WHAT IS NOW

Ray Sandoval

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WHAT IS NOW

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WHAT IS NOW is a question but also a statement, my reflection on the tectonic shifts occurring in our world today. It is both a departure and a return: An exploration beyond the boundaries of my earlier work as well as a homecoming with old friends.

In Migration Suite, the intent was to create a composition that was also a soundscape. It was

WHAT IS NOW is a question but also a statement, my reflection on the tectonic shifts occurring in our world today. It is both a departure and a return: An exploration beyond the boundaries of my earlier work as well as a homecoming with old friends.

In Migration Suite, the intent was to create a composition that was also a soundscape. It was originally composed as part of an art project to document the dangerous journey of migrants across the Mediterranean. I wanted the sound to capture both the siren song of hope and the dissonance of fear.

Southern Wind is an introspection. The piece was recorded during the long months of confinement when the world was shuttered by COVID-19. The rigor of the creative process has helped me to navigate through the pandemic, even as we face an uncertain future.

I am very fortunate to have good friends who happen to be truly great musicians. Rumba Blues is a celebration of those friendships and our shared delight in music and sound, undimmed by time or distance.

In fact, all the musicians who contributed to this recording played like there was no tomorrow. They are an inspiration to me. I am proud of all our creative work in this project. I hope you will enjoy it too.

September 2020, Valencia, Spain

Migration Suite

Tracks: l ll lll lV V

Musicians:

Ray Sandoval - guitar
Richard Maegraith - bass clarinet, clarinet, flute, voice
Genís Bagés Rubí - drums
Daigo Nakai - bass Sacha Hladiy - keyboard
Anton Spronk - cello
Sylvie Berger - viola

Engineered by Drew Deal. Mixed and Mastered by Wayne Peet, Los Angeles, CA.

Recorded in Berlin Germany, September, 2019.

Tracks: 6. Southern Wind 7. Rumba Blues

Ray Sandoval - guitar Tony Austin - drums Rene Camacho - bass Richard Katz - keyboards James King - alto saxophone Satin Singh - percussion

Mixed and Mastered by Tony Austin, Los Angeles, CA.

Recorded in London, Los Angeles, Tucson and Valencia, Spain, April, 2020.

Artwork by Andres Schmidt.

All songs composed and arranged by Ray Sandoval. © 2020 Ray Sandoval Music, ASCAP ℗ © 2020 Ray Sandoval All rights reserved. Unauthorized duplication is a violation of applicable laws.

Total time: 32:16

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Próxima Parada

Ray Sandoval

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Próxima Parada

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Ray Sandoval - Guitar

Satin Singh - Percussion

All compositions by Ray Sandoval except 'Round Midnight written by Thelonious Monk.

Arrangements by Ray Sandoval and Satin Singh except House in Abu Tor and Folk Tales arranged by Ray Sandoval.

Mak Ogawa - El Vendedor voice.

Recorded live at Satino's Studio, London, England. May 28, 29 and September

Ray Sandoval - Guitar

Satin Singh - Percussion

All compositions by Ray Sandoval except 'Round Midnight written by Thelonious Monk.

Arrangements by Ray Sandoval and Satin Singh except House in Abu Tor and Folk Tales arranged by Ray Sandoval.

Mak Ogawa - El Vendedor voice.

Recorded live at Satino's Studio, London, England. May 28, 29 and September 24, 25, 26, 2012.

Produced by Ray Sandoval

Mixed and Mastered by Scott McCormick

Photography - Jonathan Perugia

Graphic Design - Jun Ohnuki

Thanks to Frankie, Lesley and Keiley at The Eleanor Arms.

Shin and Miho at Music Camp, and the support from La Bella Strings and Godin Guitars.

Special thanks to my wonderful family: Atika and Joaquim

This CD is dedicated to my mother, Tatsue Hasegawa, who brought me into this world.

May her spirit rest in peace.

