In conversation with Shanti people – Score Short Reads
1) Durga Mahishasura Mardini has already got a great. What is the idea behind this reboot of the Stotram in Sanskrit?
We have always wanted to make Durga Mahishasura Mardini in the Progressive Trance style (138 bpm) since both the original version (trip-hop) and remix by Droplex (minimal trance) are quite slow. So, at our live shows, we have always wanted to play it a little faster.
I love to sing this Mantra over and over again, renewing the music each time.
And Alex (Synesthetic), a sound producer from Italy, with whom we have already made such tracks as Krishna and Gurudev, implemented our idea to make Versions in different languages in a perfect way. I love both tracks! They are different in vibration, and you should feel that too!
2) What is your objective behind Durga Mahishasura Mardini Stotram in English?
For a deeper understanding of this stotra, I used English translations from Sanskrit (since Sanskrit is not my native language).
I asked my friend Alex Siedova to adapt the meaning of the Mantra in English into a traditional melody since Alex writes and sings songs in English.
We both liked the process so much as it deepens the understanding of the meaning of the original text and, in general, it is a creative process. I also wanted to share this experience with our audience, which does not understand Sanskrit. Indeed, even in India, not everyone understands the Sanskrit texts.
It is also a very interesting experience to hear the difference in the perception of vibration between Devnagari and English. Indeed, the very vibration of Sanskrit contains special spiritual energy, and the text itself was written by the Great Sadhu Sri Adi Shankaracharya.
I am interested in experimenting, whether the English text can influence people’s minds, and what the effect would be.
And while I was recording it, I gained a very special spiritual experience. It is interesting to share it with our audience and get their feedback as well.
3) How do you expect that the youth of today will relate to this EP?
Our audience is open-minded, and I think, the younger generation is too. Therefore, I am sure that young people will like our idea. But there will surely be less flattering reviews from more conservative and orthodox people, but that’s okay.
We believe that in this World there is a place for everything 🙂 And for us as well!
Recently, with the growing popularity of Shanti People in India, the number of disapproving reactions has also increased, but this is not more than 2-3%, and this is normal 🙂 Otherwise, we would think that we are doing something wrong 🙂 … Criticism is not bad!
It does not stop us because we do what we believe in and just share a part of our life,
We are ordinary people who are trying to become a little better by fighting our inner “dragons”.We sincerely love and respect Vedic knowledge and the large Family of Hindu Gods 🙂
4) Can you take us through the process of creating these soundtracks?
At first, I study Mantra or Stotra, then I sing it for a while, and only then do we create music, or if it’s collaboration, another producer creates the music, or we look for musical solutions together.
Collaborations are very interesting! It is always an experiment in interaction with different Energies! I’m not afraid to dive into musical styles that, at first glance, are not in harmony with the Mantras! But do not forget, as a vocal teacher and a person who has been researching music and its influence on humans for about 20 years, I can say for sure that any music is important! Each style has its listeners who get joy and high from listening to their favorite style.
And Mantras in their Vibration are Higher than any material identification! The Mantras are pure and capable of penetrating deeper than just the superficial perception of a person conditioned by a particular cultural tradition. Nothing can desecrate a Mantra or impair its vibration!
5)We are going through a major global crisis with the pandemic and the pain associated with it. How has this impacted you as a musician?
In general, this is a very difficult time for the music industry, as well as for many other areas of life!
But the most important thing is to maintain the inner Fire and not to let it go out.
Of course, the lack of touring has shaken our financial situation a lot. And in general, it is difficult for an artist to feel that he is needed without concerts. But we have a very grateful audience, and by switching to live streams we got a very large audience coverage on socials and this helped and inspired us!
We also had a lot of viral videos on FB and Insta, which gained and continue to gain millions of views.
It gives joy that most people like what we do!
In general, in any activity, the main thing is not to break down and continue!
6) What would your advice be to the young musicians who are experimenting in similar genres like psytrance, EDM, etc.
If you monitor our activity, you will see that we have been singing Mantras in public for over 10 years, in different musical styles, and in the beginning, we toured as an acoustic band.
But because of the success of the Shiva Tandava Stotram remix by Blazy & Gottinari, we decided to work in Psy Trance and EDM styles.
We like that Our meditation has become dynamic and now I do not sit during concerts, but jump, sometimes I even fly (just kidding)! But the essence has not changed!
I advise any artist in any genre not to dwell only on the creative process, but to strive to become professionals in music production, develop as a manager to promote music, and also be a bit of a director, cameraman, content manager, etc. and then you will be noticed for sure! Do not strive to get everything at once. Do not give up because of failures! Believe in your dream and it will come true!
7) How are you planning your upcoming concerts or performances, what’s in the pipeline from SP?
In 2021, our India tour failed, but, we do not lose hope of visiting India this fall!
We have plans to release new tracks in collaboration with different artists
Do not miss the July 13th release of “Aigiri Nandini” in 2 Languages with Synesthetic
We will also release the track, “Om Namo Shivaya!” with the Legendary Mandrogora. You can already listen to it on our streams.
We also got back to working with acoustic tracks
This year, our acoustic video with Shiva Tandava Stotram has collected more than 8M views on FB. Many Indian listeners have shared these videos. So we decided to do some singles on Shiva Tandava stotram, Hare Krishna and Maha Mantra in acoustics.
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