever get the chance to release my own CD…. let alone two of them :p

It’s a dream come true thanks to AMAdea. The thing people never seem to understand is that I never actually attended any music school or learned how to read notes. When I have a melody in my mind I just systematically search and set each separate note in my sequencer instead of playing it live. It’s quite a time consuming process but patience is always on my side. I think this proves that anybody can make music if you are determined enough to express your emotions. I’ve never believed anybody should learn a specific set of guidelines and rules when it comes to music, I am autodidact and teach myself by learning from the music world around me.

John : Since you are one of the many great AMAdea Records Label artists, have you compiled any projects with other AMAdea Records label artists?

Bryan El : Indeed there are many great artists distributed by AMAdea but I haven’t had the pleasure to work with any of them yet. Who knows what the future brings, but for now I’m concentrating on a third solo album.

John : Many of your fans have said the song Solaris is among their favorites out of the many great songs you have produced. Is Solaris your favorite also and what do you believe is the reason this song is so popular among your fans?

Bryan El : Each composer has his own favorite baby and this one’s mine. Solaris is selected for airplay on several internet radio stations around the world. I’ve also produced a trance remix of it which has become quite popular on YouTube. The exposure may have caused the tune to become such a hit among my fans.

””When I have a melody in my mind I just systematically search and set each separate note in my sequencer instead of playing it live. It’s quite a time consuming process but patience is always on my side.  Bryan El

John : Your YouTube music videos are some of the best songs combined with visual effects I have seen, and many would agree with me that they are well conceived. Is constructing a song video and getting everything to correspond exactly the way you want it complicated technically?

Bryan El : The most complicated thing is to come up with an idea for the video. Once you have that it’s not that hard to assemble the video itself. I’m a music composer and not a movie designer so I had to come up with the solution of using existing footage to present my own music with. I have hundreds of DVD’s and have enough footage about anything you can think of so then I just listen to my song while I imagine what the emotion is showing me. Then I search for fitting footage to the music.

For example…. on my Solaris remix I used small parts of footage from a Tiësto concert dvd and pasted the parts together, muted the original sound, placed my own remix on top and adjusted the footage speed to match my own remix. Eventually it looks as if DJ Tiësto is playing my remix on one of his concerts. All you need is a good video editing program like PowerDirector and you can start editing. Of course none of my video’s are for sale as the images come from existing copyrighted material, but because the amount of footage used is so small it can legally be used under the term “fair use” on YouTube.

John : Could you tell us what do you have going at present, where you are at in composing, and what can we expect to hear from you in the future?

Bryan El : I am planning a third album as you know and many ideas have been roughly recorded. Be patient though…. It will take me at least a few years to get this new album ready. I can’t tell everyone much about it yet but all I can say to the fans is… it will be worth the wait!

John : I am certain it will be highly anticipated, and many like myself look forward to your next release. I just wanted to thank you again Bryan. Expect me to write even more about you in the future here at our NewAgeMusicWorld.Com & NewAgeMusic.nu websites. Your music along with the song videos you produce display your talents in a profound way. B.T. Fasmer and I wish you continued success!

Bryan El : Thank you John & B.T. Fasmer! You guys are great and it’s an honor to be on your websites. I also want to thank my fans for their support (it pays for my studio ) and thanks to AMAdea for distributing and promoting my music and for really caring about their artists!

You may visit Bryan’s new website at bryanel.com right here and visit his CDBaby.com page. Learn more at his profile page and then discover the many fine AMAdea label artists at the Bulgarian based AMAdeaRecords.com homepage. The bryanel.com website is also a great place to sample his music and read the latest news about Bryan El.

*AMAdea Records has just announced the grand opening of their independent music store outlet. You may read about the news here then visit their new amadeastore.com website to read about the specials and vast selection of popular music encompassing every genre they are now offering their worldwide visitors. Interview photos are courtesy bryanel.com.

In an exclusive interview, review publicists and interview hosts John P. Olsen and B.T. Fasmer each take a turn in asking Clifford White a variety of questions on his role in New Age music, and what the future holds for this great artist from the UK.

NewAgeMusicWorld.Com & NewAgeMusic.nu are proud to present this exclusive interview with New Age music legend Clifford White. During this 2010 interview Clifford talks about everything from Ascension (1985) to the upcoming album Atlantis, and he tells everyone a few secrets too!

Interview with Clifford White;

John P. Olsen: Take us back to 1985 when you were 17 years old Clifford. Ascension began your journey as a leading composer and producer of the primordial UK New Age genre, with Ascension selling tens of thousands of copies worldwide to become the strong foundation to your music career.

What is the reason you are so committed to the New Age genre, and have you ever considered producing music in more popular genres?

Clifford White: Although it was by no means traumatic, I did not have a particularly easy childhood, and by the age of 14 I had developed insecurities and fears which I found I could escape from by creating simple music on the piano, or by using various home keyboards and other musical instruments. Many years later, upon reading Mike Oldfield’s biography ‘Changeling’ I was very moved to hear that he had suffered from similar problems in his youth, and had in fact written Tubular Bells for much the same reason i.e. to escape from a world of fear into a space where the healing power of music could help him in releasing and resolving his feelings – in effect a form of musical catharsis.

My first album Ascension was written in a comparable frame of mind, and it is quite telling that it went on to have such an impact upon people’s emotional well-being. I am quite positive now that music influences the mind, body and soul in the most profound ways, and that for this reason my commitment to it abides. With Ascension boosting my musical confidence, I went on to produce a further 7 albums over a period of 10 years (1985 to 1995) in a variety of styles and I will continue to be committed to developing and promoting this type of music in the future, within whichever genre it appears.

John Olsen: I read in your biography at NewWorldMusic.Com, where your solo albums began receiving much press in the UK and were described as “Britain’s foremost exponent of New Age Rock“ and you, (Clifford White) were even listed next to the iconic Rock band, The Who in Collin’s book The Best of Rock. What is the story behind this statement and the early events during the time period?

Clifford White: Well, the ‘Best of Rock’ review was actually a bit of a joke. I mean, who actually creates ‘New Age Rock’ – isn’t that a bit of a misnomer?

In actual fact, it was a well known pop journalist called Alan Clayson that coined the term when he was asked to compile the ‘Best of Rock’ book. I knew Alan at the time, although I was very flattered that he wanted to include me. Imagine my surprise when I found myself next to The Who. Nice.

John Olsen: You were the presiding founder of the UK New Age Music Association (NAMA) with 40 top artists including James Asher, Kevin Kendle, Asha Quinn, and Tim Wheater. What was the mission of NAMA as a whole, and were there some ideas formulated that have evolved into what we find in today’s New Age genre?

Clifford White: Yes there is, and in many ways, my original desires and intentions for NAMA have been spectacularly resurrected with the resounding success of the New Age Music Network: Newagemusicnetwork.ning.com – an online social network with over 500 members. Both then and now, I continue to believe that artists and companies can work together to nurture and support the new age music genre and that, in perhaps our more technologically refined era, social networks such as these provide excellent environments from within which many useful discussions develop and contacts are made.

It is however unfortunate that, just as in the early days of NAMA, there is still a certain degree of exploitation going on (not mentioning any names) but I suppose this is to be expected in any industry, perhaps especially within music. I just wish people would see the logic in working together in teams to a greater extent. I believe our culture suffers greatly from excessive individualism and self interest, and what seems to have become an instinctive cynicism towards collaboration and group support – almost paranoia in some instances. It is therefore refreshing to meet individuals such as yourselves who, quite obviously, have nothing but positive intentions and goodwill as an agenda.

B. T. Fasmer: Please tell us a little about Sanctuary Studio at St Albans. From the pictures on your page, it looks impressive. Do you use mostly DAWs, or hardware synths – or both?

Clifford White: Sanctuary is the current name of my recording studio in St Albans. I set the studio up in 2008 and it is my most ambitious studio to date, certainly in terms of space and creative freedom. Detached from my home and occupying approximately 17ft W by 36ft L, my studio outbuilding has a dedicated sound booth for musicians and singers to perform, a control room and kitchen plus an office area. It was the realization of a 20 year dream to setup this studio and I am truly grateful and thankful to have achieved it. The only trick is finding enough time to spend in it!

On the music technology side I, like so many other producers in our current electronic era, use computers almost exclusively in the process of creating music. I have, over the past 10 years or so, built up a huge sample library of instruments, sounds and effects, which, combined with the software DAW I use – which is called Muzys – accounts for about 99% of my current music output. I do have a traditional ‘vintage’ analogue synthesizer – the Novation Supernova II Pro X, which is truly a beast of a machine – probably the greatest synthesizer ever made in terms of power and flexibility. Unfortunately however, it does not often see the light of day, as it is so much quicker and simpler to layer all of my music directly on the computer.

However, when a special timbre or effect is called for, the Novation is there. I also have a small selection of ‘virtual’ synthesizers (VST’s) which I enjoy using, including Arturia’s FM7, the excellent Yamaha DX7 emulation, which I used extensively on Ascension II. The original Ascension album featured the DX7 quite heavily and so it was truly great to revisit those old sounds in the new album. The freeware Synth1 plugin is also great, with a lovely silky sound, and I have a selection of other freeware VST’s that I use for other purposes, although like I said, raw instrument samples and effects are my usual elements of choice as they offer more control of the overall sound and dynamic than the virtual instruments.

