 |
| Guru Dass Singh 在左邊，拿著吉他；和其它早期的 3HO 音樂家： Krishna Kaur、Gurushabad、Livtar Singh 和 Sat Peter。 |
這篇文章由 Guru Dass Singh 於 2004 年撰寫，最初發表在《寶瓶座時報》，2005年冬天（第四卷，No. 4）版本，他在回顧了 3HO 前 35 年的音樂。
我想成為一名搖滾明星。 我離開波多黎各去了波士頓，希望提高我的音樂技能，我剛剛在伯克利音樂學院完成了第一年的學習。 然而，那年秋天，昆達里尼瑜伽進入了我的生活，它最終成為我的音樂所表達的處所。
1972 年夏天，在我練習昆達里尼瑜伽僅僅九個月後，我正在加利福尼亞州門多西諾參加第一次夏至瑜伽節的路上。 我決定乘坐從紐約州羅切斯特出發的飛機飛往那裡。 到達當的修道院後，我遇到了旅行的瑜伽同伴，當他們看到我的吉他時，他們要求我也演奏唱誦的曼陀羅。 我記得我當時在想，「 哇！你是說你真的可以把這些神聖的曼陀羅放在我的音樂中嗎？」看到每個人都在等我帶著他們唱誦，我不想讓我的瑜伽自豪感和新發現的觀眾處於立馬消失的危險中，於是我拿起吉他，開始唱「 Ek Ong Kar Sat Nam Siri Wahe Guru ji / all the love lies in you... let it be 」... 想想，那時的一切是多麼酷啊。
在羅切斯特，我開始聽說有這些叫做利夫塔、彼得、古魯沙巴德和古魯·辛格的人。 我發現已經有3HO獨特的音樂文化了，而我也剛剛加入了這個文化裡。
門多西諾對我來說是天堂。我遇到了 Yogi Bhajan，進行了白色譚崔瑜伽，並第一次目睹了 3HO 的音樂場景。前動物樂團吉他手 Vic Briggs ，現在叫做 Vikram Singh，身著完整的錫克服飾，用口琴帶領我們唱著印度拉加旋律。馬薩諸塞州蒙塔古的 Guru Shabd Singh 用他的古典吉他，和低沉的聲音演奏了錫克經文中溫暖人心的翻譯歌曲。另一位來自洛杉磯，美麗而有魅力的非裔美國女性 Krishna Kaur，讓我們愛上了她的《 你是我的愛人上主 You are My Lover Lord 》。 我每天都保持著敬畏，不僅敬畏這些音樂家的才華，還敬畏這些新形式的音樂帶我去到的地方。
最後一天，有人找到我和幾個波多黎各瑜伽士，讓我們為營地演奏一些「西班牙語」。那天晚上，我們拿著一把吉他、一把康加鼓和很多 fuego latino 拉丁音樂，演奏了一首倫巴風格的 Ek Ong Kar Sat Nam Siri Wahe Guru，震撼了整個瑜珈節，現在已經成為 3HO 的經典了。
 |
| Yogi Bhajan 在演奏木琴 |
Sat Nam 樂隊和東方Sat Nam
自從 Yogiji 開始在洛杉磯教課以來，3HO 音樂會場景一直在成形。 他的一些最早的學生，前民謠歌手使用吉他的 Guru Singh 和使用電豎琴的 Baba Singh的吉他手，已經開始寫入曼陀羅至他們的音樂中，並為這個新興的靈性家族創作歌曲。 他們與 Krishna Kaur 一起，很快就成立了 Sat Nam 樂隊，並在 3HO 聚會和慶祝活動中演奏。 Vikram Singh 開始在英國學習印度拉加旋律和古魯經文 Kirtan，後來成為3HO 的傑出錫克歌手多年。
1972 年春天，一群來自東海岸的音樂家，包括來自亞特蘭大的 Livtar Singh、華盛頓特區的「 Sat 」Peter Blachly 和即將成為 Gurushabad Singh，聯合起來建立了東方 Sat Nam。 他們從亞特蘭大招募了一名年輕女子 — 後來取名為 Sat Kartar Kaur — 與他們一起唱歌。馬薩諸塞州蒙塔古的幾位成員也一起唱歌，他們錄製了第一張 3HO 專輯，就叫做 東方 Sat Nam。 它包含一些古魯 Shabd ，這是錫克古魯大師的著作，並以音樂去創作，以及彼得和利夫塔爾的歌曲和唱誦。 它立即成功了，在 3HO 很快就引起了轟動，你現在可以在磁帶播放器上聽到這些曼陀羅和唱誦。 1972 年，東方 Sat Nam 繼續錄製了另一張名為《東方寶石》的磁帶，證實了他們在昆達里尼瑜伽宇宙中的明星地位。
 |
| 來自檔案館的原始影像。 藝術家不詳 |
願長久的陽光照耀著你
Yogiji 於 1969 年開始在洛杉磯教課。很快地，他的學生在上課前演奏音樂，就成了一種傳統。 有一天，當他進入瑜伽室時，一群學生，包括 Guru Singh，正在演奏The Incredible String 樂隊的一首名為《 A Very Cellular Song 》的歌曲。 樂隊正在唱《 願永恆的陽光照耀你，所有的愛都環繞著你，你內心的純淨光芒指引著你。 Yogiji 要求他們以後可以繼續演奏，從那時起，他就要求他們下課後彈奏。 接著它很快成為一種延續下去的傳統。
 |
| 1973 年音樂會裡的 Khalsa 絃樂隊 |
Khalsa 絃樂隊
門多西諾至集會結束後，我就搬到了華盛頓特區的 Ahimsa 修道院。我記得到了修道院，很快就遇到了這位可愛的、又高又瘦長的瑜伽士，名叫 Peter Blachly（後來被稱為 Sat Peter Singh）。 當他看到我的吉他，並聽說我在伯克利學習時，他迅速拿出傢伙，開始展示他快速而華麗的藍調布魯斯和和絃。 「 拿出你的」他說，然後我們繼續進行一種音樂決鬥。 我一定給人留下了好印象，因為第二天他讓我在新開業的金廟餐廳和他一起演奏唱誦！ 就這樣，我也開始了我自己的 3HO 音樂生涯。
 |
| 1977 年，Guru Dass Singh 在金廟餐廳演奏音樂 |
