The summer festival season is in full swing, and yoga practitioners like you and I can draw inspiration for our practice from their music lineups. Take the legendaryBeloved Festival, for instance—a four-day music, art, and yoga festival in Oregon’s coastal rainforest.
Founded on the principle that “Sacred music can help eradicate the illusion of separation from each other, from the earth, and from the Beloved,” this festival attracts yogis, healers, permaculturists, activists, and creatives from all walks of life.
Last year,Rolling Stone included Beloved in its list of “the world’s most exciting transformational festivals.” The festival’s lineup each year features world music legends, cutting edge electronic producers, authentic roots icons, and devotional chant artists (Krishna Das and Jai Uttal performed in years past). Beloved takes place in the lush Pacific Northwest woods of Tidewater, Oregon.
Last year, Rolling Stone included Beloved in its list of “the world’s most exciting transformational festivals.”
In addition to the global music lineup, festies can enjoy interactive art installations, local organic cuisine, yoga classes, ecstatic dance parties, and workshops on the wisdom of ancient cultures, social justice, and eco-ethics.
Intrigued? Check out the 75-minute yoga playlist below for an aural glimpse of the Beloved Festival. It features music from artists who are performing this year, and can give you new music to move to on the mat.
This music is perfect for vinyasa and other flowing types of practice. It’s also appropriate for classes in which poses are held for longer periods of time, such as Yin Yoga and intermediate hatha classes.
The songs start off gently and melodically, gently building momentum to create an expansive aural space. The sounds are rootsy, contemplative, uplifting, positive, organic, deep, and devotional. After a slight peak, the music settles back down into a more meditative space—which, of course, is perfect for savasana and other stillness practices.
The playlist was curated by Beloved’s musical partner, YogiTunes—an artist-friendly, free-trade alternative to Spotify, which offers a wide selection of yoga-related playlists, mixes, and releases for yoga studio owners, teachers, and practitioners.
To listen to the music as a playlist, click this link and sign up for a free 30-day YogiTunes trial, or check out the streaming mix via YogiTunes’ SoundCloud page below:
The playlist includes:
“Samana” by East Forest
“Arise” by Yaima
“Water Chandelier” by Random Rab
“Ardas Bhaee” by Jaya Lakshmi & Ananda
“Sri Ram” by Joss Jaffe
“Earth Flight” by Porangui
“The Day Before Yesterday” by Rara Avis
“Mother Water” by Shaman's Dream
“Time Is All We Have” by Yaima
“Sun Kiss” by Masaru Higasa
“Beloved” by Akal Dub
Need more musical inspiration? Check out Beloved’s Festival Video and their 2017 Music Playlist, which is best enjoyed while driving, chilling, or dancing.