Karen Salicath Jamali is a multi-award-winning composer, pianist, and visual artist. She is a force in the contemporary instrumental music and meditation scene. Born in Denmark but now splitting her time between New York and Florida, her way into music is rigidly unconventional, not to mention inspiring. Her awards include the prestigious Clouzine Music Award for Best Instrumental Work in 2024, First Prize in the Golden Piano Talent International Competition in 2023, and being inducted into the Akademia Music Award Hall of Fame in the same year. Surpassing 16,339 followers on Spotify and 10,522 monthly listeners, she continues to enthrall hundreds of audiences across the globe, constantly wooed by her deeply spiritual and meditative compositions. Her latest album “Dreams of Angels," released on November 22, 2024, vindicates her fantastic vision through which she successfully connects her listeners with an ethereal angelic realm employing music.
Each track was entirely improvised and recorded in one take in the early morning, a time when she claims to feel deeply connected to angelic energies, and there was no post-production on these tracks; they were rather purposely done to capture the raw essence of what emerged in those moments of happiness. Mastered by the incredible Parma Records, each composition is an homage to a particular angel, drawing on their specific attributes to inspire a broad spectrum of emotions, from courage and healing to peace and divine wisdom.
The album opens with "ArchAngel Metatron (the Angel of Life)" a beautiful composition dedicated to the Angel of Life, establishing an ambient feel to the work via its ringing and cascading arpeggios and light and ethereal textures that shimmer like sunlight. "Angel Uriel (the Angel of Truth)" weaves gentle piano melodies that intersperse with deep, resonant notes, while "Angel Raphael," dedicated to the Angel of Healing, boasts warm, sustained chords interspersed with delicate melodic runs that seem to mirror the soothing, restoring characteristics of its namesake.
"Angel Gabriels Halo" is that sound of stable calmness, reminiscent of a tranquil, timeless day. "Angel Raziel (the Angel of Clarity)" features enchanting and vibrant piano lines, gently inciting a sense of reflection and contemplation. Among the standout pieces on this album is White Angel, an award-winning composition based on Salicath's sculpture dedicated to those we've lost. Its poignant flowing melody may reflect the duality of loss, as well as hope, a fitting summary, perhaps, of the themes of spiritual transcendence and human bond that suffuse this album and which have won this piece awards, including two from the Charleston International Music Competition.
" Angel Michael (the Angel of Courage)," shifts the tone to one that is triumphant and uplifting and which embodies the fortitude of the Angel of Courage. It evokes an image of great progression, wherein the narrator seems to lead one through some sort of battle and emerges victorious. Dickson has composed a piece imbued with gentle pastoral resonance: "Angel Ariel (the Angel of Nature)." The lilting melody and softly rolling accompaniment summon images of peaceful landscapes and interconnections among all living beings.
"Dreams of Angels", by Karen Salicath Jamali, is a transcendent experience that allows listeners to connect to divine essence through the universal language of music. With its freshness, tenderness, and spiritual depth, the album stands as the culmination of Salicath's extraordinary journey as an artist and her unfaltering mission to share love, compassion, and healing through her work. “Dreams of Angels” is an album worth hearing, so don't miss it; stream it on any major music platform like Spotify.