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Sounds True Announces Licensing Partnership with The Relaxation Company Becomes Market-Leader in Benefit-Oriented Sound Healing Music

(April 1, 2010 — Boulder, CO) Multi-media publisher Sounds True announces a partnership agreement with Agog Creative Group to become the exclusive distribution and licensing partner for The Relaxation Company brand-line of music and spoken-word audio products. The Relaxation Company products include the clinically proven Brainwave Series by sound-healing pioneer Dr. Jeffrey Thompson, which have sold over one million copies. The Relaxation Company products will be distributed and marketed by Sounds True as of April 1, 2010. “This is a coming together of like-minded people and like-minded products,” said Sounds True Founder and Publisher Tami Simon. “It solidifies Sounds True’s position in the wellness market as the leading provider of benefit-oriented music and audio.” The Relaxation Company, based in New York, was founded in 1980 by Jeff Charno. In its 30 years, the company has produced over 700 titles with a current collection of over 150 music and audio titles. “This licensing agreement is a perfect fit for our two companies. When we looked to the future, we knew we wanted to expand our trade distribution channels as well as our direct-to-consumer business. Sounds True is already well established and committed in these areas, especially in the digital arena.” Sounds True marks its 25th anniversary in April 2010. An independent multimedia publishing company, based in Boulder, Colorado, Sounds True has over 600 titles in spoken-word audio, books, music, DVDs, inter-active learning kits, and online courses. Its collection focuses on personal healing and spiritual transformation, featuring titles by many of the leading spiritual teachers, authors, and visionary thinkers of our time. “Sounds True was founded on the premise that listening is one of the most powerful ways to transform consciousness,” said Simon, “whether it is listening to healing music or the voice of an inspired spiritual teacher.” “The synergy of our new partnership is obvious,” added Charno. “And the field is open for new projects and collaboration going forward.” With over 10 million sold in 30 years, The Relaxation Company music and audio products are popular for their relaxation, meditation, and proven healing qualities not only among consumers and former insomniacs, but also recognized for their quality and effectiveness among integrative medicine professionals, naturopaths, music therapists, massage therapists, energy medicine practitioners, yoga practitioners, and sound healers. The Relaxation Company artists and authors include Dr. Jeffrey Thompson; Gael Chiarella; Steven Halpern, PHD; David Ison; Eckhart Tolle; Russill Paul; Jorge Alfano; Dr. Joseph Nagler; Jim Oliver; David Darling; Mick Rossi; Silvia Nakkach; Life in Balance; River Guerguerian; Paul Overman, PhD; Eva M. Selhub, MD; Ricardo Cobo; Jonathan Foust; Alan Finger; Cyndi Lee; Beryl Bender Birch; Swami Srinivasananda; Mitchell Gaynor, MD; and Brian Scott Bennett. See featured authors below. For more information about all products, visit SoundsTrue.com.

     

 

Dr. Jeffrey Thompson Dr. Jeffrey Thompson began experimenting with sound and its effects on the body and brain in 1981 at his Holistic Health Center in Virginia. His experiments involved using exact sound frequencies to make chiropractic spinal and cranial adjustments, to stimulate and normalize organ function and to balance acupuncture meridians. His clinical research with thousands of patients and volunteers led to groundbreaking discoveries in how sound frequency patterns, built into musical soundtracks, can entrain brainwaves and trigger numerous health benefits. Dr. Thompson continued his scientific clinical research at a graduate school and research center in Encinitas, California, for many years. A member of the faculty, he taught Behavioral Psycho-acoustics and Clinical Neuroacoustic Therapy courses, recognized by the State of California as part of the core curriculum for the Clinical Psychotherapy and Human Science Master's and PhD