在金廟餐廳工作是修行生活的重要組成部分。 每天晚上，在關門前後，我們都會拿出吉他，與女服務員和廚房工作人員一起，演奏一個又一個的唱誦，讓還在的顧客高興高興。 很快，其它音樂家也搬到了修道院，並加入了我們每天的瑜伽曲目。 在 Ahimsa的那些日子裡，出現了許多唱誦和曼陀羅旋律。 其中，在金廟工作，「 Sat Nam（你內心的恩典）」、「 哦 Ｏh Guru Ram Das 謝謝你為這個美好的一天 」 ，以及許多版本的 Guru Guru Wahe Guru，這些都是我們最喜歡的 Ahimsa 修道院曼陀羅。
1973 年夏天，東方 Sat Nam 的成員在紐約市與一些 3HO 音樂家一起錄製了一張專輯。 Guru Singh 和 Krishna Kaur 來自洛杉磯。 Sat Nam Singh 和一位來自圖森名叫 Singh Kaur 的才華橫溢的年輕歌手。 Marty Singh（ 後來被稱為 Sant Ram Singh ），一位受過古典訓練的鋼琴家，Amar Singh，一位長笛和鋼琴演奏家，來自蒙塔古。 當時住在Ahimsa 修道院的 Sat Kartar Kaur 也來了，並帶來了一位名叫Guruvir Kaur 的女歌手同伴。 我還被邀請加入他們參加布魯克林修道院。 當地修道院成員兼音樂愛好者 Guruka Singh 帶我們去了曼哈頓的一個工作室，這場新的音樂冒險就在那裡發生了。 一開始，我們幾乎不知道我們要錄製什麼，兩週後，我們以Khalsa 絃樂團的身份走出來，這是 Yogiji 給我們起的名字。
專輯中的兩首歌曲《捍衛正義 Stand for Righteousness》、《 你可以讓陽光閃耀 You Can Make The Sun Shine 》和《 祝福之歌 Song of Bliss 》，讓我們發現了 Singh Kaur 的天使般的聲音和作品，也是她被稱為 Crimson Collection 的一系列專輯的開始，這些專輯已經成為我們音樂遺產的一部分。
與 Yogiji 一起巡演
1973 年冬天，我們被邀請加入 Yogi Bhajan 的東海岸教學之旅。 來自西海岸的音樂家們不能加入我們，因此一個新的 Khalsa 絃樂隊出現了。 Livtar Singh和我交換了主唱的角色，並成為樂隊的主要詞曲作者。 Sat Peter 是樂隊的主唱吉他手。來自蒙塔古的古魯 Shabd作 為詞曲作者和歌手，以及樂隊發言人做出了貢獻。 Sat Kartar Kaur 是我們的伴唱女歌手，還有新發現的鼓手 Atma Singh 也加入了樂隊。
我們會陪著 Yogiji，在他教的每一節課後演奏玩耍。他通常會坐在觀眾的前排，他以他精湛的方式指導我們，並展現我們的表演技巧。 我記得因為他，我克服了怯場，學會了如何保持微笑，因為我唱歌時他總是向我伸出舌頭。 在他的瑜伽滑稽表演中，我實在沒有辦法保持嚴肅的面孔。
這次巡演在我們的冬至聚會上在佛羅里達州結束，是個充滿歌曲的舞臺，這些歌曲後來成為我們 3HO 歷史上的標誌。 錫克國歌聖樂（又名唱誦 Sat Nam，作者：Gurudass Singh ）在冬至瑜伽節上首次與古魯 Shabd 的「Kama 船長」歌曲一起演奏。
1974 年春天，我們回去巡演， 樂隊成長了。 Amar Singh、Guruvir Kaur 和 Sant Ram Singh 以及我們的新鼓手 Guruvir Singh 加入了我們。 那年夏天晚些時候，中提琴的 Sahib Amar Kaur 和伴唱的 Gurudass Kaur 加入了我們。 在底特律排練了三週後，我們開始了為期六個月的美國之旅。這把我們從堪薩斯城帶到了新墨西哥州的聖路易斯到麥迪遜，再到溫哥華，再到洛杉磯。 我們在修道院、音樂廳、教堂和公園裡演奏。 我們勉強支付了食物和汽油費用。 我們是我們自己的公路司機，通常每天開車12小時後，必須設定並拆除自己的裝置。
7月，我們搬到了加利福尼亞州的聖拉斐爾修道院，在舊金山錄製我們的第二張專輯。 結果名為《第十位大師之子》，其中包括我自己的作品《 雨中之花 》。 那時，我的新新娘 Gurudass Kaur 已經加入了樂隊，並在專輯中擔任了伴唱。
樂隊最大的也是最後一次音樂會，是在洛杉磯的吟遊者夜總會舉行的。 經過六個月的演奏和生活，在音樂上，我們演奏在一起住在一起，個人之間也逐漸厭倦了彼此。 音樂會是非常成功的；我們從未演奏如此地好、感覺如此地好。 來自多家唱片公司的人才和經紀人，對我們表示了興趣。 在榮耀和成就的邊緣時刻，我們解散，分道揚鑣了，再也不會一起演奏了。
一個民族之歌
接下來在未來的幾年裡，許多新歌出現了。 冬至是我們一年中期待的分享新歌的平臺。 這些歌曲反映了我們家族當時的集體意識，也象徵著我們來自哪裡，我們要去哪裡。 在那些年裡，Livtar Singh 和我變成了一個多產的歌曲創作團隊。 我們一起創作的一些歌曲是《古魯·戈賓德·辛格頌 Ode to Guru Gobind Singh 》、《 四十被解放者 The Forty Liberated Ones 》和《 兒童崛起 》。 在 1975 年的冬至上，Livtar Singh 用《 Khalsa 之歌》震驚了所有人，這是一首對 3HO 許多成員開始分享的新設定靈性身份的讚美詩。 幾年後，他也遵循了永遠鼓舞人心的卡沙道路。
多年來，Guru Singh 還貢獻了許多我們都知道和喜愛的歌曲：Golden Temple Song，這是他對 Guru Ram Das 和我們在印度的靈性家園的早期致敬；以及All for One，這是一首慶祝我們靈性家族美德的歌曲。 Guru Singh 從那個時候開始的另一項貢獻是 Rise Up，它已成為我們在全球3HO聚會上清晨的「 喚醒曲調」。 1979年，
