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24 Hour Kirtan Photos and MP3s

rasa.acharya — Mon, 19 Jul 2010 19:46:56 +0000

Enjoy these high quality recordings from the 24 Hour Kirtan (Summer 2010) as well as select black and white photos from photographer Rasa Acharya.

Listen to and download the kirtans here.

The Bhakti Brothers’ New England Tour – Starting July 9th

dhonya — Wed, 07 Jul 2010 19:04:01 +0000

Fri, July 9, 2010, 7:30 pm
Cambridge YMCA Theatre
820 Massachusette Avenue
Cambridge, MA 02139-3296
(617) 661-9622
Sat, July 10, 2010, 7:30 pm
Kripalu Center
57 Interlaken Road
Stockbridge, MA 01262
www.kripalu.org
Sun, July 11, 2010, 7:30 pm
Yoga Sanctuary
189 Main Street
Northampton, MA 01060-3147
$15 at the door
(413) 585-9642
http://yoga-sanctuary.com/
Mon, July 12, 2010, 7:30 pm
All That Matters Yoga Studio
315 Main Street
Wakefield, RI 02879
$20 pre-registration or $25 at the door
Phone: 401-782-2126
http://www.allthatmatters.com/index.cfm
Tues, July 13, 2010, 7:30 pm
Block Island, RI:
St Andrews Parish Center
http://www.blockislandyoga.com/
Thurs, July 15, 2010, 7pm
Yoga Mandali
454 Broadway
Saratoga Springs, NY 12866
$15 in advance, $20 at the door
518.584.0807
http://www.yogasaratoga.com/
Sunday, July 18th, 2010, 4:30-7pm
Radha Krishna Temple
72 Commonwealth Ave
Boston, MA 02116
617-247-8611

12 Hour Kirtan – June Watch it Live!

rasa.acharya — Sat, 05 Jun 2010 11:58:16 +0000

Watch the live webcast right now!

Join Gaura Vani, Ananta & Acyuta with special guest HH Radhanath Swami and many friends this Saturday, June 5th for 12 hours of kirtan (10am – 10pm) for the sixth monthly event.

12 Hour Kirtan May – Watch it Live

rasa.acharya — Sat, 01 May 2010 01:55:24 +0000

Watch the 12 Hour Kirtan Live from New York City. Special guests this month include HH Radhanath Swami and Jahnavi from London plus many more… View it live on Mantralogy.com

12 Hour Kirtan – April

rasa.acharya — Thu, 15 Apr 2010 11:06:17 +0000

12 Hour Kirtan – Saturday April 17th 10am – 10pm

Join Gaura Vani, Ananta & Acyuta with special guest Carmella Baynie and many friends this Saturday, April 17th for 12 hours of kirtan (10am – 10pm) for the fourth monthly event.

The next 12 Hour Kirtan will be on May 1st 2010 along with special guest His Holiness Radhanath Swami.

Pre-Order Mridanga

rasa.acharya — Tue, 06 Apr 2010 21:09:31 +0000

Pre-Order Mridanga and limited edition album shirt!

The Mayapuris will be releasing their debut album entitled Mridanga on June 22nd 2010. The Mayapuris have crash-landed into the kirtan/chant genre, quickly becoming the most talked about group in this growing culture of exotic world music. Their debut album Mridanga soars with fiery vocals, earth shaking rhythms and enchanting musical flavor. Named after the Mridanga, a clay and leather drum from Mayapur, India where kirtan/chant music originated, this album showcases the musical versatility of The Mayapuris and instruments they play. Special guests include grammy-nominated Jai Uttal, Gaura Vani & As Kindred Spirits and Benjy Wertheimer of Shantala. The album was produced by Gaura Vani at Avatar Studios in Silver Spring, Maryland.

Rapidly ascending as one of the most popular kirtan/chant groups in the world, The Mayapuris have been featured in stunning venues, from the inauguration inspired Chant4Change to the world’s largest gathering of kirtan musicians at Bhakti Fest. After a worldwide tour that brought them to six continents last year The Mayapuris are eager to expand and elate crowds with pulse-surging music as they roll along to the thunder of the mridanga drum.

