With music by Snatam Kaur, Miten, Deva Premal, Aethera, Manish Vyas, Terry Oldfield, Tulku, and Prem Joshua Spirit Lounge is a star-studded album not to be missed!

Except for a few break downs and other embellishments, it’s getting harder and harder to tell new age chant music from rave music. The eastern touches, the beats and the vibe are all fusing in some far off left field corner that is at least giving people the message to chill. This collection pulls from various New Earth releases that could enjoy further exploitation. Not exactly a round up of girl friend music, this somewhat experimental world beat collection is well programmed for leading edge ears whether into the healing arts, world beat or sonic exploration.

Snatam Kaur was introduced to music and spiritual practice at an early age. Schooled in kirtan, meditation, and Gurmukhi, the Sanskrit-based language of Sikh scriptures from Northern India, the young Snatam Kaur began to develop the devotion and skills that have grown and blossomed into a compelling, profound talent.

Snatam Kaur's parents brought her up in the Sikh tradition as taught by Yogi Bhajan. From an early age, she practiced yoga and meditation daily and her mother taught her Gurmukhi. "My mother taught me the alphabet on my way to school every morning," recalls Snatam. Her Sikh community augmented these lessons with instruction in kirtan (devotional chanting). "Through these experiences, I learned the pronunciation," she says, "but also I learned the passion for what I was singing because these gatherings were so spiritual."

As a child, Snatam also had training in voice, violin, guitar, and percussion. She obtained a solid foundation in Western classical music while playing violin in an orchestra and giving solo performances. Her many opportunities to use and expand her musical talent in a spiritual setting emphasized for her the connection between her music and spirituality. "I learned about the importance of sound currents from Yogi Bhajan," she says, "but I also had the personal experience of how the energy of these sacred words can have a very real, positive effect."

Snatam further explored the power of sound in India. After high school, her love for the Indian musical tradition and for children took her to Miri Piri Academy, a boarding school for children in India. She spent time taking care of the young children, teaching physical education, and providing music for the children's morning and evening chanting. When she returned to the United States, she attended Mills College in Oakland, California, where she obtained a degree in biochemistry, taught yoga classes, and shared her chants with Western audiences. But India called her back. After touring and performing Kirtan in northern India, Snatam settled in Amritsar where she studied music with the accomplished ragi (Indian master of Sikh-style kirtan) Bhai Hari Singh. This was a great honor for her, and particularly meaningful because Singh was the same teacher who had taught her mother when she was just a little girl.

Snatam embraced everything that Singh taught her, from the technical aspects of the notes, to the ability to sing with presence and awareness. The lessons took place in Singh's home, where Snatam was welcomed by the entire family--daughters, sons, and grandchildren.

While in Amritsar, Snatam lived next door to the Golden Temple, considered the world's holiest Sikh temple. Sacred music resonates from inside the temple from about 2:30 in the morning to midnight every day-sounds created by world-class masters of Sikh kirtan. This enabled Snatam to continually soak in the essence of the Sound Current.

Upon returning to the US from India, Snatam began her career as a recording artist with a band called the Peace Family. She served as the band's lead singer and, with two skilled and accomplished musicians - Livtar Singh and GuruGanesha Singh, had her first opportunity to write songs. Two years later she began to develop her own sound and style and embarked on a very fruitful solo career.

Manish Vyas is a unique phenomenon in the world of fusion music. A talented multi-instrumentalist and singer, over the last few years he has emerged as both an extraordinary performing and recording artist.

He grew up in a family passionate about Indian music and it was in this dedicated atmosphere that he was first exposed to its many different forms; from classical to ‘kirtan’ to folk. Music, one could say, is quite simply in his blood.

Realising his talent at an early age, his mother initiated him into ‘Tabla’ when he was nine. A few years of basic instruction led him to the feet of Maestro, Ustad Allarakha in Mumbai where his training continued for a further five years.

It was during this same time that Manish was exposed to a totally new genre of music – namely World and Fusion – through meeting a variety of musicians from around the world at the then famous, Osho Commune International, Pune. Continuous experimentation with these musicians expanded his musical horizons beyond Tabla and Indian classical form. During this time a new found passion for melody led him to pick up the ‘Santoor’ – a 100 stringed instrument - and from there he moved first to singing, then harmonium and keyboards.

A dedicated involvement with these world musicians, in addition to Manish’s undoubted talents and versatility eventually brought him into the international limelight. Most noted was his collaboration with World famous fusion Maestro, Prem Joshua; first as a band member of the popular, ‘Hamsafar’ and then as a successful fusion duo, ‘East West Alchemy.’ Together they shared a musical partnership of over 15 years and toured extensively in Europe, USA, India, Israel and Singapore.

