The latest tape by {|Robert Gass|} and his On Wings of Song Choir is a reworking of the well-known devotional Sanskrit chant Shri Ram Jai Ram Jai Jai Ram. Side one, subtitled Serenity, features the primarily female voices of the choir gently singing the mantra to a simple two-chord melody, with layered counterpoint and the accompaniment of acoustic guitar. Side two, Dance of Joy, adds sitar and, after a while, tabla, building to a lively and celebratory climax, resolving back into the soft lilting version of the chant that characterized the first side. Like their ever-popular earlier tape Om Namah Shivaya, The On Wings of Song Choir have reinterpreted this traditional Hindu chant in a way that is easily accessiblto Western listeners, who can use it for relaxation, meditation or singing along. ~ Backroads Music/Heartbeats
