Sonic Angel Music: CD Reviews

"As Above So Below" by Candace Keach is an album perfectly designed for deep relaxation and meditation. The main instruments Candace uses are silver flutes and crystal bowls. She is accompanied by Gordon Porth who plays synthesizer and pipe organ.

Drawing on her background as a professional flutist and sound therapist, his as a classical pianist and choirmaster, they know how to evoke sacred space through the use of their instruments. The soundscapes they create are extremely subtle and seductive. Once you begin listening, you find yourself drifting into a serene space where tension melts away while your imagination takes wing.

Featuring 8 tracks whose themes are aligned with the elements and inspired by a variety of sacred stories, such as that of Saraswati, Hindu goddess of music and medicine, Kuan Yin, the Buddhist goddess of compassion, the Green Man, the spirit of the forests, and a tribal gathering around the campfire.

Noteworthy is their sophisticated use of sound to achieve pitches and vibrations to awaken feelings in your energy centers through overtones from the crystal bowls, the low notes of the organ which are more felt than heard, and delicate synthesizer layering which contrasts sweetly with the silky, diaphanous sounds of the flute.

If you are a healer or therapist, you will probably find this to be a great album for use during sessions. If you are just a person who needs a calming influence after a rough day, this sound medicine is a wonderful tonic.

"As Above So Below" (Sonic Angel Music) is subtitled, "A Healing Journey Through the Elements." It starts with this wonderfully sinuous flute solo like something from the Arabian Nights, and the magic never ends.

Atlanta's Candace Keach and Gordon Porth collaborate on this sonic interpretation of the four ancient elements that make up our world: earth, air, fire and water, plus ether. Each track has a sound healing purpose such as raising self awareness, centering, healing and protection.

Using flutes, synthesizer, crystal bowls, piccolo, and a pipe organ, the duo give us a sound experience of the elements that invite you to sit back and imagine waterfalls, roaring fires, wildflowers, and the mystery of the forest. This music is incredibly lovely!

"I so enjoy singing with Candace. Her playing comes from the heart of spirit."

“Candace is able to embed a special healing quality into the tone of her flutes. There are Divine moments in ‘As Above So Below’ which will transport one beyond the elements into a wonderful silence of Spirit.” – Dr. John Beaulieu, ND, PhD

"Candy's soul-full flute and serene music guide the listener to a timeless moment of communion with the pure elements of the sacred self."

“This CD is a good preparation for therapy as it is wonderfully relaxing and reflective.”

“I play your CD constantly during polarity and massage sessions with my clients as well as in my yoga classes.”

“After listening to ‘As Above So Below’ my live blood cell slide showed a field pulsing with light. The neutrophils were animated and highly efficient. The slide also clearly showed a positive change in free radicals.”

“We play ‘As Above So Below’ in the store all the time – we love it, customers love it – this CD flies off the shelves.”

“I am using “As Above So Below” for pain management as I broke my wrist a week ago. Listening to your CD has helped me feel so much better physically as well as spiritually and emotionally.”

“Your flute sound is so beautiful and is complimented perfectly by the bowls and synthesizer. I must say you have a gift for melody. I enjoyed listening to the colors and moods created by the various modes - cool!”

“This CD is very empowering. I have found it to be a subtle yet powerful influence for cultivating one’s own creativity.”

“I wanted you to know how dramatically you were used with your music as the instrument of God’s choosing in affecting our marital healing.”

"That night at The Inner Space when I heard Candace and Gordon play selections from their CD, As Above So Below, was the night I quit smoking. That was four years ago! It's like a miracle!"

Pull out a bottle of pain reliever for a headache, and Marietta resident Candace Keach will give other options for curing the pain. Ms. Keach is a professional flutist and sound therapist who preaches the benefits of sound therapy.

Her first CD released in May, "As Above So Below", is a healing journey through the elements featuring flutes, crystal bowls and synthesizer made by Ms. Keach and classical pianist and friend, Gordon Porth. Recorded at St. James Episcopal Church in Marietta, the CD was made to give therapeutic benefits to its listeners.

"The CD was created with the intention of facilitating healing through a sonic experience of the elements," Ms. Keach said.
The elements include ether, air, fire, water and earth, which help create balance and flexibility while also restoring wholeness, according to Ms. Keach.

Ether is related to grief and joy and water to creativity. Air relates to the heart and unconditional love while also being joine with the immune system. Fire shows enthusiasm or anger and earth relates to the family.

Ms. Keach said flexibility is the key to retaining a balance between the elements. "You can have problems physicially or emotionally when one of the elements is overstimulated," Ms. Keach said.

She said listening to someone's voice is enough to tell if they are over-stimulated in an element.
"If someone talks loud and is making sputtering sounds, they are over-stimulated in fire," the University of Georgia graduate said. "If someone is whiny and has a woe-is-me tone, they have too much water."

Ms. Keach teaches seminars titled, "The Art and Science of Sound Healing" where she gives hands-on techniques to retaining balance between the elements with sound. In addition to teaching sound workshops, Ms. Keach also teaches private flute lessons and is principal flutist in the Macon Symphony Orchestra.

With a background in classical music, Ms. Keach expanded her knowledge of sound's metaphysical power while training with John Beaulieu and learning the art of toning, vocal harmonics and voice analysis.

She also learned to play crystal bowls made of crushed quartz crystal, tapping and stirring them with a wand which creates a sound similar to a flute, as displayed on her CD.
The sound pulses in wave form that induces listeners into a theta brain wave state, she said. "When people are in deep meditation, they are in a state open to healing," Ms. Keach said.

She said a New York oncologist has established crystal bowls into his practice and feels that this has sent some of his patients' cancer into remission. "I have read scientific documentation that suggests that cancer cells are broken up by sound," she said. "I really feel like this will be the medicine of the future."

The origins of therapeutic sound healing are steeped in tradition. "Ancient sources and legends cite music and sounds as powerful tools for healing," Ms. Keach said. "The Egyptian hieroglyphic for music also meant joy and well-being."

Wanting sound therapy to relax, Ms. Keach recommends toning.
"Open your mouth, and with alot of breath, make a sound appropriate to you," she said. "Change the pitch. Use a vowel sound and stretch it out. Different vowels resonate in different parts of the body. If you have a headache, send it to that area. Ten minutes later, you will be amazingly relaxed and pleasantly surprised!"