Liberation's Door

After spending 2 years touring and writing new music, Snatam Kaur releases Liberation's Door, an album written and recorded as she experienced the magical creativity of her first pregnancy. This album builds on the fluid, soaring music that Snatam is known for, but raises it to a new level with her maternal energy unleashing a depth of emotion and richness beyond anything we've heard from Snatam before. Blending Gurmukhi mantra, Shabds (traditional Sikh prayers put to music) and the sweetest of songs, Snatam lays her heart and her devotion at the feet of the listener. Snatam is joined by the musicians who tour with her, GuruGanesha Singh and Manish Vyas on this album. GuruGanesha Singh helped in the writing and composing process and his guitar bring incredible depth and breadth to this album. Manish's voice feels like the sweetest of instruments dancing through some of the tracks. With cello, flute, tabla, keyboards, sarangi and GuruGanesha's signature guitar cradling her crystalline voice, Snatam's music will carry your spirit straight to liberation's door. Snatam explored the power of sound in India. After high school, her love for the Indian musical tradition and for children took her to Miri Piri Academy, a boarding school for children in India. She spent time taking care of the young children, teaching physical education, and providing music for the children's morning and evening chanting. When she returned to the United States, she attended Mills College in Oakland, California, where she obtained a degree in biochemistry, taught yoga classes, and shared her chants with Western audiences. But India called her back. After touring and performing Kirtan in northern India, Snatam settled in Amritsar where she studied music with the accomplished ragi (Indian master of Sikh-style kirtan) Bhai Hari Singh. This was a great honor for her, and particularly meaningful because Singh was the same teacher who had taught her mother when she was just a little girl. Snatam embraced everything that Singh taught her, from the technical aspects of the notes, to the ability to sing with presence and awareness. The lessons took place in Singh's home, where Snatam was welcomed by the entire family - daughters, sons, and grandchildren. While in Amritsar, Snatam lived next door to the Golden Temple, considered the world's holiest Sikh temple. Sacred music resonates from inside the temple from about 2:30 in the morning to midnight every day-sounds created by world-class masters of Sikh kirtan. This enabled Snatam to continually soak in the essence of the Sound Current. Upon returning to the US from India, Snatam began her career as a recording artist with a band called the Peace Family. She served as the band's lead singer and, with two skilled and accomplished musicians - Livtar Singh and GuruGanesha Singh, had her first opportunity to write songs. Two years later she began to develop her own sound and style and embarked on a very fruitful solo career.