Conversations With Ananda — Ch. 66, Nayaswami Krishna

 

Nayaswami Krishna in 1998.
Nayaswami Krishna in 1998.

Krishna directs the training choir at Ananda Village.

Q: How did your interest in music begin?

Krishna: I was about ten when they showed us the instruments we could choose to play at school, and I thought, “Oh, there’s one with just three buttons.” [Laughs] It was the trumpet, and I said, “I’ll take that one.”

Unfortunately, I quickly learned that it was one of the most difficult instruments – I think French horn is the hardest – but I started playing and I had a great time. When I graduated from high school the band director encouraged me to study music at a liberal arts college in Ohio.

At college I got lots of encouragement from my professors and had a great time playing jazz. When I graduated I got a job as a band director in Catholic elementary schools. I loved watching the children light up with music as they discovered they could play. But then I decided I didn’t know enough about teaching, so I went back to school and earned a master’s at the University of Illinois, focusing on psychology and music instruction.

Grad school was a rich experience, because there were great musicians that would come to teach and lead clinics and play concerts – Duke Ellington, Van Cliburn, Charles Mingus, and the best trumpet player in Russia, Timofei Dokshizer, who gave a workshop for ninety of us trumpet players, and I got to be in a smaller group of thirty who learned from him.

After college I spent a decade teaching in various settings all around the country, from grade school through college. I loved instrumental music, but I had studied voice, even though I was totally dissatisfied with the voice experience in college because it was very shallow.

Swami Kriyananda described how he took voice lessons as a young man, and how he didn’t want to sing those histrionic operatic arias, and neither did I. The teacher literally asked me to put my hand on the piano and look soulful and sing in a dramatic “professional” manner. [Laughs] I couldn’t believe my teacher asked me to do that!

When I got to Ananda, the music was very intriguing to me. Being classically trained and into jazz which is very complex, I listened to Ananda’s music and thought, “Oh, how simple.” But looking back, of course, I see how I missed the point. Later on I pulled out the big book of all the Ananda pieces and proceeded to play them on the trumpet, and that’s how I started to connect with the music.

My first thought had been, “Oh, how sweet that Swami Kriyananda also sings.”

I didn’t understand how deep the music was until I internalized it personally by playing all the pieces with focus and openness. And then over time I began to understand the vibrational side of the music, still by playing it on trumpet.

I had completely let go of thoughts of singing because it wasn’t interesting to me, but when I began to chant I realized that the voice is a key component of our spiritual path, and an important vehicle for finding our deep spirituality, because when you use your voice, whether speaking or singing, there are no barriers between you and God. You’re emitting sound, you’re emitting AUM, and Swami’s music reaches us from the deepest aspect of AUM, because that’s where he received the inspiration to write it.

So I finally began to feel truly turned on by the music, and I began helping the choir director however I could. That was in 1990, when I came to the Village to take the year-long monastic training program, and then I went back to Palo Alto and helped with the music there.

Directing the large Palo Alto choir, I was intrigued to see how the inspiration of the music flowed very individually through each singer. Directing is a wonderful experience, because you’re connecting with the singers in a flow of inspiration that’s unique every time you rehearse or perform.

Q: You’re now directing the training choir at Ananda Village. If someone expresses an interest in singing the music, but they’re shy or they’ve never sung in a group, how do you help them?

Krishna: We start with simple exercises that change their idea of how to sing. We practice learning the parts, of course, but the exercises are intended to correct any preconceptions they may have that they’re supposed to sing a certain way.

We try to get the new singers to learn to blend their voices with the choir. We explore what the voice can do, and how to get in touch with the inspiration of the songs and with the singers around us.

As people learn to blend their voices, I’ve seen that they become more comfortable with themselves. In the beginning they may feel shy, but pretty soon they come into their own, knowing they can sing the music and truly feel it.

We’ll start with the simpler unison songs like “Cloisters,” and we’ll focus on blending, volume, and other technical things, then we’ll sit for a moment to feel the inspiration, and that’s where I’ve seen most people start to get it. A small group of experienced singers will come and practice with the training group, and the new people will find that it deepens their experience of singing with the larger group.