programs. Dr. Thompson currently teaches at various institutions and through sponsored seminars, workshops, and certification courses. In 1988, Dr. Thompson established the Center for Neuroacoustic Research in Encinitas, California. In 1989, NASA and JPL asked Dr. Thompson to explore a series of powerful recordings that the Voyager I & II Spacecraft had sent back from Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune. Dr. Thompson was invited to research the possible meaning and applications of these NASA Space Sound Recordings. Dr. Thompson is recognized as a worldwide expert in the field of acoustic pacing frequencies incorporated into musical sound tracks. A consummate musician and composer in his own right, he has established a method for using modulated sound-pulses for changing states of consciousness resulting in optimal "Mind-Body" healing. In the 1990's, Dr. Thompson's method of using sound to heal was chosen as one of the top alternative healing modalities in the USA. His work was funded through the Center for the Study of Complementary and Alternative Therapies (CSCAT). Dr. Thompson's first recording, Isle of Skye, was carried by major music distributors in the United States within its first month of release. Within the first six months, it was adopted by the American Hypnotherapy Association for its use in hypnosis. Dr. Thompson has worked with Deepak Chopra; he has also created many self-improvement tapes with Louise Hay. Dr. Thompson has created sound programs for conferences with Bernie Siegel, Barbara Marx Hubbard, Bru Joy, and Susan Jeffers. Dr. Thompson's work has been part of research projects at the NeuroPsychiatric Center at UCLA and at the Royal Ottawa Sleep Research Center in Canada. His audio programs on CDs are used with patients before and after surgery, and in various oncology departments and clinics. His patent-pending Vibro-Acoustic Sound Chair and Sound Table are used in medical and mental health clinics, wellness spas, professional and business offices, personal fitness clubs, and homes. He has played an active role in the Complementary-Alternative Medicine Research and Therapy Association at Scripps Hospital, San Diego, California. Dr. Thompson has appeared on Fox Evening News, CNN Worldwide Reports, Good Morning America, and many other media shows. He and his work have been featured in many magazines, including ELLE, Psychology Today, Body and Soul, HOW, Pen (Japanese), Mein Olein (Finnish), Mind-Body (Korean), and Spa Business Magazine (England). Many newspapers across the country

     

 

have featured his work, including the Wall Street Journal. Fortune 500 companies, businesses, healthcare professionals, clinics, hospitals, meditation groups, wellness spas and individuals worldwide use Dr.Thompson’s high-tech musical soundscapes for deep relaxation, healing, mega-learning, creativity, inner exploration and ecstatic states of meditation.

     

 

David Ison A musician, composer, recording artist, and teacher for more than 30 years, David Ison’s music has been used by hospitals, healthcare practitioners, and individuals worldwide. His music has been played for patients in such esteemed health centers as Bethesda Naval Hospital, Scripps Center of Integrative Medicine, and Children’s Hospital in San Diego. A three-year study by the National Institutes of Health found that Ison’s music effectively induces the relaxation response, and relieves many symptoms of anxiety and stress. David demonstrated early a creative drive and a passion to nurture others that led him to explore and master many different fields. While still in his twenties, David already operated a successful antique guitar business; in addition, he owned and managed two thriving restaurants. In the late 1970's, he served as Executive Chef at Cambridge’s famous Casablanca Restaurant in Harvard Square. An accomplished

musician since his teens, David booked acoustic musicians and played music himself to entertain customers at The Flintlock, his restaurant and ski resort in Franconia, New Hampshire. People traveled from all over New England to enjoy David’s sublime mix of healthful food and beautiful music. In the 1980's David turned his attention to music full-time. He built a recording studio in Cambridge and began writing scores and soundtracks for film and television. David had long been interested in the power of music to heal the body and calm the mind. David immersed himself in discovering and refining his understanding of music’s power to restore health. Then David broke his back in a serious car accident. Unable to walk and in a great deal of pain, David recovered the use of his legs by using music and meditation to bring his body into balance, an experience that would lead to his development of a new type of music, music that would help to bring balance and healing to the mind, body and spirit. In 1989 he founded TheraSound, a company specializing in therapeutic music. Using the compositional techniques that he developed during his long recovery period, David created a large catalogue of beautiful and effective music. The compositions that emerged from this work have since been recognized by The National Institute of Health as the pre-eminent source for therapeutic and inspirational music. His recordings have sold thousands of copies and are used in wellness centers, hospitals, and health care facilities and by individuals around the country and the world. After many years of producing his healing music and developing running workshops in the Ison Method® of emotional balance and self-actualization, David took a break to conceive, design, build and open the Good Life Café, the Keystone Wellness Center and TheraSound Studios in Carlisle, Pennsylvania. The Café features locally inspired organic cuisine and boasts a state-of-the-art performance space and recording studio. There David books musicians, oversees the kitchen as well as writing and recording his TheraSound and original, inspirational compositions.

     

 

Gael Chiarella

Gael Chiarella Alba, RYT, began a professional study of yoga, meditation, and alternative medicine in 1978; her work is based on the eight limbs of yoga. This study led her to found The Yokibics® Institute for Personal Development. By 1995, her trademarked Yokibics Mindbody Fitness Program was named one of the nations 'Top Ten' by American Health Magazine. In 1997, The Nassau Coalition Against Domestic Violence recognized her as "Woman of the Year" for her role in empowering individuals toward self-development.

