When I asked Renaissance Man, Chris Spheeris, why he chose Arts For the Schools as the beneficiary of his May 10 Concert/Art Show at Cal Neva, he said, ‘Kira, that’s an easy one. Children are the hope of the world and it is essential to offer arts to them.’
Chris lamented the state of the arts in our schools today, telling me how as a child, he had music at least twice a week and art classes every day. He said it is vital for children to know art as a form of self-expression, and not just for the sake of creating money and fame. Chris was blessed with parents who encouraged their children to be creative artists. His mother is a painter who taught them to paint and to sculpt. His photographer father taught him how to develop film in his darkroom at the age of 6 or 7 and bought him his first Nikon camera.
Chris, or Christo, as his friends call him, started to ‘make noises’ on the piano when he was very young, creating impressions from sounds – ‘waterfalls on the black keys and fairies high up.’ He began playing guitar and picking up chords when he was 12 years old, but has come a long way since then. His musical vision and talents made him into one of the leaders of instrumental New Age music and have earned him international acclaim. Chris’s music is rich and soothing, yet uplifting and inspirational at the same time. It has a romantic, Mediterranean flavor to it. His lyrics are playful and profoundly reflective. I sink into the connection he creates instrumentally and vocally and am carried away and back to myself on the waves of his melodies. His early development as a visual artist is heard in his music and his art, now, is a visual and physical extension of his music.
The day we spoke, he had just sent Bridge, his latest recording, which includes three instrumental pieces and eight tracks with vocals, off to his factory to produce CDs to have available at his upcoming concerts. A composite of different photographs on the cover is reflective of the multi-layered music.
Chris was exhausted, but elated at having completed the mixing and editing of the songs recorded in live performances with three other musicians. ‘I’m very picky,’ he said and I believed him when he added, ‘it took 300 hours to make it feel right.’ But, there is more to the time he spends creating his music than perfectionism. On his website he is quoted, ‘Creating is a spiritual process for me. It comes from a deep and mysterious place and when I surrender to it I feel aligned with my truth and my purpose.’
While Chris is in Tahoe, he will lead For Goodness Sake’s Monday Night Meditation Group on May 12. I asked about his meditation practice, which he described as ‘immersion into my experiences. Being completely present in what I’m doing, whether I’m cooking or doing laundry. There is no time and no ego boundary.’ Beyond living in the present moment, he has written a number of meditations ‘similar to prayers and an exercise in logic. They are not religious.’
He is determined to dismantle his rational ego, comparing his mission to a guerrilla war. He has been particularly interested in the notions of identity, self, love, forgiveness and judgment. ‘The meditations come through pure,’ he said, ‘they are journeys of the mind and soul exploring a topic.’ With his meditations he hopes to ‘jar things loose’ and provide opportunity for expansion. His deeply philosophical musings also find their way into his books of poetry and song lyrics.
I asked him, ‘When you wake up in the morning how do you know what to work on?’
‘The thing that presents itself with the highest level of inspiration,’ he responded. He is grateful that he gets to work on his music and art whenever he wants to. ‘Inspiration is my religion.’
Truckee’s For Goodness Sake (FGS) is bringing Chris Spheeris back to the area after an overwhelmingly positive response to the concerts he gave last year. Wanting to share Chris’s gifts with as many people as possible, FGS director Andy Hill arranged for this multimedia performance to be held at the Cal Neva in Crystal Bay. ‘I want a lot of people to hear his music and see his show, to experience him,’ said Andy. ‘This is not your run of the mill music show. There is something more profound about it. Chris is just a fun guy.’
Doors open at 6 p.m. for the art show and the concert will be from 7:30 to 9:30 p.m. Tickets are $25 for adults and $15 for children and are available at the door and at For Goodness Sake, 10157 Donner Pass Road, Truckee. christo.chrisspheeris.com, 530-550-8981.