Yogiji 在洛杉磯的 50 歲生日派對成為我們的另一個音樂慶祝活動。 在專門為該活動創作的歌曲中，《 我愛3HO 》是一個關於 3HO 抵達美國以來歷史的歡樂故事。
1984年，在阿姆利則金廟遭到襲擊後不久，我寫了Never Again（又名 Cold Marble ），這首歌是 Yogiji 多年來在我們許多聚會和慶祝活動中的標準播放音樂。 這首歌表達了我們對金廟被褻瀆的痛苦，以及我們在旁遮普的錫克兄弟姐妹的痛苦。 我在那些年寫的另一首歌是《 上山 Walking Up the Mountain 》。 這是根據古魯丹·辛格寫的一首詩改編的，Yogiji 讓我為他的一門課配上音樂。 它講述了學生和老師的靈性旅程。
 |
| Gurutrang Singh在 1977 年彈吉他 |
多年來，其它音樂家為我們的靈性遺產貢獻了新歌。 其中之一是 Gurutrang Singh，他幽默詼諧的「 瑜珈茶之歌 Yogi Tea Song」和「 起床吧 Get Out of Bed 」。
 |
Singh Kaur 的歌唱 |
Singh Kaur 繼續錄製了許多專輯，這些專輯都充滿了各種曼陀羅和經文翻譯，全新鼓舞人心的演繹。 另一位女歌手是來自鳳凰城的 Bibi Bhani Kaur，她的瓊·拜亞嗓音風格，在許多至點都令我們非常開心。
新音樂和新藝術家
在 80 年代和 90 年代，出現了新一波音樂家，帶來了新的風格和各種人才。 另一位大師 Shabad Singh，這位當時來自俄勒岡州尤金，開始錄製新曼陀羅版本，這些曼陀羅在我們的昆達里尼瑜伽課程中仍然很受歡迎。 他的 Pavan Pavan 和 Sa Re Sa Sa，在他創造出的閃耀珠寶系列中脫穎而出。
在那些年裡，Yogiji 給了我們非常具體的早晨薩達納冥想，為此我們創造了新的和多樣化的曼陀羅曲調，並出現了新的寶瓶薩達納錄音。 3HO 的許多音樂家開始錄製自己的音樂版本，這給了我們廣泛的選擇，讓我們的薩達納保持活潑、啟發性和意猶未盡。
那些早期的錄音有時是在原語環境和謙卑的基礎條件下進行的。 我記得在巴塞羅那市外的一個倉庫裡，與 Gurudass Kaur 一起錄製了 Aap Sahai Hoa 的版本，周圍都是盒子、電線，一直通向二樓的音響亭，到最後也看不見在哪裡了。 為了與錄音工程師進行任何溝通（如果你能這樣稱呼他的話），我們必須停止演奏，跳過盒子，爬上一段樓梯才能完成。 但這些新的薩達納和曼陀羅錄音受到了熱烈的期待，並開始創造一個市場，激勵了許多音樂家錄製並保持創造力的流動。 這是一個小型唱片業的開始，最終演變成了 Spirit Voyage、Invincible Music、Cherdi Kala 等公司。
 |
1980 年波士頓的白色譚崔瑜伽 |
白色譚崔瑜伽
1986 年，Yogi Bhajan 作為白色譚崔瑜伽大師，開始為十五年的不間斷的旅行和教學付出代價。 他的健康狀況迫使他停止親自指導白色譚崔瑜伽課程，取而代之是使用錄影帶課程。 3HO 音樂在這些課程中發揮了重要作用。 不同藝術家的曼陀羅和唱誦錄音，被用作譚崔課程中的冥想工具。
90 年代初，Yogiji 委託他的私人秘書 Nirinjan Kaur 和來自洛杉磯的療癒師和音樂家 Guru Prem Singh 錄製某些特定的曼陀羅、Shabd 和唱誦，以及他自己的詩歌，用於譚崔課程。 他的請求有一種明顯的緊迫感和迫在眉睫。 沒過多久，一系列專輯就出現了，這些專輯已經成為我們音樂史上的音樂地標。 幾乎沒有一門課程，Nirinjan的聲音和 Guru Prem 的獨特安排，不讓我們沈浸在開心之中，並幫助我們度過白色譚崔瑜伽的身體挑戰。 這些包括「 每一次心跳 Every Heartbeat」；「 幸福 Blissful 」、「 豐盛和美麗 Bountiful and Beautiful」；以及「 Humee Hum 」。
21 世紀我們的音樂
個人電腦和家庭錄音室在 80 年代中後期變得過時，隨之而來的是輕鬆獲得高質量的錄音。 到 90 年代到來時，我們的音樂已經開始集體轉變。 Mata Mandir Singh 作為一位多產的創作者，每年發行新的錄音和優美的曲子，如「 Too Mera Pita 」、「 Mera Bed Guru Govinda」，以及他的《 The Yoga of Sound 瑜伽音流》系列中的許多其它作品。
 |
| Snatam Kaur 的歌唱 |
在此期間，一位新明星也出現了，一位擁有天使般聲音的年輕女士，她很快就開始俘獲許多人的心，Snatam Kaur。 Snatam 與老手 Livtar Singh 和吉他手 Guru Ganesha Singh 一起組建了「 和平之家 The Peace Family 」，並發行了一張「唱誦和歌曲」專輯。 她很快成為昆達里尼瑜伽巡迴音樂會的名人，她的音樂被用於許多瑜伽課程。 在接下來的幾年裡，Snatam 以獨唱的身份揚名。 她的專輯「Prem 」以及「 Shanti 」不僅在 3HO 中引起了轟動，而且在神聖音樂的新國際型別中，也引起了轟動。 她是 2003 年格萊美獎新時代類別的提名歌手，這使她進入了國際音樂界。
1998年，Gurudass Kaur 和我又開始在巴塞羅那錄音。 這次我們有幸與一位才華橫溢的製作人和音樂家 Mauricio Villavecchia 合作。 在他古樸但高科技的工作室裡，我們創造了 Adi Shakti。 在接下來的五年裡，我們繼續在那裡錄音，直到 2002 年我們搬回美國。 到那時，我們又發行了四張專輯，並開始在歐洲和美國「捲土重來」。