Próxima Parada is Ray's fifth CD release. For this album, He chose to create a unique sound using only guitar and percussion, re-imagining folk music through the unscripted improvisation of jazz.

When I was a kid in Tucson, Arizona, I thought being taken seriously as a musician meant choosing what kind of music I wanted to play: Rock, blues, classical or jazz. I was listening to funk and rock vinyl records but spent the days practicing Bach until my hands cramped with tendonitis, before finding myself drawn to the traditional folk music of Latin America, and eventually jazz. But I never felt I could choose just one style of music.   I guess I was always searching for the next sound I wanted to hear, the next stop. And it led me to a lot of places I never thought I’d see growing up in Tucson.  Los Angeles, Tokyo, Cordoba and Jerusalem are some of the places I have called home. These compositions reflect my time in each of these places, travelling and learning, playing and listening. 

My latest stop is London, where I have been very fortunate to work with some outstanding musicians, including my friend Satin Singh. This album was recorded with just Satin on percussion and me on guitar. I wanted to strip it down for a more intimate feel. Satin's passion for Afro-Cuban music has shaped the unique sound on this recording, grounding my compositions with his complex rhythms.

Listen to his conga percussion on 'Round Midnight. It gives a whole new interpretation to the classic. I Do is anchored by the deep spirituality of rumba. And his bata percussion on Passage and Indian congas on Road to Jericho provide a driving beat that lays the foundation for both pieces. The result is a rich sound produced from the simplest, most basic instrumentation.

The last 6 years have been a time of great change for me:  I’ve both gained and lost family.  I have uprooted my life more than once but I have also planted new seeds. I don't tour as much as I did when I was young. I'm too old for sleepless nights on a bus. But I now have time to reflect.

And I’ve come back around to realize that my music has no particular category and it doesn’t need to be labelled in any way.  Music that moves you doesn’t need a name.   This album is a part of that process of constant change. This experiencing of new things, people and places, this borrowing of ideas as I travel to my next stop has become a lifelong habit I have no intention of giving up. 

© 2013 Ray Sandoval Music, ASCAP

℗ © 2013 Ray Sandoval All rights reserved.

Unauthorized duplication is a violation of applicable laws.

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The Mirrors Of The Life

Ray Sandoval

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The Mirrors Of The Life

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The Mirrors of the Life (Los Espejos De La Vida) is an eclectic mix of Jazz, Latin American Folk, Classical and Soul music enrapt with Ray's innate sense of melody on the guitar.

Come home, breathe deep Away from the cry of false alarms Heartfelt expression Walking at the edge Of a cement encased river Longing to breakout and flow free All at once

The Mirrors of the Life (Los Espejos De La Vida) is an eclectic mix of Jazz, Latin American Folk, Classical and Soul music enrapt with Ray's innate sense of melody on the guitar.

Come home, breathe deep Away from the cry of false alarms Heartfelt expression Walking at the edge Of a cement encased river Longing to breakout and flow free All at once

La música de Ray Sandoval... by María Elena Gaitán

Like an endangered *saguaro in the urban sunset, braided between los freeways and the city lights, making our way through the rubble of deceptive commercial stages, we desert walkers who prefer to sing heartfelt into the howling electric wilderness, are Chicano musicians.

Son of a Japanese mother and the Arizona desert, guitarist composer Ray Sandoval is such a musician, an accomplished artistic voice, sencillo y pasional. Like urban graffiti, las canciones de Ray Sandoval spray themselves across our consciousness marking us with his melancholic brew, at once familiar and unknown. His melodies are undeniable, as if he were waiting for us fondly al voltear la esquina, just 'round the bend...

Breathe Deep

We who are strangers in our own land We who inhabit At the intersection of pain and tenderness Offer up These canciones sencillas, Deceptive in their unpretentious cloak Casting coral purple shadows On the ancient scorched sands between the freeways, Away from the cry of false alarms. Heartfelt expressions Walking at the edge Of a cement encased river Longing to break free and overflow All at once.