The album will be available in yoga studios, select music stores and digitally via iTunes, AmazonMP3 and all the standard digital retailers. Special pre-order bundle to be available soon on www.Mayapuris.com and www.Mantralogy.com.

Rutgers University Loves Kirtan

rasa.acharya — Wed, 31 Mar 2010 20:34:45 +0000

Last week was our second visit to Rutgers University. We were invited by Aksh Sharma, one of the facilitators of the Bhakti Club, and a good friend of ours. Over 220 students filled a large hall as Gaura Vani, The Mayapuris and Acyuta Gopi started the night with stories of the Ramayan and beautiful chants.

Towards the end of the evening Gaura Vani invited Gopika, a student from Rutgers and a facilitator of the Bhakti Club, to sing Hare Krishna while the Mayapuris got the crowd off their feet and dancing. What ensued can be described with a thousand words, or this one short video.

We are all excited to be going back to Rutgers University in October of this year. The student newspaper, The Daily Targum, also covered the night with an article posted here.

EXCERPT FROM ARTICLE

Students were able to tour the world through meditation and cultural celebrations on campus at the Busch Campus Center with the help of the University’s Bhatki Yoga Club.
More than 220 people experienced a night dedicated to musical meditation, cultural singing and dancing Thursday, as they listened to world-famous, Indian-style kirtan bands As Kindred Spirits and Mayapuris while performing Bhakti yoga.
“Kirtan is the sound of the soul singing. Its purpose is to reunite with the divine through the medium of mantra or sacred sounds and to clean the heart to reawaken our true identity. It helps us realize who we are really,” said Gaura Vani, leader of As Kindred Spirits.
Yoga in the western world is known typically as a physical workout leading to flexibility and muscle tone. But Bhakti yoga achieves a higher-level, inner awareness connection through the tradition of singing sacred sounds known as kirtan, according to the club’s Web site. READ MORE…

Recordings from the night coming soon…

March 12 Hour Kirtan – Rama

rasa.acharya — Mon, 15 Mar 2010 14:28:30 +0000

Rama 12 Hour Kirtan – Saturday March 20th 10am – 10pm

Join Gaura Vani, Ananta & Acyuta, the Mayapuris and many friends along with special guest Indradyumna Swami this Saturday, March 20th for 12 hours of kirtan (10am – 10pm) for the third monthly event.

This time we’re celebrating the birthday of Sri Ramachandra, the divine hero of the epic Ramayan, who exemplified the ideal character of a saintly king.

Rama is known to many through his famous devotee Hanuman, the divine Monkey who is constatnly signing Rama’s glories. We aim to carry on in this spirit!

A live webcast will be on GauraVani.com and Mantralogy.com.

See and Hear the previous two 12 Hour Kirtans at the Bhakti Center.

January 2010

February 2010

Schedule

Ananta Govinda /Acyuta Gopi 10:00-11:00

H.H. Indradyumna Swami 11:00-12:30

Kancanamayi 12:30-1:00

Sanga 1:00 to 1:45

Vishwambhar 1:45 to 2:45

Ghanasyam 2:45 to 3:15

Raghunath 3:15 to 3:45

Gopika 3:45 to 4:15

John Kruth 4:15 to 4:45

Ananta Govinda 4:45 to 5:30

Nama Rasa 5:30 to 6:30

Gaura Vani 6:30 to 7:30

Kish and Bali 7:30 to 8:15

Acyuta Gopi 8:15 to 9:00

Gaura Vani – All hands on deck 9:00 to 10:00

See you there!

Kirtan Singer Carmella First USA Tour

rasa.acharya — Mon, 15 Mar 2010 13:56:06 +0000

While touring in Australia 3 months ago we were very fortunate to meet Carmella Baynie a very talented and soulful kirtan leader. Not only is she a kirtan leader but she also teachers vocal training and sacred chant workshops. Carmella is starting her first USA tour in April and I’m sure crowds around the States will be touched by her kirtan.

Here’s a little more about Carmella from her press kit. Carmella Press Kit (1458)

Carmella is a world renowned singer, composer, and voice therapist based in Sydney, Australia. She is an accredited voice and yoga teacher with over twenty years experience in the practise of yoga, meditation, martial arts, the dramatic arts, and singing. Carmella has dedicated her life to facilitating sound as a healing force, as a vehicle for transformation and vibrational healing.

