The story behind the making of this studio is a long and interesting one. E.T. Nada a.k.a. Ervin Bartha, has always had the deepest of connections to music. From his formative years as a small child of four, he encountered the mystical and the mysterious in the music that he heard. Born into a culture that was at the crossroads of east and west, he grew up in an area of Hungary that was the eastern perimeter of the Roman empire, the western perimeter of the Ottoman empire, and home of a people who originally migrated there from the Tibetan plateau. It was a place filled with the music of wandering Gypsies, with Magyar folk melodies and Turkish rhythms. It was the homeland of Liszt, Bartok, Ligeti, Ormandy and Solti, and it magnetically drew the greatest western composers like Bach, Mozart, Beethoven, Brahms, Strauss, Berlioz, Mahler and Ravel to its exotic cultural and musical blendings like a hive draws honey bees. After his family escaped the Soviet occupation, they moved to Canada.
E.T. was an exceptional singer and participated in choirs until he became unshakably interested in the emergence of rock music – especially hard rock as exemplified by the Yardbirds. Yet he had a notably diverse taste in music even in his early teens. His record collection included all the Yardbirds material, The Planets by Holst, Tchaikovsky, Dvorak, Julian Bream, Herbie Hancock, Ed Ames, Cream, Bobby Gentry, Balachandar, Berlioz, Strauss, Hendrix, Pink Floyd, Beatles, Rolling Stones, Renaissance, Jeff Beck, Led Zeppelin, Mahavishnu Orchestra, ELP, Kate Bush, Peter Gabriel and on and on... Not only was he interested in playing music, but he was equally attracted to the recording end of things. Eventually he came to manage a rock band, and in the early 1970s decided to build his own recording studio. But just at that juncture, his life received an irreversible shock that precipitated an extraordinary spiritual search for the very root and meaning of existence. He sold his home and all his belongings, and journeyed for the next twenty years in the company of a diverse community of spiritually awakened individuals and teachers. Yet, no matter where he was, E.T. always came into contact with the living heart and essence of music. Whether it was the energetically elevating breath songs of Inuit throat singers, the multi-timbral sacred chants of Tibetan monks, the hymns of the Armenian Apostolic mass, the aural meditations of Gregorian chant, the mystic music of the Sufis or the divine Love-Plays in Classical Indian music and dance, he was continually confronted by the sonic life pulse of the world and universe.
So, out of necessity, he was asked to record a wide variety of performers and performances, from the Peking Opera and far Eastern master string players to choirs and organists performing at Chartres and other great Gothic cathedrals to Indian classical music and dance ensembles to the Loseling Tibetan musicians of Drepung monastery to the sonic characteristics of the great Ball Court at Chichen Itza and the temples at Palenque. He even built a recording studio for some rock musician friends in Stockhom, Sweden. Of course, there was a great deal to learn about the root impulses of music from these many master performers, teachers and situations. In essence, much of what is missing from the Western musical traditions could be found in the older traditions of the East. Instead of the western emphasis on personal desire, angst and suffering, the eastern artistic forms still carried the essential human aspirations of genuine gratitude, transformation and transcendence in their core impulses. Virtuosity, the beginning stage of mastery of one's instrument only lays the foundation for the much more important aim of Self Mastery. Self mastery leads to universal service. This vital information led E.T. to a radical new understanding of the higher function of music. Music isn't just an outlet for subjective emotional therapy. It can also be a direct pathway to conscious transformation of both performer and audience. Therefore, the creation of conscious music can play a pivotal role in the development of humanity. With this understanding, E.T. determined that if there was ever an opportunity to return to professional recording again, his primary aim would be to facilitatie the conditions necessary for the creation of such music... After many more inner and outer adventures, he finally returned to Canada.
And then suddenly, he once again found himself engaged in the work of recording and producing music. After setting up the facilities at ClearLightSound, which are constantly being expanded and improved, he is now ready to be of service to any who may require his expertise and experience. His attention is focused on invoking the most conscious impressions, expressions and realizations from the musicians, the producers, the technology and from the audience.
