Welcome! I’ve just released a new piano instrumental album, ‘Glimmerings’:

I can’t believe this is my 200th blog! Quite an achievement for someone who is not a writer! I remember my producer telling me that part of having a website was to blog and tell my friends about what I’m doing and what projects I’m involved with musically.  I was so daunted by the idea of writing – not only writing – but writing about myself.  How does one write about one’s projects, ideas and thoughts without focusing overly upon the ‘self’.  I have come to terms with one thing which has helped a lot.  Remembering why I started music in the first place – it’s what I love to do and if it’s able to transform souls and uplift others, then I have accomplished what I set out to do.  There are times that I observe different paths that other musicians are taking but I try to always bear in mind what is my goal and purpose.

For my 100th blog, I gave a gift of music called ‘Rose of Love’ and for the 200th blog, I’d like to share another gift from my upcoming CD, ‘Glimmerings’ (a piano instrumental CD) entitled ‘Reflection’.  Thank you for joining me and supporting me in all my projects.

You can listen to ‘Reflection’ below:

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Please feel free to download it and share it with your friends using the link below:
http://www.elikamahony.com/music/gifts

2012 is here and I’ve been thinking about my future goals for my music projects (I’ll talk more about this later). So far I’ve released 5 albums and it has been an incredible process of envisioning an idea, planning, reflecting, creating, collaborating and recording. Of course, it hasn’t come without its challenges. I love the way my dear friend and musician, Katharine Key, describes the whole process of making a CD and the details of what it entails in her blog.  She talks about creating a song and how much time, effort, patience and creativity it takes to produce a few minutes of music.  I highly recommend you read it to gain a better understanding of behind the scenes and what takes place for a song to be produced.

My most recent album, Glimmerings, is quite different from the rest as there are no vocals – just piano and 2 tracks that include cello parts (‘Realization’ and ‘Final Journey’).  It surprises people to know that it was the most challenging CD to record of all the albums released so far because the piano needs to shine on its own (no hiding behind the vocals or other instruments).  Playing the pieces required hours of practice.  There were times I would sit at the piano and rather than playing the same piece over and over like I should have, I felt compelled to compose a new one instead!  That hindered many of my practice sessions and prolonged the recording process of the CD.  Many of the pieces on Glimmerings are quite technical and there were times I wondered whether I’d be able to play them because of the amount of practice they required.  The key to completing the CD was focus and discipline and I’m thrilled I managed to complete it.

Some of the songs have a definite rhythm to them (Summer Storm, Reflection, Evanescence, Commencement), and I was encouraged to use a metronome but found it quite stifling at times because I was afraid it would potentially hinder the emotional feeling of the song.  In the end, with the discipline required, I managed to persevere in using a metronome and produce the emotion that I wanted.

I hope you enjoy Glimmerings.

As you know I’m really excited that Glimmerings is on the threshold of being released.  The discs have all been made and sent to the printers for packaging.  I hope to have it in my hands in a week or so.

The liner notes on the CD tell the story of a soul’s spiritual journey.  The journey is reflected in the titles of the individual tracks of the piano pieces.  These are the titles of the piano pieces below.  I’d love to hear your thoughts on what the titles could mean to you.  The full story is written in the CD jacket.

1.   Commencement
2.   Awakening
3.   Glimmerings
4.   Dawning
5.   Daybreak
6.   Reflection
7.   Summer Storm
8.   Realization
9.   Beloved
10. Enchantment
11. Evanescence
12. Final Journey

I will be giving away one of the songs on ‘Glimmerings’ as a free download.  To receive the download, please join the mailing list below (if you haven’t already) and I’ll be sending out an email in the next few days with the details:

In my last blog, I shared the cover of Glimmerings, my upcoming piano instrumental album (I have posted it again below for those of you who missed it).  The CD includes 12 instrumental songs, some of which were composed 10 years ago and some very recently were created on the spot.  For the spontaneous compositions, I would sit at the piano and play whatever came to my heart.  These pieces are very special to me because they were gifts of inspiration.  I simply sat at the piano and did my best to get out of the way so inspiration could flow through me.  It truly is a magical process.  I have shared one of these spontaneous pieces, entitled Commencement, in another blog for you to listen to and I share a little bit about the theme and why I composed it.

Glimmerings is being replicated right now and packaged in the next week or two.  It has been submitted to online stores (and will take a couple of weeks to show up on iTunes and other digital networks) and is in the process of being uploaded onto my new web store.  I look forward to sharing it will you when it’s ready.

