Anjali: lead vocals; harmonies; guitar; percussion; and music arrangements
Carlos Oliveira: guitars; strings; percussion; arrangement on 2
Chandrakantha Courtney: alab; percussion; harmonium on 4
David Courtney: tabla; arrangement, recording and mixing on 4
Didi Ananda Ragamaya: lead vocals and guitar on 3,5,8,13. Unison vocals on 12
Jacquelyn Battise: lead vocal; drum; reading on 6
Kamala: vocals on 10
Nataraj: bansuri bamboo flute on 9
Partha Mukhopadhyay: tabla
Peter Sprague: guitars; vocal on 10
Wayne Wilkerson: lead guitar
Influences
Shrii Anandamurtiiji, Acharya Nityasatyananda, Acharya Priyashivananda, Chandrakantha Courtney, Claudine Spindt, Shashank, Tuck and Patti, Kamalkrsna, Jyotsna, Claudia Gomez, Milton Nascimento, Carlos Oliveira, Mike Spiro, Dori Caymi, Simone, Joan Baez, Joni Mitchel
"Mantra music and devotional songs have a most healing effect on the hearts and minds of humanity. It is my goal to convey that feeling of Supreme Love to all through music." ~ Anjali
Anjali, a.k.a. Angela Silva, has been recognized for her warmly, sensuous voice, and engaging performances. Her musical expression is a unique blend of Brazilian, East Indian, Latin American, and American jazz styles. Throughout her career, she has performed both nationally and internationally, working as a producer and singer on recording projects, television, and radio.
“Anjali sings a sound that resonates with your heart, so much so, that you will feel like you have wings and have been transported to another dimension. Anjali makes heaven available to us through her song.”
~ Cindy Leinweber, founder of Luminesce Art Museum
An American of Portuguese, Mexican and Sephardic lineage, Anjali grew up in the San Francisco Bay Area, surrounded with rich music, from Cuban son to classical sonatas. The fourth generation of musicians on her mother’s side, she displayed a passionate interest in music at a very young age and at five years old, was studying piano and composing songs on the guitar. She began formal voice training at age 15, and went on to learn such diverse techniques as opera, jazz, and Hindustani vocals. She was fortunate to train with a handful of the world’s leading vocal teachers: Claudine Spindt (SF Opera), Silvia Nakkach (Vox Mundi Project), Patti Cathcart (Tuck & Patti), Ac. Nitysatyananda Avt., and Chandrakantha Courtney.
In the early 80’s, Anjali emerged on the San Francisco music scene, and was the preferred vocalist of several jazz bands throughout the Bay Area, including trumpet legend John Coppola’s CAL Alumni Big Band. She helped form the a cappella group Street Sounds, led by Sweet Honey in the Rock founding member, Louise Robinson, and later spent one year in Japan for exclusive engagements in reputable nightclubs. Upon her return to the USA, she created her own groups, performing Brazilian and jazz music throughout the Bay Area. For nearly a decade, she worked closely with Colombian born singer-songwriter Claudia Gomez, performing Latin American music. Her working relationship with some of the finest Bay Area musicians resulted in the expansion of her musical education where she studied Brazilian and jazz guitar, percussion, composition and arrangement. Anjali sang with master musicians such as Mike Spiro, Rebecca Mauleon-Santana, and Joyce Cooling. She was recognized by some of the most prominent figures in music: Tuck and Patti, Placido Domingo, Joan Baez, Wayne Shorter and Manhattan Transfer; and performed at some of California’s noted venues and festivals including the Kuumbwa Jazz Center, Monterey and San Jose Jazz Festivals, and the Noe Valley Ministery Series.
“Powerful stuff and HIGHLY recommended!
One of the most inspiring women in song today...
I could feel the complete rise in vibration from her presence, the music and kiirtan.”
~ Deanna Bordelon, RSc.P., Creative Life Spiritual Center
In the early 90’s Anjali set out for the South Pacific Islands for engagements in major hotels. There she met with Berklee College alumnus, producer Tom Bejado, recorded several jingles, and performed the theme song for the Micronesian Olympic Games. Upon her return to the states, she began to study a distinct form of East Indian influenced compositions called Prabhat Samgiita (Songs of the New Dawn) written by mystic, P.R. Sarkar. In the fall of 1996, she performed these songs with award winning vocalist, Acharya Nityasatyananda at the UCLA Renaissance 2000 Conference in California. She would go on to teach and perform Prabhat Samgiita, earning the title for Best Prabhat Samgiita at the 2000 Ananda Kanan Summer Conference in Missouri.
“Anjali has a direct connection with Spirit that opens the heart and silences the mind. Words cannot do justice to her unique, spiritual presentation.”
~ Reverend Anne S. Gillis, founder of EZosophy Movement
In 2001, Anjali brought her special music to the Houston political activist scene, and began a new role as a workshop facilitator. There, she performed at EarthDance, Bioneers, Miller Outdoor Theatre, Houston International Festival, and The Wortham Center; opening for prestigious political activists such as Gloria Steinem, presidential candidate David Cobb, and AR founder/director David Barsamian, She spent several years performing on stage and working in the community with renowned story-teller, author PK McCary. For nearly a decade, her music has been featured regularly on KPFT 90.1, Pacifica Radio, and this year her recording, Women We Are received air play on Amy Goodman’s Democracy Now.
Anjali has been an artist-in-residence and workshop facilitator as part of the Vermont Festival of Arts, at the Ozark Retreat Center, MO and at Prama Institute, NC. As the director of culture for the Women’s Wellbeing and Development Foundation, WWD-F she has taught world music and movement at schools and community centers for under privileged children.
