I was deeply drawn to and inspired by the poetry of Shelly, Tagore, Rilke and others, so much so
that some words from their poetry were included in a few songs from the Album Light Breaks. Working in an improvisational spirit, I added some field recordings from my walks in the forested Land of Medicine Buddha. Later in post-production, I worked with Christopher Hedge (best known for his soundscapes and award winning film scores) at The Magic Shop to add layers of additional recordings of the ocean, a drone cello, percussion and lap steel guitar to selected mixes.
Magic Shop 2015
It has been eight years since the release of my first album, Deep in a Dream. Shortly after its release, I was in an accident, from which I developed a concussion. This incident, however, set me on a course of healing and recovery where music, poetry and meditation played a significant role in helping me to transcend the difficulties. Over time, I continued to compose and record songs in my home studio, songs that would later make it to the new album, Light Breaks.
One example of the creation and evolution of the work is the song Blue Butterfly. The song was born from an experience of observing a butterfly in a garden and wanting to capture this vision of the creature’s dance in music. This meditation on the butterfly later deepened and brought to mind its mythological significance; for example, as in the myth of “Psyche,” a word that means both soul in Latin and also butterfly.
In this myth, Psyche, as described by Marion Woodman, “goes through a chrysalis phase. Trust emerges when there is a willingness to die to the old, to be vulnerable and have faith… a time when you know that you have been taken only so far by your own human abilities. Something else must come in to make the soul connect with Eros. And often when we start the transition journey, there is a loss of love, or of our ability to love, we’re depressed. We have had difficulties.'' (Marion Woodman, The Myth of Psyche)
The song Child of Light, on the other hand, was born out of a time of my grandmother’s passing. Not being able to be with her as it was somewhat sudden, I began to pray for her spirit. But a song came first, the words of Child of Light. It was a way of connecting with my grandmother’s spirit and her passing. The song begins with the words,
"Child of Love, Child of light, going home...Hear my song in your heart, you're not alone."
"Only a Child- soul can climb so softly, quite softly to heaven's height..." Rainer Maria Rilke
"The strangest things are the closest to the real truth. In the will of man there is a power of longing which turns the mist in ourselves into sun." Gibran
