This CD is a culmination of nearly seven years work: I began composing The Waves in 1997, and As all the Heavens were a Bell in 1998. Both pieces were toured around Australia in 1999. Since then I made revisions, and recordings commenced in late 2002. The revising and editing process has taken nearly 5 years and was interwoven with other activities in life: teaching, writing, playing clarinet with various Melbourne ensembles, and the birth of my son Christian. (I also lost about one year when my hard disk malfunctioned and I lost all my editing and collage work, but maybe this was a blessing in disguise).

When envisaging this CD, I wanted to create the most beautiful yet disturbing musical experience I could. I have taken my time to let it gestate: I strive for purity of expression, to channel energy, to hold true to the original flash of visions that were the seeds of the work and to honour the maxim: know thyself, express thyself. I think of the music / poetry / art that inspires me, and this is my response. This is my expression of thanks.

For me, to be fully engaged with a piece of music is to be on a higher level of experience: one that transcends the mind and taps into the human spirit. This, to me, is the meaning of inspiration: the most important thing in creating art and living life. My hope is to create a musical experience that brings the listener into this world of spirit and inspiration, a world we are constantly in but too often unaware of due to being so concerned with other things (job, shopping, how does my hair look etc). For me music can bring the listener closer to an understanding of what it is to be a human. To be a human is to be an expression of light, of experience, intense presence and love. To be fully engaged in music is to be beyond time. My hope is to create music that helps calm but also stimulate the mind, letting the listener focus on a higher experience.

On another level, a human being is millions of light particles constantly in vibration. Music is in its essence vibration. When a human listens to music the vibrations of the music interact with the particles that make up the human being. Music is part of our being. We need it like food. Music changes us.

Both works on the CD are divided roughly into five sections. On a psychological level the music tries to explore extreme states. States of peace, tranquillity, anxiety, fear, spiritual ecstasy, mystery, fantasy, humour and fun. By manipulating sounds and making collage in both compositions, I have created what I call ‘cosmic’ and ‘apocalyptic’ soundscapes. These are evocations of dream states. On a technical level I have divided both works into sections that I feel may be listened to as a whole experience in themselves.

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