Music of the Spheres

Music has always been important to me, but as my life has played out I’ve not given it the attention it deserves and have often been somewhat oblivious to its contemporary development. I discovered Johann Sebastian Bach in my university years; I particularly fell in love with his Goldberg Variations as performed on harpsichord by Gustav Leonhardt. But apart from Bach, Beethoven’s powerhouse Ninth Symphony, and some of George Friderich Handel, my awareness of classical music has been somewhat limited. I was ten years old during the time of Woodstock (1969), and although I remember it well, I was a bit young to appreciate the flowering of musical creativity that occurred in the ‘60s. I did, however, begin to appreciate this same music during the equally creative decade of the 70s, and like most adolescents of that pot-infused time, found myself getting lost in the melodies of such classic rock bands as Genesis, Pink Floyd, Jethro Tull, and my own personal favourite, King Crimson (their original album, In The Court of the Crimson King, never having been equalled, in my somewhat limited musical opinion. Interestingly, they apparently named the band ‘King Crimson’ meaning it as a synonym for Beelzebub, which was of course, the name of not just the Semitic god but of the hero of Gurdjieff’s magnum opus).

The bands just mentioned all made instrumental music, to be sure, but when it came to vocals my favourite was Crosby, Stills, Nash, and Young, especially their Déjà Vu album. I always thought that Young’s voice in particular was unique, at least until recently, when I happened to listen to the recently produced CD of my old friend Brian Shiva Haley called Grokkin’ the River. Brian is a man of many accomplishments (he is a trained psychologist, and has traveled the world as a spiritual seeker), and his latest focus has benefited from this life experience. His music is melodious and comforting, but also energetic and appealing on many levels. His singing voice is a particular surprise; it’s always interesting to hear the contrast between a person’s speaking and singing voice.

I’d mentioned Neil Young, and if I could compare Brian to any vocalist, it would be Young. Like Young he balances the soulful and lyrical with harmonious quality, music that is easy to listen to while retaining depth and contemplative elements. The best compliment I can pay to a musician is to call their work unique, if only because it sometimes seems as if there are almost as many musicians as there are fish in the ocean. Brian’s work is unique and recommended. He may sound like Young, but he is himself. Hopefully his excellent CD will be followed by others.  

On that note, I should also mention the Jazz musician Jan Garborik, in particular his CD In Praise of Dreams, which oddly enough I discovered in a Starbucks. It’s the best Jazz music I’ve heard, a musical genre I’ve never particularly been enamoured of.

Gurdjieff approached music, via his compositions co-created with Tomas de Hartmann, as a vehicle to aid in inner awakening, and it indeed has the ability to do this, by opening the mind to avenues of awareness that have long been blocked or simply forgotten. Some esoteric systems have taught that all is Light and Sound, with Light being synonymous with consciousness, and Sound with energy. Both are ultimately seen to be two sides of the same coin—energy being the outer expression of consciousness, consciousness being the silent numinous and formless essence of energy.