I have little else that I directly use for my own album productions, although I do have a Behringer MX9000 48 channel mixer and a Mackie HDR24/96 hard disk recorder, which tends to be used mostly by visiting musicians and during improvised and ‘live’ studio sessions. I can directly transfer recordings made on the hard disk recorder to my music PC, importing them into my Muzys DAW as samples which I can then layer into my music, but I have hardly done much of that yet to be honest. I have so much of my own material built up in Muzys now that I suspect I will have enough to keep me going for another 5 or 6 albums at least!

John Olsen: During the past 25 years of your New Age music career you have used genre influences in Ambient, Epic, Latin, Jazz, Tropical, and even Classical. What determines the varying influence in each album you produce Clifford?

Clifford White: I love all those genres of music and I am always looking for an excuse to create albums that contain elements of those styles mixed together into the general album concept. Also, I like to try and avoid repeating myself and so the aim of making each new album different from the one that has proceeded it really appeals to me. The way I see it, the whole concept of an album seems to be an entity in it’s own right, with it’s own style, mood and flavor, and once it is finished, it should appear to be a completed work, like a book or a film, and one really doesn’t want to mess with it, add to it, or detract from it with further musings which might simply repeat ideas present in the original work.

I tend to approach the production of an album with this in mind, and I try to pour as many relevant ideas into the same pot as possible, never to be used again. As the album gets further underway, the various track ideas tend to link together, much like chapters in a story, and after a while it becomes self-evident what is working and what is not, in context of the whole. Of course, it is usually nowhere near as easy as it sounds and believe me, I have certainly labored long and hard on tracks which are (unfortunately) later thrown out for not meeting the general concept, style or criteria for the album as a whole. In the end, I try to make the final result as complete and as cohesive a work as I possibly can.

John Olsen: Do you feel the success of your projects are primarily the result of simple hard work or more from your creative imagination? Or what is the primary reason you have been so successful the past 25 years?

Clifford White: You know the old saying that goes ‘one percent inspiration and 99 percent perspiration’? Well, for me it’s more like 15% inspiration, 85% perspiration, but that is still a lot of work! I find that the initial ideas for a track or a collection of tracks tend to occur quite quickly – in the heat of the moment – and this usually results in a collection of strong core ideas. After repeated listening, these ideas seem to become further refined in my own mind – almost as if the process of hearing a piece of music days or weeks later from it’s creation somehow changes it, making it more ‘real’ and familiar. It’s very strange. In any event these ideas, usually in the form of short instrumental loops or arrangements, start to shine through in their own ways, suggesting further developments that could be possible. I tend to wait this process out until I am really ‘chomping at the bit’ to get into the studio to work on a piece. When the urge gets too great, that’s when I unleash myself into the studio and get working. Thus begins the 85% perspiration! A huge amount of effort goes into the process as I am very fussy and critical about my music tracks. They have to stand the test of time, yet sound fresh and new. That’s not an easy thing to sustain when you have already heard them 100 times!

John Olsen: You have your 2010 Ascension II – The Healing Touch, and plan to release another project later this year. Is this next album going to resemble an Ambient influence like Ascension II or more resemblance to your Epic Gods of Olympus?

Clifford White: I’ll tell you a little secret: I have a 5 year plan to release two albums a year until 2015! Believe it or not, I already have more than enough material to achieve this – it really depends on how much time I will actually get to spend in the studio. With the first in this series – Ascension II – already released, the next album due out later this year will either be Atlantis – which will be another epic production similar to the The Gods Of Olympus – or an album currently entitled The Beach, which will sound a little similar to my past albums The Lifespring or Twilight Paradise with that slightly jazzy, ‘sun-drenched’ tropical vibe. For 2011 I want to tackle two ‘Oxygene/Equinoxe’ type albums that I already have a great deal of material for. I have always loved the textures and moods Jean-Michel Jarre discovered whilst creating his early albums and have for a long-time wished he would revisit that sound. Unfortunately he did not, not even (to my ears) on his Oxygene sequel. I certainly would like to have a go! Following that I have a 2012 themed album planned (no big surprise there perhaps), and a sequel to The Beach, again for which I already have many track ideas. A couple more albums will follow and then as 2015 opens I will round the whole lot off with Ascension III, which will be the 30th anniversary of the original Ascension and make 20 albums in total. It will be very interesting to read this interview in a few years time to see if anything worked out according to my plan. After that – who knows…?

B. T. Fasmer: You have already told us a little about the Atlantis project. Is there anything more you would like to add?

Clifford White: Atlantis will hopefully be completed by around August/September 2010 and released shortly thereafter. The title is a little misleading as, although the album has watery overtones, it is rather more upbeat and rhythmic than you might expect. Its closest comparison would probably be my 2009 album The Gods Of Olympus, at least in terms of its cinematic style and mood. I am quite pleased with what I have completed so far and like GODS, the album will have plenty of tracks to enjoy – at present around 12 – in a variety of styles and moods.

I am thinking of it as a kind of sequel to GODS, and there are certain similarities, perhaps not unsurprising as – from a mythological point of view – The Atlanteans and the Olympians are not-too-distantly related to each other.

B. T. Fasmer: You are also an expert in web design, multimedia and video. As everyone knows, the internet has been a massive challenge for the music business – but don’t you agree that it has been mostly positive for a niche genre like new age music? Or?

Clifford White: Overall I would say yes, considering that the Internet is such a fantastic medium for communication between musicians, producers and composers and a superb tool for music promotion and publicity that it has served ‘New Age Music’ extremely well in this regard. The flip-side is that there is now so much music out there that it is impossible to find the good stuff!

I myself spend hours and hours listening to new artists, or past artists I had never heard of before, and much of it is not wildly original, not very satisfying. Don’t get me wrong, I do occasionally find some great music, such as Australis or David Wahler, but these are often exceptions from the norm. Blogs such as your own at NewAgeMusic.nu are fantastic ways to discover new music, although I must admit really that I find a great deal of New Age/Electronic/Ambient/Chillout music a little dull, although I always live in hope of discovering better works in progress. I certainly feel that the Internet provides for great potential in the promotion of this musical genre, and in fact I had myself setup a website to attempt this last year called the New Age Music News which is going from strength to strength. So the future looks positive !

Visit CliffordWhite.co.uk! Photographs by Jon Warren. Copyright Clifford White.

David Wahler was a relatively new name in the New Age music industry a year ago, only to become a quickly rising star by his first album’s success, and the direction he took. David did in fact win an album award for his first album receiving the Best New Artist Award at ZMR in 2009. The initial reactions to his second album A Star Danced looks just as promising.

David Wahler’s Antiquus album officially released June 1 2009, has some unique qualities not heard in projects from musicians established before him. With this goal in mind David Wahler has managed to produce a debut album that appears to stand alone in personal style and form, creating a model as an artisan would create a grand sculpture adorned with touches of gold, and crafted entirely out of sound.

NewAgeMusicWorld.com & NewAgeMusic.nu have written much about David these past months. Today we are excited to present our visitors an informal interview with David Wahler and New Age Music World interview host John Olsen.

Interview with David Wahler;

John Olsen : Thank You for allowing us this interview and congratulations on your recent win for Best New Artist of the Year in the March ZMR music awards. It was welcomed news to B.T. Fasmer and I when we heard of your recent win and recognition by the Best New Artist award. You are also a recipient of our own NewAgeMusic.nu Best Albums of 2009 awards prior to your second award, so you have been in the music news quite a bit recently, now recognized and firmly established as a highly regarded composing musician.

You must still be pretty excited about receiving high recognition as an artist following your debut album. I am just wondering, did you aim high and set out to achieve this high level of success as a new artist, or did everything just fall right into place while composing Antiquus?

David Wahler : Thanks John for your congratulations. You and B.T. Fasmer have been great supporters since the release of ANTIQUUS. I really appreciate that. The Best New Artist Award was a wonderful surprise, capping off some ‘best of’ lists and several favorable reviews. I did aim high with my first album, as I am aware of all the superb artists who are creating in this genre right now. Putting together ANTIQUUS, however, did seem to flow rather easily, almost like writing a song that ‘releases’ almost effortlessly as opposed to one that one labors over for days and days! The music, concept, titles and art came together fairly quickly and with very little hesitation.

John Olsen : After writing reviews for both Antiquus & A Star Danced, I honestly felt you were poised for much recognition from the very beginning like many others. After final completion of Antiquus, did you feel confident you had a winning first album and have high expectations yourself, or did you have some reservations about the reception of your first album?

David Wahler : My co-producer and partner, Rick Stevens, and I had no idea how the album would be received. I don’t know if any artist knows how their music is going to resonate with their listeners. I just heard an interview with David Arkenstone where he said that he still has second thoughts and reservations when he releases a new album….. so there you go, and from a great artist with many years of proven success. It’s one of the ‘great unknowns’ I guess, that I will always be burdened with!

John Olsen : These reservations among great musicians could be universal then I suppose. David your early success as a musician is quite impressive, and your formal educational studies in music are equally impressive. Would you describe your formal music and educational achievements for our readers?

David Wahler : I was a ‘piano kid’ in my little farm town of Belvidere, Illinois growing up. My first piano teacher, Nellie Canfield, was almost 90, and instilled in me a love of classical music. I remember her driving three of her students (including me!) on a cold winter night to hear the Chicago Symphony Orchestra play a concert of Ravel, including the Piano Concerto in G and the beautiful Daphnes and Chloe Suite. I was 9 years old and had never heard a live musical concert. You can just imagine what an impression that made on a young musical kid’s mind!

