SOUND AS A HEALING ART: All my life, as a singer/songwriter, performing and recording artist, I was always aware of the power of music to inspire and transform. In the 1990s I started researching the ancient art of healing with sound, exploring the actual healing properties of sound and studying with various sound healing teachers. I found a confirmation of the power of allowing the voice to sound without words, beyond toning and chanting, to embrace every sound the human voice is capable of expressing. I do this now as a healing practice and coined the term Vocal Alchemy or VocAlchemy™ to describe this work. I recorded the CD, Sounding the Tree of Life, to support the use of the voice and the knowledge of the Sefirot and the Chakras in our search for a healthier life. For more info on my Vocal Alchemy work go to my website: vocalchemy.com. KABBALAH TEACHINGS -THE SEFIROT & THE CHAKRAS: Along with my exploration and performing of Judeo/Hispanic Sephardic music as recorded in my CDs Dezeo and Adio, I studied Kabbalah teachings and learned about the Ten Sefirot of the Tree of Life, the Ten Divine Emanations which are the template of all Creation. These can be correlated in our bodies to the seven Chakras of the Hindu traditions by experiencing the 3rd, 5th and 6th Chakras (counted from the lower body up) as a pair of Sefirot representing two aspects which, balanced, create the healthy whole. According to the Kabbalah tradition, the 22 Hebrew letters are the the channels connecting the Sefirot and, together with the Sefirot, comprise the 32 Paths of Wisdom behind Creation and Initiation. By becoming aware of the Sefirot or Chakras within us as energy vortexes in the subtle body through which the Source of our life force moves, we can create a healthier, balanced flow of energy. We can use sound, particularly the voice, to activate, soothe or clear up these energy centers within ourselves and bring them into full function and alignment with each other and with our higher purpose. The power of intention in the conscious use of sound magnifies our ability to use music and sound to create the changes we desire and live a fuller and happier life. SOUNDING THE TREE OF LIFE: I recorded the seven musical pieces in my CD Sounding the Tree of Life to create a meditative vehicle for journeying through each Sefirah/Chakra so as to create a balanced microcosm of the Divine within ourselves and also to serve as a musical background for live vocalizing. The music can be used as a listening background for meditation or to expand one's vocal practice. You can chant or vocalize along as per the written instructions on the insert and activate the frequencies with your own sound vibration or you can just close your eyes and allow the music to wash over and through you. This music came through as a powerful vehicle to take us deep into each aspect of our being for healing and transformation. Binaural beats were added for additional effectiveness in recalibrating our responses. Consuelo Luz: Vocals, overtone chanting, keyboard, guitar, Tibetan mouth organ, bells; Nelson Denman: Cello, overtone chanting; David Cragin: Programming, recording, mixing at Santa Fe Sound Studios. Tree of Life artwork: Richard Quinn