Religious Music of Asia

by Various Artists

From India to Taiwan, from the bare chants of Islam to the absence of vocals in Jainist worship, the diversity of Asian religious traditions is revealed in devotional music and prayer. The continuity of Asian religious practices is also revealed, as Buddhist rituals are filtered through the musical traditions and instruments of places as far as Nepal and China. Accompanied by the ambient sounds of everyday life, the recordings capture the unvarnished reality and vitality of the prayers, chants, devotional songs, processions and celebrations that characterize the practice of the disparate Asian religions.