這些年來出現的其他藝術家有來自洛杉磯的 Sada Sat Kaur、Dev Suroop Kaur、Hargobind Hari Singh、Tarn Taran Singh、Avtar Kaur、Mantra Girl、Sat Kirn Kaur、Guru Nam、Haribhajan Kaur。 田納西州和許多其它人的名字裡應列入這個名單，但這會讓這些列席永無止境。 Haribhajan Kaur 值得稱讚的是一首簡短而甜美的歌曲，這首歌已經成為我們生活方式的一部分：「 在這一天 On This Day」。 沒有一個生日派對不唱 Haribhajan 的曲子來慶祝的。
 |
| Chardi Kala Jatha 在至點。Gurumustuk Singh 提供圖片 SikhPhotos.com |
古魯上師經文 Kirtan
自從 70 年代初我們開始去印度旅行以來，我們受到了印度文化精神的極大影響。 我們中的許多人開始生活和實踐 Guru Nanak 和錫克正法的教導。 演唱受靈性啟發的詩歌（Gurbani）是錫克實踐的很大一部分，因此它成為我們生活方式的一部分。 多年來，許多音樂家開始學習、演奏和錄製 Gurbani Kirtan，並透過音樂分享錫克正法的靈性資訊。 Sangeet Kaur 和 Pritpal Singh（新墨西哥州埃斯帕諾拉）、Guru Raj Kaur（加拿大溫哥華）、Sat Kirn Kaur 和 Sat Kartar Kaur 等人都錄製了shabads（Gurbani Kirtan作品）的精美唱片。
在過去的幾年裡，一群自稱 Chardi Kala Jatha 的美國年輕人開始佔據中心舞臺。 Sada Sat Simran Singh、Jagat Guru Singh 和 Hari Mandir Jot Singh 小時候在印度上學多年，學習古魯上師經文 Kirtan 和古典印度拉格音律。 他們的奉獻得到了回報，在過去的幾年裡，他們成為印度阿姆利則金廟的常規拉吉（拉格音樂家），金廟是錫克正法的主要聖地。 這是一項相當大的成就，因為（只有一次）以前有一群西方出生的錫克有幸在金廟演出。 他們還開始在許多 3HO 場地和活動中旅行和演奏，並發行了他們的第一張 shabad專輯。 緊隨其後的是一代青少年，他們也在印度生活和學習拉格旋律，在未來幾年，他們將開始展示自己的才能。
 |
| 站著的是 Siri Ved Singh Khalsa 他錄製了大多的音樂，坐著的是 Harimandir Singh Khalsa 他在洛杉磯鎮守了金廟錄製公司的堡壘 |
新音樂，新生意
早在 80 年代初，一家公司就成立了，銷售3HO音樂。 來自洛杉磯的 Siri Ved Singh創辦了 Golden Temple Music，並開始為我們提供最新的唱誦和曼陀羅碟盤。 多年來，它是我們音樂的「一個來源」，你會在全世界的每個白色譚崔瑜伽課程中找到他，出售他的音樂產品。 他是許多 3HO 音樂家錄音的第一位出版商，包括我自己的。 2000 年，吉他手兼薩達納搖滾歌手 Guru Ganesha Singh 成立了一家新的唱片公司Spirit Voyage，並開始製作和銷售許多藝術家的音樂。 Spirit Voyage 帶頭來帶領其它藝術家 — 如 The Peace Family、Snatam Kaur、Sada Sat Kaur、Sat Kirn Kaur和Gurudass — 不僅在昆達里尼瑜伽和 3HO 瑜伽中心，而且在更廣泛的新時代和神聖音樂市場。
3HO 和昆達里尼音樂的製作質量不斷提高。 專業製片人，如洛杉磯的 Thomas Barquee。 （Spirit Voyage），舊金山的 Jeffrey Cohen（Adi Shakti Music），Phoenix 的 Liv Singh（Invincible Recordings），溫哥華的 Hari Singh 和洛杉磯的 Jeremy Toback（ Ajna Music），帶來了他們的才能和經驗，以前所未有的地推進我們的音樂能力。 今天，在 2004 年底，3HO 音樂已經開始在世界各地許多人的家庭和瑜伽 / 冥想課程中找到自己的一席之地。 多年來，我們從 Yogi Bhajan 那裡學到的曼陀羅和唱誦，被成千上萬人聽到和誦讀。
藉著神的恩典，我們不斷練習喚醒創造力，將使我們能夠繼續唱歌，與所有人分享我們的音樂。 作者備註：朋友們，35年是一段值得記住的時間，所以我向那些在本文中無意中遺漏了姓名和貢獻的人謙卑地道歉。 這些年來，肯定有很多人直接和間接地為我們家族的音樂歷史做出了貢獻。 我們的愛和感激將永遠與你同在。
檢視這篇文章，因為它出現在2005年冬季版的《寶瓶時報》上。
Guru Dass Singh
Guru Dass Singh 周遊世界，教授和分享他的音樂。 他是昆達里尼瑜伽的長期教師和訓練師，也是 Yogi Bhajan 的早期學生之一。 1971年，他 17 歲時遇到了 Yogi Bhajan。 Guru Dass 是一位充滿熱情和發自內心的音樂家，他開啟了心扉，觸動了全世界數千人的靈魂。 他對教學的熱愛和奉獻是如此之大，以至於即使他知道自己正處於癌症的最後階段，他還是前往峇厘島教授和鼓舞一群國際學生。 他於 2017 年離開了這個人間住所。 留下了他的兒子、女兒和孫子。
A Joyful Noise
Guru Dass Singh on the left with guitar; with other early 3H0 musicians: Krishna Kaur, Gurushabad, Livtar Singh and Sat Peter.
