It was a cool Saturday evening in April at Hidden Valley's Performing Arts Stage in Carmel Valley, California when the local patron and educator at the Institute took to the modest wooden stage in round with an acoustic guitar and his renowned voice. David Gordon, known internationally as a Bach tenor, principle singer in countless operas from New York to Chicago and beyond, and concert vocalist, calls Carmel Valley home, and this night he was giving an intimate concert to a familiar audience -- his neighbors, friends and local supporters. And rather than classical or operatic selections, this was to be a night where Gordon displayed his affection for American folk music, bluegrass and even some country-bar-stage-behind-the-chickenwire songs. A guitar, a voice, and in between, Gordon the raconteur with a story for every song and a song for every story. And in this rustic theater nestled in the lush wine country hills, his audience was rapt -- filled with affection and laughter for the music from this gentle giant of a vocalist.
What struck me most, a first-timer to this theater and newly introduced to Gordon's music by a local friend, was the very evident etching of spirituality on his passion for music of all kinds. Whether it was a Woody Guthrie song, a bluegrass ode or a invitation to sing along with a song that, he said, had come to transcend all particular belief systems -- Amazing Grace -- there was an energy to the performance that filled the room with a bouyant spirit of joy and wonder. Quite a contrast to many a great vocalist who fill the room with themselves and little else -- a point not lost on the singer himself with his quip, "the singer's voice so filled the room, the audience had to leave to make room for it!"
After the understated performance that seemed a bit like being at the performer's home living room with friends, I decided he deserved a good Googling to see what else lies behind the voice, the voice teacher, and the performer. I wasn't disappointed. What I found was a multi-facted website that included what I suspected I might find -- a section devoted to his SpiritSound Collection, "Using Voice and Music for Health and Well-being," where we find a deep and abiding interest in the spiritual benefits of music and how it can bring healing to individuals and to the world.
Gordon presents the SpiritSound collection as "poems, quotes, and writings by many authors
exploring the poetic mysteries of sound, music, art, spirit, and healing." And within there is a treasure trove of articles and teaching on meditation through music and learning to hear one's inner sounds and music. "Nada Yoga" parts I & II present meditations on music and the Yoga of Voice. In the meditation on music he writes:
With practice, concentration on carefully selected outer or "struck" sounds will enable the mind to become calm and transparent. At this point you may begin to become aware of the subtle inner "unstruck" sounds. You might perceive inner sounds that seem like bells, or flutes, or even a hum like an electrical transformer. Some of these sounds are actually just the sounds of your own body: blood pumping, or the electrical energy of nerves and inner ear. Other, deeper, sounds are the "sounds behind the audible sound." It is into this deeper realm that Nada yoga can take you.
In Part II, on the Yoga of Voice alone, he introduces the concept of vibrating breath as a pathway to spiritual well-being:
No melody, no words, no rhythm, and no harmony - just the sound of the vibrating breath. Its a simple yet powerful technique, accessible to everyone regardless of vocal ability or training. Through toning you can immediately experience the effects of sound on your physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual well-being.
An essay that is of special interest to me as the author of a book on "the art of dying well" is his "Crossing Over" -- healing music for the dying.
Other essays include "A-U-M Silence," the ancient sound of "OM", "Audible Prana" -- the vibrating breath, and the hilarious and spiritually true, "How to Stay Stressed: Good Tips for Bad Health."
To round out his SpiritSound page Gordon includes a short list of "Wonderful Books," an article on meditation toning, and a toning CD.
In short, a concert in an intimate setting in the Santa Lucia Mountains of Carmel Valley has opened up a world of sound, a Yoga of Music for me with the vocal art and teaching of David Gordon -- a world I'd like to invite you to visit as well.
Comments