A healing CD made in Ashley's honour

Laverne was one of the angels who offered Ashley healing touch all through her illness. This is what Laverne said at the CD launch about why she made this CD.

This evening I would like to talk to you about the spirit of a most amazing young woman and how her spirit has molded this CD from beginning to completion.
The members of the Highlands healing touch team spent 2 1/2 years working with Ashley - from the beginning of her illness - to her death last April. We all adored her. At her sickest moments, when she needed someone to come every day, there was never any trouble finding someone to go to her. We all wanted to share, for that hour, her sense of the spirit.
Last year Ashley experienced a session of sound therapy at the Callanish Society. She came back so excited about this new concept – and about the idea of combining it with healing touch. She got a copy of the CD made that day and we used it for her sessions for the next couple of weeks. It was very powerful. I was at that time in the process of producing a CD by the Vancouver Chamber Choir for use in healing touch, so I was gaining some confidence in this area. I said to Ashley one day – I have some friends who are practitioners as well as fine musicians. I bet we could create a CD that would combine the sound therapy and the music of Taize, which was her other passion at that time. So we began to talk about possibilities – about creating something of her very own that would be wonderful for healing touch. Until the last few weeks of her life, she was always eager to know how the plans were coming, when we might record it, what would be on it. It was her vision – and it has been our privilege to bring it to life.
The group of people who were so very willing to donate their time and energy to making this CD are friends from musical circles – but also spiritual partners. Six of the seven are alternative therapy practitioners – and the seventh, my husband, is a longtime recipient of healing touch, so he is as tuned in to the powerful nature of what we do as the rest of us!  The group is made up of: Peter and Andi Alexander, Bill Vermeulen, Kat Goheen, Richard Hahn, and my husband Brian and I.  Peter, Andi and Richard all work in the field of Pranic Healing. Bill, Kat and I all work with Healing Touch.  And Bill, Peter, Kat and I all worked together as singers with the Vancouver Chamber Choir for many years. So there were many connections!
I asked Peter if he would work out a roadmap for the CD – approximately an hour in length – and incorporating Taize melodies, chanting, throat singing, overtone singing, a drone and bells, bells, bells. The group got together once – then booked a recording date. It was to be largely improvisation – nothing set in stone – just go with the spirit on the day. And that is exactly what we did. We harmonized melodies, Andi improvised so beautifully over whatever we laid down, we all played bells and chimes, Brian and Kat overdubbed the viola and horn, and our drone was a piece of tape holding down the appropriate key on the electronic keyboard! Five hours straight in the studio with this incredible young recording engineer named Mike Southworth and then Peter and I spent 10 hours with him editing over the next month. It was an amazing experience! 
There is a story here. The building next to the studio was undergoing major renovations. During our recording time they had a compressor cycling on and off in the room adjacent to the studio. It was impossible not to hear it. It cycled on and off every 2 or 3 minutes. We all felt sick – were sure it was going to ruin the takes. But you know something. It only ruined 1 take in the whole 5 hours. There is a 10 minute chant on the CD – very soft. We did it without cuts or edits – just straight through. We started recording it when the compressor went off, faded out after 10 minutes, and stopped the tape – and immediately the compressor came on again. This seemed to happen with every segment. It was unbelievable! But then we thought – no – it’s Ashley at work – making sure that nothing ruined this music that was her very own. There was a spirit in the room that day that carried over into the music. It was Ashley’s spirit – inspiring us – moving us – healing us – and laughing with delight as we sang to her. It was a moment of grace - the body and spirit, infused by the music, becoming one.
This CD is different. It is not entertainment. It is meant to be used in a meditative manner – to help one find the quiet centre. We asked Mike to make an abbreviated version of it for tonight, one that incorporates all the elements, but shortening each segment. The actual CD is 54 minutes long, including a minute’s silence in the middle after the overtone singing.  We placed the silence there so each person would take the time to remember Ashley and smile – after all, smiling was something she had perfected!  We did make a note about that on the jacket. But perhaps we should also have placed another warning on the back – not to be played while driving or operating heavy machinery!
I want to thank these wonderful musicians for their willingness to give so freely of their time and energy and enthusiasm for this project. And I want to thank Michael Washburn for creating this beautiful cover which so captures the light that Ashley carried within – and for refusing to accept payment for his work. Also Glenn Quarrington who printed all the flyers and the large memento posters gratis. Such generous spirits!  It was a delight to work with Jim Kwan, at Creativ Music, who designed the booklet and who made sure that the CDs were here on time. And I want to thank Judy and Dave for supporting our idea from the beginning and for all the work they did on the booklet and on this evening’s celebration. It has been such a help in the grieving process to stay so connected to this family.
Thank you for coming. Now we invite you to be still for awhile and experience Ashley’s vision.