New York, NY (Top40 Charts) The lotus is a universal symbol of tranquility and renewal, its exquisite flower opening, petal by perfect petal, as it rises out of the muddy waters of its origins. In this album, Christel Veraart explores that theme through both eastern and western musical influences.
The album was completed in Jakarta, a long way from Alaska where Veraart recorded her previous album, Polar Suite. While the contrast may seem stark, Veraart is striving for a universal musical language that unites people across boundaries.
Retaining the meditative quality of her previous albums, mixes vocal and instrumental elements. Bamboo flutes, Chinese violins and the Indonesian gamelan are featured, along with western wind and string instruments. Overall the feel is calm and tranquil, with some energetic interludes.
Is this East-West fusion or something else?
"For me, it's all about dreams," says Veraart. "Today many people are embracing Eastern philosophy in yoga and meditation. It's the same with music - east is embracing west, and west is embracing east, there are no strict boundaries. Some tracks on this album were inspired by pure imagination, others by my experiences traveling in Asia. In the end it is about how you feel."
The title piece, Lotus Dreams is an example - it echoes the soaring harmonies of her imagination. The erhu — a bowed, two-stringed Chinese fiddle — sings its soulful song throughout. Alternating between tender, sonorous, and stirring, this composition takes us to a place of calm and tranquility — a place where we might dream of lotus flowers.
A recurring theme in this album is the richness that comes from exchange of ideas and cultures. "In Silk Road I recall the ancient network of trade routes, a centuries-old model for cultural exchange between the East and West. A unique musical language was born of difference where piano and cello met bansuri, saz, and nay flute."
Moving to the here and now, Liquid Zen ebbs and flows into a new experimental genre for Veraart. A spacious melody in bamboo flute builds slowly then gives way to a web of soothing, velvety tones in a cyclic music form. The ultimate in space music, this track moves you into a different dimension.