Anjali’s distinct vocals and arrangements can be heard on numerous recordings including Frank Harris’ Daboa - From the Gekko, (Triple Earth Records, 1998) and Claudia Gomez’ Salamandra, (Clarity Records, 1991). Songs from Women We Are (WWD-F 2006) have been used internationally in multimedia. Her children’s CD, The Fairy’s Flowers (Gurukula 2006) received recognition in the Neohumanist and Waldorf Education communities. Her solo recording, Sweet Joy (InnerSong 2004) has been acclaimed around the globe as one of the most inspiring CDs.
Anjali is also a writer, whose publications appear in Emerging Lifestyles Magazine, New Renaissance Magazine; and in a book of short stories: Fire in Our Eyes, Flowers in Our Hearts. She has most recently moved to Asheville, NC where she continues to perform and teach in the surrounding areas.
"Anjali has said it all in song - I can go home now!"
~ Michael Nagler, founder Peace and Conflict Studies Program, UC Berkeley
Oh Beautiful Amiga :-) I have been thinking about you. It's wonderful to hear from you again. How are you? I so wish you were still here. It's a blessing to know you and to have had the opportunity to share creative Hermana energy with you.
Please don't be a stranger.
Mucho Amor y muchos Besitos,
Maria
P.S. Luna Lunera Cascabelera......(think of me when the full moon blesses us).
We
are looking for people to go online and post Earthdance Austin info on
all of your favorite blogs and forums. Tell all your friends and get
this grassroots effort going.
This being the first year, it is
harder to get the word out. Please send us your email address to get on
the mailing lists, then send out those newsletters to everyone you
know. If all of our friends on here did this we could get the word out
to over a million people.
Bands and Performers, Please add us
to your top friends and put up the poster, let everyone know you are
performing at Earthdance Austin and that you want them to come out and
support you.
We are working on the new newsletter now. If we
sell 500 tickets before July 15th, we can have Kevens (headline for
Burning Man) and Ky- Mani Marley. We need your help in order to get
this done though.
Give Peace a Dance my friends and do something great for our local charities.
Tickets are still on sale for $75 until July 15th.
This
includes 3 days of camping, 60+ bands, Eco Friendly Workshops, Healthy
Living Workshops, dj's, live PA's, Fire performers, KIDZ Village, Belly
Dancers, Drum Circles, Artists Village, great food and much much more.
Saludos fraternales amiga ANJALI, quienes cantamos y danzamos en la tierra misma y en este su nuevo ciclo no olvidamos a nuestros hermanos en el mundo. Un abrazo.
The music on the video is from "Ancient Egypt" and 5000 years old. Imagine
a spiritual temple function with such inward drawing music. The music was restored
from hieroglyphs. Imagine also, the Patanjali Yoga Sutras simplified from a
feminine perspective. To express our heart with devotion - it can be done in many ways. Peace and loving namaskar!
The Self, on account of its ignorant self-limitation as the mind, becomes as if tainted by the objects of the world, but the same self, when it is awakened to its true nature, abandons its ignorant delusion and regains its self-knowledge.
Ojala que pasastes un bonito dia de las madres!! Lo pase muy lindo con mi nieto dandole un beso a mi mamita. Ahorita me encuentro en mis examenes finales. Pero si me aceptaron para el programa bilingue de credentiales para el proximo semestre. Ayer llego un profesor del departamento de estudios etnicos para observarme. Este verano voy a mirar los fotos antiguos para mandarte unos despues que los traigo a escáner.
Love evolves and its presence shines on and on - Higher and deeper - forever - As never ending love is really what we are. Enjoy your ever eternal loving Pratiik SUN... :-) - Namaskar
Thank you for reaching out. I am giving free meditation classes touring through the US this year and would love to give a class in your area some day. Let me know where you are located and I will see if it is in an area we will be traveling through. Would love to meet you and blessings to your life of service and meditation!
Carnaval was SO fun!I could never forget that. The Berkeley one was much smaller with just Mexe Mexe and they did not have the float ready. Do you remember? We sang out of a van from the back seat and then the seat fell flat behind us, there was a little boy who asked us to ride along and he was laughing with us. It was pretty funny. I have some pics from that day. I should scan them.Papa was there too.
LoL was Robbie as cute as Aynsley? Aynsley was SO cute! Memories are a funny thing how they stay with us and I have so many fond memories with you mi hermanita. I think one of my favorites is that parade in Berkeley when those seats fell back in the van and we were laughing so hard with the little boy who hopped on for the ride. Mi nietecito thinks peek-a-boo is the funniest thing in the world. He reminds me how we receive joy from simple pleasures. He likes to drum on his chair so I found him a fun drum that lights up the alphabet and says each letter in English and Spanish. Maybe you can show him rythyms one day!
Failure is not an option' Each and everyone one of us are going through tough times right now, but God is getting ready to bless you in a way that only He can.
Keep the faith.
My instructions were to pick four people that I wanted God to bless, and I picked you.
Please pass this to at least
(4) people you want to be blessed and a copy back to me.
This prayer is powerful, and prayer is one of the best gifts we receive.
There is no cost but a lot of rewards
Let's continue to pray for one another.
The prayer: Father, I ask You to bless my friends, relatives and those that I care deeply for, who are reading this right now.
Show them a new revelation of your love and power.
Where there is pain, give them your peace and mercy.
Where there is self-doubt, release a renewed confidence through your grace.
Where there is need,
I ask you to fulfill their needs.
Bless their homes, families, finances, their goings and their comings.
Amen.
(If the Lord lays upon your heart to send this to more than four people,
We are like drops of water, and the universe is like the ocean-- we may exist independently, but we are the same exact entity as the Great... so when we fall into the ocean, we lose our individual identity... we realize that all along we are one with the Supreme. - Baba
Cosmic Tara Blessings
OM Carol