In this article written in 2004 by Guru Dass Singh, which was originally published in the Aquarian Times, Winter of 2005 (Vol. 4, No. 4) Edition, he explores the first 35 years of music in 3HO.
I wanted to be a rock star. I had left Puerto Rico for Boston in the hope of enhancing my musical skills, and I’d just finished my first year at Berklee College of Music. However, Kundalini Yoga came into my life that fall. It would end up becoming the venue for my musical expression.
Only nine months into my practice of Kundalini Yoga, in the summer of 1972, I was on my way to my first Summer Solstice gathering in Mendocino, California. I decided to fly there on a chartered plane leaving from Rochester, NY. Upon arriving at the local ashram I met fellow traveling yogis who, when they saw my guitar, asked me to play a chant. I remember thinking, “Wow. You mean you can actually put these sacred mantras to music?” Seeing that everyone was waiting for me to lead them in chanting, and not wanting to put my yogic pride and newfound audience in jeopardy, I grabbed my guitar and started singing “Ek Ong Kar Sat Nam Siri Wahe Guru ji/all the love lies within you…let it be, ” thinking how cool it all was.
It in Rochester that I began to hear about these guys named Livtar, Peter, Gurushabad, and Guru Singh. I discovered that there was already a 3HO musical culture, and I had just joined it.
Mendocino was heaven to me. I met Yogi Bhajan, did White Tantric Yoga and, for the first time, witnessed the 3HO musical scene. Ex-Animals guitarist Vic Briggs—now Vikram Singh and dressed in full Sikh regalia—led us into raga chants with a harmonium. With his classical guitar and deep voice, Gurushabad Singh of Montague, Massachusetts played heartwarming songs from translations of the Sikh scriptures. A beautiful and magnetic African-American woman from Los Angeles, Krishna Kaur, enamored us singing of her “You are My Lover Lord.” I sat each day in awe of, not only the talent of these musicians, but the places where these new forms of music took me.
On the last day, someone approached me and a few fellow Puerto Rican yogis, and asked us to play something “Spanish” for the camp. With a guitar, a conga drum, and a lot of fuego latino, we took the stage that evening and played a rumba-styled Ek Ong Kar Sat Nam y el Siri Wahe Guru that rocked the house and has now become a 3HO classic.
