Instrumental electro-acoustic album for effected alto flute, effected omnichord, field recordings and electronics with spoken word by Jenn King as she recites Oriah Mountain Dreamer's poem, THE INVITATION.

There are three elements to LOVE AND LET BE:

1. Practice to a 65 minute YIN FOR THE HEART Yoga sequence guided by Jenn King.
2. Listen to Jenn's INTRODUCTION TO YIN YOGA
3. Chill out with the instrumental album Rozalind MacPhail created for a silent meditation or yoga practice called, LOVE AND LET BE.

In this recording, Yin Yoga, electro-acoustic music and poetry dance together to create inner peace and make room for more space in the heart. It’s the perfect recipe for home practice, when we’re on the road or when we’re just needing to take a quiet moment for ourselves.

ABOUT THE ALBUM

"It was March 25, 2017. Visiting yoga instructor, Jenn King from Modo Yoga Halifax was teaching a Yin Yoga workshop at our beloved Modo Yoga St. John’s, my home away from home. Little did I know I’d be creating an album inspired by this profound experience.

I remember it like it was yesterday. Jenn guided us through a series of Yin Yoga poses as she read verses from one of my favourite poems, “The Invitation” by Canadian writer, Oriah Mountain Dreamer. I’ve held this poem close to my heart ever since discovering it in my early 20’s. It’s been my compass to help me navigate through relationships. During Jenn’s special Yin Yoga sequence, my heart was ripped wide open. It felt like years of emotional pain was being released from my body. I was being brought exactly what I needed, when I needed it. A moment of divine intervention. This experience resonated within me so strongly that I wanted to find a way to share it with others.

Fast forward almost a year and we have come full circle. This beautiful Yin Yoga practice that inspired me in such a profound way is now being shared with you. We hope you enjoy our 65 minute Yin For the Heart sequence where yoga, electroacoustic music and poetry dance together to create inner peace and make room for more space in the heart. It’s the perfect recipe for home practice, when we’re on the road or when we’re needing to take a quiet moment for ourselves.

Jenn King writes, “Yin Yoga offers a space of stillness for the body, mind, and heart. With a focus on deeper, longer holds, we can affect structures that have a tendency to be tight and restricted. The position of our physical body can also elicit responses in the mind and heart. These responses can be challenging to sit with, but this is where we practice getting comfortable with being uncomfortable. To face challenge and not shrink back. To see the value of stillness in the storm. This practice was developed based on my belief that heart-opening is not only important, but required for a full and present life. Our world does not promote this, and at times discourages it. We shy away from expression when it rises to the surface, but in the practice I want to offer people a space to consider what it is to sit with emotions, however they may be perceived, and accept that their feelings are valid based solely on their existence. Oriah’s poem is precisely this for me: the good, messy and beautiful parts of being human. This project is a marriage of many things I believe in: yoga, stillness, love and music. Standing alone, these elements are already powerful. Together, they are boundless, rich and lush with expression.”

The recording process began remotely in Halifax, Nova Scotia. Recording engineer, Evan Cox recorded Jenn’s class as a small group of friends participated. I began composing the music during the RPM Challenge, using Jenn’s class as my musical inspiration. I spent 7 days in a St. John’s rehearsal space where I composed and recorded day and night. I focused on my new favourite instrument, the alto flute. This beautiful instrument was generously provided by Gemeinhardt Musical Instruments. The effected alto flute parts are inspired by the breath and the rise and fall of the ocean. I created a warm bed of electronics to compliment my effected flute with a collection of vintage omnichords and keys. If you listen closely, you will hear some field recordings we captured with an iPhone and a handheld recorder. Listen for the water dripping from a leaky roof during a bad storm to the sweet sounds of birds singing with chimes in the gentle breeze. It’s all there to help take you to the present moment.

This recording is dedicated to Modo Yoga studios worldwide. Thank you for providing us with a supportive community where we can let our hearts shine bright. It’s amazing the magic we tap into when we feel peace from within. Sending a deep bow of gratitude to Jenn King and Oriah Mountain Dreamer for sharing this beautiful creative journey with me." - Rozalind MacPhail

THANK YOU

Jenn King, Oriah Mountain Dreamer, Stephen Lilly, Anne Pickard-Vaandering, Laura Swaine, Diana Brown, Laura MacPherson, Joni Thomas, Evan Cox, our beautiful sangha at Moksha Yoga St. John’s and Moksha Yoga Halifax, Rhonda Pelley, Émilie Beaupré, Gemeinhardt Musical Instruments, David Pirtle, Jennifer Baunoch, Meranda Squires, Corey Pike for the amazing space to compose and record and to my love for supporting me every step of the way, Josh Caine.

THE INVITATION by Oriah Mountain Dreamer

It doesn’t interest me
what you do for a living.
I want to know
what you ache for
and if you dare to dream
of meeting your heart’s longing.

It doesn’t interest me
how old you are.
I want to know
if you will risk
looking like a fool
for love
for your dream
for the adventure of being alive.

It doesn’t interest me
what planets are
squaring your moon...
I want to know
if you have touched
the centre of your own sorrow
if you have been opened
by life’s betrayals
or have become shrivelled and closed
from fear of further pain.

I want to know
if you can sit with pain
mine or your own
without moving to hide it
or fade it
or fix it.

I want to know
if you can be with joy
mine or your own
if you can dance with wildness
and let the ecstasy fill you
to the tips of your fingers and toes
without cautioning us
to be careful
to be realistic
to remember the limitations
of being human.

It doesn’t interest me
if the story you are telling me
is true.
I want to know if you can
disappoint another
to be true to yourself.
If you can bear
the accusation of betrayal
and not betray your own soul.
If you can be faithless
and therefore trustworthy.

I want to know if you can see Beauty
even when it is not pretty
every day.
And if you can source your own life
from its presence.

I want to know
if you can live with failure
yours and mine
and still stand at the edge of the lake
and shout to the silver of the full moon,
“Yes.”

It doesn’t interest me
to know where you live
or how much money you have.
I want to know if you can get up
after the night of grief and despair
weary and bruised to the bone
and do what needs to be done
to feed the children.

It doesn’t interest me
who you know
or how you came to be here.
I want to know if you will stand
in the centre of the fire
with me
and not shrink back.

It doesn’t interest me
where or what or with whom
you have studied.
I want to know
what sustains you
from the inside
when all else falls away.

I want to know
if you can be alone
with yourself
and if you truly like
the company you keep
in the empty moments.

By Oriah © Mountain Dreaming,
from the book The Invitation
published by HarperONE, San Francisco,
1999 All rights reserved. Presented with permission of the author. www.oriah.org