Sanctuary for the Soul

This instrumental debut album features peaceful, healing and joyful songs intended to help listeners escape from the pressures and stress of the world. LA-based pianist and composer Janice Lacy joined with other SoCal musicians for this joint effort. Instruments include acoustic piano and keyboards, cello, bass, and percussion in various combinations, including solo piano pieces. The music merges New Age, soft adult contemporary jazz and neo-classical genres.

The album opens with the ethereal “Sanctuary for the Soul” title track. A rippling cadenza precedes a gorgeous and haunting cello melody that quickly grips the listener as a true lure into the ambience of the music. The subsequent tracks focus on well-crafted songs in major modes that gives the music an uplifting quality.

Track 12: Full Moon has the densest instrumental textures, a rich merger of a jazz band sound with light chimes in the background to add an ethereal element. The final Track 14: Tell You That I Love You is a fun pop-jazz song. The listener can tell that the musicians were relaxed and having a great time playing it.

Sanctuary for the Soul is a CD for personal relaxation and de-stressing. Uses for rituals and healing depend on the tastes of the practitioner. It provides a friendly and cheerfully uplifting musical ambience. 

~review by Elizabeth Hazel

Artist Janice Lacy Project
Shore Light Records, 2016
14 tracks, 47 minutes
CD Baby: CD $12.97, mp3 download $9.99.