WOMAD

Sacred Chants

From India, United Kingdom

Biography provided by Sacred Chants management, July 2001:Following the international success of the UK recorded album, "Sacred Chants of Shiva" (millions sold all over India and Nepal), creator, producer and arranger of the CD, Craig Pruess, has organised an hour's performance of the Sacred Chants of Shiva with guest vocalist Swati Natekar and bansuri player, Bipin Jani.The sound of Sanskrit, accurately pronounced and inflected with the ancient Indian "ragas" (divine melodies), create a powerful effect. In ancient Vedic times, this chanting was used to keep order and harmony in society, and has been known to cure illnesses in the body and bring deep peace of mind.The concert will be a chance to directly experience the power of these ancient sacred chants.Indian classical singer, Swati Natekar, has been based in the UK for 10 years and has recently come to public attention with her work with Talvin Singh (2 tracks on the new album, "HA"), and with her beguiling vocal performance on JAKATTA's American Dream (no. 2 in the mainstream charts).Regular work with leading producers of the British Asian music scene have culminated in her track "Nadia" - (Swati's own interpretation of a classical Thumri melody) to be judged best track on the Mercury Award nominated "Beyond Skin" album, produced by Nitin Sawnhey. Before moving to London fromMumbai, Swati was regularly appearing on All India Radio and Doordarshan TV.UK based American composer, arranger and musician, Craig Pruess, has created a sensation in India with a number of his UK recordings, including Sacred Chants of Shiva, Sacred Chants of Buddha, Terracotta and Earth Dancer. Craig is one of the few London session musicians trained in three main traditionsof the world — Western, Indian and African. He performed with Mike Oldfiled for the premier of Tubular Bells II at Edinburgh Castle, has produced and arranged two gold and platinum records for Sir Cliff Richard, and he scores the Carlton TV series, "Peak Practice". Among his many projects, Craig has scored the film soundtrack music for "Bhaji on the Beach", "Blue Funnel"and Gurinder Chandha's new US film, "What's Cooking?", released in the UK this September, 2001.Bipin Jani will be performing on the "bansuri", or Indian bamboo flute.Bipin studied in Orissa, west India, and plays in the Hari Prasad Chaurasia style or tradition. He has been based in the UK for 15 years, where he has been an instructor of Sanskrit and Mandala Yoga in Plymouth.The Sacred Chants of Shiva recording project has been inspired and guided by one the great spiritual masters of our time, Sri Sri Ravi Shankar, founder of the Art of Living Foundation (from Bangalore, and not to be confused with Pandit Ravi Shankar the sitar player). The Art of Living is now recognised by the United Nations as the fastest growing NGO (non-governmental organisation) in the world, and the beautiful Art of Living self-development programmes are now given in over 135 countries around the world. Craig Pruess has been trained by Sri Sri Ravi Shankar as a teacher of these Art of Living courses and teaches many film directors, musicians, artists and business management people techniques how to naturally handle stress, maintain enthusiasm and optimise everyday energy levels.www.artofliving.orgRELEVANT WEBSITE ADDRESSES:Craig Pruess/Heaven on Earth Music: www.heaven-on-earth-music.co.ukSwati Natekar: www.swatinatekar.com