Sleeping Beauty is Ken Townshend’s follow-up to Gentle Beauty, which was released earlier this year. Very ambient and atmospheric, the music on Sleeping Beauty was created with healing, peace, and spirituality in mind. From Ken Townshend: “Going deeply soft and gentle into God's Sanctuary is what Sleeping Beauty is all about. Deep into the stillness of creating quiet gentle thoughts, allowing God to speak to you, in your dreams, your healing, or just to communicate and be in communion with God. Creating an ambient atmosphere and space, getting away from the fast pace. God inspired me to create this CD, bringing the listener into their inner sanctuary. Great for quiet prayer, helpful with healing the body, mind and spirit, or just quieting the chaos of everyday.” Very flowing and soothing, the music was created with keyboards, featuring piano sounds and gentle accompaniment with various other instrumental samples. The CD flows as one continuous work, although it is sectioned into ten tracks. The mood and tempi are consistent from piece to piece, with no hard edges, abrupt changes, or startling dynamic variations. This music is best for meditating, falling asleep, letting go of stress, creating, or to simply have a serene musical backdrop for other quiet activities. There is often open space between the notes, allowing room to breathe deeply and setting a very unhurried, uncomplicated mood. Titles include “Curled Up Kat,” “Peace of God,” “Gentle Sleep,” and “Whispering Angels.” I made the mistake of trying to wake up to Sleeping Beauty, and was late getting out of bed each morning because I went back into a deep, very relaxed sleep! Music for going to sleep, yes - for waking up, no. A bonus CD that is available from Townshend’s website contains three tracks that are more lively and upbeat. This is a great CD if you need to calm your world and find a warm cozy musical space. Sleeping Beauty is available from kentownshendmusic.com, cdbaby.com, and amazon.com.