The Harmonic Temple and religious belief

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Having a particular, or any religious belief is not necessary to engage with and benefit from singing Harmonic Temple songs. Ultimately what works or doesn't is the experience of the music itself and the singing of it, which is a direct experience independent of any belief system.

Open-mindedness however, is a requirement in dealing with the diversity of text sources, as fundamentalists of any tradition will have difficulty embracing the wisdom of others. My selection of texts is very personal, as I will only work with phrases that have juice for me on some level, and I hope I can communicate enough of that to give some kind of handle on it to those for whom it might otherwise seem alien.

Harmonic Temple and Performance

Increasingly Harmonic Temple songs have been popping up in the repertoires of community choirs and similar singing groups, which is good to see. In many cases this has actually been with my knowledge and blessing, which is even better. My only reservation about people becoming introduced to the Harmonic Temple this way, or by hearing a CD, is that they don't experience what the Harmonic Temple is:

The Harmonic Temple happens when a group of singers sing in a circle, for themselves and each other with no other audience, with the intent of going deeply into the attunement of the chant. This usually means sustaining the song for a while, so that all the singers can get past the point of struggling to remember words or melody, and beyond issues around vocal inadequacy, to the point at which they are one with the music and its intent. This can include exploring the physical space occupied by the singers, to feel the impact of the sound from various places in and around the circle, and times of listening, prayer, meditation and/or allowing the music to enter as a medium of healing.

When a Harmonic Temple chant is sung to an audience, or CD recording, very different energies and considerations come into play. In order to sustain the audience's interest it can't be so long and repetitive, so an arrangement of simple variations is adopted, usually staggered vocal entries, contrasting loud and soft verses, contrasting tempos, solos, 'ooh's and 'ah's ....

Remembering these sequences would be a major distraction in the Harmonic Temple itself. Having to project the sound outwards to an audience is very different from singing to each other, creating a bath of sound we can walk freely around in.

Since the year 2000 I have also been co-running a community choir in Bristol with my friend and fellow ex-Beachperson Nick Petts, and I see the work of such choirs as crucial in allowing more and more people to become empowered and emblissed by singing together. Feeding this process with manageable but moving new repertoire across a range of styles is an ever present challenge, so I don't want to put anyone off who feels that a Harmonic Temple song would be good for their choir. I'm just pointing out that singing a Harmonic Temple song does not necessarily provide the Harmonic Temple experience that the song was created to provide, and that the singers may get a better understanding of the song if they do go through that experience. I would suggest learning the song initially in a circle, with no variations, and singing it for a while, giving permission for the singers to explore the space.

I experience music as a magical transformative medium, especially singing, which involves the being in a complete and individual way. Through music has come most of my understanding of mystical concepts, such as the transcending of self to feeling a sense of oneness with a greater universal reality. I have experienced it as a great healing, and as a profound meditation, and as the best way for me of addressing the Great Mystery in prayer. Unaccompanied vocal harmony has the most potent magic for me, I regard it as a great gift and as sacred as anything I understand by that word.

My aim in creating Harmonic Temple pieces is to find a musical vehicle that delivers the intended focus in a way that feels right and available to every singer, undistracted by unnecessary difficulties.

Love and Blessings from Nickomo