Creator of the acclaimed Voice in Yoga, Born Singing, and The Nada Method seminars, Carmella offers a unique and inspiring approach in her workshops and private consultations. Her methods include sound release, vocalizing and vocal training, breath meditation, chakra sounding, resonance and conscious sound vibration, mantra yoga and sacred singing.

You can find out more about Carmella at CarmellaVoice.com.

February 12 Hour Kirtan MP3s

rasa.acharya — Mon, 08 Mar 2010 16:34:19 +0000

Enjoy these photos and MP3s from the second monthly 12 Hour Kirtan at the Bhakti Center. This 12 Hour Kirtan was a meditation on Sri Chaitanya who is the founder of the modern kirtan movement. Join us at the 3rd 12 Hour Kirtan on March 20th 2010 with special guests The Mayapuris.

To listen, click on the links below then press play. To download, Right Click on the word “Download” and select “Save As…” from the menu. Having trouble downloading? Read our Help Section.

12 Hour Kirtan Videos

rasa.acharya — Fri, 19 Feb 2010 20:14:04 +0000

Watch Recordings from the 12 Hour Kirtan NYC

Join Gaura Vani, Ananta & Acyuta, The Mayapuris and many friends this Saturday, February 20^th for 12 hours of kirtan (10am-10pm) for the second montly event.

This time we’re celebrating the birthday of Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu, the father and founder of the kirtan movement we all enjoy so much today. Sri Caitanya created a spiritual revolution around the chanting of the divine names that swept the Indian sub-continent in the 15^th century. This continues to change our lives even today, more than 500 years later.

MP3s and Photos from the January 12 Hour Kirtan

rasa.acharya — Thu, 11 Feb 2010 15:52:56 +0000

It’s been too long since we’ve posted some recordings on GauraVani.com. As things have been getting bigger, so have the pressures of keeping it all running. Accounting, planning, recording and events have sucked up our time. But hopefully we’ve gotten into a rhythm that makes time to do what’s important, keep the kirtan flowing.

Here are the recordings from the first of hopefully many 12 Hour Kirtans at the Bhakti Center in NYC. We are planning for this to be a monthly event that is co-hosted by Mantralogy. It is part “kirtan open mic”, part party and all blissful. The next event is schedule for Feb 20th and will have special guests the Mayapuris as part of it.

We are planning to have a webcast during the kirtan, so stay tuned to GauraVani.com on Feb 20th!

To listen, click on the links below then press play. To download, Right Click on the word “Download” and select “Save As…” from the menu. Having trouble downloading? Read our Help Section.

24 Hour Kirtan in Brazil

rasa.acharya — Tue, 29 Dec 2009 20:29:55 +0000

In Oct 2008 Gaura Vani & As Kindred Spirits joined some Brazilian kirtaniyas for the first “24 Hour Kirtan Brazil” in the amazing community of New Gokula Dhama, 2 hours from Sao Paulo.

The 24 Hour Kirtan Brazil has been getting bigger and bigger and naturally attracting kirtan lovers from different parts of the world. Now, the project will run at least 4 times an year! This event is organized by the Festival of India Association in Brazil.

On 2nd and 3rd 2010 at the same paradise scenario in New Gokula Dhama and at the lotus feet of Sri Sri Radha Gokulananda, great kirtaniyas such as Jagi (Alachua, FL) and Amala Kirtan Das (Dallas, TX) as well as other Brazilian kirtan signers will begin 2010 with another incredible 24 hours Kirtan!

For further info visit – www.kirtanbrasil.com (Portuguese) or www.festivaldaindia.com.br (English)

Hope to see you there!

Videos from the The Troxy in London

Jahnavi — Fri, 11 Dec 2009 18:14:00 +0000

These videos were filmed by Haridas and kindly sent by our friend David Crick. For the full report of the performance, see ‘40th Anniversary Celebrations in London’

Yamuna Dasi sings Govindam with Gaura Vani & The Mayapuris

Gaura Vani & As Kindred Spirits with The Mayapuris – Jiv Jago

Mantralogy Tour 2009: The Final Stop – Bhaktifest

Jahnavi — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 16:32:24 +0000

Our last three days of the Mantralogy Tour were spent in Joshua Tree, California, where a large gathering of kirtaniyas and yogis was being held. Joshua Tree is a beautiful place – a desert studded with strange, shaggy, Dr Seuss-like trees and cactuses. At the retreat centre where the festival was held, tents were set up over a large site with an impressive stage at the heart. For 24 hours a day, different singers and bands chanted – celebrating the different names of the divine. Our friends from the Burning Man Krishna camp were there too, tirelessly serving up delicious meals (and fresh coconuts!) throughout the festival.