From there I dedicated myself to learning the piano. I attended Lawrence University Conservatory of Music in Appleton, Wisconsin as a piano major. After a couple years there I felt the tug of the big city and I transferred to Mannes College of Music in New York City. My teacher, Mme. Olga Stroumillo, was a great friend of Vladimir Horowitz from their youth in Russia. She introduced me to the great music of the world, and indeed, the great musicians and pianists, from Alicia DeLarocha to Nadia Reisenberg.

I began playing for vocalists as a professional accompanist in debut recitals. It was there that I learned the song or ‘leider’ repertoire and gained a real appreciation for the melody. I gravitated to the theatre world in New York and became Musical Director in productions off Broadway. After a couple decades of non-music, making a living in the corporate world, I decided that I wanted to learn to produce my own music. I enrolled in Berklee College of Music’s Electronic Music Production program. I knew I had the music in me, but mastering the electronic part was the big question. I’m definitely not one of the ‘gear geeks’ I studied with at Berklee, but little by little I came to understand (and love) the technical side of what I do.

John Olsen : I am guessing your earlier music background has helped ease your transition to New Age/Electronic music. Did you find the change in genre style more challenging than you had imagined, and since the term New Age leaves room for interpretation, how would you best describe your unique compositions?

David Wahler : Really John, it’s been an easy transition from my classical music background to the music I produce now. With all the wonderful virtual instrumental sounds available now I’m able to incorporate many of the orchestral instruments into my music, from flutes to oboe, harp, strings and on and on. I also love to design new synthesized sounds to compliment these traditional elements. Yes, the term New Age conjures up different interpretations with people and it covers such a very wide spectrum so I refer to my music and genre as ‘Contemporary Electronic Instrumental’.

John Olsen : I am curious why you didn’t begin composing in more mainstream genre’s like Classical, Concert, or Jazz?

David Wahler : That’s an easy question to answer. Because I absolutely love the ‘world’ of New Age music. From George Winston and Will Ackerman to Vangelis and Tangerine Dream and Francis Lai.

Like in the early days I remember thinking to myself, “finally someone is writing music for me!” I also include wonderful film composers like Ennio Morricone and Hans Zimmer, and current New Age masters Paul Avgerinos, Jonn Serrie, Bernward Koch, Thierry David, and David Arkenstone as huge influences in my musical style.

John Olsen : When you first begin a new project, do you already have a structured outline of ideas in mind for what you plan to produce or do you primarily compose everything as you progress in the project?

David Wahler : For ANTIQUUS my focus was pretty clear that I wanted to produce an album dealing with ancient myths and distant places. I wanted the music to have a structured, yet dreamy and somewhat mysterious quality. So yes, that album was fairly structured from the beginning. A STAR DANCED was much a much different story. It consists of songs that have a very personal meaning to me, and I didn’t have a structured theme, other than the theme of everyone’s human experiences and how we each live under our ‘dancing star.’

John Olsen : Knowing the success and fine reception with Antiquus, and first initial reactions to A Star Danced have been very positive, do you feel A Star Danced will achieve the same highly regarded recognition, and do you feel your current release is of a higher caliber than Antiquus?

David Wahler : Wow, now that’s a tough question John! One of the pitfalls of early success is that everything is compared to the original. I can only hope that people listen to A STAR DANCED with an open mind and not compare the two. While I feel that I have a recognizable style to my writing, I do feel that the two albums are very different. I tried some new things with STAR like collaborating with guitarist Brent Gunter and writing in more of a cinematic style on some tracks, like ‘Peaseblossom’ and ‘Come Gentle Night’. I also added my arrangements of two classical pieces, Debussy’s ‘Reverie’ and Faure’s ‘Pie Jesu’. It was a challenge to revise these two pieces in a way that would honor the original compositions and yet add a new, fresh perspective. I believe that I was able to achieve those objectives.

John Olsen : Yes, I see your point and agree both of your albums have their individual merits, and happy that both are held in high regard. Your current album is dedicated to family members past and present and wondered if you don’t mind telling our readers a little about the life circumstances surrounding the dedication of A Star Danced?

David Wahler : ‘Missing You’ was written while my father was lying in his bed in a coma, dying of Parkinson’s disease. I thought how poignant to be missing him already before he had died. ‘Yvonne’ was written for a family member currently waging her battle against breast cancer. It is a tribute to her beautiful spirit and her unspoken ability to teach others the beauty of life. But I ultimately added these tracks to the album for everyone who has a ‘Yvonne’ in their lives, and everyone who is missing someone – parent, lover, friend, child, pet, relative- who is no longer in their life.

John Olsen : I believe everyone can see the significance to your tribute now. In my review of A Star Danced, I wrote much about the first song Quest and the final song Quest (Revisit) What was the sentiment or dedication behind this song?

David Wahler : ‘Quest’ was written for those people in the world who are facing challenges right now. And who doesn’t that include? We are living in perilous, difficult times. Most everyone is dealing with those obstacles that beat them down, obstacles that keep them from reaching their full potential. ‘Quest’ is an anthem, a herald that calls to everyone with setbacks (illness, money problems, death, injury, loss, etc.) to forge ahead and reclaim the spirit of joy and happiness that is our birthright.

John Olsen : Your song dedications are significant to you on a personal level, yet these circumstances remain pretty much universal to everyone. David, there are many hoping you will continue producing music. Do you have current plans for a future album, and what can you tell us about your next project?

David Wahler : I love writing in different styles; in fact, I have been working on a meditation/relaxation album that I would like to produce someday. And I love writing music about ancient and distant lands and worlds. ANTIQUUS was perhaps just a beginning……

John Olsen : I like to leave this last question open ended David since we can’t possibly cover everything in this single interview or even this final question. Is there anything you would like to bring up we haven’t talked about yet?

David Wahler : John, a year ago I was sitting and listening to some of my favorite music on Music Choice’s Soundscapes and thinking, “how wonderful it would be to have the world listening to my music, to perhaps touch someone with the sounds that come from my creations.” That was my personal ‘quest’, and now that wish has been fulfilled. I believe, that as Abraham says, ‘just ask and you will receive’. I urge everyone to ‘just ask’.

John Olsen : Thank You again for leaving us with your insightful words and allowing us this interview David. It’s clear that B.T. Fasmer and I both enjoy your music here at NewAgeMusicWorld.Com & NewAgeMusic.nu. We plan on writing even more about you to present to our readers, so let’s keep in touch. We wish you and your family the very best.

David Wahler : Thanks again John and B.T. for your support of my music. And, I’d like to thank my new found fans and your readers, and those fellow artists, broadcasters, reviewers, and industry insiders in the New Age community who have reached out so warmly to me in the past year!

We invite you to visit davidwahler.com to sample / purchase or his CDBaby.com page. You may read reviews and news about his recent awards on our page dedicated to David Wahler. Photos courtesy davidwahler.com & Bigstockphoto.com.

Composing musician Dr. Michael Brant DeMaria, clinical psychologist, recognized poet, author, public speaker, and now recipient of a prestigious Grammy Nomination, was interviewed by John P. Olsen, New Age Music World host and contributing author with NewAgeMusic.Nu.

Interview with Michael Brant DeMaria;

John Olsen :  Giving the fact the Christmas season has arrived, your musical and professional endeavors are numerous, thank you for taking time out for us Michael.  BT Fasmer and I also congratulate you on your current Grammy Nomination and recent win with the Native American Music Award, (NAMMY) in the Native Heart category in October.  This must be very rewarding, so how does it feel to be recognized by these achievements, and why do you think  Siyotanka  makes such a decisive impression on those who make award decisions?

Michael Brant DeMaria :  Thank you so much John, and please thank BT Fasmer for me.  Your words are greatly appreciated.  It is a great honor to be recognized with a Native American Music Award.

Although I work in many genre’s of music including New Age, World and Ambient music – I have a deep love and respect for Native American culture, music and wisdom and it’s meant a great deal to me – so this honor is particularly meaningful. The music of Siyotanka really appears to have touched many people with its sincerity, simplicity and honesty.

My goal with the music was to serve the story and try to tell the story musically even if you had never seen the play or are even unfamiliar with the Legend of Siyotanka. What’s beautiful about it is it is really an archetypal story for musicians.

We don’t have room to go into the whole story here – but what I can tell you is it’s a story about finding the song that lies inside of our hearts and the importance of sharing that song with the world – because it is that soul song that tells us who we are, where we come from and where it is we are going.  Ultimately, it is also a story about peace – how wood is fashioned for the first time into an instrument of love instead of into a weapon of war.  I think that is truly an important story for our time.

John :   You have also performed with Grammy nominees, past winners, and are now among a select group of musicians.  Who are the artists you have performed with in the past, and what is it like to perform with these other fine musicians?

Michael :  Thank you again John for your kind words.  It is an incredible honor to be recognized in this way.  My first love was music and it has been my therapy and a balm to my heart and soul so often in my life.  I’ve had the honor of performing with many of my musical heros.  Two in particular, David Darling and R. Carlos Nakai are two that inspired me for many years.

