AMA
Yungchen Lhamo

1. Ranzen
2. Gebu Shere
3. Om Mani Padme Hung
4. Tara (with Joy Askew)
5. 9/11
6. Look Down On Us
7. Nyebe Nilam
8. Someday
9. Fade Away (with Annie Lennox)
10. Lhasa

Among the world's great singers, there are a rare few who become the voice of a nation. After a decade of rapturous performances, recordings and international acclaim, Yungchen Lhamo has become for many the voice of Tibet.

On Ama, her third album for Real World Records, Yungchen again brings that voice to songs infused with the quiet spiritual power of Tibetan Buddhism, but with a decidedly 21st century global feel. Trumpet, strings, African kora, Middle Eastern percussion and the even, sweet tones of a National Steel guitar are delicately woven around Yungchen's magical voice. With guest appearances by the British singer Joy Askew and the incomparable Annie Lennox, Ama becomes that rare destination where East really does happily meet West. No translators, or politicians, required.

COMING HOME
Yungchen Lhamo

1. Happiness Is... <--Click
2. Sky
3. Heart
4. Per Rig Chog Sun
5. Khyab Sangye
6. Ngak Pai Metog
7. Dream
8. Defiance
9. Coming Home

On her second Real World release, Coming Home, Yungchen collaborated with internationally-renowned producer Hector Zazou. The album signals a daring departure from the predominantly a cappella performances of her two previous records. Using modern studio treatments and multi-tracked vocal effects, Yungchen explores the vivid range and nuances of her voice.

"We are presented with a voice of such distinct character and grace," Amazon.com wrote of the album. "Lhamo is a singer of beauty and control, and Zazou has found a setting for Lhamo's voice that surpasses expectation."

Yungchen explained her approach to Coming Home as follows: "My first love is performing a cappella. Alone onstage, accompanied by the orchestra of only a listening audience is a pure, lovely experience, and I will go on performing this way. Recording in a studio gives you the chance to experiment and explore new sounds. I have been very fortunate to have the opportunity to work with Hector Zazou.

"The songs on this album," she added, "rich with political and spiritual metaphors, are dedicated to my son, Tenzin Shaydrup and all Tibetan children who carry the future of Tibet in their hearts and minds."

TIBET TIBET
Yungchen Lhamo

1. Om Mani Padme Hung
2. Lama Dorje Chang
3. Ari-Lo
4. Refuge Prayer
5. Par Panee Dawa Shar
6. Lhasa Pumo
7. Dorje Den
8. Dradul Nyenken
9. Om Mani Padme Hung II
10. Ga Pai Pa Yul Chola

Yungchen's first release on Peter Gabriel's Real World Records label is fittingly called Tibet, Tibet. Lyrically, the songs on this album emote with the fresh cadence and gripping honesty of spiritual offerings. For example, "Lama Dorje Chang" beseeches the Dalai Lama to bless the world with his enlightened mind. "Ari-lo," a song Yungchen learned from her grandmother as a little girl, tells of entering an ominous foreign land, and gradually with courage learning to make a home there. The final track describes the strife besetting Tibet, the bravery of its people and the confidence that the Dalai Lama will one day preside over his people on Tibetan land again. The song features a full orchestra, courtesy of digital composition software. "You can't see the people," giggles Yungchen. "It's an invisible orchestra. They fell from the sky."

The New York Daily News wrote of the album: "Once you've heard her stunning record, Tibet, Tibet, on Peter Gabriel's Real World label, or seen her in concert, the power that her voice and melodies have to still an agitated mind becomes obvious."

TIBETAN PRAYER
Yungchen Lhamo
with Monks from Namgyal Monastery

1. Om Mane Padme Hung
2. Ari Lo
3. Gyalwa Tenzing Gyaltso
4. Tenyung
5. Omar Chung Chung
6. Gong Shey
7. Sangye Choe Dan Tsog
8. Lama Dorje Chang
9. Gi Pai Po Yul Cho-La

Yunchen Lhamo's first album is a collection of devotional songs she carried with her from the Tibetan highlands. The independently-released album won the Australian Recording Industry (ARIA) Award for best World Music/Folk release in 1995 and led to her being discovered and signed by Peter Gabriel‚s Real World Records.

"This CD is an offering to the one pure ray of light in this world of darkness, His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama," Yungchen said. "It is an offering to fulfill the Bodhisattvhas' wish for the happiness of all beings. I hope you can learn to sing these prayers."

COMPILATION ALBUMS / GUEST RECORDINGS

High speed connections click here

Slow speed connections click here

VIDEO:
"HAPPINESS IS..."
Yungchen Lhamo

Produced and Directed by:
Michael Coulson

Director of Photography:
Axel Baumann

Editor: Jerry Chayter

© A Real World Production

VIDEO:
a cappella concert performance
For many, vocalist Yungchen Lhamo has become the voice of Tibet. Yungchen’s powerful a cappella vocals fill the Camden Opera House as she weaves rich narrative with spirit to share her life’s journey (Click below to view).