The heat was intense, but the desert evenings once the sun had set were beautiful. One night we did 7 hours of kirtan on stage, including our two hour slot of chanting, dance and dynamic drumming by the Mayapuris. On another day we played for a yoga class by Shiva Rea. Deities of Jagannath, Baladeva and Subhadra brought by Shakuntala Zakheim presided over the class, and after chanting throughout, we all joined together for an energetic circle dance (raas-garba) kirtan.

MC Yogi led more chanting of the maha mantra, performing the track ‘Bhakti Boombox’ from his album, and Shyam Das closed the class with a sweet meditation on the divine form of Lord Krishna. After that we carried the deities outside in procession and had the most wonderful spontaneous outdoor kirtan. People joined us as we walked, and by the time we got to the main stage, we were surrounded by a huge crowd, taking pictures and chanting ‘Jagannath, Jagannath!’

Roots & Wings Tour Recordings

Jahnavi — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 16:12:42 +0000

Right after leaving the West Coast, we headed out to the North East for a tour with our friend, the drummer and poet, John de Kadt. John plays a huge variety of percussion instruments from all over the world, and is a gifted reciter of both his own poetry, as well as that of Sufi mystics such as Rumi.

With no prior rehearsal, we were really open to discover the potential beauty in the juxtaposition of poetry, rhythm and sacred chant. Over ten evenings, we hopped from Block Island, to the Berkshires, to Boston. In each place we were delighted to receive a warm welcome and enthusiastic voices to join ours! It was also a pleasure to meet with many friends along the way who collaborated with us, such as Keli Lalita, Tom Lena and band, and our new favourite clarinetist Warrick Moses, who we bumped into in a twist of fate on Boston Commons. You can hear his stunning playing in the recordings from Boston Rathayatra and our concert at Back Bay Yoga.

Check out the recordings for some unusual mixes – Govinda Jaya Jaya with a hip hop rap, and Sita Rama to the beat of the spaceship-like hang drum!

Rhode Island 9/19/09

Kripalu 9/23/09

Yoga Mandali 9/24/09

Yoga Sanctuary 9/25/09

Litchfield CT 9/26/09

Back Bay Yoga 9/27/09

Australia Tour – Listen Live

rasa.acharya — Thu, 22 Oct 2009 14:04:40 +0000

Gaura Vani & As Kindred Spirits and the Mayapuris are currently touring all around Australia. Our hosts have provided free live streaming audio from all the events. To listen, sign in at WorldSankirtan.net.

Spring Down Under

Jahnavi — Wed, 21 Oct 2009 07:50:31 +0000

After a 24 hour journey we finally reached Australia! It’s spring here and the beauty of the season is completely enchanting – magenta sprays of bougainvillea, clustered lilac jacaranda trees with branches like embroidered thread, long carob pods, and brilliant red flame trees. We’ve tried to just relax today but went down to a local park where we came across a Hang drummer. We couldn’t resist getting into a little jam with him and inviting him to the Brisbane Maha Kirtan on Saturday.

Mantralogy Tour 2009: Back at Burning Man!

Jahnavi — Mon, 12 Oct 2009 15:20:34 +0000

No sooner had we arrived back in LA (via a blink and you’ll miss it stop in London), and we were preparing to return to the Nevada desert, where we’d attended our first Burning Man festival last year. Burning Man is an avant garde creative arts party/rave/music festival that is attended by thousands from all over the world, including many high profile professionals from all kinds of fields who want to escape their lives for a few days. One of our first performances was at Center Camp, at 6am. This time is precious at Burning Man, as the cool, peaceful time before the intense desert sun pushes people to look for shade. As it rose, we sang ‘Utti Utti Gopala’ a traditional Marathi bhajan that Krishna’s mother, Yashoda sings to him to wake up and greet the day. A large portion of our audience were asleep, exhausted after a night of partying, but as we played, they opened their eyes and gradually began to move in time to the music.

