Playing Total Surrender for Bhakti Fest's 10th Anniversary Celebration!

Sat Nam Friend,

I am back from a week in the California desert, celebrating the 10th Anniversary of Bhakti Fest. This is one of the pieces I played for my sacred chant concert on Friday, Sept. 14.

I was joined by Greg Barnett on bass, Clayton Campbell on percussion, Chad Wilkins on guitar, Candace Park on viola, Radharani on vocals, and Dharma Fears on vocals.

I was not expecting to get footage from this concert, so seeing this in my inbox upon my return was a very nice surprise indeed!

The mantras in this song are:

1. So paatisah(u) sahaa paatisahib Naanak rahan rajaaee
2. Ik ong kaar sat naam siree waaheguroo
3. Waaheguroo, waaheguroo, waaheguroo, waahe jio

They are not generally used together. They came to me in a dream when I was writing the music for -8. I loved the way they sounded together, especially the overlapping "waheguru" part. 

And thank you to Jake J. Thomas and Masood Ali Khan for your footage!

Joyfully,

Sirgun

-8 FULL ALBUM Video

Sat Nam Fierce Friend,

After the nice comments I got about my full album video of The Cosmic Gift, I was inspired to make one for my latest release: -8.

This album means a lot to me because it marks my return to the world of producing.

For those of you who do not know what that entails, producers make music sound like more than just a live recording. They make the artists you know and love sound like "them."

Chad Wilkins was my co-producer on this album, and he added so many great elements, like a reggae vibe on "Ra Ma Da Sa", and all the ukulele harmonies that sound like harp to my ears sometimes. Without his contributions, this album would sound very different.

And given that I LOVE the way this album turned out, I'm glad it doesn't.

Chad also played most of the instruments on this album including ukulele, acoustic and electric guitars, bass guitar, and even a little bit of organ (for "Ra Ma Da Sa").

In fact, I appreciated the elements he added so much I decided to release a spin-off album called Minus Vox. It's everything except the voices.

The other contributors to this album added equally uplifting additions: Jai Jot Singh on percussion, Ram Dass Khalsa on clarinet, and Caleb Michel on drum kit for "Kabir's Realization."

I had so much fun making this album. And I felt so grateful to have been able to devote as much time as I did to it, thanks to my sister-in-law watching my children 4 days a week.

This was my first endeavor since having children that made me realize I could mother AND chant, and have enough time for both.

Enjoy!

Joyfully,
Sirgun Kaur

New and Improved YouTube Experience

I learned how to make an intro for my videos the other day, and here is the product: 

The video itself wasn't edited, just the intro. I had one last song from -8 that needed an official video on my YouTube channel, in order to represent the entire album.

So here it is: "Har Piaarai Jio" - mantra for understanding the nature of sound, and the awareness that our human body as a resonator of sound. This mantra is about vibration.

This mantra isn't really a mantra though. It is considered a shabad, because it's longer, and it is an entire section of a longer bani (Sikh hymn).

The full bani is called "Anand Sahib," which is also where I got the ending of my song "Bliss (I Am the Light of My Soul") that Sat Darshan Singh sings. Here is the LIVE version, which pre-dates the recording that has become so popular.

Joyfully,
Sirgun Kaur