Q: Chaitanya said that singing this music changes a person’s voice. Have you noticed that?

Krishna: It’s true. It’s a physical thing, because you’re opening your heart to the feeling of the music, and as you relax it changes your physical approach. Instead of holding onto the muscles and straining, you learn to be more open, and then the throat relaxes and you find yourself naturally speaking and singing in a more melodious way.

Swami Kriyananda said that the voice sounds more pleasing and natural when the throat is open and relaxed. It isn’t that they’re changing their technique, but the voice becomes more naturally relaxed, melodious and harmonious, to where they can sound more comfortable and clear. I think “clarity” is a good description for what comes out in their voices.

Q: Lots of singers have said that a hallmark of Swami’s music is a sense of inner harmony.

Krishna: Yes, and once people begin to learn to align themselves with that harmony they can go deeper in the music. In practice we’ll sometimes sit on a note for a long time – for instance if there’s a four-part chord that sounds particularly unusual and beautiful – or we’ll sing a phrase and hold the last note, and very often, if you can focus with deep calmness you’ll feel it recalibrating your cells. It happens most easily when you’re aware of the harmony, more than if you’re just moving through a series of notes. When you’re absorbed in the harmony of the chords, it opens you more broadly to the vibration of the music. I can feel that it’s actually changing my brain in some way.

Q: David Eby said that he’ll have people sing for a bit and then be quiet, as you described, and when they come back and sing again it’s as if their system has learned something.

Krishna: I find it’s true, and it takes you beyond the music to an inner feeling for where the music is coming from. When you pause and sit quietly, it helps bring your focus inward, and then the inspiration is greater when you come back and sing. We do work on technique, but the technical difficulties tend to go away when we’re focused on the inspiration rather than the details. The technical side is important, but we like to stay grounded in the inspiration, because it’s where people can truly understand the music, and then the performance becomes a higher expression of the music.

Q: How can singers learn to give themselves more wholeheartedly to the music?

Krishna: The main thing, I think, is to keep singing. Keep blending with the group, and keep listening. It’s helped me to listen to recordings of Swamiji singing, and to sing along and try to emulate his voice and consciousness in all their qualities, and then I find after a while that the voice you’re listening to disappears.

It took me years to get beyond the technical side. I would think, “You’ll be going up to a high note, so okay, better open your throat and increase this and do this and that.” But then I would try it and it wouldn’t work. [Laughs] You’re thinking, “How can I make it sound like that?” And what’s actually needed is a more organic approach where you’re focusing on the essence and letting the details fall naturally in place and serve the song.

Q: How do you recommend that newcomers practice?

Krishna: More than anything else, it’s extremely important to relax. Watch your voice, and let go of all tension. If you’re trying too hard and you forget about relaxing the voice you won’t get a satisfying sound. The parts recordings for sopranos, altos, tenors, and basses are a wonderful way to practice, because you can listen and sing along with a good role model.

I find that when people don’t sing along aloud or mentally while listening to a practice tape, or when they just sing on their own without a model, they can develop bad habits. The practice recordings are a great aid for helping you get absorbed in the inspiration of the songs.

My advice is simply to sing the music as much as possible. I’ve seen that the people who take time to practice make progress quickly. The people who don’t have time or willingness can get the vibration and move along just fine, but regular, deep practice is immensely helpful.

When you practice on your own it’s easier to hear what’s coming out of you, so you can work on it and learn to forget yourself and be comfortable in rehearsals while blending and singing in harmony. And then rehearsals and performances become more joyful. The more you give, the more you are able to give. When your attention isn’t divided it’s easier to feel the inspiration and share it.

Q: How do you help people who need to work on their voice?

Krishna: I’m currently working with someone who has tension in her voice, but she’s very dedicated to singing. Swamiji said to her, “Why aren’t you singing?” He felt it would help her spiritual life and be a way she could give to people.

We work on making the voice relaxed and harmonious. New singers tend to find that the music helps them discover their own magnetism and refine it.

Q: When people begin singing Ananda’s music, do they experience a personal transformation?

Krishna: I think it helps their meditation. My experience is that it helps you breathe better, and it transfers to your meditation practices.