It was Nakai’s Earthspirit which was the first Native American Flute recording I ever heard.  It literally brought tears to my eyes.  David’s cello can also just reduce me to a puddle.  To admire someone for so many years and then have the opportunity to play with them is a true joy.   I actually have studied with David over the last four years and am know certified with him as a Music Improvisation Teacher through his Music for People program.  He has a huge and generous heart.  He’s nominated in the New Age category this year.

John :  Perhaps you could tell us how your musical odyssey began.  What were the circumstances of your early beginnings in music, and how did you progress from there?

Michael :  At the age of 6 years old I would go to the family piano and strike one note at a time and close my eyes to enjoy listening to the note arise and then slowly dissipate.  I could do that for long stretches of time.   I had a number of surgeries as a child and I realized at a very young age that this process was very healing and soothing for me.  I realize now as a psychologist it was a form of music therapy I was practicing – like meditation or self-hypnosis – a trance state if you like.  For me, all I know is it felt very sacred to me and could take me to another world.

Then the next turning point musically came when I was 9 years old when I heard my first live jazz at the local high school auditorium.  I was absolutely captivated by the drummer on his pearl white drum set electrifying the audience with his syncopated rhythmic playing.  My heart did a triple back flip with a double twist – I was just blown away !  I went home that night and announced I was going to be a drummer.  It didn’t go over too well – we were a quiet Catholic family – but I sat and practiced my drum pad for months until my parents saw I was serious enough and then one day relented and bought me my own white pearl set of drums that I just adored and played every chance I could get.  I had found rhythm and I was addicted !

Then at the age of 18 I bought my first Moog synthesizer.  That 6 year old that liked to plunk one note at a time was totally blown away with the sounds that came out of this synthesizer – WOW ! It was like a drug for me.  And not only could I generate a sound, but I could modulate it in all kinds of ways.  I became a dedicated synthesist for many years.  I always heard sounds within me that I have sometimes called the music of the spheres or the hum of God – and here was this keyboard that allowed me to explore to my heart’s content some really wild, far out sounds.

Then, at the age of 31 while heading out to enact a very traditional vision quest in Canada I heard a Native American Flute for the first time – and that took me to a whole other world.  There was something about the bittersweet, hauntingly familiar sound of the flute that took me to an even deeper place inside.  I had never played a wind instrument before and to make sound with your breath – well, there is nothing quite like it. What was different about the flute was I was in need of some profound healing – it helped me cry and grieve and slowly, but surely brought me back to life after suffering from what I have come to call ‘compassion fatigue’ after working with severe cases of child abuse and neglect for many years.  As a result, I’ve spent the last 16 years exploring a variety of ethnic and world percussion and aerophones into my music resulting in my last three commercially released albums, The River, Ocean and Siyotanka.

John :  Later in life you began your own private practice as a clinical psychologist and therapist, creating ONTOS, to help individuals and groups advance in life.  What are the principals, mission, and what led you to create ONTOS?

Michael :  ONTOS is the Greek word for Being.  Being is the most inclusive word in every language.  The verb ‘to be’ weaves its way in and out of every sentence and every moment.  It refers to the most mysterious essential core of who we are – our inmost Being.  For me Being refers to the wholeness that we already are when we connect to the truth that is in our hearts – which is our natural interrelatedness with each other, the natural world and the cosmos – ultimately to all things.

We are very lost today as a culture and a species.  We have lost our natural sense of being part and parcel of the earth and cosmos.  We have rather been taught the big lie of western culture that somehow we are different and superior to nature when in fact we are part and parcel of nature – we are a part of the web of life, not the owner or exploiter of it.

We are paying a dear price for that today – and we need this deeper wisdom of the interconnectedness of all beings to get back into a healthier alignment with the natural world and each other.   All human beings share 99.9 percent of the same DNA – only .1 percent accounts for all the differences between all people.

We are all truly brothers and sisters, siblings in the cosmos.  We even share 50 percent of the same DNA with Bananas! We are all connected with all living things.  The mission of Ontos is to know that people heal and get better when they begin to experience their connection to life, nature and each other in a more fundamental and profound way.

John :  Stress for the caregiver is always a result when providing treatment to patients, so how do you yourself regroup, after treating hospice, cancer patients, and abused or neglected children in your care?

Michael :  Music, meditation and time in nature.  I like to say my holy trinity is nature, creativity and spirituality.   They bring me back into alignment.  Another analogy I like to use is if I go to the river and get a bucket of water and bring it to people who are thirsty I have to be honest with myself when the bucket is empty and return to the river.

In this way, I remember that I am simply a fellow journey or who is all too human and I try very hard to remind myself to take care of myself in order to be of good to others.  I’ve burned out once before and am very sensitive about avoiding that again.  For this reason I limit my clinical work to three days a week – and try to keep 4 days a week open for my creative work.  This has been a really nice balance for me.  Creativity tends to put into my heart and soul what therapy takes out – and therapy tends to put in what creativity pulls out.  It’s like crop rotation – replenishing myself by alternating between being an artist and a healer.

John :   In your Healing Sound Series you began with The River,  which led to the Ocean album.  Your next in series will be titled Earth.  What led you to begin the series, and in what ways are the albums alike and what are some of the tonal differences in the series?

Michael :  Great question John.  The Healing Sound Series  arose from my desire to use music in a way that our ancient ancestors understood it’s use most – for healing.

Our culture is the only culture on the planet that has used music primarily as a form of entertainment.  To the ancient and indigenous cultures on our planet music was always used as a form of community building, ritual, meditation, prayer and most importantly, healing.  The medicine man or woman used music, dance and song to do their healing work.  This was the first inspiration for the  Healing Sound Series.

The second is that as a psychologist I  make sound tracks for relaxation tapes and visualization journeys for my clients and have for the last 25 years.  I wanted to challenge myself to use this music and make it available to massage therapists, acupuncturists, yoga teachers and meditation teachers on a larger basis.   It is also the desire of that 6 year old inside of me that still sees the miracle of life being how something arises and then disappears – perhaps it is an acknowledgement of the fleeting nature of life and how we each come into the world as a song and then must also eventually return to that place we came from.   The River actually arose out of my work with hospice patients and my belief that life is like a river – and that when we die – like the river – we just change form as we empty our being into the vastness of Being itself – the Ocean.

The Ocean became a natural follow-up to the The River – to explore this more formless place – the place from which the river comes from and to which it returns.  You see this whole mysterious process of living and dying just fascinates me to no end – and music has been an amazing vehicle for me to explore this fascination in a healing way – and it turns out has been healing to others as well – which gives me great joy.

John :  Your current release Ocean  is dedicated to hurricane survivors like yourself, and reflects on events that have happened in your life.  Do you mind telling about this past event, and what is your musical objective for you and the listener?

Michael :  The Ocean album documents a particularly tragic and painful time in my life after we lost our home during hurricane Ivan.  We had to move into the back of my office – my daughter was a senior in High School at a time.

Our lives were turned inside out and upside down when a 15 foot wall of water enveloped our whole neighborhood.  90 percent of the homes on our street were destroyed.  The place I taught my daughter to ride her bike, do her first cartwheel and build her playhouse – the place we called home would never be the same.

The water had always been a source of relaxation and peace for me – now it looked anything but – an ominous, unpredictable and dangerous force.  It really took me initially to a dark place – but it was out of this darkness that the music started to teach and heal me.  I started having dreams of swimming with dolphins, whales and strange underwater creatures.  The music really reveals that out of this darkness something beautiful comes.

John :  Siyotanka hit #1 and remained in the Top 20 chart for 6 months, you went on to win a Native American Music Award (NAMMY) in the Native Heart category, recently presented in Niagara falls.  This album is based on a story, so could you tell us the storyline, and theatrical aspects of  Siyotanka?

Michael :  Siyotanka  is the Lakota word for ‘flute’ and sometimes is translated as ‘great song’.  The legend of Siyotanka involves how the first Native American Flute came to be. It’s about a boy trying to find his place in the world.

He thinks he is to hunt and elk – but doesn’t have much success and on the way he is distracted by this hauntingly beautiful, ghost like music.  He follows the sound until he comes to a cedar tree that has had a branch hollowed out by termites.

There is a woodpecker who has hollowed out a number of holes in the branch and is jumping from one hole to the other and as he does the wind blows through the branch and creates this mysterious music.   He wants nothing more than to make this wood sing like that.  It takes time and many adventures – a vision quest, a dream of the spirit of the woodpecker and many other lessons, but finally he learns to make the wood sing.  He learns about humility, respect and listening deeply to Nature.

The story reminds us when we are lost and alone, feeling rejected and abandoned, if we look inside our hearts and find the song that is living there we can find our way even through the darkest of times.  How a piece of wood can be fashioned into a musical instrument instead of into a weapon – to bring peace instead of war, love instead of hate. Truly a story for our time.   The play itself was quite a production.  We had a 30 person production team with actors, crew, a beautiful set designed by my co-writer Stephen Lott who also did the ‘shield’ for the cover of the CD.  You can find much more about the legend and some of the story behind the music at www.siyotanka.com

 John :  You also are currently working on another album titled Voices, which explores new territory for you.  What can we expect from the Voices project?

Michael :  This is something I’m very excited about John.  Voices will be just that – nothing but human voices.  I have been working with my voice more and more – and I’ll be using multi-layering of my voice and perhaps some guess vocalists on this album and we hope it will be a wonderful addition to the  Healing Sound Series.

John :  In the past you have said nature inspires you the most.  What aspects of nature, and how does silence, and individual notes from beginning to end, play an integral role in what you want people to hear and experience in your music?

