CosmoPop

CosmoPop is a genre of spiritually-based music that emerged in Arizona, USA in the mid 1990s. Its originator, TaliasVan of Tor, describes it as “spiritually hip vocal music” that addresses the “sufferings of life and the courage of perseverance and hope, which leaves the listener with a new vision for their future.”<ref name="9/11Concert">9/11 Concert Expresses Vision of Radical Unity Through Music, PR.com, Sedona, AZ, August 17, 2006</ref> TaliasVan believes that CosmoPop music originated in the Pleiades and first came to this planet as Celtic music on the legendary island of Avalon, which may today be Glastonbury.
CosmoPop music has also been described as multi-dimensional because of its use of several musical genres and styles, including include rock, pop, folk, jazz, country, soul, Celtic, world, mantra, and mystic, within a single composition. The Bright & Morning Star Band, his band, consisting of 9 members, performs CosmoPop music using TaliasVan's lead and background vocals, rhythm guitar, bass, drums, percussions, keyboards, flute, saxophones, trumpet, horns, pennywhistle, and bagpipes.
History.
CosmoPop's originator, TaliasVan, started singing at age 6 and performing at age 8 on street corners of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. At age 12, he sang with harmony groups and at age 15, he founded his first band, an R&B group called "The Fuzzes". At age 24, he began writing spiritual music and compositions, and he spent the next 11 years performing spiritual concerts. After years of service in youth ministry organizations across the country, TaliasVan returned home to Pittsburgh to record Unicorn Love, for which he was featured in the South Pittsburgh Reporter for bringing higher-consciousness music to the American public. TaliasVan did not want to identify his work as contemporary Christian music, because he felt he was beyond that consciousness, and so christened it "New Age Vocal". The album was the beginning of CosmoPop sound and the first CosmoPop music album. In 1988 it was acknowledged as the pioneer of "New Age Vocal", which he developed to add lyrical and vocal expression to the spiritual thoughts of instrumental New Age music. He formed a nonprofit record label, Global Change Music, to record and showcase his new CosmoPop brand of music.
Style & Composition.
The musical instruments TaliasVan & The Bright & Morning Star Band use to create CosmoPop music include saxophones, trumpets, flutes, keyboards, drums, percussion, bass, and rhythm guitar, as well as lead and harmonizing vocals.
CosmoPop music combines at least two different musical genres, with the more compositionally-complex songs incorporating three to four genres. Many of these songs include mantras of various kinds, even in his country western work, which he calls CosmoCountry.
CosmoPop music expresses a variety of feelings, sounds, moods, and dimensions within one song or album. Some critics describe CosmoPop music as a unique and new form of music “that can take your consciousness from this planet to another planet—even another universe—in just one song.” TaliasVan believes that he originated CosmoPop music in another universe, from which his soul originates, (he teaches there are also five hundred million others called starseed) which he believes to be the Pleiades. He chose the name CosmoPop because it means “universally popular” and has nothing to do with pop music.
Others have described CosmoPop music as “spiritually charming” with “uplifting positive lyrics presented as a tool for positive global change.” TaliasVan has been described as an “artist’s artist,” and CosmoPop music as “message music,” “multidimensional,” “Conscious Pop,” and “music of the future for minds of the future.” CosmoDance, the style of dance associated with CosmoPop music, has been described as movement “inspired and guided by the spirit within” in response to the music.
Local & National Influence.
The musical venue Future Studios hosted early concerts by The Bright & Morning Star Band featuring CosmoPop music. The venue was locally known for presenting artists from different countries like Argentina, the Middle East, and Africa and was recognized for contributing to the cultural, artistic, and musical scenes of Arizona.
CosmoPop music appeals to local audiences in Arizona for the spiritual content of its lyrics, and The Bright & Morning Star Band won the Verde Valley Newspaper's Reader's Choice Awards in 2005 for “Best Local Musicians.”