Yogi Bhajan playing the xylophone
Sat Nam Band and Sat Nam East
The 3HO musical scene had been taking shape since Yogiji began teaching in Los Angeles. Some of his earliest students, ex-folk singer Guru Singh on guitar and Baba Singh with his autoharp, had begun putting mantras to music and writing songs of and for this new and emerging spiritual family. Together with Krishna Kaur, they soon became The Sat Nam Band, and played at 3HO gatherings and celebrations. Vikram Singh had begun learning Indian raga and Gurbani kirtan in England, and later became 3HO‘s ragi par excellence for many years.
In the spring of 1972, a group of musicians from the East Coast including Livtar Singh from Atlanta, “Sat” Peter Blachly of Washington, D.C. and the soon-to-become Gurushabad Singh, joined together to create Sat Nam East. They recruited a young woman from Atlanta—later to receive the name of Sat Kartar Kaur—to sing with them. With a few members of the Montague, Massachusetts ashram singing along, they recorded the very first 3H0 album. It was called Sat Sam East. It contained some writings of the Sikh Gurus that Gurushabad had put to music, as well as songs and chants by Peter and Livtar. It was an immediate success, and the buzz soon got around in 3HO that you could now listen to mantras and chants on your cassette player. Sat Nam East went on to record another cassette in 1972 named Jewels of the East, confirming their stardom in the universe of Kundalini Yoga.
Original image from the archives. Artist unknown
May the Long Time Sun Shine Upon You
Yogiji had begun teaching in Los Angeles in 1969. It soon became a tradition for his students to play music before his class. One day as he entered the yoga room a group of students, including Guru Singh, were playing a round of a piece of a song by The Incredible String band titled A Very Cellular Song. The group was singing May the Long Time Sun Shine Upon You, All Love Surround You and the Pure Light Within You Guide Your Way On. . Yogiji asked them to keep playing it and from then on requested them to play it after his classes. It quickly became a tradition that continues today at the end of every Kundalini Yoga class taught throughout the world.
The Khalsa String Band in Concert, 1973
The Khalsa String Band
I moved to Ahimsa Ashram in Washington, D.C. right after the Mendocino solstice gathering. I remember arriving at the ashram and soon meeting this endearing, tall and lanky yogi named Peter Blachly (later known as Sat Peter Singh). When he saw my guitar and heard I had studied at Berklee, he quickly whipped out his axe and began displaying his quick and flashy blues riffs and chords. “Pull out yours,” he said, and we proceeded to engage in a kind of musical duel. I must’ve made a good impression, because the next day he asked me to play chants with him at the newly opened Golden Temple Restaurant! And thus began my own 3HO musical career.
Guru Dass Singh playing music at the Golden Temple Restaurant in 1977
Working at the Golden Temple restaurant was a big part of ashram life. Every night, around closing, we’d pull out our guitars, and along with the waitresses and the kitchen staff, we’d bellow out chant after chant to the delight of the remaining customers. Soon other musicians moved to the ashram and joined us in our daily repertoire of yogic tunes. Many chants and mantra melodies emerged from those days at Ahimsa. Amongst them Working at the Golden Temple, Sat Nam (The Grace Within You), Oh, Guru Ram Das Thank You for This Beautiful Day, as well as numerous versions of Guru Guru Wahe Guru, our favorite Ahimsa Ashram mantra.
In the summer of 1973, the members of Sat Nam East were joined in New York City by a number of 3HO musicians to record an album. Guru Singh and Krishna Kaur came from Los Angeles. Sat Nam Singh and a talented young singer named Singh Kaur came from Tucson. Marty Singh (later known as Sant Ram Singh), a classically trained pianist and Amar Singh, a flute and piano player, came from Montague. Sat Kartar Kaur, who by then lived in Ahimsa Ashram, also came and brought with her a fellow female singer named Guruvir Kaur. I was also invited to join them at the Brooklyn ashram. Guruka Singh, a local ashram member and music lover, took us to a studio in Manhattan where this new musical adventure took place. We began with hardly an idea of what we were going to record and after two weeks came out as the Khalsa String Band, the name Yogiji gave us.
Two of the songs in the album, Stand for Righteousness—You Can Make The Sun Shine and Song of Bliss—led us to discover the angelic voice and compositions of Singh Kaur, and were the beginning of a series of albums by her known as the Crimson Collection, that have become part of our musical legacy.
We’d accompany Yogiji and play after each class he taught. He would usually sit in the front row of the audience and in his masterful way, he coached us and brought out our showmanship. I remember overcoming stage fright and learning how to keep a smile because of him, as he’d always stick his tongue out at me while I sang. There was no way to keep a straight face during his yogic antics.
This tour, which ended in Florida at our Winter Solstice gathering, was the stage for songs that later became icons in our 3HO history. The Sikh National Anthem (aka Chanting Sat Nam, by Gurudass Singh) was played for the first time at that Solstice gathering, along with Gurushabad’s Captain Karma.
On Tour with Yogiji
In the winter of 1973, we were invited to join Yogi Bhajan on his East Coast teaching tour. The musicians from the West Coast could not join us and thus a new Khalsa String Band came to be. Livtar Singh and I exchanged roles as lead singers and became the band’s main songwriters. Sat Peter was the band’s lead guitarist. Gurushabad from Montague contributed as songwriter and singer, as well as the band’s spokesman. Sat Kartar Kaur was our backup female singer and a newly found drummer, Atma Singh, joined the band.