Q: Can you think of any other ways it’s been personally transforming for you to sing this music?

Krishna: I’ve worked through a lot with the music. Much of it had to do with letting go of mental and physical tension. Coming from a background as a trained musician I realized there were all kinds of things I was holding onto that were preventing me from letting go and deeply experiencing the music.

I’ve become a different person as a result of meditation and singing. I don’t believe the path is just philosophy or practical tips for changing ourselves or improving our lives. It’s a flow, and I think that’s something the music has given me – where I’m better able to flow with the inspiration that the music can give to others, and let go of my mental blocks. The music is perfect for developing receptivity to a higher inspiration. You’re offering yourself to be a transparent window, and the audience can see through you. It’s very transforming – I’ve overcome tremendous obstacles by learning to let go – it’s been a freeing experience.

Q: Does singing solos help you let go?

Krishna: It helps you get there faster. We performed the Oratorio with Swami in the early Nineties. I was asked to play trumpet and I was petrified. I had performed for years, but being so deeply frightened challenged me to work out the tension and self-consciousness that were holding me back.

Before the performance we sat down and Swamiji prayed with us. He said, “Help us to sing and play this music so that all who hear it will receive what they need, and not what we think they need.” Isn’t that perfect? I thought, “That’s it! Don’t hold onto anything, so people will receive what they need.”

Q: Swami has mentioned that he’s never felt self-conscious or fearful about getting up and speaking, because he always has an attitude of giving. Have you noticed that it helps with stage fright?

Krishna: It’s absolutely the key. You get up in front of the microphone, and you think of the grace that can flow through you for them. That’s what you think of, instead of how you’ll sing, or how it will sound, or how you’ll be perceived. You focus on them, and that’s what frees you from ego and fear. The music is like a stained glass window. You’re standing there and you’re becoming clear, and you realize that you’re transparent, and that it’s the goal.

Q: Two of the people I spoke with said that being part of the choir is like becoming part of a community.

Krishna: I feel very strongly about that. Swami liked to tell the story of an emperor in China who would send his officials to the provinces to see how they were doing. He would tell them, “Listen to the music.” Because if the music was harmonious, it that meant that things were all right in the province.

Choir rehearsals can become a bit too chatty – people talk, and you can tell how everybody’s doing, and what’s going on in the community – if, for example, a family or a person is facing a challenge. Or they’re tuning into something that Swamiji is going through.

But it does drive me nuts. I want to say, “Stop talking and give all your attention to the choir director.” Because the music is coming from such a high place, and we’re being given the opportunity to tune in together to that high place, and everything else is a distraction. Even a little bit of twittering – someone will get distracted and say “Oh, the basses need to go yadda-yadda.” And they’ll sing a phrase. And if we can keep it to a minimum, it’s a much better rehearsal for everybody.

Q: Can you share your thoughts on feeling a sense of oneness with the other singers? Is it an important part of learning to give to others? That there’s a feeling of singing as one voice?

Krishna: It’s definitely a plus. We saw a choir recently that sang as one voice to the extent that you couldn’t pick out a single voice. The Ananda choirs do the same thing through tuning into the music. It creates a wonderful vibration in the moment.

It’s uncanny what can happen with the music. I find that the singers in each of the Ananda communities are getting the same results, and it has hardly anything to do with technical skills. In the best performances you feel the inspiration coming very purely through the individual soul.

I think that would be the answer to your question, that when we’re able to let the soul’s inspiration come out we become something else. Our souls unite with the others in the choir, and it creates another reality. It’s an entirely unique way of feeling free inside, by having a kind of community experience. One voice, one sound, and one dissolving back into God.

Q: Do you have a prayer that helps you get out of the way?

Krishna: “Help us get out of the way.” Each prayer is different, but if you’re about to get up and perform, you can ask Master to bless each person in the choir so that we can all bless others together. That would be a very simple and powerful prayer.

 

1 thought on “Conversations With Ananda — Ch. 66, Nayaswami Krishna”

  1. So beautiful! The blessings swamiji put into literally every thing he did brings me to tears. Only Love could be the motivation. Thank Krishna for sharing your Journey . Thank you Rambhakta for capturing it!

    Reply

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