Origin of Spectral Voices

In 1991 Jim Cole began practicing overtone singing after hearing recordings of the Tibetan Gyuto monks and David Hykes and the Harmonic Choir's Hearing Solar Winds. He was astonished and fascinated to discover the haunting otherworldly sounds he heard were produced entirely by human voices. Within a year he was turning people on to the wonder of harmonic singing, teaching others as he continued to learn, and gathering an ever-changing group around him. Asian throat singing was never really a public art, developed instead by solitary wandering herders communing with nature and by monks deep in meditation. Jim's group likewise experienced the focus and peace that can come from harmonic singing. Members enjoyed the shared opportunity for musical exploration, self-expression, and interaction with each other, but originally had no intention of singing for anyone but themselves. As the group evolved into Spectral Voices, the singers became increasingly experimental, playing with their voices to create new sounds and techniques and discovering the challenges and joys of totally improvised group work.