From the silence Esa canción surprises us kindly Written in the crosswinds Against the current But always with the flow Sangre y sueños Los espejos de la vida Waiting for things yet to come In the mystery of the obsidian night.

Take me there To the place where you are without pretense To the place where no words are necessary To the place where you can cry and moan At the edge between the worlds. Take me to that crossroads Where you conjure up las voces From wood and nylon strings From the fire of chile And the nectar of a cactus bloom, Where you make all From nothing at all Creating the path One step at a time In the moment Rupturing the silence Reaching for el recuerdo
De un beso endulzado Emerging from the shadows Of the mystery of **Nepantla, The place in-between, The world between worlds.

In the war for hearts and minds Among the battles for recognition Let me ramble loose and easy In a minor key In that unfamiliar place Perdida en una lágrima de cristal Where your fingers glide instinctively Without effort Melting down the tensions Like the whisper of an Earthmother's lullabye Calming the cry of the cosmic child Alma infinita Bathed in clear waters Come home Breathe deep

About Chola Con Cello... East L.A. native María Elena Gaitán , also known as 'La Chola Con Cello' is Chicana musician, performance artist and writer, and a friend of Ray Sandoval. www.cholaconcello.com

Footnotes:

*The Saguaro is the tree of the Sonoran desert, a giant cactus that lives in desert slopes and flats, especially in the rocky bajadas. The magnificent saguaro wraps its roots around rocks to anchor itself from the blowing winds and grows very slowly, -- perhaps an inch a year -- to a great height of up to 50 feet. The largest plants, with more than 5 arms, are estimated to be over 200 years old and can only be fertilized by cross-pollination - pollen from a different cactus. The creamy white saguaro flowers bloom in the mystery of the night, secreting nectar into their tubes, awaiting pollination.

**"Nepantla" is a word used by Nahuatl-speaking Aztec people in the sixteenth century to define their own situation in relationship to the Spanish colonizers. Dominican missionary Diego Durán wrote an ethnographic history of the Nahuatl speakers from the Valley of Mexico. He asked one of his Indian informants what he thought about the difficult cultural situation that had been created for his people by the Spanish invasion. The indian responded, "estamos nepantla."

This pre-Columbian concept of nepantla has been described as "the crack in the world" by Chicana poet and writer Gloria Anzaldúa. It is a place of transition, the world in-between in which we move from the familiar to the unknown in order to reach a new understanding. Nepantla is the uncertain terrain we sometimes enter willingly. Other times nepantla is forced upon us by the circumstances of our lives. Nepantla has been interpreted by Chicano scholars as "a state of resisting the mainstream, in order to reinterpret and redefine cultural difference as a place of power." Nepantla can also represent the process of people who do creative work, who must enter the realm of the unknown in order to emerge by creating their own understanding of the world.

Breathe Deep: The Music of Ray Sandoval © María Elena Gaitán 2004

The Mirrors Of The Life

Waiting For Things Yet To Come

Bryon Holley - Drums Rene Camacho - Bass Art Hirahara - Piano Ray Sandoval - Guitar Tony Austin - Djembe

Mira La Que Chevere

Bryon Holley - Drums Rene Camacho - Bass Ray Sandoval - Guitar, Tres Joey De Leon - Congas, Timbales, Guiro Rocio Marron - Violin Gabriel Gonzalez - Vocals

Eastside Sunset

Bryon Holley - Drums Rene Camacho - Bass Ray Sandoval - Guitar Joey De Leon - Congas

Recuerdos De Isabel

Bryon Holley - Drums Rene Camacho - Bass Ray Sandoval - Guitar, Handclaps Joey De Leon - Congas, Guiro, Cowbell Kiko Cornejo - Maracas Cristina Nava - Handclaps