At other times we loaded into a flatbed pickup truck and drove to other areas of the ‘playa’ to chant and dance in different spaces. In between, we spent time at base camp, the ‘Krishna camp/24 Hour Kitchen’. The Krishna camp at Burning Man is headed up by Nitai Das, a dedicated and inventive manager, who also helps to organise the 24 Hour Kirtan in New Vrindavan, West Virginia, as well as many other events throughout the year. Along with his team of builders, carpenters, artists and cooks, he tries to give ‘Burners’ a taste of kirtan and Krishna culture amidst the craziness every year. Here we helped cook and prepare meals for several hundred people, who arrived twice daily and spent time listening to kirtan from our beautifully constructed stage.

As always, it was intense. Dust storms abounded and nights were loud and late – mornings hot and busy. Inbetween all of the chaos, were moments of true joy and friendship, as Burners from all backgrounds joined us in chanting and dancing, always in true Burning Man style -sometimes clothed, sometimes not!

We left after four days, exhausted and a little sunburnt, but happy. Next stop on the road was a jump in Lake Tahoe and a three hour laundromat excursion – the dusty Burning Man experience is hard to forget in more ways than one!

Mantralogy Tour 2009: Janmashtami in London

Jahnavi — Wed, 07 Oct 2009 20:44:23 +0000

After many weeks touring in the US, we travelled to England for the world renowned Janmashtami (Krishna’s birthday) festival. This celebration is held all over the world, but this one continues to be the biggest outside India, with almost 70,000 attending this year. Colourful tents and stages are set up over the 80 acre property of Bhaktivedanta Manor (donated by George Harrison in the 1970s), and worshippers flock to see the ornately decorated altar.

We felt such a strong sense of unity as we all joined together to celebrate the festival, and had many hours of joyful, moving kirtan together. When we did kirtan on the main festival stage, I’d look out and see the most incredible variety of people – from close family and friends of all ages, to local villagers, to Gujarati grannies (who we actually got to clap and sing – much to our surprise).

It was also nice for me to get to show the rest of the band around my hometown a little bit, though most of our days were packed with kirtan engagements! One day we got to go sightseeing, and ended up at the temple of Sri Sri Radha London-isvara (Krishna, the Lord of London!), where we had many hours of soul-stirring kirtan with our dear friend from Switzerland, Madhava.

Our brief stay culminated in a final Sunday stage kirtan, after which we were whisked out to the car park and driven straight to the airport to fly to Mumbai, where we would be performing a kirtan concert for a special launch of Radhanath Swami’s book ‘The Journey Home’.

Kartik 24 Hour Kirtan in New Vrindavan

rasa.acharya — Sun, 04 Oct 2009 16:07:22 +0000

October 10th 2009

This autumn, leaves will fall from the trees and blessings will fall from the heavens at the New Vrindaban 24 Hour Kirtan Festival in the mountains of West Virginia.

Hundreds gather to chant the Hare Krishna Mahamantra continuously for 24 hours, as is done in Vrindavan India 365 days a year.

In the holy month of Kartika, spiritual practices are magnified thousands of times, drawing pilgrims from across the globe to Vrindavan.
Now in New Vrindaban that seasonable opportunity is being made available to you.

Featuring some of the world’s most respected Bhakti chanters, the festival is open to all.

Who’s Singing?

Currently confirmed artists are Badahari das (Florida), Ajamila das (Toronto), Jagannath Kirtan das (Florida), Sugosh das (New Orleans), Bhakti Lata Bija dasi (Florida) Keshavacarya das (NYC) with many others about to confirm. Due

Dates

October 10th – 11st 2009. Kirtans start at 12 PM Saturday the 10th and ends 12 PM Sunday the 11st.

Resident spiritual teacher Varsana Swami will be speaking on The Appearance of Radha Kunda, the most confidential of pilgrimage places.

Family, friends, and all lovers of singing, dancing and heart-warming kinship are invited to join us for this first ever Kartika 24 Hour Kirtan Festival in New Vrindaban!

Tickets

The Kirtan is free! However, lodging and prasadam have its costs. We have made a one price fee for the event.

