The story of Aradhna must begin with a brief account of another band formed by Chris Hale and some of his friends from India, in December 1991. For almost eight years the fusion band Olio toured India, traveling in their bus from the northern Himalayan foothills to the southern tip of Kerala, and from Manipur on the borders of Burma to Amritsar in the west. During this time, Chris began studying sitar in Lucknow, continuing a passion that had begun in boarding school. In addition to Olio's rock repertoire, the band performed South Asian devotional songs called bhajans, and their first album Naam Leo Re (1997) was entirely in Hindi. Later that year, American guitarist and vocalist Pete Hicks returned to India, the land of his birth, to join the band.
Olio concluded its final tour in Punjab in 1999, at which point Chris left India for the U.K. to research the Asian music scene, reuniting with Pete in London. They landed a few gigs in the British Asian community and began arranging some bhajans that Chris had learned while in India. A new project was beginning to take shape.
Because Chris had been living in South Asia from childhood and could speak Nepali and Hindi fluently, he often felt torn between his eastern and western spiritual identity. He longed for an Indian expression of devotion to Yeshu Khrist, the North Indian name for Jesus Christ. In the course of this search, he had found Yeshu bhaktas (devotees) in different parts of the world who expressed their adoration through bhajans and the Indian way of bhakti (devotion).
In the spring of 2000, Chris and Pete returned to the U.S. to record their debut album, Deep Jale 2 (Light the Lamp), under the name Aradhna, which means "adoration" in Hindi. This soulful collection of bhajans was enthusiastically embraced by Indians and Westerners alike.
Travis McAfee began working with Aradhna during the recording of that first album, adding the bass to the blend of sitar and guitar. Interestingly, he too had spent part of his childhood drifting in and out of Asian ports with his family, and had an instant rapport with Chris and Pete. The three of them released the album in the U.K. over the course of a three-month tour.
Since then, Aradhna has performed numerous times in India and returned often to Great Britain. The band has also followed the trail of the Indian Diaspora around the world, performing in South Africa and the remote regions of Guyana and Suriname in South America where East Indians have lived for over a century. Aradhna has toured extensively in the U.S. and Canada as well. In 2002, they released their second studio album, Marga Darshan (Path of Vision), recorded over nine months in America and India. Their latest album, Satsang (Gathering of Truth), is a live recording of a concert in Southampton, England.
The last few years have seen the band go through many personal changes. Pete Hicks married Fiona Lyth of the Lake District, England, who plays Hindustani violin for Aradhna. They currently reside in Cincinnati, Ohio. Travis married long time friend and love, Liz Arts, a massage therapist from Georgia. They too live in Cincinnati. Travis and Pete sometimes work together performing Pete's own solo material from his debut album Until We See (2004). His website is www.peterhicks.net. Chris married Miranda Stone, a singer/songwriter from Canada who has three albums to her credit. Chris and Miranda reside in Toronto. Her website can be seen at www.mirandastone.com.
Aradhna is currently writing original material for a fourth album that they hope to begin recording in February 2007. A busy tour schedule continues to take them to various parts of the U.S., Canada and England. Details can be viewed at www.aradhnamusic.com/tours.html.
Discography
Amrit Vani (Eternal Word)
Aradhna
2007
Satsang (Gathering of Truth)
Aradhna
2004
Marga Darshan (Pate of Vision)
Aradhna
2002
Deep Jale (Light the Lamp)
Aradhna
2000
Naam Leo Re (Take the Name)
Olio
1997
Aparampar (Forever)
Olio
2001
Related Web Sites Connected to Aradhna
www.peterhicks.net
www.mirandastone.com