Dream Etude

Rene Camacho - Bass Ray Sandoval - Guitar

Piensalo *

Bryon Holley - Drums Rene Camacho - Bass Art Hirahara - Piano Ray Sandoval - Guitar Joey De Leon - Congas, Guiro Gabriel Gonzalez - Vocals

Pat Me

Bryon Holley - Drums, Brushes Rene Camacho - Bass Art Hirahara - Piano Ray Sandoval - Guitar, Guitar Synth Joey De Leon - Congas Brad Dutz - Tan Tan

At The Edge Between The Worlds

Bryon Holley - Drums Rene Camacho - Bass Art Hirahara - Piano, Rhodes Piano Ray Sandoval - Guitar Joey De Leon - Chekere Brad Dutz - Triangle Rocio Marron - Violin, Viola John Krovoza - Cello

Tranquilo **

Bryon Holley - Drums Rene Camacho - Bass Ray Sandoval - Tres Joey De Leon - Congas Brad Dutz- Agogo, Tan Tan, Caxixi Destani Wolf - Vocals

Fussa Lullaby

Ray Sandoval - Guitar

Alma Infinita

Bryon Holley - Drums, Tambourine Rene Camacho - Bass Art Hirahara - Rhodes Piano Ray Sandoval - Guitar

All music and arrangements by Ray Sandoval Music (ASCAP) except where noted *Music and Lyrics by Gabriel Gonzalez and Ray Sandoval Bikabur Publishing, ASCAP, Ray Sandoval Music, ASCAP **Music and Lyrics by Destani Wolf and Ray Sandoval Destani Wolf Music BMI, Ray Sandoval Music ASCAP

Thanks to: My mother Tatsue Hasegawa, Dad and Margaret Sandoval, Maria Elena Gaitan, MH3, Chiyoko Tanaka and Allan Moyle, Mika Akao, Jason Kennedy, Tomoko Kiriishi and Gloria Anzaldua R.I.P., Gabriel Tennorio for use of his guitar in the video, Tony Austin for getting tones on the Drum Kit, La Gente en Echo Parque.

Special thanks to: all the musicians who contributed their talents on this record. Shin, Miho, Shusaku, at Music Camp.

Recuerdos de Isabel was written for Las Isabelas, a cancer survivor group.

Produced by Ray Sandoval

Recorded at Phocus Studios, Los Angeles, CA, March 2004

Additional tracks recorded at Akao's Studio in Tokyo, Japan, May 2004

Mixed in Tokyo, Japan at Akao's Studio, May 2004

Recorded and Engineered by Ray Sandoval

Mixed and Mastered by Ray Sandoval

Remasterd by Tucky at JVC, June 2004

All Compositions and Arrangements by Ray Sandoval, except where noted

*Music and Lyrics by Gabriel Gonzalez and Ray Sandoval

**Music and Lyrics by Destani Wolf and Ray Sandoval

Gabriel Gonzalez appears courtesy of Vanguard Records, a Welk Music Group Company

Ray Sandoval uses Groove Tubes Pre-amps and La Bella Strings

Copyright 2004 Ray Sandoval

All Rights Reserved. Unauthorized duplication is a violation of applicable laws.

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Suenos

Ray Sandoval

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Suenos

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Suenos is a unique album with intimate solo guitar arrangements and duets with the talented Mexican/American singer Gabriel Gonzalez. The entire CD was recorded live in the studio during October of 2002.

1. Contigo En La Distancia (Cesar Portillo de la Luz)

Gabriel Gonzalez - Vocal Ray Sandoval - Guitar

2. Mourning Sunrise (Ray Sandoval)

Ray

Suenos is a unique album with intimate solo guitar arrangements and duets with the talented Mexican/American singer Gabriel Gonzalez. The entire CD was recorded live in the studio during October of 2002.

