On tour in the summer of 2008 AJ Block and Tyler Sussman discovered the power of sound and its ability to heal when they were introduced to the didgeridoo by keyboardist Phil Schwartz. They eagerly sought out other practitioners and refined their skills in California before moving to New York City to practice the ancient healing art. Didge Project hosts monthly group sound meditations and workshops on achieving physical, mental, and spiritual balance through vibrational medicine. Didge Project aims to spread the didgeridoo and the power of sound to as many people as possible by holding didgeridoo classes and make your own didge workshops. AJ and Tyler play the didgeridoo during reiki circles, mediations and yoga classes, including weekly classes with renowned Anusara Yoga teacher Elena Brower at her studio, Vira Yoga. Didge Project currently works with private clients throughout the New York City area and California.
AJ Block
AJ Block is a musician, composer, producer, and sound healer originally from Los Angeles, CA. AJ started his musical career as a trombonist, studying with such notable teachers as Wycliffe Gordon, Bill Booth, Kevin Bradley and Greg Miller. When he started playing the didgeridoo and studying sound healing with Judith Steves in 2008, a new world of possibilities opened up for him. AJ has played in many contexts including orchestras, jazz ensembles, New Orleans brass bands, sound healing circles and kirtans. Notably, he has played with Jimmy Cobb, Chick Corea, Wayne Escoffery, Hugh Masekela and Jodi Serota. AJ currently works with a variety of practitioners, healers and musicians in New York, most frequently with Tyler Sussman in Didge Project. Labels and traditions do not confine AJ’s music; he constantly pushes the boundary of possibility and frequently uses advanced techniques such as circular breathing and multi-phonics. AJ lives in New York City where he teaches, records, and performs on didgeridoo, trombone, percussion and harmonica.
Tyler Sussman
Tyler Sussman, musician, composer, producer, and sound healer, is a native of the San Francisco bay area. Tyler began his formal relationship with music at age 10 on the clarinet. He soon picked up the saxophone after falling in love with John Coltrane's sound. While attending the University of California, Santa Barbara, Tyler studied psychology in addition to music. Tyler has studied western music with Dann Zinn, Joe Bonfiglio, Mark Turner, Bob Sheppard, and Oliver Lake. In addition, he has studied sound healing with Judith Steves, Allan Shockley, and Jonah Kai. Tyler's interest in music from around the world has prompted him to fuse his influences into a sound that is accessible as well as stimulating to a wide audience. Notably, Tyler has played with Chick Corea, Eric Harland, and Irvin Mayfield's New Orleans Jazz Orchestra. Tyler currently resides in Brooklyn, NY where he teaches, records, and performs on saxophone, clarinet, flute, and didgeridoo.
Read more...