Glimmerings, my piano instrumental CD, is almost complete!  I checked the color proof for the cover today to make sure the hues of blue are correct and was happy with the result.  We are now waiting for a sample of the CD disc to make sure the colors are accurate and then the process of duplication and printing will finally begin. In about 2-3 weeks everything will be packaged together and then we’ll set a release date.

I’m thrilled to show you the cover below.  What’s most exciting about it is that it’s a photograph of a nebula from outer space so all the colors are natural and gorgeous (a nebula is a cloud of gas and dust in space)!  There are more photos inside the package from other angles of the same nebula which I can’t wait to share with you. The photos are stunning!

As the CD will be released and sold in China (as well as in the West) it will be bilingual and so we had to follow strict Chinese duplication standards for publication.  It took time to find a design that I was happy with that followed the correct standards of the publisher without cluttering the cover with too much information.  The writing on the cover will be in a lovely shiny, embossed silver (the photo doesn’t do it justice).  I especially love that there is a little glimmering dot just on the ‘i’ of Glimmerings!  The beauty of nature is quite breathtaking isn’t it?!

I have learned to listen more closely to my intuition.  Today I had the strongest urge to record the vocals for a song I’ve been waiting to record since May of this year when I composed it.  This song is close to my heart because of the melody, the lyrics as well as the language.  It is sung in English and Spanish and is a duet with talented musician, Ali Youssefi.  We are working on this project long distance as I love his style of guitar and the emotion in his voice and felt that our voices are compatible.  Ali recorded the guitar and his vocals in a studio in Haifa, Israel and sent me the files to work on the vocals in Beijing, China! (How I love modern technology)!

So today, for no reason, I suddenly felt a strong feeling that I should record the song.  It felt like the right moment.  Often when I’m required to record vocals for a certain song and I’m not quite in the mood, the feeling and emotion don’t come so easily and it sometimes takes a long time to achieve the vocal results that I want.  I have learned to seize those moments when my heart wants to sing.  Of course there are some challenges in working with this spontaneous method but I’m very lucky to work with a producer that is flexible and understanding of my needs for recording (thanks Jarome for sacrificing and making me a priority today)!

As a result of listening to my intuition, today’s recording session went very smoothly and efficiently as I was able to connect with the words and the emotion in my voice was expressed with more fluidity and ease.  Here are the lyrics for the song which are from the Hidden Words of Baha’u'llah.  We are looking for a title for this song so please share your thoughts if you have any after looking at the lyrics below.

“O Son of Being! Love Me, that I may love thee. If thou lovest Me not, My love can in no wise reach thee. Know this, O servant.” ~ Baha’u'llah

Meeting Ali in Haifa, Israel for the first time - April 2011

A few days ago, I posted one of my favorite quotations from Abdu’l-Baha on facebook.  I love this quote especially as it allows me to strive towards a higher standard of conduct.

One of my friends suggested I set it to music as I’m sure it’s a favorite of many.  At first I felt quite challenged by the thought of setting it to music but today as a I sat down at the piano and played some chords, I suddenly felt inspired to set those lyrics to a melody.  As I was composing the chords on the piano, I sang the lyrics and the words flowed so easily and naturally with the chords.  I instantly made a rough recording of the song (so I wouldn’t forget it) and am happy to share it with you below (as well as the lyrics).   I particularly enjoy the echos of wisdom from the quotation in the second part of the song (“offer them milk and honey in return, sweeten their souls”) as we are constantly being reminded to rise to greater heights of behavior.  I wanted to end on the words, “Sweeten their souls” because those are most striking lyrics of the whole piece.

I have decided to post more compositions in their rough form so that you don’t have to wait to hear a song in it’s final production.  Let me know if you think that’s a good idea and what you think of the new composition. :)

The song is entitled, Sweeten their souls:

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Quotation:

‎’If others hurl their darts against you, offer them milk and honey in return; if they poison your lives, sweeten their souls; if they injure you, teach them how to be comforted; if they inflict a wound upon you, be a balm to their sores; if they sting you, hold to their lips a refreshing cup.’ ~Abdu’l-Baha

This is a blog I posted some time back but because I received some positive feedback about it, I am re-posting it.  I would love to hear your thoughts:

I have been pondering the subject of tests and difficulties lately and wanted to share some thoughts with you.

In this life, anything that gives us an opportunity to detach is a gift because the purpose of life is to advance on the path of detachment. The more detached we are, the closer we are to God and the more attached we are to anything other than God, the farther we are away from Him. What is important is how we react to life’s events and particularly to difficulties that we face. Tests don’t come to us by chance. “They are sent to us… for our own perfecting” writes Abdu’l-Baha. The significance of our lives is not found in the events of the physical world, but rather in how we use the challenges and opportunities that life presents for our spiritual development.  And once we are given a test, if we keep failing, it returns once again with greater force until we pass it!

