Beyond Music Volume 1 Same Sky Out Now

A first-of-its-kind album, BEYOND MUSIC Volume One Same Sky, is out now on all major streaming and buying services. The 13-track album features 23 artists from 17 countries, showcasing new, original songs that transcend borders and genres and reinforce the universal language of music. The songs were first created via BEYOND MUSIC’s online platform (http://beyondmusic.org) that invited musicians from all over the world to collaborate online. Same Sky was produced by 4-time GRAMMY winner and 3-time GRAMMY Producer of the Year nominee Larry Klein. An interview with Klein on KPCC’s The Frame will be airing later this week.

Listen to the album in full here: https://lnk.site/beyond-music-volume-one-same-sky

Go behind the scenes with all of the musicians and team that brought these songs to life in this new video released by BEYOND MUSIC: https://youtu.be/9KaSX8wWGn8 

Learn more about the BEYOND MUSIC PROJECT, the artists involved, and the songs via this just-launched new album website: https://www.beyondmusicproject.org/

The songs on Same Sky revolve around the ideas of love, compassion and empathy and symbolize "an axe for the frozen sea in us," as Franz Kafka put it. This was the artistic challenge of the BEYOND MUSIC PROJECT, and the new songs written for this album address a host of urgent topics such as how women share the brunt of dealing with challenges in countries suffering from water crises. Others shed light on how citizens attempt to remain hopeful in difficult circumstances, the unconditional love for disabled children in countries with poor medical care, and forced marriage of young brides in the Far and Middle East. The project unites diverse cultures through music and encourages togetherness, solidarity and mutual support all over the world. It’s a unique blend of cultural sounds and important themes.

The 23 artists included in the project hail from Argentina, Armenia, Belgium, Cameroon, Congo, Denmark, Egypt, India, Iraq, Israel, Ivory Coast, Kazakhstan, Netherlands, Russia, Switzerland, Tanzania, and the USA. 

Beyond Music received 110 song submissions via their online portal, and selected 10 winning songs to be recorded for the first volume of what will be an on-going project. The artists behind the 10 winning songs were flown to the famous La Fabrique studios in southern France, and over the course of 12 days brought their songs to live with Klein, a world-class house band, and world-class engineers.  

Producer and artistic director Larry Klein says the project is "a revolutionary idea...completely counter to what's happening in the world right now."

Klein assembled the core band of all-star musicians, session players including Dean Parks, Ed Harcourt, Adrian Utley, Manu Katché, Clive Deamer and Dan Lutz, who have collectively played with Sting, Peter Gabriel, Michael Jackson, Patti Smith, Stevie Wonder, Madonna, Radiohead, Portishead and beyond.

The album was mixed by Tim Palmer, Stephen Lipson, Tchad Blake, Adam Greenspan & Maxime Le Guil, and mastered by Bernie Grundman.

BEYOND MUSIC Volume ONE Same Sky Tracklist:

1. WATER – composed and written by Eduard Glumov and Kate Northrop with Sheryl Gambo (lead vocal), Eduard Glumov (backing vocal, piano, keyboards, programming), Sandro Friedrich (flute), all BEYOND MUSIC artists (backing vocals)

2. MA DING WO AVALE ONE – composed and written by John Lumpkin and Danielle Eog Makedah with Danielle Eog Makedah (lead vocal & backing vocal), John Lumpkin (Rhodes electric piano, Hammond B3 organ,keyboards, percussion),Brice Essomba (piano), Moshe Elmakias (Rhodes electric piano), Msafiri Zawose (ilimba), Andreas Bernitt (violin, string arrangement)

3. EL CLAVEL DEL AIRE – composed and written by Mariana Baraj and Msafiri Zawose with Mariana Baraj (lead vocal & backing vocal, percussion, cuatro), Msafiri Zawose (lead vocal & backing vocal, ilimba), Kane Mathis (kora), Sandro Friedrich (flute)

4. MATUMAINI - composed and written by Brice Essomba and Syssi Mananga with Syssi Mananga (lead vocal & backing vocal), Brice Essomba (piano, keyboards), Sandro Friedrich (bansuri), Msafiri Zawose (ilimba)

5. YOU CHANGED ME - composed and written by Heather Bond and Ingrid White with Ingrid White (lead vocal), Jivan Gasparyan Jr. (duduk)

