Album Notes

WE ARE NOW # 17 ON THE NEW AGE CHARTS! 8/9/04
THE MUSIC
Will Clipman & Cantrell Maryott describe their music as sonic synergy: a sound that emanates directly from the heart, and generates an energy greater than the sum of its parts. It could also be described as somatic synesthesia: a vibration sent directly into the body, causing a creative convergence of the senses. While it is global in scope, their music arises from and is deeply influenced by the unique landscape, weather, flora, fauna, and human culture of northern Sonora, the "Singing Desert" they call home. Originating from Cantrell's experimental "chanteling"- harmonizing vocally within acoustically charged spaces to "channel the chant"- the music has evolved into a highly intuitive and improvisational dialogue between the human voice in all its instrumental breadth and depth, and the drum in all its nonverbal communicative capability. Together, Cantrell and Will explore the infinitely imaginative realm that exists in the space between notes, the silence between words, the stillness between heartbeats. . . .

THE OPENING EVENT
Set a vibrant tone for your conference, seminar, workshop, or retreat with an improvisational voice-and-drum invocation by Will & Cantrell. Engage and energize your participants with some heart music of the highest order.


THE CONCERT
Blending Will's astonishing array of global percussion with the amazingly rich textures of Cantrell's vocalization and creative movement, the full-length live performance offers a visually vibrant and sonically stimulating experience of this dynamic duo's improvisational heart music for audiences of all ages.


THE WORKSHOP
Lasting from one hour to one week, Will & Cantrell co-facilitate a workshop entitled Heart Music: Releasing Your Inner Rhythm & Song.
Will explores the science of sound and the art of percussion to unlock the mystery of how and why we perceive, comprehend, and enjoy rhythm; then he conducts the ensemble in a complex polyrhythm, and invites individual participants to express their own unique "heart beat" by soloing over the groove.
Cantrell explores body awareness and breathing, tonality and intonation, melody and harmony, freeing each participant's imagination to find the individual "body note" that resonates within; then she conducts a "harmonic choir" and invites each participant to improvise over the choral chant.
Will & Cantrell culminate with a demonstration of the creative dialogue possible between voice and drum; then invite the group to join the conversation, with a strong emphasis on listening as well as playing and singing.