Continuing through advanced studies in yoga, bodywork, psychology, nutrition, mind-body fitness and hypnotherapy, Gael began developing and facilitating National Conferences to educate inter-related professionals in the development of a complementary health care model. For these industry milestones, she won national recognition as an innovator and a pioneer. Many of her visionary ideas are a common practice today.

Gail's affiliations include The National Yoga Teachers Alliance and St. Johns University Alumni Association. She has served on the Boards of The Unitarian Universalist

Mid-Atlantic Community, Adirondack Mountain Club, Divers Alert Network, and the New York Yoga Teacher Association. In response to a growing international interest in her work, Gael has produced books and spoken word products. She currently is a senior faculty member for The National Yoga Alliance Teacher Training Institute; she also teaches innovative classes in Yoga and Yokibics at Hofstra University in New York. In addition, she founded and facilitated the principle-centered School for Spiritual Warriors as a virtual think tank for the practice of higher consciousness. While spending much of her time with these endeavors, Gail still continues to work as a Life Coach for individuals and organizations. An appreciator of all aspects of life and living, Gael has successfully mountaineered over a dozen of the highest peaks in the continental United States. She finds equal satisfaction and skill in diving the caverns and wrecks of the ocean floor. Her heart remains steward for Earth’s natural resources and the interconnectedness of our species through her volunteer work in outdoor education. Gail originally trained at The Brooklyn Academy of Music in classical ballet. Gael’s interest in humanity led a degree in Psychology and Theology at St. Johns University in New York, solidifying a mind-body-spirit approach as the basis of her professional career. She and her husband Bob share five children.

     

 

Mitchell Gaynor, MD

Mitchell Gaynor, M.D., is a board-certified medical oncologist, internist, and hematologist; he is also a best-selling author. His books include: Nurture Nature Nurture Health: Your Health and The Environment; The Healing Power of Sound: Recovery from Life-Threatening Illness Using Sound, Voice, and Music; Dr. Gaynor’s Cancer Prevention Program, (developed with Jerry Hickey, R. Ph.); and Healing Essence: A Cancer Doctor’s Practical Program for Hope and Recovery.

Dr. Gaynor pioneered the use of sound, chanting, and music in conjunction with metal and crystal singing bowls as an adjunct to conventional medical therapy. Dr. Gaynor has conducted on-going healing sessions using meditation

and chanting with Tibetan bowls for patients and families, as well as sponsoring spiritual retreats in southern India. This practice has benefited thousands of patients. Dr. Gaynor is a frequent speaker and lecturer at hospitals, conferences, and universities throughout America and abroad. Recent appearances include New York's 92nd Street Y and The United Nations Founder and president of Gaynor Integrative Oncology in New York City, Dr. Gaynor was previously Director of Medical Oncology at Weill-Cornell Medical College for Complementary and Integrative Medicine. He was also the Director of Medical Oncology at The Strang Cancer Prevention Center; he is still affiliated with the Strang Center as a consultant. He served on the Executive Review Panel at the Department of Defense (Alternative Medicine for Breast Cancer Sector) and participated in the Smithsonian Institute's Symposium (New Frontier in Breast Cancer and the Environment). Dr. Gaynor has been consecutively listed in The Best Doctors in New York since 1997, and has served on the Board of Advisors for Healthy Living Magazine and the Sass Medical Foundation. He also has been a member of the editorial board of Integrative Cancer Therapies. In addition to his work with sound and singing bowls, he has published studies on oncology and the effects of environmental toxins on health in peer review journals such as Seminars in Hematology, The American Journal of Clinical Oncology and The Proceedings of the American Society for Clinical Oncology and Environmental Health Perspectives. For his work, the New York State Assembly awarded him their "Environmental Advocacy Award". In 2002, the Mid-Hudson Options Institute named him "Environmental Advocate of the Year". Dr. Gaynor is well known in the media as an integrative medicine specialist and is frequently called upon to discuss such topics as nutritional aspects of cancer prevention; environmental threats to health; complementary cancer therapies; the dangers of carcinogens and health; and spirituality and healing. He has been featured in many national magazines including The New York Times, Newsweek, Self, GQ, as well as Healthy Living, Body and Soul, and Spirituality and Health.

