Healing Journeys with Suzie Daggett
Do you love the depths of sacred music that just makes your heart fling open and your feelings flow? If so, you may want to hear Ani Williams in person on Saturday, March 10 at the 18th Annual Mind Body Spirit Health Fair. Ani plays the harp and sings with an angelic voice with music designed to inspire and assist in the healing process. She created Songaia Sound Medicine as a basis of healing sound therapy. Ani’s music has that special enchanting appeal that may just be the ticket to your heath.
What event led you to become a harpist with a special interest in sacred music?
My beginning in 1980 as a harpist was a bit like a fairy tale….the reality of the hard work of hauling a harp around the world came seven years later. I had a dream of receiving a beautiful golden harp and within one year, a good friend surprised me with the gift of a large folk harp. In 1987 I traveled with my harp to the ancient temples of Central America, Egypt, France, England and Scotland. That really began the deep connection with my music and ancient musical traditions. In every country, I met indigenous musicians and ceremonial elders and learned not only their musical styles, but the importance of music as a tool for transformation. These people taught me how music is a bridge not only between people of different cultures, but also between humans and the natural world. Music is the glue that holds communities together.
You have performed all over the world - what message do you present through your music?
Sacred music knows no boundaries of color, race, country or religion. Since my music is quite eclectic and includes varied cultural flavors and songs sung in diverse world languages, the message is “let’s come together, loving the beauty of the earth and create a better world.”
Singing is such a natural response in most cultures….people sing when they are planting, harvesting, traveling, caring for the children. If I’m taking a walk in the country and come upon a deer or a coyote, I might sing them a song. Music is one of the finest sources of nourishment.
Please explain your work with Songaia Sound Medicine - what is it and what are the benefits of the system?
I established Songaia Sound Medicine in 1993 after studying with Sharry Edwards and Oded Mansura, two pioneers in Voice Spectrum Analysis. In this system of sound medicine, we simply analyze the notes present in an individual’s speaking voice and find the areas of stress or missing tones. We find keynotes for each individual which relate to that person’s healing and creative potential. The extraordinary part of this work is that every emotion, every organ of the body has a sound frequency. When specific frequencies are missing, the person can reintegrate those tones to support health, creativity, balance and live life to its fullest potential. The Songaia Sound CD’s were created as an easy to use tool for people to listen to and tone their missing tones.
Benefits from using the Songaia Sound range from stress relief, greater peace and mental clarity, increase in creativity, release of limiting emotional patterns and increased physical energy. In many of the physical illnesses that were reportedly helped, clients were often using a combination of therapies, including sound, nutrition, herbal and homeopathic remedies; sometimes allopathic medicine was combined. The issues treated were insomnia, stress, brain tumors, colon cancer, autism, back pain, digestive problems, overweight and depression. Although I can make no medical claims, I have received positive feedback from clients throughout the last thirteen years who have benefited from using sound therapy.
What response do you hear from your listening audience on the power and healing benefits of your music?
When I play music, I play what I love from my heart and pray that the sounds will be beneficial. It often surprises me to hear how the music effects people. Sometimes listeners cry, or say that they have an experience of awakening or deep remembering of a part of themselves that they had lost or forgotten. Many people say that they were inspired to live their dreams and went on to create amazing projects or art. One young man in Mexico had a dramatic healing of a mental illness. The director of a dolphin therapy center commented that the Songaia CD’s created an entrainment between the dolphins, the trainers and the disabled children coming for treatment, and that the healing and interspecies communication was enhanced. The parents and teachers of autistic children reported that Songaia Sound was very effective in supporting greater motor response, language skills, focus, calmness and creativity.
What do you get out of the work you do?
Life for most of us has become so complicated and busy. When I can find a moment to sit down and just play music, I feel happy and alive. I think that anything any of us can do now to bring healing, beauty and love to the world is essential to our survival. Putting our love into everything we touch changes everything around us.
Ani will be performing in concert, Saturday evening at 7pm, March 10 at the Mind Body Spirit Health Fair at Miner’s Foundry. She will also be one of the speakers on Saturday. For more information about the MBS Fair, call 265-2900. For Ani’s website, visit www.aniwilliams.com
Healing Journeys is a column written by Suzie Daggett for the Grass Valley Union newspaper. Suzie interviews a variety of health practitioners most Fridays in the Wellness section. Click here to read past articles. Enter "Suzie Daggett" in the search box to get listing of all articles. |