1. Contigo En La Distancia (Cesar Portillo de la Luz)

Gabriel Gonzalez - Vocal Ray Sandoval - Guitar

2. Mourning Sunrise (Ray Sandoval)

Ray Sandoval - Guitar

3. La Llorona (Traditional Mexican Song)

Ray Sandoval - Guitar

4. Lotus in D Minor (Ray Sandoval)

Ray Sandoval - Guitar

5. Vanidad (Malbran Armando Gonzalez)

Gabriel Gonzalez - Vocal Ray Sandoval - Guitar

Produced by Ray Sandoval

Recorded, Mixed and Mastered by Ray Sandoval in Los Angeles, CA, October 2002.

Gabriel Gonzalez appears Courtesy of Vanguard Records, A Welk Music Group Company

A&R: Shin Miyata (Music Camp) Ray Sandoval uses La Bella Strings

Thanks to my family, friends and community for all their love and support.

Special Thanks to: Ken-san for beautiful photos, Gabriel and Music Camp Inc.

Photographer: Kenjun Kawawata Art Design: Gaku Abe (Gaku Design) Painting by Jose Ramirez

Stop the War Against Iraq.

Only through a collective International Conscious can we begin to stop the hatred and racism that exist throughout the world.

Copyright 2002 Ray Sandoval and Music Camp Inc.

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Mi Ofrenda

Ray Sandoval

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Mi Ofrenda

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A composer and guitarist who combines latin, brazilian, classical, world and jazz music into a fresh new sound of his own. Featuring an all acoustic ensemble of bass, cello, violin, drums, latin and world percussion, piano and guitar.

1. Hecho En Califas

Rocio Marron - Violin Mike Bolger - Accordion Ray Sandoval - Guitar Yunior Terry Cabrera -

A composer and guitarist who combines latin, brazilian, classical, world and jazz music into a fresh new sound of his own. Featuring an all acoustic ensemble of bass, cello, violin, drums, latin and world percussion, piano and guitar.

1. Hecho En Califas

Rocio Marron - Violin Mike Bolger - Accordion Ray Sandoval - Guitar Yunior Terry Cabrera - Acoustic Bass Edson Gianesi - Percussion

2. Ten Piedad

Art Hirahara - Piano Ray Sandoval - Guitar Yunior Terry Cabrera - Acoustic Bass Tony Austin - Drums Edson Gianesi - Percussion

3. Los Angeles Suspiran

Martha Gonzalez- Vocals Ray Sandoval - Guitar

4. La Danza De Mi Alma Y El Desierto

Ray Sandoval - Guitar, Tres Yunior Terry Cabrera - Acoustic Bass Edson Gianesi - Percussion Randy Gloss - Percussion

5. Lotus In D Minor

Bryon Holley - Vocals Art Hirahara - Piano Ray Sandoval - Guitar Randy Gloss - Percussion Yunior Terry Cabrera - Acoustic Bass Edson Gianesi - Percussion

6. Colores De Realidad (Featuring Martha Gonzalez)

Martha Gonzalez - Vocals Mike Bolger - Accordion Ray Sandoval- Guitar, Background Vocals Kiko Cornejo Jr. - Percussion Yunior Terry Cabrera - Acoustic Bass Edson Gianesi - Percussion

7. Seven

Otmaro ruiz - Piano Ray Sandoval - Guitar Yunior Terry Cabrera - Acoustic Bass Bryon Holley - Drums Edson Gianesi - Percussion

8. Mourning Sunrise

Bryon Holley - Vocals John Krovoza - Cello Ray Sandoval - Guitar Rene Camacho - Acoustic Bass

Trilogy:

9. Al Despertar 10. A Todo, Contemplacion 11. El Sufrimiento Es El Origen De La Consciencia

Ray Sandoval - Guitar, Vocals Yunior Terry Cabrera - Acoustic Bass Edson Gianesi - Percussion Randy Gloss - Percussion (2nd Movement)