     

 

Featured Yoga & Meditation Artists

“I found this music irresistibly tranquilizing. It eases the mind and creates an opening to the silence within.” —Omar Faruk Tekbilek, Virtuoso Sufi Musician. River Guerguerian is an award-winning multi-percussionist and composer who can be heard on over 100 albums and film soundtracks. He has performed and/or recorded with the Paul Winter Consort, Chuck Berry, Sophie B. Hawkins, The Tibetan Singing Bowl Ensemble, the BBC Symphony Orchestra, Lionel Hampton, The Gypsy Kings, and Ziggy Marley. LIFE IN BALANCE (the wife and husband team, Ami and Steve Sciulli) are pioneers in ambient and trance-inducing electro-acoustic music. Together they create music which is a synthesis of New Age, Ambient and Electronic with influences from Fripp, Eno, Kraftwerk, Tangerine Dream and Peter Gabriel. They perform Sound Healing Meditations and hypno-global trance concerts nationwide. They have played with Deepak Chopra, Rusted Root, Krishna Das and The Drepung Gomang Tibetan Monks. Steve has opened for U2, Red Hot Chile Peppers, and Echo and the Bunnymen. Swami Srinivasananda found his guru and yoga master in Swami Vishnu-devananda at the Sivananda headquarters in Val-Morin in 1977. He has been the director of the Val-Morin, Paris, and Los Angeles Sivananda Centers. Since 1994, he has served as the Acharya, or senior teacher, for New York, Chicago, and the Sivananda centers of the eastern region of the USA. He also acts as the American editor of Yoga Life magazine. He currently resides at the Sivananda Ashram Yoga Ranch in Woodbourne, NY. Paul Overman, Ph. D., is a psychologist and dream expert with more than 30 years of experience developing guided imagery and meditation processes for relaxation, inner-healing, enhanced creativity, and peak performance. He has created numerous audio programs, and he is the author of The Dreaming Self. Dr. Overman also maintains a private practice and consults in the field of psychoacoustic-healing. Cyndi Lee is the founder of OM Yoga, with centers in New York City and East Hampton, NY. Cyndi has been featured on CBS’ The Early Show, Live with Regis and Kathie Lee, ABC’s Evening News, and publications including Vogue, The Wall Street Journal, and Newsweek. Cyndi is also the author of OM Yoga, A Guide to Daily Practice; OM at Home, A Yoga Journal; the 'OM Yoga in a Box' series; Yoga Body, Buddha Mind; and the OM Yoga DVD series.

     

 

Russill Paul

A native of Chennai, South India, Russill Paul began playing stringed instruments from the early age of four. In his teens, he was already playing music professionally. Although he was born and brought up in a Christian family, from childhood he developed a keen interest in Indian spirituality. In 1984, Russill underwent a powerful spiritual transition due to his meeting Dom Bede Griffiths, the pioneering Benedictine monk and revered sage who directed Shantivanam, a Christian monastery that expressed itself through the spiritual and yogic culture of India.

Russill trained simultaneously as a monk and yogi under the direction of Bede Griffiths. During the five years he spent as a monk, Russill immersed himself in the sacred culture and spirituality of India's esteemed heritage, studying traditional Sanskrit chanting and South Indian classical music as well as yoga, meditation, philosophy and cosmology. In addition to his training at the monastery, Russill was initiated into the sacred learning of Sanskrit and Indian music in several ancient temple cities of South India.

These experiences led him to develop the ideas contained in his groundbreaking literary work: The Yoga of Sound: Tapping the Hidden Power of Music and Chant. The American folksinger Arlo Guthrie, who has performed with Russill, wrote, “His fusion of the sounds of India with the energy and technology of contemporary Western music produces a sound unequaled since George Harrison collaborated with Ravi Shankar in the late 1960s.’’ Russill has presented his unique style of music at many prestigious concert venues such as the premier European classical music venue Propstei Sankt Gerold in Austria, Chicago's Grant Part and Medinah Temple, The Sports Auditorium in Sheffield, England, and the Music Academy in Chennai, India. He has also performed on several occasions for His Holiness the Dalai Lama in India as well as in America. As well as playing with Arlo Guthrie, Russill has shared the stage with music greats such as the British rocker Arthur Brown. Carolyn Myss, best-selling author of Sacred Contracts, writes, “His music is delightful – a spiritually uplifting experience.” Russill presents his work on sonic mysticism at prestigious retreat and learning centers nationwide. He has given workshops and retreats throughout North America at leading-edge institutions such as The Esalen Institute in Big Sur, CA, the Omega Institute of Holistic Studies in Rhinebeck, NY, Kripalu Center for Yoga and Health in Lennox, MA, and Hollyhock in Cortes Island, British Columbia, Canada.