The following is the rate is for the weekend.

Lodging & meals: $75

Cabins: $351

Click here to Register !

New Year’s Retreat in Costa Rica

rasa.acharya — Mon, 28 Sep 2009 21:34:45 +0000

KIRTAN & YOGA

Dec. 27, 2009 – Jan. 2, 2010

Transform and Rock Out with Gopi and Gaura Vani

Featuring a mega New Year’s Eve party with Jai Uttal and Shiva Rea.

Click here for the Application Form

Special Reduced Pricing – ONLY $975 (previously $1,579) CLICK HERE FOR DETAILS.

We’ve found very well priced flights from Mexicana.com. Click hear to look for tickets.

Bring in the New Year with this empowering and rejuvenating week of deep, healing Yoga with Gopi, accompanied by Gaura Vani and the transformative and uplifting sounds of sacred Kirtan. Read More…

Mantralogy Tour 2009: Bottoms up at the Bhakti Bar!

Jahnavi — Thu, 24 Sep 2009 18:00:41 +0000

After a long period in Los Angeles, we traveled to San Francisco for a very special event arranged by our friend, Andrew Zenoff. He is a recently converted kirtan addict, and had been thinking hard for a while as to how he could share his passion with others. He came up with the idea of the ‘Bhakti Bar’ – and evening of kirtan in a supportive environment, where ‘people of all practices, musical orientations, faiths, traditions, and ages can gather to sing, dance, chant, share, create and lift their hearts and get drunk on the joys of devotion’.

The debut Bhakti Bar evening was held at the Swedish American Hall in downtown San Francisco – a charming, old fashioned concert hall that proved both intimate as well as spacious enough to hold the hundreds that attended.

The evening overflowed with sweet and soulful kirtan as Tina Malia, MC Yogi, Jai Uttal and As Kindred Spirits took to the stage.

The next day we all went to Jai Uttal’s house to hang out with him, MC Yogi and Robin and a few other kirtan lovers. Jai pulled some interesting instruments and we had some sweet kirtan.

Mantralogy Tour 2009: Yoga Glo!

Jahnavi — Wed, 23 Sep 2009 23:50:17 +0000

After the fun of the trance dance at Zanzibar, we were eager for our next evening with Shiva, MC Yogi and DJ Drez. This time we were at Yoga Glo, a very big yoga studio in Santa Monica that doubles as a studio to film yoga classes in HD quality. These are then sent out online to a large community practising yoga at home. Our evening of kirtan was filmed also.

It was exciting to see many of the same faces as we’d been seeing at other events in LA – they claimed they were hooked and couldn’t miss the chance to come and chant and dance in kirtan again!

Mantralogy Tour 2009: Zanzibar Trance Dance

Jahnavi — Tue, 22 Sep 2009 22:37:51 +0000

To celebrate the final night of a teacher training course being run by Shiva Rea in Los Angeles, we were invited to come and play alongside MC Yogi and DJ Drez at a hip downtown club called Zanzibar. It was a beautiful venue, decorated in an ornate Middle Eastern style. In the green room we were surprised to find framed paintings of Radha and Krishna and took it as a good sign!

By opening time the crowds were streaming in, many of whom were just coming for their regular Friday club night. Many stopped us to ask questions as we finished setting up, wondering what we were doing, and if we had ‘come from India?’

The night was a real success. Shiva got the crowd warmed up and ready to dance with some kriya yoga, and then MC Yogi launched into a set of all his well known songs like ‘Rock On Hanuman’, ‘Bhakti Boombox’, and Ganesh is Fresh.’ The crowd went wild as he began the famous lines of ‘Krishna Love’ (Sri Krishna, you’re pure charisma, your flute playing – so intoxicating).

Gaura Vani featured in the Boston Globe

rasa.acharya — Sat, 19 Sep 2009 21:45:29 +0000

By Tripp Underwood
Globe Correspondent / September 18, 2009

Gaura Vani & As Kindred Spirits were featured in the music section of the Boston Globe on September 18th 2009. The article ran in the printed paper as well as their website.

Gaura Vani, a Hare Krishna musician who combines traditional Indian kirtan music with Western elements such as 12-string guitar, gospel choruses, and hip-hop rhythms, is a musical product of his environments.