In the spring of 1974, we went back on tour. The band grew. Amar Singh, Guruvir Kaur, and Sant Ram Singh joined us, along with our new drummer Guruvir Singh. Sahib Amar Kaur on the viola and Gurudass Kaur on backup vocals joined us later that summer. After rehearsing for three weeks in Detroit, we began a six-month tour across the US. that took us from Kansas City to New Mexico, St. Louis to Madison, up to Vancouver and down to Los Angeles. We played in ashrams and concert halls, churches and parks. We barely covered our eating and gas expenses. We were our own roadies, having to set up and take down our own equipment, often after driving up to 12 hours a day.
In July we moved into the San Rafael, California ashram to record our second album in San Francisco. The outcome was titled Sons of the Tenth Guru, and it included my own composition, Flowers in the Rain. By then, my new bride Gurudass Kaur had joined the band and sang backup on the album.
The band’s biggest and last concert was in Los Angeles at The Troubadour nightclub. After six months of playing and living together, we were super-tight musically and sick of each other personally. The concert was a success; we had never played or sounded so good. Talent agents from various record companies expressed interest in us. And on the verge of that glory and accomplishment, we broke up, never to play all together again.
Song of a Nation
In the coming years, many new songs came to be. Solstices were the platform that we all waited for during the year to share our new songs. These songs reflected the collective consciousness of our family at the time and were emblematic of where we had come from and where we were going. Livtar Singh and I had become an erratic, though prolific song-writing team in those years. Some of the songs we wrote together were Ode to Guru Gobind Singh, The Forty Liberated Ones, and Rise Up Children.
At the 1975 Winter Solstice, Livtar Singh blew everyone away with Song of the Khalsa, a hymn to a newly assumed spiritual identity that many members of 3HO had begun to share. A couple of years later he followed with the ever inspiring The Khalsa Way.
Gurutrang Singh playing guitar in 1977
Over the years other musicians contributed new songs to our spiritual heritage. One of them was Gurutrang Singh with his humorous and witty Yogi Tea Song and Get Out of Bed.
Singh Kaur singing
Singh Kaur continued recording numerous albums, all filled with new and inspiring renditions of various mantras and scriptural translations. Another female singer, whose Joan Baez-esque voice delighted us at many solstices, was Bibi Bhani Kaur from Phoenix.
New Music and New Artists
In the ‘80s and ‘90s a new wave of musicians emerged bringing new styles and a variety of talent. Another Guru Shabad Singh, this one from Eugene, Oregon at the time, began recording versions of new mantras, all still popular in our Kundalini Yoga classes. His Pavan Pavan and Sa Re Sa Sa, stand out among his creative jewels.
In those years, Yogiji gave us very specific morning sadhana meditations, for which we created new and diverse mantra tunes, and new Aquarian Sadhana recordings appeared. Many a musician in 3HO began recording his or her own musical versions, giving us a wide choice to keep our sadhanas lively and intriguing.
Recordings in those early days were made sometimes in primitive and humble conditions. I remember recording with Gurudass Kaur a version of Aap Sahai Hoa in a warehouse outside the city of Barcelona, surrounded by boxes and with wires going up to the sound booth on the second floor and out of sight. For any communication with the recording engineer (if you could call him that), we’d have to stop playing, jump over boxes and climb up a flight of stairs.
But these new sadhana and mantra recordings were awaited with great enthusiasm and began to create a market that inspired many musicians to record and keep the creativity flowing. This was the beginning of a small recording industry that eventually evolved into companies such as Spirit Voyage, Invincible Music, Cherdi Kala and others.
White Tantric Yoga in Boston in 1980
White Tantric Yoga
In 1986 Yogi Bhajan, as the Master of White Tantric Yoga, began paying the toll for fifteen years of incessant traveling and teaching. His health forced him to stop leading White Tantric Yoga courses in person and a video course was used instead. 3HO music has played a significant role in these courses. Mantra and chant recordings by different artists are used as a meditation tool in the Tantric sessions.
In the early ‘90s Yogiji commissioned Nirinjan Kaur, his personal secretary, and Guru Prem Singh, a healer and musician from Los Angeles, to record certain mantras, shabads, and chants, as well as his own poetry, to be used in the Tantric courses. His request had a clear sense of urgency and imminence. In no time, there came a prolific series of albums that have become musical landmarks in the history of our music. There is hardly a course where Nirinjan’s voice and Guru Prem’s unique arrangements do not delight and help carry us through the physical challenges of White Tantric Yoga. These include Every Heartbeat; Blissful, Bountiful and Beautiful; and Humee Hum.
Our Music in the 21st Century
Personal computers and home recording studios came of age in the mid-to-late ‘80s and with them the easy access to quality recording. By the time the ‘90s arrived, our music had begun to lake a collective turn. Mata Mandir Singh emerged as a prolific creator, coming out yearly with new recordings and such beautiful tunes as Too Mera Pita, Mera Bed Guru Govinda, and many other pieces in his The Yoga of Sound series.