In addition to being a performer and recording artist, Manish is also held in high regard as a composer with a talent for creating beautiful melodies. Most notably, mantra queen, Deva Premal has featured many of his compositions in her CD’s.

Manish’s ability to blend his talents together with many forms of world music has brought him not only the appreciation of music lovers throughout the globe, but also to the eye of world-renowned celebrities in the music field. The year 2002 was particularly special, with Manish being invited by Sir Paul MacCartney to play at his wedding in Ireland as part of the Celtic Raga’s Band. In addition he has performed in front of Paul Getty 3, Anoushka Shankar, Sir Jules Holland, Ringo Star and Dr. Brian Weiss.

Over the years, Manish has given countless live concerts and enthralled audiences of hundreds of people. The record breaking number so far was 50,000 in Coimbatore, India at the Isha Fest, 2004 where his newly formed band, India Trance were billed alongside renowned classical singer, Vani Jairam.

With a fan base of both young and old, East and West, Manish Vyas has touched and inspired people in every corner of the globe and continues to bring his unique form of creativity to an ever more appreciative audience.

Chinmaya was born in Kent, England in 1954. His father was an accomplished artist who made his living renovating old houses and Chinmaya grew up in a rambling sixteenth-century farmhouse set amid the apple orchards, wheatfields, woods and streams.

After attending Art College and oddjobbing as a farmhand, Chinmaya took himself off, watercolors and Spanish guitar in hand, on the hippy trail that led through Afghanistan to India. After exploring and painting in the Himalayas, Sri Lanka, Thailand and Japan, an all -night concert in New Delhi in 1979 proved to be a turning point in his life.

There he heard a performance by the world-famous sarodist Amjad Ali Khan and instantly fell in love with the sarod (a nineeteen-stringed, banjo-like Indian classical instrument). Three years later, while teaching art at a school in London, he became a student of Amjad Ali Khan's leading disciple.

Chinmaya dedicated the next thirteen years to the study of Indian classical music on the sarod, both in London and at the Osho Commune in Pune, India. In 1990, with two other commune members, he founded the east-west fusion band Terra Incognita, which released two CDs on New Earth Records.

The 1990s saw four further releases from Chinmaya on Nightingale Records: Spiral Dance, a collaboration with the Persian musician Sirus; a solo project Lands of the Dawn; and, after intensive study of Chinese geomancy, the two CDs Music for Feng Shui Parts 1 and 2.

His release Celtic Ragas, a blend of Indian and Celtic elements, appeared on New Earth Records in 1998. Natures Way, a collection of Chinmaya's songs sung by Ellika Hansen, was released in Europe in August 2000 on Kreuz Verlag (Germany).

Chinmaya then released on New Earth Records "Feng Shui" and "Yoga on Sacred Ground". In 2003 Chinmaya and his Celtic Ragas band were exclusively honored to perform live at Paul McCartney's wedding in Ireland.

A Collection of his favorite melodies was released on New Earth Records in 2002 called "Sacred Temples of India" he continued his mix of Celtic and Indian music on the "Karma Circles" CD in 2003.

During his stay in India in the winter of 2003/2004 Chinmaya recorded a live concert in Pune, released in 2005 on New Earth Records as "Fragrance of the East". This CD also features video clips from the concert. For FREE download of the full one-hour video "CONCERT FOR INDIA'S ENVIRONMENT', including interviews with environmentalists, poems on nature composed and read by Indian schoolkids and stunning footage of the Indian wilderness, go to www.fragranceoftheeast.org.

In 2005 Paul McCartney chose the song "Chance Meeting" from Chinmaya's CD "Celtic Ragas", as the third track on his favorite songs compilation "Glastonbury Grooves", given away free with UNCUT magazine in the UK.

2006 saw the release on NER of "Yoga Lounge", a collaboration with Indian sitar maestro Niladri Kumar.

Chinmaya Dunster has recently relocated to New Zealand, where he lives outside of Aukland.

Miten, originally from Britain, began as a singer-songwriter-guitarist in the 70's, opening for such groups as Fleetwood Mac and Ry Cooder. He then discovered the power of meditation and left the world of rock ‘n’ roll behind. Miten has a number of albums of original songs, including STRENGTH OF A ROSE (with Deva Premal), Dance of Life and BLOWN AWAY.

Miten and Premal met at an ashram in India in 1990. While Deva Premal’s name is more widely known, their partnership is deep and strong. “Miten and I have been living and playing together for 11 years,” she says. “Everything we do, we do together. This is why I always say ‘us’ and ‘we’. Our nourishment and life’s work is to create spaces around the planet where the silence that follows the chant is clearly tangible. We share with others the healing power of the voice…and the bliss that it brings.”