     

 

Steven Halpern

Steven Halpern stands at the leading edge of the growing public understanding of the relationship between music, body, mind, and spirit. An award-winning composer, recording artist and producer, Steven's healing music has helped millions worldwide to experience the blessings and benefits of deep relaxation and inner peace.

In Steven's earlier career, he was a dynamic jazz-rock trumpet player inspired by John Coltrane and Miles Davis, a guitar and bass player with old school R&B bands, and a long-time student of World music and shamanic sound traditions. When Steven moved to being a pianist, Keyboard magazine identified him as "one of the 30 most influential keyboard artists of the past 50 years".

Steven is more than just a musician. He is a Renaissance man who is also an author, media spokesperson, seminar leader, pioneering sound healer and entrepreneur who helped create the alternative market for lifestyle-support music outside the traditional music industry. Steven's first two books,

Tuning the Human Instrument and Sound Health had enormous influence on this field. After being initiated into what he has described as a ministry of healing music, Steven was encouraged to scientifically validate the extraordinary effects his music was having on listeners. This became the focus of his graduate studies, and his landmark research exploring the connections between sound, consciousness and healing were the first to employ the more subtle and sophisticated new technologies of brainwave biofeedback and Kirlian (aura) photography. Based on his own spiritual and health-related experiences, Steven discovered secrets of combining ancient sound healing traditions with quantum biology and energy medicine to produce recordings that support relaxation, stress management, yoga, meditation, massage, sleep, accelerated learning and pure listening pleasure. Steven has produced over 70 recordings in the Inner Peace Music® and SoundWave 2000™ subliminal audio series. He has influenced two generations of recording artists and music therapists, and has performed and recorded with a who’s who of well-known musicians including: Paul Horn, Paul McCandless, Babatunde Olatunji, Al DiMeola, Larry Coryell, Rick Derringer and Georgia Kelly. CBS, ABC, NBC, and the BBC have covered Steven's work as well as The New York Times, the Los Angeles Times, and the San Francisco Chronicle. His music has been featured in John Bradshaw’s two PBS-TV series, and has been heard on 20/20 and The Oprah Winfrey Show. Since 1975, Steven has been a popular speaker at leading holistic health and complimentary healing centers and conferences worldwide: He has presented workshops at Esalen, the Omega Institute, and Kripalu, and has spoken at the Sixth International Conference on Stress (Montreux), the National Music Therapy Association, the American Massage Therapy Association, The International Alliance for Accelerated Learning, and The Whole Life Expo, and written hundreds of articles. He also has written a syndicated monthly column for over 20 years. Halpern’s music appears on Music for Unwinding by Dr. Joseph Nagler, pictured here.

     

 

Eckhart Tolle Eckhart Tolle was born in Germany, where he spent the first thirteen years of his life. After graduating from the University of London, he was a research scholar and supervisor at Cambridge University. When he was twenty-nine, a profound spiritual transformation virtually dissolved his old identity and radically changed the course of his life. The next few years marked the beginning of an intense inward journey that was devoted to understanding, integrating, and deepening that transformation. Eckhart began to work in London with individuals and small groups as a counselor and spiritual teacher. He continues to teach today. Eckhart is not aligned with any particular religion or tradition. In his teaching, he conveys a simple yet profound message with the timeless and uncomplicated clarity of the

ancient spiritual masters: there is a way out of suffering and into peace. Eckhart’s profound yet simple teachings have helped countless people throughout the world find inner peace and greater fulfillment in their lives. At the core of the teachings lies the transformation of consciousness, a spiritual awakening that he sees as the next step in human evolution. An essential aspect of this awakening consists in transcending our ego-based state of consciousness. This is a prerequisite not only for personal happiness but also for the ending of violent conflict endemic on our planet. Eckhart is a sought-after public speaker. Many of his talks, intensives, and retreats are published on CD and DVD. Most of the teachings are given in English, but occasionally Eckhart also gives talks in German and Spanish. Eckhart is the author of the # 1 New York Times bestseller The Power of Now (translated into 33 languages) and the highly acclaimed follow-up A New Earth, which are widely regarded as two of the most influential spiritual books of our time. In addition, Eckhart has written a book designed for meditative reading entitled Stillness Speaks. A book consisting of selections from The Power of Now is also available, entitled Practicing the Power of Now. He is currently traveling extensively, sharing his teaching and his presence throughout the world. Since 1995 he has lived in Vancouver, Canada.