Next Concert of Sangit Chamber Ensemble

Sangit Chamber Ensemble will perform in extended formula on the 6th of February 2013 at Sutu Palace in Bucharest. The concert is organized by ACCUMM Foundation. The program includes works by  Fr. Wilhelm Ferling, Jean-Philippe Rameau, Georg Philipp Telemann, Antonio Vivaldi and Ignace Pleyel. 

Soloist:

Anne Marie Ene - violin
Cleopatra David - soprano

guests soloists:

Mihail Zamfir - oboe
Ieronim Buga - piano
Alexandra Pascaru - cello

The term “Sangit” means “music” in Sanskrit language. Although relating chamber music to an Indian term might look strange, there is a simple explanation for this: music comes from the Spirit (Atma in Sanskrit) and its value is universal. 

Sangit Chamber Ensemble is not playing music for an aesthetic purpose, but for its spiritual goal: obtaining Self Realization through Sahaja Yoga method created by Shri Mataji Nirmala Devi and experimenting the vibrations of music. 

Sangit Chamber Ensemble started as a trio created for European chamber music. Later, due to the knowledge and of training in Indian Classical Music of the violin player, Anne Marie Ene, the programs included also this secular sacred art. Anne Marie performs Indian Classical music, Hindustani style, together with her son, Avadhut who plays an Indian percussion instrument called tabla.

The Holy Ghost in European Art

El Greco: The Pentecost (1596-1600) Oil on canvas, 275 x 127 cm, Museo del Prado, Madrid

“SM: Sahaja means spontaneous. “Saha” means with, “Ja” means born; it is born with you. It is spontaneous; it is the living force. A living force that has made you a human being from amoeba; is going to make you the higher being where you become the Self. It is all… in every scriptures you will find they have described that you have to be born again. Every prophet, every incarnation has said that you have to be born again. And there must be some thing within us, which does that job, and this is known as Kundalini and was known to people – very few people I should say – in the ancient times.

Then in the sixth century, Adi Shankaracharya talked about it very clearly that it’s only the Kundalini awakening, the awakening of this Residual Power within us which lies in the triangular bone called as Sacrum, means sacred bone. Just imagine, that time they knew it was a sacred bone. That it rises and crosses all the subtle centers, pierces through the fontanel bone area and gives you your real baptism, your real birth, and you can also feel the softness of your fontanel bone area on top of your head. And this is an actualization. This is not that you can just pay some money or become a member, organize something. It’s an actualization and you can see the pulsation of the Kundalini at the base; the rising of the Kundalini and the breaking of the fontanel bone area which is called in Sanskrit as Brahmarandhra.

I: So you are saying this is what… Spirit inside us, which you call Kundalini?

SM: No. Spirit, this is the Holy Ghost, and the Spirit is in the Heart. Spirit is the reflection of God within us.

I: So it’s not the Spirit. It is a live force?

SM: This is the force that is the pure desire to be one with God; that is within us all the time, dormantly lying. It only manifests when it sees, or gets instruction, or is handled by a person who is authorized by God. Not by any institution or anything, but by God. Such a person Himself is a realized soul. It is like one enlightened light can enlighten another light. It’s very simple.”

Shri Mataji Nirmala Devi in a Radio Interview, Sydney (Australia), 31 March 1981.

Eastern Orthodox Icon

Giotto: "Pentecost", Tempera on wood, 1300-1310 (45.5 x 44 cm), National Gallery, London, England

Duccio di Buoninsegna: Pentecost  (1308) Tempera on wood, Museo dell'Opera del Duomo, Siena

Happy Makar Shankranti!

"Today is the day where we celebrate the change of the axis of the Sun and that He moves towards the tropic of cancer. Tropic of cancer is the one which represents the motherhood, the motherhood of the earth.

