At the forefront of the sound healing genre he pioneered 50 years ago, Steven Halpern enhances his legacy with the 2024 album release of Deep Theta Vol. 2 (432 Hz). The 13-track, 71 minute album is the first to combine the timeless traditions of ancient Japanese shakuhachi and Indian bansuri flutes with the iconic Rhodes electric piano and cosmic synths.

What also makes it unique is that the entire album is tuned to 432 Hz, rather than standard concert pitch of A=440 Hz. This concept is now trending beyond the sound healing genre. 432 Hz is a harmonic of the fundamental frequency of the Earth’s electro-magnetic field, known as the Schumann resonance, and is said to be more ‘in tune’ with our individual electro-magnetic energy field (aura) and increases the benefits received by the listener.

For thousands of years, humans from a wide range of spiritual traditions around the world have used the power of sound to entrain their heartbeat and brainwaves for meditation and healing. Steven Halpern has dedicated his life to building upon that ancient lineage with a series of award-winning albums. As he has always been, he is at the forefront of the emerging field.

More than simply beautiful to listen to, each track of Deep Theta Vol. 2 (432 Hz) is tuned to the ‘theta’ brainwave range, 4-7 cycles per second (cps), which supports deeper meditation, self-healing, enhanced focus and optimal health. 

Is it possible to meditate like a Zen monk…at the speed of sound?

According to Halpern and a large and growing audience on Youtube and streaming playlists, the answer is… yes! The key is to choose the right sound, like the sounds on this album.

According to shakuhachi traditional philosophy, “Even one note of these ancient instruments, enhanced by the power of the breath, can bring enlightenment and inner peace. Indeed, one form of Zen Buddhism is called ‘Sui-zen, or Blowing Zen”. 

Each track on the album embodies and updates that tradition. The music acts “like a tuning fork for your brain ™”, which automatically is entrained to match the encoded frequencies. This corresponds to the brainwaves of trained meditators.

Featured collaborators are Argentinian master musician and sound healer Jorge Alfano (shakuhachi and bansuri flutes), American Grand Master Ronnie Nyogetsu Seldin (shakuhachi flute) and Schawkie Roth (bansuri flute).

Halpern is the producer as well as keyboardist, and weaves their soulful melodies through his lush orchestrations to create a breathtaking tonal tapestry. In the recording studio, the entrainment matrix is tuned to the ‘theta’ range by adding subtle tones to the mix of the stereo channels that synchronize the left and right hemispheres of the brain.

As Steven says, “As with all of my Inner Peace ™ series of recordings, my intention is to produce an uplifting, audio environment that harmonizes body, mind and spirit and yet is always highly listenable and aesthetically pleasing.” 

This combination of artistry and psycho-acoustics is at the leading edge of functional sound healing. Or, you can just listen to the album for its exquisite tonal richness and ambience, and enjoy it for its sheer musicality. Either way, you’ll understand why the sound healing genre is the rapidly-growing genre that it is.