Will listening to Mozart make you smarter? Given the right context, sure, it just might and there are well-regarded musicologists who will step right up to the plate and defend this. But what if you’re more in the mood for relaxation, rather than amped up brain wattage?  Versatile companion that it is, music, as many a massage therapist will tell you, can help you relax and sometimes, more importantly, it helps your clients relax too.

One of our favorite ‘relaxation’ music composer friends whose music tracks have been heard by millions of people says, “Just because relaxation or spa or massage music is designed to make you stop thinking, or stop analyzing or obsessing doesn’t mean it is ‘dumb music’.”

Rocker turned neuroscientist Daniel J. Levitin states in our well-thumbed copy of his book, This Is Your Brain On Music, “time seemed to stand still while the music was playing.”  Which is precisely the mood many massage therapists look to conjure up with their massage and bodywork clients – suspending the world of deadlines, commitments and mental checklists – during a therapeutic or relaxing massage.

With that in mind, we’re offering some background on several of our music albums that you can download at At Peace Music.  Today’s theme? NEW musical inspiration from Asia

We’re  pleased to introduce two dynamic artists to our World Music | Asian Spa Musiccategory. Missa Johnouchi and the musical ensemble Jalan Jalan.  Read on and find out why Sherry thinks these three albums may be just what you’ve been looking for in your own spa music collection.

Q: Are these artists new for At Peace Music?

A: Yes, Missa Johnouchi is a Tokyo-born pianist/composer and Jalan Jalan is a musical ensemble assembled by members of SORMA, a group of musicians led by keyboardist/arranger/composer YOICHI SHIMADA. We’re excited to promote more Asian artists in our World Music category for several reasons:

Bali Dua - Jalan JalanBali Dua - Jalan Jalan1. For a long time, there’s been a strong association between certain styles of Asian music, meditation and relaxation.  Since we specialize in massage music, which involves relaxation, we were excited to include music that embraces this tradition;

2. Several important massage modalities originated in Asia, including Thai massage, Shiat-su and others;

3. Certain Asian music is perfect for relaxation and massage, and that’s our mission!

Q: How is this music perfect for massage and bodywork?

A: Johnouchi’s music works well in a spa environment where there’s a need for a lush, more up-tempo soundtrack, but without heavy percussive sounds which often disturb people out of a relaxation mode.

Jalan Jalan specializes in ambient music for deep relaxation, which also exudes a distinctive Asian feeling.  Sometimes, a musical sound from “far away” can facilitate a listener drifting off to his or her own faraway mental space.

Q: What’s distinctive, noteworthy about these artists/musicians/music?

A: Our album releases by Jalan Jalan – Bali and Bali Dua – are heavily influenced by the nature and mystique of the Balinese islands, where they use the traditional Indonesian instrument, the Balinese Gamelan, to create a warm, languid and relaxing atmosphere. Jalan Jalan even means “a walk” or “a stroll” in the Indonesian language.

Asian Blossoms by Missa Johnouchi,  features a fusion of Western instruments and traditional Chinese instruments–the erhu (a long, narrow, bowed stringed instrument), the pipa (a pear-shaped, four-stringed lute), the yang qin (duclimer) and the gu zheng (cousin on the Japanese koto).

Missa Johnouchi is a very cosmopolitan world traveler.  We love how she finds inspiration everywhere she goes.  She says, “The melodies were born in my imagination … and I have had a musical journey with the musicians: a Niko (Chinese lute) player LIU FENG, a Chinese biwa (lute) player SHAO RONG, a Chinese zither player JIAN XIAO-QING, a Chinese qin (zither) player LIN MIN and a quartet which plays Chinese instruments (The Beautiful Flower Ensemble).”

Jalan Jalan specializes in ambient music for deep relaxation, which also exudes a distinctive asian feeling.  Sometimes, a musical sound from “far away” can facilitate a listener drifting off to his or her own faraway mental space.