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In Concert At The Sage Theater, NYC, Nov. 1, 2008
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A VIOLIST WHO SHARES THE HEALING POWER OF MUSIC
Port Washington, NY -- “The transformative power of the music travels to places that words can’t touch,” says Karen Olson, a violist who uses her rare musical gifts and expertise as a holistic healer to help others make major changes in their lives that enable them to “live their dreams.” This unique artist invites listeners to embark on an inner journey with her new CD, Seasons of the Soul: Viola Meditations, recently released on her own label, Soundview Records.
A Juilliard graduate with a master’s degree from Yale and a doctorate from NYU, Karen Olson has had an eclectic musical career. She has performed with orchestras and chamber ensembles throughout the world, is a member of the New York Pops, and has played with the likes of Frank Sinatra, Liza Minnelli and Tony Bennett. But she is more than a highly trained and skilled professional instrumentalist. She is a Reiki Master and a certified practitioner and teacher of Theta Healing, a meditative technique that can induce a theta brain-wave state (a state of deep meditation) where practitioners can access heightened intuitive messages and experience a sense of connectedness with a spiritual force or energy that promotes instantaneous healing.
Olson has helped people work through serious life problems ranging from creative blocks and chronic medical conditions to financial and career challenges. “I use sound like a painter uses color,” she explains. “The rich tone-color and vibrations of the viola mimic the human voice.” According to Olson, music can assist in releasing fears and manifesting dreams. “The notes create vibrational patterns in the subconscious mind and body, which, in turn, foster a responsive environment for clearing negative thoughts and realigning one’s intentions and life purpose.”
“I encourage listeners to think of my music as the soundtrack to a movie that is their own personal story of healing,” says Olson. In the course of her work, she has witnessed events that she terms “miraculous”: people who were wheelchair-bound for many years get up and dance, a stroke victim begin to speak and smile, migraine sufferers receive instant relief, and grieving individuals attain release from deep emotional pain.
Olson performs concerts that include upbeat interactive rhythmical tunes as part of the meditative journey. Her concerts are especially powerful, she says, because of the increased energy of a group listening together in a collective meditation. She also gives private and group workshops, which teach in greater depth the techniques she has developed to help participants connect with their “healing intentions.” Another application of Olson’s music is in massage, yoga or any form of energetic, meditative or bodywork. “The clearing tones of the music facilitate greater release during the adjustment/treatment process and enhance the healing environment.”
Seasons of the Soul began when Olson was asked to perform meditation music at the Agape Spiritual Center in Los Angeles, founded by Dr. Michael Beckwith (known for the video “The Secret”). “Solo improvising for thousands of meditating people was so uplifting,” she recalls, “that I decided to incorporate those improvisations into a new CD.” Olson began recording the CD with Grammy-nominated David Darling on the piano, and then added a variety of other accompaniments. How did she come up with the title? “That was easy,” says the Minnesota native, who finds nature a continual source of inspiration in her work, and in her life. “The eternal patterns of the seasons link us to our deep and timeless connections,” she observes. “Nature teaches us to flow through cycles, trusting that the process is full of purpose and meaning.”
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