Born in Los Angeles, Vani was sent to India at a young age to study sacred music by his Hare Krishna parents. Upon completing his studies he returned to the States, where he began combining spiritual Indian kirtans – a form of rhythmic, call-and-response chanting over various musical accompaniments – with the other music of his youth: rock, pop, and world music.

The result is a genre-defying hybrid of ancient Indian sacred music and modern Western styles. Sitars, mridanga drums, and chanted vocals meld smoothly with guitars and the occasional hip-hop vocal flow, all with clearly defined verses and choruses and a focus on melody not usually found in traditional Indian music.

And though his music contains deeply spiritual lyrics and a layering of styles that spans centuries and continents, Vani maintains a surprisingly simple interpretation of sacred music and its relationship to its audience.

“Kirtan is just the process of using chant and music to clean the heart,’’ he said from his home outside the nation’s capital. “It’s like an ancient can of Scrubbing Bubbles to clean our hearts and help figure out who we are beyond the body.’’

Comparing a 5,000-year-old form of meditation chanting to a modern-day bathroom cleaner may sound like an odd analogy, but it makes sense when coming from a cross-cultural artist like Vani, whose latest CD, “Ten Million Moons,’’ is gaining attention in spiritual music circles as well as in the secular world.

“Music is just an expression of the heart and soul,’’ he says. “All I’m doing is drinking from different springs and bringing together in my heart what seems natural.’’

Intentional or not, Vani’s eclectic style has allowed him to take his songs and message from Krishna temples and yoga studios to a wider range of audiences. In the past year Vani has performed at diverse venues for all types of music fans from backpacked Chicago indie rockers at Lollapalooza to hippies and modern primitives in the Nevada desert at Burning Man to a jubilantly dancing crowd at the Church of the Holy City in Washington, D.C., who had gathered to celebrate President Obama’s inauguration.

Vani and his band, As Kindred Spirits, bring their unique brand of kirtan music to Boston Common on Sunday. The performance is sponsored by the Boston chapter of the International Society of Krishna Consciousness to celebrate Rath Yatra, one of the most sacred holidays in the Hindu world.

The embracing of different cultures and musical styles is apparent not only in Vani’s music but also in his signing to Matrology, a subdivision of Equal Vision Records, a New York label best known for releasing punk rock and hard-hitting emo albums.

Ray Cappo, a yoga teacher and former punk musician who leads spiritual pilgrimages to India and now answers to the Krishna name Raghunath, says elements of the hardcore punk subculture and Hare Krishna teachings have far more in common than many realize. “A lot of people in the hardcore scene are very concerned with similar issues that occur in Krishna consciousness like anti-materialism, vegetarianism, and straight edge,’’ Raghunath says, referring to the cultural movement that eschews drugs and alcohol.

“Twenty-five years later that is how we still live our lives,’’ says Raghunath, formerly of the underground band Shelter, which combined Krishna-influenced lyrics with razor-sharp guitars and blistering drum beats. “Some things may have changed with time, but it’s a form of continual evolution, and in one sense it’s exactly what we were doing in the punk scene when we were teenagers.’’

Vani shares Raghunath’s belief that music inspired by spirituality should retain core elements but be able to evolve with the times and changing tastes of followers.

“Spiritual music is a living tradition . . . from ‘Johnny B. Goode’ to the Bad Brains,’’ says Vani. “It grows and is alive. The music we make is just a natural progression of that.’’

Read the entire article here.

Mantralogy Tour Recordings

rasa.acharya — Sat, 29 Aug 2009 17:39:58 +0000

What you’ve all been waiting for… New, fresh kirtans from around the world. This is a part of the recordings from the Mantralogy Tour with Gaura Vani & As Kindred Spirits along with the Mayapuris. You’ll find many other special guests on the recordings such as Madhava Prabhu, MC Yogi and many others.

Our apologizes for taking so long to get theses up. While traveling it’s almost impossible to find the time to edit the kirtans. For those of you who don’t know, it takes around 4.5 hours of editing/rendering/conforming/uploading/posting time per 2 hour show. So without further ado…

To listen, click on the links below then press play. To download, Right Click on the word “Download” and select “Save As…” from the menu. Having trouble downloading? Read our Help Section.