This tropic of Cancer has passed through quite a big area of land while the tropic of Capricorn has not. And the area through which it has passed it has created different beautiful manifestation of the motherhood qualities on this earth. We celebrate this change because the Sun has now moved into the new dimension so that all over the world there will be the warmth of the Sun.

Warmth of the Sun represents the warmth of God’s love. This is the reason why we celebrate this festival by giving you some sort of a sweet made out of sesame seeds. Sesame seeds are given because they are also heat giving and now as we are coming from the cold, we come to the hot season in a way, hotter season, so to prepare you with that warmth of the Sun these special things are made out of the seed of sesame to represent the oncoming warmth and the warm of the sun.

Though in India the heat is too much, still people are waiting for this time to come in and they celebrate it with such a warm heart. At this time it is said that they give you this sesame seed and the sugar to eat, but now you must speak in a sweet manner, “god godbola” means you must speak in the sweet manner."

Shri Mataji Nirmala Devi, 14 January 1987

Yalda - Persian Tradition, or another version of Christmas

Yalda is celebrated on the Northern Hemisphere's longest night of the year, that is, on the eve of the Winter Solstice. Depending on the shift of the calendar, Yalda is celebrated on or around December 20 or 21 each year.

Yalda has a history as long as the religion of Mithraism. The Mithraists believed that this night is the night of the birth of Mithra, Persian angel of light and truth. At the morning of the longest night of the year the Mithra was born.”Some fruits and edible things we used to have in this ceremony!On Yalda night, which this year falls on December 21, members of the family stay together, narrate old stories told by ancestors, play traditional games and eat dried and fresh fruits symbolizing various things. 

Pomegranates, placed on top of a fruit basket, are reminders of the cycle of life -- the rebirth and revival of generations. The purple outer covering of a pomegranate symbolizes "birth" or "dawn" and their bright red seeds the "glow of life." 

Watermelons, apples, grapes, sweet melons and persimmon are other special fruits served on Yalda night and all are symbols of freshness, warmth, love, kindness and happiness.

Also we will do divination to book of poetry by Hafiz (One of the most famous Persian poet)

Everyone opens a page of book and reads the poem and others interpret the poem and say how will be the future for that person!

Its for fun!:)

Happy Yalda night to all!

J.S. Bach - Christmas Oratorio BWV 248

Sir John Eliot Gardiner conducts the Monteverdi Choir and the English Baroque Soloists

From wikipedia:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christmas_Oratorio

The Christmas Oratorio (German: Weihnachtsoratorium) BWV 248, is an oratorio by Johann Sebastian Bach intended for performance in church during the Christmas season. It was written for the Christmas season of 1734 incorporating music from earlier compositions, including three secular cantatas written during 1733 and 1734 and a now lost church cantata, BWV 248a. The date is confirmed in Bach's autograph manuscript. The next performance was not until 17 December 1857 by the Sing-Akademie zu Berlin under Eduard Grell. The Christmas Oratorio is a particularly sophisticated example of parody music. The author of the text is unknown, although a likely collaborator was Christian Friedrich Henrici (Picander).

The work belongs to a group of three oratorios written towards the end of Bach's career in 1734 and 1735 for major feasts, the others being the Ascension Oratorio (BWV 11) and the Easter Oratorio (BWV 249). All include a tenor Evangelist as narrator and parody earlier compositions, although the Christmas Oratorio is by far the longest and most complex work.

The oratorio is in six parts, each part being intended for performance on one of the major feast days of the Christmas period. The piece is often presented as a whole or split into two equal parts. The total running time for the entire work is nearly three hours. In a similar fashion to Bach's other oratorios, a tenor Evangelist narrates the story.

The first part (for Christmas Day) describes the Birth of Jesus, the second (for December 26) the annunciation to the shepherds, the third (for December 27) the adoration of the shepherds, the fourth (for New Year's Day) the circumcision and naming of Jesus, the fifth (for the first Sunday after New Year) the journey of the Magi, and the sixth (for Epiphany) the adoration of the Magi