Michael :  My holy trinity is Nature, creativity and spirituality.  For me nature is God’s art.  When we immerse ourselves in nature we are putting ourselves in alignment with the creative infinity of the universe.  Nature has a way of not only healing us, but inspiring us.  To me the music of nature is the most profound.  There is an organic quality and rhythm to the sound of nature.  For me it’s the music of life itself.  I never tire of listening to the many sounds present in the natural world.  I say I get many of my best stuff from the feathered one’s (the birds)!

John :  The instruments you play are keyboards, synthesizer, indigenous flutes, percussion, claves, and other aerophones, but you consider yourself a flutist at heart.  Why is the flute your passion, and what are some of the varying tonal attributes in the indigenous flutes and percussion instruments used in your music?

Michael :  Yes, John, although I grew up playing keyboards and percussion – and fell in love with the synthesizer in my late teens and 20’s – I’ve come to realize I’m a flute player at heart.  There is something about using my breath to create music that connects me with the spirit-that-moves-in-all-things in a profound way.  I disappear into the music playing the flute like nothing else.  I close my eyes and it’s the closest thing I have ever experienced to flying.  I feel my spirit soar when I play – and it is a thrill and joy like no other for me.

John :  You have presently authored  3  personal growth books, and have stated a love for poetry having performed on stage with world renowned poets.  Could you tell us about the books you wrote, and some of your experiences as a recognized author and expressions as a poet?

Michael :  I have written 3 books.  The first Horns and Halos: Towards the Blessing of Darkness is more of an academic work.  This was published in 1992 and explores the terrain of love/hate relationships.  I was working with child abuse victims at the time – and I was trying to understand how loving relationships could turn so violent.  It was a way for me to make peace with much of the tragedy I was witnessed to for so many years in my early clinical work.

My second book, Ever Flowing On: On being and becoming oneself is a book for a general readership and was my first attempt to write less academically and more from the heart.  It includes the story of my first vision quest and my love of music and nature.  It is a personal growth book for the serious seeker.  It has also been called a wisdom book for the soul’s journey.  It is broken into 4 parts, The Source, The Abyss, The Quest and The Dance.  It was inspired by a dream where my grandmother came to me and asked me if I died tomorrow, what of value do I have to leave my daughter.  My goal was to write down what I felt was important in living a life.  It is a book that is near and dear to my heart – a labor of love ultimately for my daughter.

My last book is Moments, which is my first full length collection of poetry.  Next to music, poetry is my favorite form of expression.   It has always been a companion for me during dark times.  It was a great joy for me to play with Robert Bly and David Whyte, both of whom have inspired me creatively in many ways.  I can’t remember who said it, but the quote I love most about poetry is that in every poem the universe gives up a secret.  I really like that idea – and I personally experience it that way.  For me, life itself ultimately is a poem – and to live fully and well is to become an artist of life.

John :  Your achievements and experiences are just too numerous to list in this single interview Michael, so I wanted to give you an opportunity to tell our readers anything about yourself we haven’t covered in our interview.

Michael :  John, you have been so kind and generous with your words.  It’s an honor to be part of newagemusic.nu.  I guess the only other area I’d like to share about is that in addition to  Siyotanka  I have written another play, Café Mezzo that was produced and received wonderful reviews including best play of the year for the theatre it was produced in (The Loblolly Theatre).  I have also written a full length screenplay that I hope to see produced one day.  My greatest love is weaving music, words and images into meaningful and hopefully healing stories for the soul’s journey.  Stories and music have tremendous power to move us and transform us – so it is my hope in my creative work to add a bit of sanity and beauty to a world that is in desperate need of it.  I hope I can also inspire others to share their own creative expressions.  For me, the artist does for a culture, what a therapist does for an individual.  So ultimately all my work arises from the same inspiration and motivation – to heal and become more and more whole – individually and collectively.

John :  We wish the best for you as a Grammy nominee Michael. It’s been an honor to learn more about you while preparing, then conducting our interview together.  On behalf of our readers, thanks again and let’s keep in touch.

Michael :  Thank you so much John.  I have thoroughly enjoyed this interview and the depth and genuineness of your questions.  Yes, by all means let’s stay in touch  – it’s again a joy to be a part of newagemusic.nu!  Wishing you, your family and all your readers a blessed holiday season!

Visit Michael’s ontos.org website.  My album review of Ocean and related articles are on Michael’s page.

There is a footnote to this Interview.  Michael informed me that ZMR has placed his Ocean  album at the Top # 1 Recording for November 2009.  In addition, Improvijazzation has selected  Ocean  as their Best Ambient Album of the Year for 2008.  This is great news, and we are proud to present some of today’s top talents in the music industry to our readers.  Congratulations again Michael!  Photos are courtesy of ontos.org.

John P. Olsen, New Age Music World publicist and contributing author for newagemusic.nu now serves as interview host with composing musician John Adorney. During their interview together many topics are covered including John Adorney’s biography, secret to success formula for producing outstanding music year after year, and his newest release entitled The Fountain.

John Adorney began with the Beckoning album which became an instant hit with New Age fans, likewise acquiring many listeners who simply adore the Contemporary Instrumental genre in the process. The Other Shore, Waiting For The Moon, & Trees of Gold are his preceding albums and beloved classics we easily recognize from his relaxed musical signature.

The Fountain is the newest release to showcase his reliable artistry in blending Electronic, Contemporary Instrumental and World music. The album features John Adorney on piano, keyboard, acoustic guitar, cello, and percussion. Vocalist Daya Rawat, and African vocalist Marcel Adjibi, who wrote the lyrics, pleasantly enhance the project on a number of songs with their fluid harmonious voices. It’s a beautiful album from a wonderful and consistent New Age artist.

Interview with John Adorney;

John P. Olsen :  Thank you for taking time out of your schedule for us. We welcome you aboard John! It is an honor to meet you not only by your status in the music industry, but BT Fasmer and I happen to be among the many fans of your music!

John Adorney : Thanks – it’s great to have this opportunity to speak with you!

JP Olsen : Let me start by saying, you began by playing cello at age 9, were self taught on guitar, piano, and also began composing at an early age. Could you tell our readers about your earliest introductions to music and how you first began composing music at this young age?

John Adorney : Both my parents were artists, so initially, drawing was my first love. We had a few musical instruments around the house, and from a very young age, I always loved picking them up and playing with them, picking out tunes. There was always music around the house, and sometimes I would go to church with my mother and grandmother. When the hymns were sung, they were both always singing harmony – never the melody. I think this had a big effect on me – I’ve always loved harmonies as much as anything in music. When I was 11, the Beatles hit America, and I was totally smitten with pop music and taught myself guitar – which, to me, was quite easy compared to studying the cello. Once music clicked for me, I lost interest in doing art – drawing seemed dry to me compared to music.

My parents always supported whatever I was interested in, so they bought me an electric guitar, and later a 12-string acoustic guitar. We also had two reel-to-reel tape recorders in the house, so it occurred to me that I could record myself playing several instruments. I’d record a part on cello, then play the tape out loud, playing a second harmony part along, and recording both on the second tape deck. I’d do this back and forth until the sound quality of the initial recording was so bad, I really couldn’t take it any further. I’d make up my own pieces – I think the layering idea originated from playing in orchestra, where each part is separate, but when put together, creates something large, and often, quite sublime. I actually still have some of those old recordings.

JP Olsen : Some of your scholastic studies are centered around music. Could you describe your fields of study, vocational, and educational achievements?

John Adorney : I studied cello into my college years, and I was a cello major at the University of Connecticut. I was also I interested in psychology, so when I finished my degree at Antioch University several years later, it was with a double major in music and psychology.

Then, while teaching music at a school for handicapped children, I discovered that there was a music therapy program at Cal State University, Long Beach. I completed my music therapy training there and became a board-certified music therapist. The semester after I graduated, I was asked to teach music therapy at the University.

JP Olsen : Working with handicapped children must be a very rewarding experience and I can only imagine what that must be like, John. What are some of the challenges and personal rewards felt from your experiences while teaching disabled children, and as a music therapist, how are you able to reach out to severely handicapped individuals?

John Adorney : First, I’d like to say that we’re all handicapped – it’s a spectrum, really, that we stand on at one spot and from there, we judge someone else. I’ve had doctors tell me that someone I was working with was severely retarded, but I knew that this was just because the person couldn’t speak. Of course if someone can’t speak, they’re going to test poorly on an “intelligence” test. It was easy to see by looking in the person’s eyes that they were perfectly intelligent. Common sense is very uncommon, as a very wise man once said.

There are so many things that are great about using music as a therapeutic medium. For one, everyone loves music, so it has a universal appeal built into it. I think that this is perhaps especially true for handicapped people. I’ve always loved working with handicapped people, because they just seemed more open to music than most people – they’re not trying to be “cool.” And if there’s any kind of intellectual limitation, then music can transcend that.

The actual application of music therapy varies, depending on what the goals are with each client. For example, an autistic person needs to connect to people – he or she lives in a fairly isolated world. My approach in this case would be to enter that person’s world with them – become a companion in their world. This might mean imitating the sounds that they make, and singing along with these sounds, finding out which songs and music the person likes, etc. Then, once I have been accepted as a friend in that person’s world, then he or she and I can venture slowly out from that world in a way that’s safe.

