Synopsis:
Kiva’s debut CD, The Ladder is an exotic journey through metaphorically rich, melodic and sophisticated global pop with elements of jazz, avant garde, impressionism and world fusion. Cultural influences include Tuvan, East Indian, Celtic, Balinese and Japanese. About half the tracks contain her specialty, harmonic overtoning, from the high energy of “Tuva on Rye” to the heart-wrenchingly soulful “Regret”.

Musicians:
Kevin Breit, John Gzowski, Rob Piltch (guitars), Anne Bourne (cello), Oliver Schroer (violin), Rob Gusevs (organ), Gary Taylor (producer, drums), Jim Casson (percussion), Mike Bossy (bass), Bob Taillefer (pedal steel).

The Guided Tour:
1. Tuva on Rye
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I was in the Republic of Tuva (Russia) for the ’95 International Symposium of Throat Singing. I was asked to be a panel judge for the competition amongst the Tuvans. While doing this, I was invited along with the other foreigners to do an impromptu performance. I went backstage and had about ten minutes to come up with something. I wrote this little overtoning theme. Later when I returned to Canada, I wrote the music to accompany it.

2. Untouchable
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Not to be confused with the caste system in India, this is a passionate ode to a bad, brief relationship. I find that writing a song can be more effective and satisfactory than casting a spell.

3. Gone Forever
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This is about a theoretical boy and girl. The girl decides she must experience the world so she says “see ya later” to the boy, who then worries that when, if ever, she returns, she will be too sophisticated for him. The song has a drifting, ethereal spooky choir to emphasize the distance he feels.

4. Seven Years
This became a treatise on all the things “seven years” conjures up for me. It is the rockiest on the CD, good clean fun.

5. The Big Picture
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This one compares microcosms and macrocosms. It appeals especially to painters. The melody goes everywhere.

6. Egyptian Eyes
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I wrote this on Christmas Day, all alone in a tiny village in Crete. I saw someone pass by the window, and through the venetian blinds, I imagined a whole affair that lasted a fraction of a second. This is an impressionistic piece, with Claude Debussy’s influence. There is a little oriental theme. I completed it in Japan not long after.

7. Venus and the Fly
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This is about the human version of the predatory plant and its prey. Punchy and infectious.

8. Dare to Lose
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You only live once, after all.

9. The Flip Side
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This little excerpt is actually the music from the demo version of The Big Picture played backwards, with layers of (forwards) improvised vocals on top. It was a spur of the moment experiment that ended up on the CD.

10. The Science Project
A working title was Kids, Don’t try this at Home. Kind of like an affair of the heart turning out like an episode of The Roadrunner. Musically, it’s a fast driving ditty full of swerves (wild solos) and comes complete with a nuclear explosion for a finale.

11. Heart Overboard
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A story unfolds here about a mystery on the high seas. Was it suicide, an accident or murder? You can just feel the waves washing over your limp, outstretched body as seagulls fly perilously overhead.

12. Interlude in Monkey Forest
This is a real forest in Bali, full of aggressive monkeys. Curiously, my producer (Gary Taylor) went there in the middle of the recording schedule. He sampled the insect sounds and Balinese musicians. This is a first take vocal and keyboard improvisation with those musicians (and bugs). Haunting.      

13. On the Ganges (lyrics by Larry Hicock)
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This is a hypnotic lullaby-like tribute to the famous river of India. It has a long overtoning intro.

14. Freedom to Go
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A lively Celtic/African hybrid about being tied down, written in empathy with a tree. The inspiration came when I saw the most incredible weeping willow tree hanging over a road in rural Oregon.

15. Regret
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This started as a poem, written in a special loft that was blessed by a Cree elder. The verses are about the history of humanity. Later, I added a chorus of overtone singing, which seemed to sum up the sentiments nicely. It has a lot of emotional impact, through to the final melancholy strains of cello.