The Bright & Morning Star Band's first “Sacred Global CosmoPop Concert” was held in 2004, and later aired on Oasis TV in two parts. One of their first outdoor concerts featuring CosmoPop music was held in summer 2005 in Flagstaff, Arizona at Wheeler Park. Also in 2005 The Bright & Morning Star Band held a CosmoPop concert in Mount Shasta, California, which was the first of a series of CosmoPop Benefit Concerts to promote the idea of “Music and Business without Greed.” The concerts were recognized nationwide to contribute to the enhancement of social service organizations.
Awards & Recognition.
In August 1998, "The Morning Song" a CosmoPop song, was chosen by the magazine and network New Age Voice to be included on their “International Promo.”
On January 19, 1999, KKUP in Cupertino, California, 91.5 FM, interviewed TaliasVan on its "Changes Radio" program. DJ Elizabeth Gips and TaliasVan discussed the fourth-dimensional aspects of his CosmoPop music and the need for individual and global change. On February 7, 1999, KDHX 88.1 FM radio in St. Louis, Missouri featured TaliasVan & The Bright & Morning Star Band's Holy City CD in a broadcast on DJ Gabriel's Tin Pan Alley program. He discussed with DJ Gabriel the "universally popular" sounds of CosmoPop music. His CosmoPop song, "The Freedom Song"—written for Nigerian freedom fighter Ken Saro-Wiwa—was listed in the March 1999 Top 20 of the country of Romania.
The CosmoPop song "Wake Up America," from the Holy City CD was featured on KFLX (Flagstaff, Arizona) during an interview with TaliasVan regarding his Wake-Up America, Wake-Up-World, Radical Unity Tour. The song received recognition for being a response of peace instead of arms to the 9/11/2001 attack on the Twin Towers in New York City.
In 2005, The Bright & Morning Star Band received The Aurora Awards Gold Award for Best Live Concert, for their Sacred Global CosmoPop Concert in professional company with Disney and Fox media, who were recognized and awarded in their respective categories.
CosmoWorship.
TaliasVan's Bright & Morning Star Choir and Orchestra performs CosmoWorship music, which like CosmoPop, is music written to reflect the “face of God” and connect listeners to higher Interuniversal realities and cosmic truths. Critics have described CosmoWorship music as a “growing and boldly harmonic creative phenomena.”
The Bright & Morning Star Choir and Orchestra began performing CosmoWorship music in 1995. Since then the choir has performed throughout Arizona, making live, radio, television, and worldwide webcast appearances. The choir is locally known for their charitable work during the holiday season. They have sung traditional carols and his original compositions for the St. Andrew's Children's Clinic in Nogales, the Santa Rita Care Center in Green Valley, and at the Tubac Plaza Main Stage in Tubac, Arizona.
TaliasVan's CosmoPop music CD, The God Child Came Christmas Album, features some songs performed and supplemented by The Bright & Morning Star Choir and Orchestra. The CDs CosmoWorhip I and CosmoWorship II contain CosmoWorship songs sung and performed by the 40-voice Bright & Morning Star Choir and Orchestra. TaliasVan believes that music has tremendous power to heal and this is a main motivator behind his music ministry which brings the sacred to popular music.
Spiritual Purpose.
CosmoPop music uses popular culture forms to show the face of God and spur “a spiritual quantum leap on a mass scale” to bring people back to a personal relationship with their Creator and change world consciousness. All CosmoPop music has a “spiritual bent” and its lyrical messages seek to bring hope and answers to life's problems. CosmoPop music is part of the language to relieve the suffering of the world. He believes that God can bring forth a spiritual solution and create a Spiritualution(SM) movement. TaliasVan has said the essence of CosmoPop music inspires and restores the spiritual value in living.
Evolution of CosmoPop Music.
Nightclubs.
1964–1968 Forerunner to CosmoPop sound: played in night clubs throughout Pittsburgh and surrounding cities: 