Aradhna

Upon a first listen to Aradhna a number of stereotypes come to mind. The distinct sound of the sitar and the rhythm created by the tabla drums, immediately give away its world music feel. The Hindi vocals locate it distinctly outside of the western hemisphere. One is tempted, from a western perspective, to think it is inspired by the Slumdog Millionaire soundtrack, with a calmer sound more reminiscent of music played during a massage or yoga.

But these assumptions would be mostly wrong. The music of Aradhna comes from the long tradition of Indian devotional music known as Bhajans. Band leader Chris Hale studied sitar and this spiritual tradition while growing up as the son of missionaries in India. Becoming fluent in the language, and a master of playing the music led to Chris touring in the 90’s with his band Olio. In 2000, Chris Hale along with Peter Hicks decided to start a new project writing and performing original work in the Bhajan tradition. They named this project Aradhna, which means ‘adoration’ in Hindi.

The music of Aradhna is a creative fusion of an ancient musical style and a contemporary longing for more diverse Christian worship music that has long been dominated by a western aesthetic. While the band leans on Chris’ more than twenty years of experience on the sitar, it is nicely complimented by Peter Hicks on acoustic guitar and vocals, Travis McAfee on bass, and experienced tabla player, Jim Feist.

Aradhna’s music is also stylistically diverse. Their song “Amrit Vani” has a driving beat that gets faster as the song progresses. Similarly, the song “Gaao Re” leads with the rhythm, but features a more nuanced melody. While songs like “Man Mera” and “Asato Ma” use a more subdued percussion, and a slow, more drawn-out sound. And “Mukteshwar,” which is a minimalist duet of sitar and guitar. This diversity makes for a great live performance. The audience can easily follow the flow that the music creates; moving with the energy of the high tempo songs and meditating during the more reflective songs.

Overall the music of Aradhna is a unique experience; transporting one to another part of the world, while leaving your passport at home.

- Greg Veltman