6. SAA’T ARAHMAN - traditional, arranged by Mor Karbasi and Moshe Elmakias with Mor Karbasi (lead vocal), Moshe Elmakias (piano, arranger), Kane Mathias (oud), John Lumpkin (tambourine)

7. EGYPTIAN - composed by Sasha Shlain with Abdullah Alhussainy (lead vocal), Jivan Gasparyan Jr. (duduk), Sasha Shlain (programming, keyboard), Sandro Friedrich (flute), Andreas Bernitt (violin), Beshar Al Azzawi (vocals)

8. OUR COLORS - composed and written by Andreas Bernitt, Bijayashree Samal, Abdullah Alhussainy and Mor Karbasi with Bijayanshree Samal (lead vocal), Abdullah Alhussainy (lead vocal), Mor Karbasi (lead vocal), Heather Bond (backing vocal), Elly Kellner (backing vocal), Andreas Bernitt (violin), Moshe Elmakias (piano), Brice Essomba (piano), Sandro Friedrich (pivana), Msafiri Zawose (ilimba), Kane Mathis (kora), Max Keller Music (mixing console), Jivan Gasparyan Jr. (duduk)

9. BETTER TOGETHER - composed and written by Max Keller Music and Ingrid White with Ingrid White (lead vocal & backing vocal), Max Keller Music (programming, keyboards)

10. DIFFERENT, YOU AND I - composed and written by Heather Bond and Elly Kellner with Heather Bond (lead vocal & backing vocal), Elly Kellner (lead vocal & backing vocal), Kane Mathias (kora), John Lumpkin (drums), Andreas Bernitt (violin, string arrangement), Moshe Elmakias (piano)

11. MORE OF US - composed and written by Eduard Glumov and Kate Northrop with Sheryl Gambo (lead vocal), Eduard Glumov (backing vocal), Danielle Eog Makedah (backing vocal), John Lumpkin (backing vocal), Abdullah Alhussainy (backing vocal), Msafiri Zawose (backing vocal), Heather Bond (backing vocal), Syssi Mananga (backing vocal), Elly Kellner (backing vocal), Ingrid White (backing vocal), Jivan Gasparyan Jr. (duduk), Beshar Al Azzawi (oud), Sandro Friedrich (pivana)

12. UPON THE HORIZON - composed and written by Sasha Shlain and Heather Bond with Heather Bond (lead vocal & backing vocal), Sasha Shlain (keyboards, programming), Ingrid White (backing vocal), Kane Mathis (kora)

13. WE ARE ONE – composed and written by Larry Klein and David Baerwald with Ingrid White (lead vocal), Heather Bond (lead vocal), Danielle Eog Makedah (lead vocal), Syssi Mananga (lead vocal), Elly Kellner (lead vocal), Sheryl Gambo (lead vocal), Bijayshree Samal (lead vocal), all BEYOND MUSIC artists (backing vocals), John Lumpkin (Hammond B3 organ), Kane Mathis (kora), Larry Klein (acoustic guitar)

BEYOND MUSIC Volume One Same Sky featured artists:

Abdullah Alhussainy, Egypt

Beshar Al Azzawi, Iraq

Mariana Baraj, Argentina

Andreas Bernitt, Denmark

Heather Bond, USA

Moshe Elmakias, Israel

Danielle Eog Makedah, Cameroon

Brice Essomba, Cameroon

Sandro Friedrich, Switzerland

Sheryl Gambo, Congo

Jivan Gasparyan Jr., Armenia

Eduard Glumov, Kazakhstan

Mor Karbasi, Israel

Max Keller Music, Switzerland

Elly Kellner, Netherlands

John Lumpkin II, USA

Syssi Mananga, Belgium/Congo

Kane Mathis, USA

Kate Northrop, USA/Switzerland

Bijayashree Samal, India

Sasha Shlain, Russia

Ingrid White, Cameroon

Msafiri Zawose, Tanzania

About BEYOND MUSIC:

BEYOND MUSIC, www.beyondmusic.org, is an online platform that invites professional musicians, singers, composers and songwriters from all genres to collaborate worldwide. Cross-genre, cross-culture, cross-generation. The platform is financed by The Swiss BEYOND FOUNDATION, established in 2007 by the couple Regula and Beat Curti, a registered non-profit organization, supporting projects that unite cultures through music in order to foster cross-cultural understanding, awareness, dialog and respect. With their projects, the BEYOND FOUNDATION wants musicians from all over the world to inspire each other, to work together and to create a worldwide team spirit of togetherness and compassion.