One client of mine has no speech, no movement, eats through a tube and breathes through a tube. She lies on her back all day looking at the ceiling. We have connected through my singing songs to her – I make them up about her, her environment, etc. The music can stimulate her or relax her, depending on what’s called for. She’s an amazing person, and it’s my honor to know her and be able to be with her. It’s all in the eyes and the smiles.

JP Olsen : I think the work you do with handicapped individuals is admirable John, and completely agree with your statement that there is enrichment and something to learn from all individuals, regardless of whether they are handicapped or not. In 1998 you joined the EverSound label and your first album Beckoning has received notoriety by becoming their most successful album to date. What awards and recognition have you received so far on all of your albums, and is Beckoning your most successful album to date?

John Adorney : Well, it’s hard to say, whether there’s any difference between Beckoning and my other CDs other than the fact that Beckoning has been out the longest. This is probably why it has sold more than my other CDs. I saw on one radio airplay chart recently that my new CD, The Fountain, was #1, and Beckoning – which was released in 1998 – was #2.

All my CDs have all been received really well. The Other Shore won the Best New Age Recording of 2002. Really, though, I don’t think that awards have anything to do with the value of music. Music really stands on its own. To me the greatest reward is when I get an email from a fan that says the music has had a profound effect on their life. I get some amazing emails, and I’ve already gotten several in response to the song “Even in Your Darkest Hour,” from The Fountain. Writing that song was unique, as it played in my head from beginning to end, exactly as you hear it on the CD. That happens maybe once in a lifetime for most musicians, I think. We forget sometimes how magical this thing called music really is.

JP Olsen : There are many projects with EverSound label artists you have performed with and likewise guest performers on your albums. What are some of the projects have you done with EverSound label artists?

There are two EverSound artists, Lino and Curtis Macdonald, who, after hearing my CDs, wanted me to produce theirs. It was a pleasure working with both of them and hopefully, I was able to add something. They are both extremely talented composers and musicians.

I also produced Diane Arkenstone’s “Best Of” CD, which was released on EverSound. I helped gather the tracks and I arranged the two new tracks on the CD. Diane’s a wonderful human being.

JP Olsen : Your discography consists of Beckoning, The Other Shore, Waiting for the Moon and Trees of Gold. Just released The Fountain does have the Adorney signature sound, yet a unique exploration of it’s own too, so can you offer some input about the ethnic paths taken on The Fountain, along with prior releases?

John Adorney : I’ve always been a fan of world music and different ethnic grooves and so I’ve always wanted to incorporate them into my music. I’m also a big fan of Indian music – A.R. Rahman, and other so-called “Bollywood” composers. I think Indian music is the most sophisticated music on earth, and has such a rich and ancient history. The instrumentation is fantastic, the grooves are hypnotic, and also, the Indian music is not based on chord changes, as is western music – it’s based on a drone.

I’ve always resisted using Indian sounds in my music because I respect the tradition of their music so much. But I feel there’s been a kind of new recognition of Indian musical elements fused into popular and dance music, which gave me the freedom to finally incorporate some of the Indian sounds. So I think The Fountain incorporates some of these elements more than my previous CDs.

JP Olsen : Do you have a secret to success formula for providing everyone with music having an enduring positive influence over the years, and what inspires you to create and then transfer your thoughts into your compositions?

John Adorney : I don’t know if I can say I have a secret – where music comes from is the real secret. Sometimes as musicians we get too much credit and recognition for simply being a channel for the music that comes into this world.

I always write from a feeling – never about some external thing. I love the un-defined quality in music, which is why I write mostly instrumental music. Even the lyrics in the songs I’ve done are usually open to interpretation, and I never like to say what my own interpretation is, because I don’t want to limit what someone else might experience. To me, what the musician is expressing is not what’s important – it’s what the listener feels when they hear the music.

I’ve also benefited in my life by being a student of a great teacher named Prem Rawat. He has really cleared away a lot of the garbage in me that would have prevented this music from coming through. If people are interested, they can go to http://www.wopg.org/. That stands for Words Of Peace Global.

JP Olsen : In relation to the technical aspects of your projects, can you tell a little about how your music is produced?

John Adorney : When I first started with Beckoning, and with my second CD, The Other Shore, I was lucky to get Paul Dieter to do the mixing – he was on a break from doing work with Jackson Browne and Crosby, Stills and Nash. He had gotten a Grammy nomination for mixing Jackson’s This Time CD. I don’t even remember exactly how he heard about me, or the other EverSound artists. But I loved working with Paul, and I’d always pick his brain as he worked – I was trying to learn as much as I could about the process. Also, some of my music was mixed by a fantastic engineer, Leslie Chew, who also has taught me a lot about the mixing process. Eventually, I’d felt I’d learned enough to mix my own music, which I started to do with Waiting for the Moon.

My home studio is very small, but with a keyboard and a powerful computer, you can really create some great sounds. I do a lot of tracking in the Midi realm, and then sometimes replay many of the instruments live, to give the music a more “live” feel. I’ve always loved blending electronic and acoustic sounds. Believe me, as a composer I feel very fortunate to be able to play the keyboards, cello and guitar – these really cover a lot of ground, and it helps keep the budget down! Besides – I can play the music exactly as I want it to sound.

I’ve worked in Cubase and ProTools, but now I work in Logic Studio, and do some audio editing in ProTools. Logic is very musical, but I still find ProToolsto be the simplest program in terms of editing audio. Sometimes if I need to record something live, like Daya’s voice, I’ll bring my equipment to a professional studio in Westlakeand will record the live elements there. Really, all that’s needed is a quiet place and a good microphone.

JP Olsen : Daya is featured on many of your albums, lending her vocal talents that can only be described as exquisite. Her vocals compliment your music so well and is just a natural combination, so how did Daya’s singing career with you begin?

John Adorney : I was Daya’s music teacher from when she was 7 years old, until she was about fifteen. She’s always had an incredible voice, and a beautiful heart that comes through in her singing, even from a young age. We have a wonderful relationship, and she’s always happy to sing on my projects. I feel really fortunate to not only know her, but to have her sing on my music.

JP Olsen : EverSound and major retail outlets sell your music at present, but I’ve read that CD albums and individual songs will become available on your website. When is your website retail store expected to open?

John Adorney : I’m still working out the kinks on the website store. I want to make sure that it’s a really smooth experience for anyone who goes there to purchase. I know how frustrating poorly-organized websites can be. It should be up and running in the next few weeks. It’ll be fun, because then I can have individual tracks available for download that were never on a solo CD.

JP Olsen : On behalf of our readers, BT Fasmer, and myself, Thank You again for taking time out for us and giving everyone the opportunity to learn more about you on a personal level and the outstanding music you produce that keeps everyone coming back for more. We consistently play your songs on our 365 Home of the Stars Radio and invite our readers to tune in and discover the music of John Adorney.

John Adorney : Thank you – it’s been wonderful having this opportunity to talk about the music with people who are truly interested. Thanks again.

Visit johnadorney.com homepage to sample or purchase, or visit his Amazon.com page. Read our page for John Adorney. Cello picture copyright Bigstockphoto – Stab / David Martyn & johnadorney.com.

John P. Olsen has just conducted an Interview with Mars Lasar. The topics are about Mars Lasar’s remarkable music career, current projects, and innovative technological products. There is some informal conversation about New Age music in general, and what it feels like to be a famous musician with a history of producing impressive albums during his career.

Mars Lasar is a music celebrity known for bringing a total music experience not only to his broad multi genre fan base, but to persons not even familiar with the name Mars Lasar, since he has prepared music scores on many television and film credits over the last 25 years, along with the lengthy discography produced during his music career. During his career he has provided music scores for highly recognized global corporations, and remains a constant producer in the television and film industry, in addition to his traditional album work.

You will find Mars Lasar specializes in a vast range of genre influences with his wide ranging discography, and his nature inspired releases seem to capture the inherent pride and true spirit of the American way of life. His insightful dedication to protection of the heartland that becomes a constant reminder of this gifted artist and conservation legacy that will remain relevant and time honored for future generations.

Mars Lasar is also a professional photographer. The amazing images he has captured have been on display in galleries near and far. When you compare his musical creations to his photographic images, the fine line of distinction between the two creative endeavors are more attune to making a single artistic statement. John Olsen recently interviewed Mars Lasar, and today we are pleased to provide his fans and our visitors their conversation.

Interview with Mars Lasar;

John P. Olsen : Your lifelong career as a musician has already been marked with many outstanding achievements over the years Mars. There are also many moments of media exposure on television and film. Could you tell us some of the programs your music has been aired on past and present?

Mars Lasar : I have had my work played on many well known shows like: 24, Medium, American Idol, America’s Most Wanted, Oprah Winfrey, these are just to name a few. I have been providing music for film and television for over 25 years.

John : What are some of the greatest moments in your career on a professional level, and could you tell us about the events that were occurring during the single greatest moment to date in your career as a professional musician?

Mars : I must say I’ve had some rather unusual adventures. Being a composer/artist and sound designer with a very large sound library, I was asked to compose all kinds of things from making an orchestra with wildlife sounds to creating hit song productions for the artist Seal. I sat in Abbey Road Studios and spoke music and technology with Alan Parsons, had a cup of tea with Kate Bush, worked with Herbie Hancock and his production team on cutting edge music, wrote video-game music for Sega and Sony Play Station with Keith Emerson from Emerson, Lake and Palmer.