Adds Miten: "Over the past 10 years we have devoted our lives to the expression of love and gratitude through music. Our music is not intended as entertainment. The true purpose is to awaken a longing in the heart for that which is omnipresent: the experience of silence and meditation.” Planetary musicians who spend their lives touring the world, Deva Premal & Miten have performed in the US, Japan, Europe, Asia, Brazil, Canada and Australia.

Deva Premal grew up in Germany in a spiritual family where she was introduced at an early age to chanting and meditation. Her mother is a musician and her father an artist.

"My father has been on the spiritual path since the 50's, studying Yoga, spiritual scriptures and whatever books were available back then, making it his daily discipline to meditate every morning between three and five am," she says.

"When I was growing up he devised exercises for my sister and I, to help us become more aware of the moment: We were taught to say 'Om' whenever we placed something on the table, for example. Another was to say 'Ram' whenever we switched on the light!"

As a child she studied the violin and piano but it wasn't until she met Miten, at the Osho Commune in India, that she began exploring her voice.

"When Miten began encouraging me to sing harmony with him, I didn't need a big push! I had grown up with music so the ground work was already done. And we sounded pretty good together! At first I played a supporting role, singing second voice, playing keyboards, and co-leading our workshops, which used mantras and chants from different cultures. I was very shy to sing alone, but encouraged by Miten, I became more confident and eventually discovered my voice."

Multi-instrumentalist and composer Prem Joshua is a pioneer in the field of World Music, exploring and creating a new synthesis in music beyond the borders of East and West. Drawing inspiration from the deep wells of eastern music traditions, Joshua has never lost touch with the pulse of contemporary western music. Over the years he has continued to refine his unique and distinctive sound--from meditative acoustic music to very danceable, highly energetic compositions with modern grooves and strong ethnic rhythms and melodies from ancient Asia. His creative musical blend has brought him recognition by critics, music lovers and the press throughout the East and West. In India he is celebrated as the new "guru of fusion."

With his music Prem Joshua has toured all over the world, giving concerts in the USA, Japan, India, Malaysia, Singapore and the whole of Europe.

Born to a musical family in Germany he began learning the flute at the age of five and became a fine flautist when still a child. As a teenager he started learning electric guitar and saxophones. His practicing Rock and Jazz could not only be heard in his own house. Some of his neighbors (classical music teachers!) still haven't forgiven him to this day! Nevertheless he was soon performing in various Rock, Jazz and Fusion bands to a more appreciative audience, always searching for new ways of expressing and expanding his music.
This musical "discontent" combined with his spiritual seeking led him to an interest in India. He remembers hearing Indian music for the first time at 16 on a record called CONCERT FOR BANGLADESH, a live recording of a festival with George Harrison and many other famous Rock names from that time. One side of the 3-vinyl record set was a performance on sitar by Ravi Shankar:

"I had never heard anything like this before," Joshua recalls. "This was beyond my musical grasp and experience but was something of such immense beauty and depth. It felt unfamiliar and mysterious--yet at the same time like a remembrance of something I knew very well."

In the late seventies, at the young age of 18 he knew only one thing: what he DIDN'T want to do! He left home and high school and ended all his career plans to go overland from Europe to India and join the "hippie tribe" in an attempt to find out what he really wanted.

On his first three overland trips to the East he traveled throughout countries like Greece, Turkey, Iran, Afghanistan and Pakistan. He became deeply involved with traditional oriental folk music, playing live with and learning from local musicians everywhere. "I loved the roots of this music and felt an immediate connection that I missed so much in Central European folk," he says.
When he reached India he had a sensation of knowing it; it felt like coming home! Along with the feeling of familiarity there seemed to be an inexplicable vibe of at-ease-ness in this country of mysteries, contradictions, colors and smells. One of his first actions in India was to buy a sitar in Delhi for the price of what you pay for it's strings today.

What he didn't know then is that playing this instrument would become a main part of his life. And coming home to India was only the "outer" part of his journey. On his travels he came across the enlightened mystic, Osho. In the presence of this man with a long white beard, eyes as deep as the ocean and a strong sense of humor, he got in touch with the art of the "inner music" --silence:

"This was really coming home! For the following years I did nothing but be with this man, meditate and play, play, play music. Here I found the musical and spiritual nourishment and satisfaction that I had been looking for. I started playing with musicians from all over the world and learning from some of India's finest teachers, among them Maestro Ustad Usman Khan, who became my sitar mentor."