All Songs Composed and Arranged by Ray Sandoval *Except Arranged by Richard Sandoval Colores De Realidad Lyrics by Cristina Nava All Selections Ray Sandoval Music (ASCAP) Produced by Ray Sandoval Recorded, Mixed and Mastered by Tony Austin at Digital-T Studios, Los Angeles, CA

Appear Courtesy of Vanguard Records Martha Gonzalez Kiko Cornejo Jr. Edson Gianesi

COLORS DE REALIDAD

En Las venas de este mundo Corre petrolio rubio Flores verdes de papel Que matan con su olor

No te siegues al dolor Y los llantos de la humanidad

Dentro de sus corazones No existe justicia ni amor Sangre inocente corre En un mar de lagrimas

No te siegues al dolor y los llantos de la humanidad

Son los colores de la realidad Hay un precio para la felicidad Estos son los colores de la realidad Hay un precio para la felicidad

English

COLORS OF REALITY

In the veins of this world There runs white oil Green flowers made of paper That kill with their scent

Don't blind yourself to the pain And the cries of humanity

Within their hearts There exists no justice or love Innocent blood runs In a sea of tears

Don't blind yourself to the pain And the cries of humanity

These are the colors of reality There is a price to pay for felicity These are the colors of reality There is a price to pay for felicity

I cannot write about this album without mentioning the tragic events that took place on September 11, 2001 in the United States. While my deep-felt condolences go out to the families and friends that were affected by this terrible event, there are questions that remain for me. I ask; why is it that we don't get upset when tragedy exists all over the world everyday? How do we tolerate starvation, war and disease with indifference? As human beings we have to begin to ask why such atrocities happen and how will we make the earth a better place to live? Is war a solution? Must we take out our anger by killing others? Sadly in the US, we claim to live in a democracy, when really we live in the biggest hypocrisy. We want peace, but are the source of devastation - the first to declare war. I enjoy my freedom as an American but I am not willing to cause genocide so that I may have it.

As Americans, rarely do we understand the wounds that our economic freedom inflict upon the rest of the world. This is what Colores De La Realidad is about. In writing this song, I wanted for us not to be confused by a false sense of freedom. True freedom is not the same as economic freedom. We must remember that we are humans filled with compassion, loyalty and love. Our false freedom works to buy our material things and this affects entire nations communities and people that we do not see. We cannot turn our heads to the pain that exist throughout. We have a responsibility to humanity to somehow change what is wrong and not to let the scent of green flowers entice us. Money is not everything!

This album is an offering. It is my hope for us to learn to recognize that we are connected to the problems that exist throughout the world. I believe that in this union, we can begin to change what is unjust.

Ray Sandoval March 24, 2002 Los Angeles, CA

Thanks to my family, friends and community for all their love and support.

Special Thanks to:

My beautiful friends and family in Japan, Old Town Conservatory of Music, Plaza De La Raza, Latino Arts Network, La Familia Quetzal, Candelas Guitars, Community Arts Partnership, Aida Salazar, Miho, Toshi and Shin at Music Camp, Roger Canchola, Cecilia Salcido, Oscar Noriega and Valerie Trucchia, Zoe Aguirre, Cristina Nava, Tony Austin, and the musicians who contributed to this recording.

Photography : Gen Murakoshi Art Design : Gaku Abe (Gaku Design)

Copyright 2002 Ray Sandoval

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A La Naturaleza

Ray Sandoval

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A La Naturaleza

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The romance of the Spanish guitar blended with other world and classical elements to make for an exotic and beautiful album.

Bryon Holley - Drums Rene Camacho - Acoustic Bass Art Hirahara - Piano (2,6) Wayne Peet - Piano (4) Edson Gianesi - Percussion (1,2,4,6) Kiko Cornejo Jr. - Percussion (1,3,7) Joao Junqueria - Vocals Rocio Marron - Violin (8)

The romance of the Spanish guitar blended with other world and classical elements to make for an exotic and beautiful album.