I appeared on the Queen Mary and joined astronaut Buzz Aldrin on topics of energy conservation for Earth Day International, I played synthesizers on street corners dressed in a space suit, assembled an audio rainforest in a dome-shaped butterfly sanctuary in the city, opened for Mike Oldfield on his Tubular Bells tour, traveled to Latvia to represent Russia in the Eurovision contest for which I wrote only the music, the lyrics were in Russian (artist Tatu), I took a shotgun microphone and recorder into the Australian outback and recorded frogs and used them for percussion instruments in my albums, I sampled orchestras that walked out after they found out we were sampling them (in the 80′s), I recorded choirs in France who hid the one that was out of tune So you see, music and technology led me to many interesting adventures.

John : Recently when Cadence and I had our interview together, I asked if making her first individual CD / DVD release of Save The World was easier than she thought it would be. I wanted to ask if having the tables turned by helping Cadence with her release was what you were expecting, and were there any memorable moments during the album production?

Mars : Save The World was probably the most work I’ve ever done with multiple vocals. It was like making a king size quilt with silk and a needle. The stitching involved was never ending and required almost surgical accuracy.

I’ve always been fascinated with the technique of multiple layered vocals, even back when we were using analog tape in the late 80′s. During my years of music production I used this technique wherever possible, but with Cadence being a choir singer and theory whiz, I was really able to push her to the limit.

It was an exhausting 1 year production but well worth the end result. Sometimes the production focus became so intense we just had to break out in laughter during vocal takes, and sometimes in tears. Cadence is a multi-talented artist that often makes appearances on my new releases. I’m sure you’ll be hearing more from her in the near future.

John : You have produced 2 nature inspired projects related to America’s National Parks. Olympic National Park was your first album, and Yosemite: Valley of the Giants your second. I heard through the grapevine you have just completed another nature inspired project. Is this right Mars, and could you provide some details about your latest National Park project ?

Mars : Yes, I finished another nature CD dedicated to the Four Corners. This one has plenty of Native American Indian influences. It depicts the vastness of the desert and surrounding canyons, with titles like: Hovenweep, Dead Horse Point, Canyon Lands and White Buffalo Woman. The CD is called Grand Circle and should be coming out late 2009.

John : In working alongside other respected musicians like yourself, including Hans Zimmer in the Days of Thunder Soundtrack, the musician Seal on the album titled Seal, and Herbie Hancock on the Dis Is Da Drum album among the many others. What is it like to work with other great artists like yourself, and were there any memorable moments you would like to share with us?

Mars : There is a deep respect when collaborating with artists and producers that are just as into the skill-set as you are. When collaborating in this manner, you’re looking for a perfect talent match for the customization of the end task, or the “brief”. Sometimes the music comes easy, and other times not so. Every artist I have worked with have their own unique eccentricities, and they change according to what is going on in their lives at that time musically and personally. It’s a detailed puzzle. Even the simplest songs can take forever to accomplish.

John : From 1998 to 2001 you released the following albums: Sapphire Dreams, 11.02, When Worlds Collide, Karma, and Star Is Born, among others In addition you have produced a number of series projects like the Mind Scape series and Baby Escapes. Was 1998 to 2001 the busiest period in your career, or was there another point in time where producing music was in the forefront? Is there a reason you were so creative during the time period?

Mars : From the time I discovered music at 11 to now, I’ve been busy making my own versions of what I call “emotional mathematics”, evoking an emotion from music particularly with the latest technology was my thing. There has never been a dull moment. I just follow my art where it takes me.

The key was How do to make money from my art, so I can continue doing it? Being a composer means you must diversify your talents to survive, and that information varies on so many things that can happen in the industry at the time, which can actually take you off-course for years. I found that once I had the talent, distribution, audience and experience to release multiple works, there was no stopping me.

John : The Eleventh Hour was a successful album. Could you tell the events surrounding The Eleventh Hour time period?

Mars : The only way to explain The Eleventh Hour success was the timing in the environment at the time. Many people were talking about cell-phones frying their brains, they were big and cumbersome in the early 90′s. My song from the cd Cellular City with all its phone noises and technology driven Jazz seemed to hit that chord. Next thing you know it’s playing on heavy rotation on American radio. I went all out on that CD to show my true talents as a composer and sound designer.

John : I recently wrote a album review of your At The End Of The Day album, and I found it a nice fusion of Jazz and New Age, noting the fact that many of your albums are a fusion of genres. Do you think this is why your music is so popular, and do you purposely blend genres, or does this just happen naturally for you when creating an album?

Mars : My curiosity for music and art never ceases. It’s the never-ending exploration. For me it’s all about expressing yourself in as many ways as possible and sharing your discoveries with the world. I never wanted to be pigeonholed into the one genre, I just have way too much to express. Because of this my fan base is very broad. From mediation to industrial electronic to jazz. This is also why I like writing for film and TV.

John : Earlier in life you worked 8 years for Fairlight Instruments developing innovative multi-track synthesizer sequencers. Could you tell us about the products you developed and the events you were involved with during your early years?

Mars : Back in the early 1980′s I was heavily into “concrete music”. This was very abstract and non-eventful music, but the techniques were interesting to me. I would put a blank cassette tape into my shortwave radio tuner, press record and pause, look for a neat sound on shortwave (lots of squelching to choose from), hold a stopwatch and together I would release pause and start the stopwatch for one second then press the pause again. Then I would look for the next shortwave sound and repeat. In doing this you could make crude but interesting rhythmic patterns and tones. Essentially I was sampling audio and playing it back. At 18 with my knowledge of sampling and classical training on the piano I fell into the lap of Fairlight Computers. The first music computer based production tool in the music business.

I worked day and night with the R&D team, explaining the intricacies of music and making the first music sequencer “Page R”, it was the shortwave concept but to the next level. I helped to built the massive sound library that came with the machine, packaged in a cardboard-box the size of a large refrigerator. I quickly became very knowledgeable on the computer and traveled the world demonstrating the Fairlight at trade shows, and personal demonstrations to: Duran Duran, The Divinals, Captain and Tennille, Mike Oldfield, Herbie Hancock, Hans Zimmer, Alan Parsons, BBC, Kate Bush and plenty more.

My compositions came with the computer and at a price of $70,000. After helping to get the Fairlight off the ground, I started working freelance. Today the machine is obsolete, PC music software is at a fraction of the price and 100x more powerful, some examples are: Logic, Performer, Cubase and Cakewalk.

John : In your art & photography pages at MarsLasar.com I saw some pretty unique paintings along with your CD album collectables and prints available for purchase. I also read some of your oil paintings are created in more of a process than by just using art brushes. Could you tell us a little about how your original works of art are created?

Mars : I grew up with art. My mother is an exceptional fine artist, she taught me how to paint oil on canvas, I was immediately hooked and spent every moment I had figuring out the behavior of oil paint on canvas. At the age of 14 was asked to hang my works in my high school and I just kept going from there. After painting my canvas I would take a high resolution photo and manipulate the image even further in Photoshop. Photography became a natural progression as soon as it became digital, I wasn’t too keen on the darkroom and chemicals in the early days. Now, I take my camera gear everywhere, and most who know me know that I’m off taking photos when I should elsewhere ) I enjoy making art from music to art design to the business, it’s all the same to me. The most important thing is that I translate my concept across to the audience so you can enjoy the experience.

John : Your earliest music studies as a young adult were the classical works of Beethoven, Chopin, and Bach. Do you believe this classical foundation at a young age carried through into your earlier compositions and even into present day compositions?

Mars : Absolutely.  The emotional mathematics behind classical music is deep and well thought out. I connect with my classical roots in most of my work. I think it’s an essential tool for young composers. When it comes to classical music, you can never know enough.

John : The family oriented Baby Escapes series 1 – 8 is intended for relaxation. Was there a personal reason that led you to create the more family oriented recordings, and what specific goal did you have in mind with this series?

Mars : BabyEscapes was a sonic experiment made to keep my baby daughter asleep. Made in the 1980′s there wasn’t much around in sleep therapy, so I made my own. It worked so well we had to wake her up during naps. The idea was to create a repetitive cyclical loop that essentially massages your mind to sleep. The secret to this is the choice harmonic resonating tones. There is so much to learn about the strength of music and vibration.

John : Clearly you have many professional interests like music, art, and new technology. It makes me wonder if you have any just for fun hobbies and what you enjoy doing in your spare time?

Mars : My hobbies start as hobbies then turn into businesses. There is only so much I can do in a day, so I just have as much fun as possible while I’m here for this short stay on earth.

John : I would like to close by saying Mars, that you are perhaps the most talented individual I have ever been introduced to in recent memory! Along with your wife Cadence, you both are the most talented couple I have ever met as well! B.T. Fasmer, our readers, and myself do thank you for taking time out to give everyone some insight into both your professional career and personal life.

Mars : Thank you. Cadence and I have worked hard to deliver our creative expressions to the world. We hope that through our art we can make a difference, and inspire others to do the same.

Visit the MarsLasar.com homepage and sample albums at his music store or Amazon.com page. You can visit Mars Lasar’s art pages & photography pages and our pages for Mars Lasar. Art and photos are courtesy marslasar.com.

John P. Olsen, New Age Music World host and contributing author for NewAgeMusic.nu has interviewed composing New Age artist Paul Sills from the United Kingdom. The Interview discussion is focused on Paul Sills early music career, and his 2 outstanding albums, Astral Doorways & Walking Across Heaven.

