‘The day will come when the Cause will spread like wildfire when its spirit and teachings will be presented on the stage or in art and literature…
Art can better awaken such noble sentiments than cold rationalizing, especially among the mass of the people.’
Shoghi Effendi
The Story
In 2005, a group of creatives across several disciplines converged on Vancouver Island to take part in an experimental project, collaborating with individuals and institutions to bring music and the arts to the forefront of Bahá'í community life. This project, named Badasht after the site of a crucial turning point in the history of the Faith, was transformative for everyone who took part. The ripples of that spiritually charged period have reverberated through the years, particularly in the form of a surge of musical output that took on a life of its own.
The album Badasht Vol. I - While the City Sleeps featuring songwriters JB Eckl and Eric Dozier, combined Soul, Folk, Gospel and Rock influences in a way no Bahá'í-inspired album had attempted before. Drawing on the music of their childhoods in the 1970s, Eckl and Dozier created a sound that was intimate yet expansive, and overflowing with spirit. A few years later, Vol. I was followed up by Vol. II - Raise Me Up and the collaborative, youth-driven Vol. III - Visionaries.
The music travelled far and wide, providing comfort and inspiration to thousands all over the world for over a generation. From subway commutes to children's classes, from prison cells to hospital wards, and in Houses of Worship on several continents, the songs of Badasht became so ubiquitous that Bahá'í youth often reinterpreted them without ever learning their source. Genre aside, the music achieved ‘folk’ status in a real sense.
The time has come for a revival of that spirit.
Next steps:
New music
Our priorities as we approach the task of creating a new Badasht album:
Songs that enhance the impact and meaning of the Bahá'í Writings
Songs that translate the concepts of the Teachings for a wide audience
Diverse voices from our circle of trusted musical collaborators
Meeting and surpassing the standard set by previous albums
A balance between simplicity and complexity, melody and rhythm, space and texture
To achieve this will require several months of full-time focus, a combination of long-distance and in-person collaboration, hiring of vocal, instrumental and audio engineering talent, and of course, studio time.
Online resources
Another aspect of the Badasht Project is the creation of easily-accessible materials that help the entire community raise its capacity to infuse its ongoing work with creativity and inspiration. Some of these resources, which will be available on popular platforms like YouTube and Substack, are already in development, such as:
Instrumental and vocal lessons based on past & present Badasht music
Song books, instrumentals, choir parts and tutorials
Articles and interviews intended to educate and inspire
Deepening materials on various subjects relevant to our mission
In addition, the Badasht Project will be looking for opportunities to give live workshops and concerts in various configurations.
Preview: ‘Whither Can a Lover Go?’
There’s a good chance you’ve heard Eric & JB play this one live, maybe at a conference or summer school, maybe at a house concert in your town. This quotation from Bahá'u'lláh’s Hidden Words expresses the mystic dynamic between human and Divine, a longing that reminds us of Rumi as well as the blues. The mood is full-band Americana, but the feeling is ancient and universal.
Make an impact today
Support our mission by contributing a donation.
You will receive an email receipt and be invited to our Substack where we will be posting project updates, hosting discussions and special livestreams. You will also have first look at any project-related media and early access to the finished music.
Thanks so much for being a part of our family!
The Team
JB Eckl
JB’s diverse musical career spans from performing around the world with classic funk band War to writing and producing Grammy-winning music for Santana, to creating an international music library for Meta Platforms. Combining this versatility with a restless, explorative spirit, JB imbues all of his projects with a balance of refinement and honesty, of musicality and groove.
Founder
Eric has flown the flag for Gospel music and cultural truth-telling his entire life. Whether in public speaking, choir workshop or recording/performing contexts, his focus on the sacred and his probing intellect reliably shine through. Musically, Eric’s Gospel-Soul sensibility has a way of bringing scripture to life in song, in addition to creating the perfect vehicle for his personal composing style.
FounderEric Dozier
Katie’s experience as a Waldorf educator and student of Intentional Creativity, using multiple art forms to communicate and cultivate meaning, contributes to her philosophy of human development. A frame drummer and circle facilitator in the tradition of Layne Redmond’s When the Drummers Were Women, Katie is inspired by ancient spiritual and healing modalities that weave forward into the present and future.
FounderKatie Molina Eckl
Dean brings the aesthetic depth of a professional photographer-videographer as well as the curiosity of a scholar and holistic thinker. He also has a profound love and knowledge of music and the arts and their role in community-building. Often finding himself bridging cultures and backgrounds, and keeping the flame of Badasht for two decades, Dean is in many ways the ‘glue’ of the project.
Founder