Bryon Holley - Drums Rene Camacho - Acoustic Bass Art Hirahara - Piano (2,6) Wayne Peet - Piano (4) Edson Gianesi - Percussion (1,2,4,6) Kiko Cornejo Jr. - Percussion (1,3,7) Joao Junqueria - Vocals Rocio Marron - Violin (8) Fang Fang Xu - Cello (8) Ray Sandoval - Guitar

Beautifully arranged, it's a fine album of aural poetry, by turns languid, dramatic, and slightly intoxicating. (Bliss, Pasadena Weekly - 7/22/99)

Tasteful, combining relaxed impressionistic landscapes with melodies. (Jim Santella, L.A. Jazz Scene - October 1, 1999)

Boda de Sangre (Blood Wedding)

This passionate song was inspired by the great Spanish poet and playwright Federico Garcia Lorca's play "Blood Wedding". The play "Blood Wedding" was written in 1938, and depicts the hidden passion and intensity of forbidden love that is embedded within the play's story line.

A La Naturaleza (To Nature)

Spawned by the influence of love, this beautiful song depicts nature and its inconsistencies. The changes in meter reflect fluid, cyclical changes of nature, and human life's integral part in its totality. "A La Naturaleza" reflects the artist's own attempts to find harmony with nature.

Tempestad (The Storm)

Influences from Cuba offer inspiration for this dark tune. This sensual piece makes love to the ear as it ingrains itself deep in the soul with the strumming of fingers on the guitar and rhythmic strokes of the dark bass.

Moon Song

Influenced by Brazilian rhythm and melody this song provides moonlight in the form of melody that dominates the piece. At times the moonlight shines fully, while at others we feel it in spurts. Its inconstant, cyclical changes mesmerize yet provide us with lucid serenity all at once.

Earth

"Earth" creates a visual picture of nature. The opening phrase of the piece serves as a reference point which is constantly reintroduced like the cycles that exist on earth. Tension is created by dissonant chords being syncopated over pedal tones creating a disturbed landscape but the tension is released by a harmonious melody that provides continuity to the form and gives a hopeful outlook of the earth in which we live.

Monsoon

Nostalgia hits and the artist probes in the confines of his mind. There lie days of old where the natural occurrences during June and July plague the sky of Tucson, Arizona. Imagine the introduction of winds followed by a vibrant red sky where swarms of gray clouds follow and threaten to swallow one. The voice within the song "Monsoon" adds peace of mind to pacify human fears amongst the existence of this unknown entity we call nature.

Con la Lengua en la Mano (With Language in his Hand)

This song is an emblem of mestizaje, a convoluted and diluted mixture of rhythms and sound tracing its roots from India, Spain and Cuba.

Para la Gente de Chiapas (For the People of Chiapas)

January 1, 1994 - Hundreds of years of political repression are the catalyst for a political uprising by the Zapatista Army of National Liberation (EZLN) . The EZLN surprised the government of Mexico by taking over San Cristobal de las Casas, the capital of Chiapas, as well as other neighboring towns in a stand against the persisting violation of human rights and to bring forth the recognition of the social and economic injustices that have for centuries plagued the indigenous people of Mexico. The uprising was also in protest of the NAFTA trade agreement, which took effect on the first of that year, and used to send a clear message to the Mexican government - "Basta" (enough). The struggle within the state of Chiapas was the inspiration for "Para la Gente de Chiapas". This beautiful song is the product of consciousness and written with hope for the people of Chiapas.

Special Thanks:

To my family and friends who all inspired my work and to all the musicians who contributed their talents to the recording.

Graphic Design by Edson Gianesi

Mixed by Wayne Peet at New Zone Studio

Liner Notes by Cristina Nava

Photography by Julie Chavez and Lowell Crystal

Copyright 1999 Ray Sandoval All Selections ASCAP, Ray Sandoval Music

All Rights Rerserved Unauthorized Duplication is a violation of applicable laws

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