Snatam Kaur singing
During this time, a new star was also emerging, a young lady with an angelic voice, who soon began to capture the hearts of many, Snatam Kaur. Together with veterans Livtar Singh and guitarist Guru Ganesha Singh, Snatam formed The Peace Family and came out with an album of chants and songs. She quickly became a name in the Kundalini Yoga circuit and her music was being used in many yoga classes. In the next few years Snatam came out as soloist. Her albums Prem and Shanti were a quick sensation, not only in 3H0 but also in the new international genre of sacred music. She was semifinalist for the 2003 Grammy Award in the New Age category, which catapulted her into the international music scene.
In 1998, Gurudass Kaur and I began recording again in Barcelona. This time we had the blessing of working with a very talented producer and musician, Mauricio Villavecchia. In his quaint, but hi-tech studio, we created Adi Shakti. For the next five years, we continued recording there until we moved back to the U.S. in 2002. By then we had put out four more albums and had begun a “comeback” both in Europe and America.
Other artists who have emerged in these years are Sada Sat Kaur, Dev Suroop Kaur, Hargobind Hari Singh, Tarn Taran Singh, Avtar Kaur, Mantra Girl, Sat Kirn Kaur, Guru Nam, Haribhajan Kaur from L.A./Tennessee and many more whose names deserve to be on this list, but would make it never-ending. Haribhajan Kaur deserves credit for a short and sweet song that has become part of our lifestyle: On This Day. There is not a birthday party where Haribhajan’s tune isn’t sung in celebration.
Chardi Kala Jatha perform at solstice. Photo courtesy of Gurumustuk Singh – SikhPhotos.com
Gurbani Kirtan
Since we began to travel to India in the early ‘70s, we’ve been greatly influenced by Indian culture and spirituality. Many of us began living and practicing the teachings of Guru Nanak and Sikh Dharma. The singing of spiritually inspired poetry (Gurbani) is a great part of the practices of a Sikh, and thus it became part of our lifestyle. Over the years many musicians began studying, playing and recording Gurbani Kirtan and sharing the spiritual message of Sikh Dharma through music. Sangeet Kaur and Pritpal Singh (Espanola, NM), Guru Raj Kaur (Vancouver, Canada), Sat Kirn Kaur and Sat Kartar Kaur, among others, have made beautiful recordings of shabads (Gurbani Kirtan compositions).
In the last couple of years, a group of three young American men, calling themselves the Chardi Kala Jatha have begun to take center stage. Sada Sat Simran Singh, Jagat Guru Singh, and Hari Mandir Jot Singh went to school in India as children for many years and studied Gurbani Kirtan and classical Indian raag. Their dedication has paid off and for the last couple of years they have become regular ragis (musicians of raag) at the Golden Temple in Amritsar, India, the main holy site of Sikh Dharma. This is quite an accomplishment, because (only once) before had a group of Western-born Sikhs been honored to play at the Golden Temple.
They have also begun traveling and playing in many 3HO venues and events and have put out their first album of shabads. On their heels, is a generation of teenagers who also live and study Raag in India, and who in the coming years will begin to display their own talents.
New Music, New Business
Back in the early ‘80s, a company was created to sell 3HO music. Siri Ved Singh from Los Angeles started Golden Temple Music and began providing us with the latest cassettes of chants and mantras. For many years it was ‘the one source’ for our music and you would find him at every White Tantric Yoga course worldwide, selling his musical wares. He was the first publisher of many 3HO musicians’ recordings, including my own.
In 2000, Guru Ganesha Singh, guitarist-cum-laude and sadhana rocker, launched a new record company, Spirit Voyage, and began producing and selling the music of many artists. Spirit Voyage took the lead in distributing its artists—like The Peace Family, Snatam Kaur, Sada Sat Kaur, Sat Kirn Kaur and Gurudass—not only in the Kundalini Yoga and 3HO yoga centers, but to the wider New Age and Sacred Music markets as well.
The production quality of 3HO and Kundalini-inspired music continues to improve. Professional producers such as Thomas Barquee of L.A. (Spirit Voyage), Jeffrey Cohen of San Francisco (Adi Shakti Music), Liv Singh of Phoenix (Invincible Recordings), Hari Singh of Vancouver and Jeremy Toback of L.A.(Ajna Music), have brought their talent and experience to advance our musicianship as never before.
Today, at the end of 2004, 3HO music has begun to find its place in the homes and yoga/meditation classes of many people all over the world. The mantras and chants we learned from Yogi Bhajan throughout the years are heard and chanted by thousands.
By the Grace of God, the creativity awakened in us by our continuing practice will allow us to keep singing and sharing our music with all.
Author’s Note: Friends, 35 years is a long time to remember, so I humbly apologize to those whose names and contributions have been unintentionally omitted in this article. There are certainly a lot of people who have directly and indirectly contributed to our family’s musical history over these years. Our love and gratitude will be with you always.
View this article as it appeared in the 2005 Winter edition of the Aquarian Times.
Guru Dass Singh
Guru Dass Singh traveled the world, teaching and sharing his music. He was a long-time Kundalini Yoga teacher and trainer and one of Yogi Bhajan’s early students. He met Yogi Bhajan in 1971, at the age of 17. Guru Dass was a passionate and heartfelt musician, who opened hearts and touched the souls of thousands of people around the world. His love and dedication to the teachings was such that, even while knowing he was in the last stages of cancer, he traveled to Bali to teach and inspire an international group of students. He departed this earthly abode in 2017. He is survived by his son, daughter and grandson.
明月心滴翻譯 / 歡迎覺知轉載分享
沒有留言:
張貼留言