Washington DC Ratha Yatra 7/4/09

Jivamukti NYC 7/15/09

Toronto Ratha Yatra 7/19/09

Bhaktivana (Lawrence Kansas) 7/21/09

Radha Damodar Mandir (Denver) 7/22/09

Exhale Spa with Saul David Raye 7/28/09

Yoga Glo with Shiva Rea and MC Yogi 8/7/09

Bhaktivedanta Manor (UK) Janmastami 8/14-15-16/09

Mantralogy Tour 2009: Californikirtan

Jahnavi — Mon, 24 Aug 2009 12:00:37 +0000

We’ve been in California for just over two weeks now, spreading kirtan in the sunshine state. Our first kirtan was at Urban Yoga in Palm Springs, where we were invited by the owner, Kristen, to attend a pre ‘Bhaktifest’ (link) event. It was a great night. Everyone chanted with energy and enthusiasm, and we ended in an uproarious circle dance, chanting the Hare Krishna mantra.

Since then, we’ve been busy chanting at different venues, including Exhale yoga studio in Santa Monica, Bhakti Yoga Shala, ISKCON Los Angeles and the Ford Theater for KuliMela, and at the 37th Annual Festival of Chariots on Venice Beach. It’s been a wonderful opportunity to get to know many new friends here, and reach out to so many budding fans of kirtan.

Mantralogy Tour 2009: Wanderlust Festival with Jai Uttal, Shiva Rea and MC Yogi

Jahnavi — Sun, 23 Aug 2009 16:09:04 +0000

After our kirtan with Shiva Rea at Kripalu, she invited us to the Wanderlust festival, a big celebration of both yoga and music in the beautiful ski resort of Squaw Valley, California.

We were only able to attend for the first day of the three day event, arriving at 2am and leaving the next morning at 6am. Still, it was a great day. We played for two yoga classes with Shiva, and in the evning, took to the stage at the Yoga Tree tent with Jai Uttal. Afterwards we had fun joining the audience for our friend, MC Yogi’s performance with another newfound friend -DJ Drez.

Mantralogy Tour 2009: Kansas to Denver

Jahnavi — Thu, 30 Jul 2009 01:40:34 +0000

After another gruelling drive, we reached the oasis of Bhaktivana, the rural home of our friends Gopimata and Ankotta in Lawrence, Kansas. We also met the Krishna Culture festival tour bus there, who had been busy preparing a wonderful feast for all of the guests attending the kirtan. Bhaktivana is home to a wonderful family, as well as beautiful Swiss cows and peacocks. Those of us who have been to the sacred town of Vrindavan, India felt transported there – even the intense heat was the same!

Many people turned up to sing with us, most of whom have been introduced to kirtan through the yoga classes run by Gopi in her home studio. We were fortunate to be joined again by Bada Hari, who lead a powerful kirtan in praise of Lord Rama. The glorious sound was complete with Purusartha on electric bass, and Jaya Sita’s emotive cello playing. We were also lucky to have Prtha and Nadia, two Bharatanatyam dancers from the Bhaktikalalayam dance academy in Alachua, Florida, who performed an electrifying routine to ‘My Body Is A Temple (Krishna Murari)’.

After marveling at the star filled Kansas sky, it was time for bed. We would need to leave very early to continue our drive – another ‘all dayer’ to Denver.

Almost fifteen hours later, we parked up outside Gaura’s childhood home, opposite the Denver temple. He hadn’t been back for over twenty years, and he exclaimed at how small everything looked.

There were just a couple of hours to rest until our evening kirtan concert within the temple. We were scheduled to begin after a Bhagavat Saptah reading – a type of narrative recitation describing the activities of the Divine, accompanied by music. Hundreds of people had come to attend the reading, and as it ended, they all danced and chanted with abandon, celebrating the pastime they had just listened to about the birth of Lord Krishna. Many stayed on for our kirtan and eagerly continued to chant.

We left late, packing everything up and stopping for a quick van cleanup at a gas station. The next day was to be the longest drive yet – over 24 hours to Lake Tahoe.

N.B. We apologise for not posting any recordings right now. We are recording all shows, but because we are on the road, we have limited facility for editing and uploading. Please stay tuned!