Ocean of Light is the debut album by Ilka de Gast. Originally from The Netherlands and now based on the Northern California coast, Ilke is a singer/songwriter, overtone singer, sound healer, Qigong and meditation teacher, researcher, and licensed psychologist. The music on Ocean of Light was inspired by the beauty and energy of the Pacific Ocean. The album's title also refers to a concept in Chinese Zhineng/Wisdom Healing Qigong that describes an ocean of life-force energy, "chi," or the loving higher vibrational universe that is all around us and that we can tap into at any time for health and well-being as well as connection to the divine. Overtone singing is an ancient technique where a singer creates two vocal notes simultaneously - a “fundamental” note and harmonic overtones that can be selectively amplified by changing the vocal tract. All eleven of the tracks on the album were released as singles from 2022-2024, although some of the album tracks are "radio edits" and a bit shorter than the singles. Most of the pieces on the album are very ambient and ethereal, and most of the vocals are without lyrics, making it very easy to get blissfully lost in the sounds of Ilka's hypnotic singing voice as well as Native American flute, guitar and synths.

Ocean of Light begins with "Spirit Eyes," a piece that was created when Ilke's beloved cat passed. Quoting Ilke's notes: "The title of the song is a reminder to use our 'Spirit Eyes' to connect with loved ones who have crossed over, rather than remain focused on the grief and suffering with our 'human eyes.'” The Native American flute played by Tommy Graven adds to the soothing quality of the music and Ilke's lovely voice. "Ocean Waves Overtones" is even more ethereal and ambient with a steady lower-pitched vibration supporting a variety of sounds in addition to Ilke's vocalizations. "Sophia's Song" was created for Ilke's daughter and features Ilke's vocals and overtone singing as well as Native American flute and guitar (both played by Tommy Graven) - very soothing! "Song Bird" features Ilke's vocals as well as the sounds of earthy wood chimes and Koshi chimes, a steady droning sound and synths. "Desert Dance" is very different from the rest of the album and features the powerful sounds of the didgeridoo, tabla, sitar, and Native American flute as well as vocals and overtone singing. The strong, pounding rhythms create their own special magic as the fascinating combination of instruments and the vocalizations via the didgeridoo tell their wordless tale - my favorite track on the album! "Harmony Chant" is more orchestrated, but is still very ambient. It features an ancient Chinese healing mantra, "Hun Yuan Ling Tong (HYLT)," which translates to "transforming all disharmony into harmony." "Light Chant" is a remix of "Harmony Chant" that includes acoustic guitar and Native American flute; the words of the chant are sung in English on this track rather than in Mandarin - very soothing, relaxing and beautiful. The closing track, "Healing," was created for one of Ilke's closest friends who has been dealing with cancer for more than ten years. Warm, encouraging and full of love, it's a beautiful ending to a fascinating album!

Ocean of Light is available to stream or download on Amazon and is on many of the streaming platforms including Spotify, Pandora and Bandcamp. The singles are available on Apple Music/iTunes. Check it out!