Personally I find that when I have challenges, I take refuge in my music – either playing the piano, composing or singing. It takes me to another realm and brings me such calm and fulfillment and allows my spirit to soar. And interestingly, those are the times that I create some of the best melodies.  It’s like traveling to a different world where I’m surrounded only with music – it definitely uplifts my soul and brings me more clarity and perspective on life.  I know everyone handles their challenges differently. I would love to know what methods you use and what uplifts you when you have difficulties.

Quote of the Day:

”We should not, however, forget that an essential characteristic of this world is hardship and tribulation and that it is by overcoming them that we achieve our moral and spiritual development…sorrow is like furrows, the deeper they go, the more plentiful is the fruit we obtain.” – Shoghi Effendi

“We must always look ahead and seek to accomplish in the future what we may have failed to do in the past.  Failures, tests, and trials, if we use them correctly, can become the means of purifying our spirits, strengthening our characters, and enable us to rise to greater heights of service.” – Shoghi Effendi

My daughter Amelia and I have been working on a project lately.  For awhile I’ve wanted to do a rough recording of some prayers and Baha’i Writings that we have been singing together every night at bedtime for the last few years.  I felt this would be a lovely memory for her to keep for the future and to remind her of the melodies we have sung daily.  It truly has been precious to be able to sing with Amelia since she was a toddler.  We have now built a repertoire of many pieces that we love singing at home and for friends.

We decided to record 9 pieces that we enjoy singing the most and have put one of them below so you can listen to it.  It is entitled, ‘Love is the Light’ by SKY (they kindly gave us permission to put it on the blog – do check out their website for more music as they are 3 very talented women)!  We also sing prayers composed by JBEckl & Eric Dozier, Rose-Marie Peterson and Jack Lenz and Doug Cameron.  All are sung a cappella.

Here is the song ‘Love is the Light’:

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Below is a simple design for the CD disc!  I haven’t decided what to put them in yet though.  As we only printed a few, I’ve been day-dreaming about making the covers either with cloth or hand-making them the envelopes with paper. When Amelia saw the disc today she was so surprised.  I don’t think she expected them to look so lovely.

I look forward to doing a more professional recording with Amelia in a real studio sometime in the future to share with everyone.

Thank you to all of you who sent in stories about service.  We consulted as a family and decided that there are 5 stories of service that touched us the most.  It was not easy choosing just 3 so we had to choose more! Here are the winners, their contributors and the stories that were submitted.

1. Sabriye Tenberken (contributor: Joerg Wuttke):

I was always inspired by my friend Sabriye Tenberken, at age 12 she became blind. She studied Central Asian Sciences at Bonn University. In addition to Mongolian and modern Chinese, she studied modern and classical Tibetan in combination with sociology and philosophy. As no blind student had ever before ventured to enroll in these kind of studies, she could not fall back on the experiences of anyone else – and had to develop her own methods in order to follow her course of studies. She moved to Lahasa. Out of this need, Sabriye developed the Tibetan Braille Script. Sabriye initiated the project for the blind in Tibet and is the co-founder and co-director of Braille Without Borders. Next to fundraising and communication with official and sponsor organisations she is responsible for the development of the curricula, training of teachers and trainers and initially she also taught blind children herself.  Here is a link to learn more about her project.

2. Dr. Sohayl Mohajer (contributor Mozhdeh Foo):

I think one of the most sacrifical stories that has touched my heart is that of my brother Dr. Sohayl Mohajer. he has been living in India since 1977, serving the people in the villages and towns with great detachment and dedication. One of the things he does is to encourage Baha’i inspired village level schools. He identifies potential Baha’i youth in the villages who are educated but are unable to secure a job, to start their own schools. while he does not provide any financial assistance, he visits them and talks to them and consults on possible ways of starting a school, with one class initially and adding on one class each year. He is currently developing a curriculum to help teach these children deep concepts to make them good thinkers and virtuous personages. In my last visit to India I visited 2 such schools. One of them had over 250 students and 8 teachers and the other had over a 100 students with 5 grades, both self-sufficient. The schools are bilingual and children learn both English and Hindi.

