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The Temple of the Ash of Ra towers in the centre of a shadowed park, near the centre of the city. It is mostly white, inside and outside, and quite sparsely adorned – inside and outside. Light enters from every side, to the centre of the temple. Here, a multi-faceted jewel, containing the Ashes of Ra, reflects and breaks light in an intricate fashion.

And then there are the statues. Taking step by step cautiously, the believers walk their circle: all who are personified here, in stone, take their turn in getting attention -

Yes, chant an invocation to all of them, one after another, and you will be rewarded. Or, listen to the music. As the basic rhythm chants constantly like the colourful light from the jewel inside the temple, the melodies shimmer gracefully...
So you may travel. Perhaps you will even meditate, your thoughts guided by the deities of the Temple of the Ash of Ra ---

But remind yourself: an ashram is a place of contemplation. Ra is the god of the sun. The Phoenix rises from its own ashes. Though the Bird lights up life, the Owl dreams by day and comes to you by night. The Sasquatch urges you earnestly to think, and the High One keeps anything bound to his mysterious laws. And never, ever, conjure the Lady by calling her name...

So, a prayer to begin with is appropriate -------

What is offered to you, is music, and deepness within it. But your offering is only time, time enough to listen. So please take the 74 minutes to hear it through. It is designed to be heard as a whole.


Inspired by Manuel Göttsching's E2-E4


Since E2-E4 became my favourite record in 1984, I always wanted to play something like it. Not many sequences have the power to last over 60 minutes. When I stumbled over the sequence of 'Offering', I sensed, but not realized its possibilities, but could only play the first part (Lady Luck). I did not know how to proceed. So I simply named it, 'Offering', as it still is called, and put it away. I did not forget it, and I loaded it into my sequencer form time to time, but still I was not content.

When I started to regard that some thirteen minutes of music as the first part of a longer, and then a much longer piece, it started to work out nicely. As I dived deeper into the flow of the piece with every hour I worked on it, the other parts evolved, one after another, as they are found on cd.

Still, I will not compare 'Offering' to 'E2-E4' in any way. Among the fifteen years which lie between them, there are many other differences. However, I am content and a little proud of 'Offering', as it stands beside its older cousin. Both share an extended length and a flowing rhythm, and the name 'ashra' shows up in the name of the cd as a reference, bowing to the achievement of 'E2-E4' as a truly great piece of music.

As the one single track indicates, 'Offering' is designed for continuous listening. Please take your time and listen to the music as a whole. Otherwise, the effect would be greatly diminished. Thank you.

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License.


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