Astral Doorways was Paul Sills first release that explored the divine and surreal side of music.  His first and second release are symbolic of the outer confines in synthesized ambient music that simply become a natural choice for those who love a memorable journey into the outer reaches of electronic resonances and a deeper realm in relaxing music.

Walking Across Heaven is his release that is crafted like a beautiful sound sanctuary where instrumentals of piano, flute, acoustic guitar, and distant choral vocals rose to transform each song into one having an anthem like quality. Today we present this interview to find out more about Paul Sills, and his unique brand of celestial music.

Interview with Paul Sills;

John P. Olsen : I have enjoyed getting to know you after first introducing yourself to me awhile back and found your music history quite interesting. Could you tell our readers about the earliest beginnings in your music career?

Paul Sills : Thanks John! My family, on both sides, are musical so I was brought up surrounded by people who performed in bands and wrote their own music. My Dad always had a guitar lying around and later purchased a piano and a keyboard. I used to tinker around at an early age, not knowing what chords were but knowing if they sounded nice or not.

I took acoustic guitar lessons in the first year of high school but they didn’t last long. I think I preferred to find my own way rather than under instruction. If my teacher knew that I now had two albums released he would fall off his chair!

In my teens I wrote music with a friend of mine, Michael Poole, and we recorded some tracks. I was designated vocalist! In my early 20’s I moved to Singapore to live with my Dad. He had a whole set-up with a 4-track tape recorder. Over those years in Singapore I wrote and recorded, probably, close to a thousand ‘vocal’ ‘rock’ songs. Listening to them now they are very noisy and I would hate for anyone to hear them! Even though I was recording loud and furious, I always felt there was something in there that was atmospheric. Later, I bought myself a Yamaha PSR keyboard which was great for home recording. I joined an ‘expat’ band called Haze where I played guitar. We were noisy but it was fun. I still preferred the solitude of writing and recording.

It was around this time that I heard Medwyn Goodall’s Clan album. Things took a drastic turn for me as I discovered I had finally found the kind of music I wanted to write. I had previously listened to some of the New Age CDs by Nightingale Records but it was Clan that really took me into the genre. Its still a fantastic album and provides much inspiration to me.

John : Since you were performing in a Rock band, what led you to leave the group and become a New Age music artist?

Paul Sills : We weren’t a serious band, it was more something to do on a Saturday afternoon. We were all friends in a foreign land and just got lucky that we had a bassist, drummer and someone who could almost play a guitar

Writing and recording alone is where my passion lies. I can lose hours ‘in the zone’. New Age provides a fantastic outlet to express your creativity in so many different styles. It opens all kinds of doors, you aren’t restricted by the genre and there is always something new to explore.

John : What was the specific turning point that finalized your decision to compose your first album Astral Doorways?

Paul Sills : I originally sent Medwyn Goodall (MG Music) a demo in 2004. I did get a reply that was both encouraging and helpful. It wasn’t until my second demo in 2006 (with special thanks to Catherine Young and Peter King, from the MG website forum, who encouraged me to do so) that I was offered the opportunity to record an album for the label. The idea for Astral Doorways didn’t come until I had already written an albums worth of material. This material was shelved and I started again, basing the new material on the tracks Cloud Dancing and Astral Doorways. I found I enjoyed the ethereal landscapes with simple but effective melodies. Once I had this idea in my head I went for it with a passion.

John : After your working relationship and friendship with Medwyn Goodall first began, how did you become recognized as a member of the MG Music family?

Paul Sills : Its an honor to be in personal contact with Medwyn. To be a fan of someone’s music initially and then to have both a professional and personal relationship is amazing. He is a really nice guy who is both extremely honest about your music and encouraging. He never flatly says ‘no’ to something unless he knows it has no chance of working. He will nurture and guide you all the way.

I was initially a member of the MG Music forum and got to know like minded people, both musicians and listeners. I already felt part of that family before I even told anyone I wrote music. To then release albums with the label was a real joy. Everyone was encouraging.

John : Naturally, I have heard Clan : Celtic Journey by Medwyn Goodall, and I agree it’s a great album too. So having drawn inspiration from his albums, and also having played in a Rock band, it makes me wonder how the individual Paul Sills style of composing and performing music developed. Was it always present, or did you have to discover your own distinct brand of celestial music?

Paul Sills : Influences come from every kind of music for me. I like all kinds, not just New Age. I’m a massive U2 fan, so those earlier albums like The Unforgettable Fire, played a big part. Their partnership with Brian Eno brought them into something else and that transition was when I really latched onto them. Those Eno soundscapes were the initial influence on my music and where I wanted to go with it.

Clan : Celtic Journey showed me melody and rhythm (although I have yet to write any drum related albums) working together to produce drama and passion. The followup, The Scroll, has the most beautiful piece of music ever written – A Maiden’s Kiss. Now, that is probably the biggest influence on me, so far as emotion in music is concerned.

Being influenced by so many different kinds of music has to have some unique effect on what you write yourself. However, when I sit down to write and record, all those influences consciously go out of the window. My head is empty of anyone else’s music and its just me and a blank canvas. Many artists will probably cringe when I say this, but the writing and recording process are done at the same time. I will come up with a simple chord sequence first but after that its all done in the moment. Sometimes it takes hours of building with the final melody rearing its head very late. Sometimes I get lucky and the track will present itself very early. I wrote six albums worth of instrumental material from 2004-06 so I’ve had a good amount of demos to draw from.

John : How would you describe the music of Paul Sills to another person?

Paul Sills : That’s a tough question. It would probably be easier for someone who listens to it to answer that. I would probably say its very atmospheric, mystical and dreamy, with simple melodies that you can latch onto and actually hum. I aim to write emotional music but at the same time something that can take you away somewhere else.

John : If you don’t mind discussing the creative side to your music, when you produced the celestial music of Astral Doorways & Walking Across Heaven, do your creative abilities just occur naturally, or do you have to really work at making everything come together while composing?

Paul Sills : Well, I write spontaneously most of the time and things happen naturally. This is sometimes a blessing because you are travelling the journey as a listener, not knowing where its going until you get there! It’s also dangerous because the destination may not be the nirvana you hoped for.

Writing in this manner allows me to be more creative. If I was to follow a strict brief I would probably end up writing a ‘New Age Painting By Numbers’ album. I doubt it would sound as fluid. Some people work best this way, I know, but I work better when I almost let the music show me the way! We do tend to fight a lot but the music always wins! ha ha!

Saying that, I’m getting more structured these days and plan a little more. For the next album I have planned it like a story, each song being a chapter. I know what approach I need for each track. Each page of my ‘book of chords’ has one word written at the top in bold capitals. This one word is my brief for that track.

John : One question your fans and I want to know is will we see another Paul Sills album soon, or in the future perhaps?

Paul Sills : I’m a quarter of the way through the next one and the tracks, so far, have been well received by MG. Its not been an easy year up until now. I wrote and recorded a whole album and had to shelve it. That was where the spontaneous approach didn’t work out. Although tough, it was the right decision. I came out of it with a fighting spirit and knew what I had to do. I settled on a stronger theme and am really enjoying it again.

John : I admire both of your albums equally and honestly would not have been able to tell which one was your first, if I hadn’t known. Do you feel the same about both albums, or do you have a clear favorite, and could you give us insight into some of your songs during their production?

Paul Sills : Thanks John! Its difficult to choose a favorite as I like each for different reasons. From a production point of view I would say Walking Across Heaven. There is more atmosphere on that album and its more structured with regard to its theme. I learned a lot recording Astral Doorways and applied those lessons to Walking Across Heaven. Astral Doorways has its own uniqueness that I love. Walking Across Heaven has a little more drama, whereas Astral Doorways is very pure and innocent. I do, however, think they go hand in hand and I see them as a pair.

The one track on Astral Doorways that really set me on my path is Angelic Radiance. Once I had recorded that I knew what my sound was and where I was going to take it. That track was originally written back in 1996 in Singapore. The chord sequence and melody just seemed to hit the spot. I used the same chord sequence and melody in the track Angelic Grace where the piano takes more of a leading role.

Another favorite track of mine is the opening to Walking Across Heaven, Towards Enlightenment. I think I wrote and recorded that in a couple of days. Its one of those tracks that just fall in your lap and when its finished you think ‘how did that happen?’ Compare that to Footsteps in the Clouds, that took two months to complete, and you are never sure how long a track is going to take and sometimes you never quite know when its truly finished!

John : Is there anything you would like to add or tell our readers that I didn’t bring up in our Interview today?

Paul Sills : I would just like to invite all New Age listeners to check out the Medwyn Goodall Music forum. If you like to chat to people who like this kind of music then make your way there and enjoy. The people are very friendly and the topics of conversation vary. You can also get the opportunity to talk to Medwyn Goodall and can ask him anything about his music. All the other artists are also very approachable.

John : Here at our sites we have been playing songs from your albums on our 365 Stars Radio, and they are doing well in ratings, which comes as no surprise to us. I became a fan of your music from the very beginning. B.T. Fasmer and I both Thank You for your time Paul and wish you and everyone at MG Music the best.

Paul Sills : Thank you for your kind words John. All the best to you both… and cheers

Visit the Medwyn Goodall Music page for Paul Sills and our page for Paul Sills. Photos courtesy medwyngoodall.net.