3. 15 year old Linda Somni (contributor Yas Samadi):

A few weeks ago I had been asked by the institute coordinator to go to one of the townships on the outskirts of Cape Town and tutor a book 3 for Linda, who had started a children’s class but had not yet finished book 3. We arrived in truly one of the poorest townships I
have been to in the Cape-­Town area. Entire families live in tiny one room houses and there is no running water and in general people have very few, if any, possessions in their homes. Of course, as we arrived, despite the rain, at least twenty children came out excitedly to greet us. already knew it! When we re-­joined them, it was so moving to see all these children singing the name of Baha’u’llah (at the top of their lungs!). What moved me most was that Linda, was so focused, so completely dedicated and has a sense of clarity, intention
and insight that honestly left me feeling like I was in the presence of a spiritual warrior -­ someone who alone, and truly unaided, had come to a new community and is now establishing a community. And he is only 14!! When we asked him if we could assist him in anyway, he asked if next week we could please bring with us 15 copies of breezes of confirmation!!!

4. Paule & Moro (contributor Darrell Rogers):

Moro Baruk is an artist. He was born in Egypt in 1947…. In 1979, Moro and his wife Paule, responding to a calling to serve their Faith, traveled to Haiti. … Today, the Baruks live in a house they built in their adopted hometown, Jacmel. They employ many artisans whom they train in artistic crafts. And as Baha’i pioneers they are very busy helping to establish the principles of race unity, the equality of men and women, the elimination of prejudice of all kind; all principles brought by Baha’u’llah the Prophet-Founder of the Baha’i Faith.

When the terrible earthquake struck Haiti, much of their town of Jacmel was severely damaged. But unlike many foreigners who fled for the safety of their homelands, Moro Baruk & his wife Paule stayed in Jacmel to help rebuild. Leaving never crossed their minds because after 30 years of working with, living with, and loving the people of Haiti, it had truly become their home.

Recently, their demonstrated perseverance paid off, as they were singled out for a visit by the new President of Haiti. Moro wrote:

Today, Paule and I enjoyed a special day.
Haiti’s new President Michel Joseph Martelly came to our town on a special occasion to boost Jacmel’s tourist business. The Bahá’í prayer for Unity was originally on the welcoming program but someone not so friendly with the Faith removed it.
In the mean time we had prepared a special package containing a poster of that prayer, the prayer book, the Hidden Words and an introduction to the Faith. We had planned to find a moment during the day to offer it to him with dignity. Parallel to that we decided to offer him a substantial gift of a pen & Ink drawing made by me along with a quote from ‘Abdu’l-Bahá about the education of girls.
Today at the airport, while waiting for his plane to land, we showed the package to a senator who happens to be a very close friend to him and to us. The Senator contacted the lady who removed the prayer to put it in the program. At first she refused. He insisted with force and she accepted.
After the initial welcoming reception at the airport, the President was to visit the historic quarters of Jacmel (in which our house, our boutique/factory and our rental apartments are situated) as this district will become the next focal point in Jacmel’s tourism development.
As he approached our boutique with over 40 people walking with him, the president spotted me on the sidewalk. Although we never met face to face before, somehow he recognized me or someone may have told him who I was, but his face beamed and he left the cortege to come and shake my hand and he entered our store.
He walked straight to the fan to cool off. At that moment I gave him both his gifts one after the other.
He loved the drawing and the quote of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá which I read out loud to him. He was very moved then said that he appreciated the subject as education was number One on his agenda, then while receiving the books, he opened every single one and addressing the protocol lady nearby, told her he will read this books and get inspired by them. He was told by someone that the prayer was going to be offered in his honor.
After visiting us, we all went to a hotel where the speeches and the reception cocktail were going to be.
After the National Hymn, Paule was invited to recite the prayer for unity. [The President bowed] his head and closed his eyes, then, at the end of the prayer he turned toward me and smiled.
We are very happy to have been the instruments to share with the Head of State spiritual material that may influence one day his decisions.
Loving greetings
Moro

5. Adrienne Carter (contributor Kurt Hein):

Adrienne Carter, Shawnigan Lake, BC, Canada, is an amazing soul. She understands suffering…remarkably…she is a counselor for the BC govt. for women and children suffering PTSD. The BC government has granted her paid release time to enable her to serve as a PTSD counselor for Doctors w/out Borders in Kosovo, Kashmir, Sri Lanka, Sierra Leone, Nigeria, Malaysia – to name a few. She is in Kenya right now helping counsel refugees from Somalia.

Adrienne was a teen-age refugee from Hungary in the ’50s…learned she was Jewish after the family arrived safely Halifax. She became a Baha’i and met another Baha’i youth, Barrie, who came from a prominent SDA family (founders/leaders of the SDA in Canada), all of whom were self-selected exiles to Canada from the U.S. — African-American – freed slave families!
Amazing, eh?

Congratulations to all the winners! I will be contacting you for mailing addresses to send a Birds of Love gift set to the individuals you have written about.

Here is the link to read all the stories that were entered.