AN INTERVIEW WITH SATYA HINDUJA, ARTIST & FOUNDER, ALCHEMIC SONIC ENVIRONMENT – UNVEILING A NEW GENRE OF SOUND
Satya Hinduja is a visionary composer, sound artist, and DJ whose work bridges music, sound healing, and technology. She combines musical instruments, voice, field recordings, and alternate tunings to craft immersive spatial sound experiences. Her artistic journey spans film scoring, mixed-media installations, production, and DJing as “Sound Underground,” and has led her to explore profound intersections between Neuro-Linguistic Programming, Kinesiology, Quantum Theory, and Vedic philosophy.
As the founder of Alchemic Sonic Environment (ASE), Satya has pioneered a multi-sensory, deep-listening experience that merges sound, music, and health to foster a sense of interconnectedness with oneself and the environment. ASE is evolving as a NeuroSound research and technology platform, merging ancient sound healing practices with innovative technology to enhance physical, mental, and spiritual well-being.
Satya collaborates with artists, neuroscientists, and healing arts practitioners and will present a special unveiling at MUSEXPO on Sunday, March 16th in Hollywood. A&R Worldwide readers can experience this mind, body, and soul-inspiring experience at this special event by sending your RSVP to https://www.alchemicsonicenvironment.com/rsvp.
Your journey has taken you from film scoring and DJing to the intersection of music, wellness, and neuroscience. What pivotal moments or realizations led you to create Alchemic Sonic Environment.
Growing up in a Vedic-infused joint family, I was surrounded by mantras, music, and my grandparents’ spiritual values which deeply influenced my childhood. My musical journey began early when at the age of 6, I was chosen to sing a children’s song on All India Radio about life’s endless journey. By the age of eight, I performed in a theatrical play about Mahatma Gandhi. Performing live on stage whether in theatres or duets with my cousin, became second nature and were the foundations of my musical beginnings. My vocal training and career continued to flourish until life took an unexpected turn.
The Mumbai terrorist attacks and my arrival in Boston to study at Berklee College of Music coincided with the collective trauma of 9/11, and was a pivotal moment in my musical journey and profoundly shaped my artistic path. Driven by a desire to create art that offers comfort and hope, I pursued film scoring at Berklee. After returning to India, I spent 6½ years in the Indian Film Industry as a score engineer, producer, and composer. Despite my success, I longed for a more fitting sonic environment, which led me to explore electronic music composition while working as a Creative Director for our family hospital.
My passion for electronic music brought me back to New York in 2012, where I immersed myself in a year-long electronic music production and DJ Master’s program while performing across New York City, Amsterdam, Mumbai, Delhi, and Goa. As I explored deep house, ambient dubstep, and progressive house, my curiosity about the essence of sound deepened. A pivotal shift came when my Dubspot mentor, Raz Mesinai, introduced me to sound as a dynamic interplay of action and reaction, a process that involves both cause and effect, emphasizing its interactive and dynamic qualities. This exploration led me to a neuroscientist who unveiled the transformative power of the 136.10 Hz frequency, reconnecting me to my Vedic roots and the profound concept of Nada Brahma – the belief that sound is the essence of all creation. Composing with this frequency resulted in profound physiological changes to my mind and body, and it was at this moment that the Alchemic Sonic Environment(ASE) was born.
At the intersection of sound, music, health, and technology, ASE creates multisensory deep listening experiences to foster profound connections with oneself and the world. Blending timeless wisdom with emerging technologies, ASE delivers transformative journeys that enhance brain health, longevity, and inner harmony. In a world searching for unity, ASE is the culmination of my life’s work and a testament to the power of sound to heal, connect, and transform lives.
How has your formal training at Berklee and Dubspot, combined with electronic music, shaped your approach to sound healing and immersive sonic experiences?
My formal training began at Berklee College of Music, where I initially pursued songwriting with the goal of working in Bollywood. However, my focus evolved from Bollywood-inspired songwriting to the fusion of genres, leading me to major in film scoring while exploring Indian Music Concepts with Electronic Music Production under Kai Turnbull. A defining moment came during Brian Transeau’s (BT) residency, where I had the opportunity to highlight my vocal skills and witness his groundbreaking stutter edit techniques. Working with BT, a pioneer in electronic music, deepened my understanding of production and its limitless creative potential.
While exploring both film scoring and electronic music, I discovered a unique intersection: the psychological depth of film scoring and the physiological impact of electronic music production.
I chose to complete my Film Scoring degree before returning to India. Though this experience honed my skills, I felt a lingering sense of something more. That desire led me back to New York, where I finally pursued a year-long master’s course in Electronic Music Production and DJing at Dubspot, learning from a diverse and creative group of artists, producers, sound designers, and mix engineers.
Through my journey in both disciplines, one fundamental lesson emerged—an understanding of the deep interconnectedness of sound, music, consciousness, and the universe. At the heart of this realization was “the spaces in between”—the silence and pauses that give music its life. This realization became the bridge between sound, psychology, physiology, and healing in my artistic expression.
Your work incorporates influences from NLP, Kinesiology, Quantum Theory, and Vedic philosophy. How do these disciplines inform your composition and the way you approach sound as a tool for transformation?
My work, Alchemic Electronica, is a new genre exploring the space where music and mathematics coalesce. The compositions are rooted in nature and blend positive practices to rebalance and engage the creator, integrating mantras, affirmations, organic and planetary frequencies, ancient texts, and the element of space as an instrument for emotional regulation. The process is a laboratory of internal balance and meditative rigor, allowing creation with scientific precision—driven by my vision of sound and its transformative potential in therapeutics and medicine.
ASE integrates ancient sound healing with innovative neuro-acoustic research. Can you explain how ASE’s sonic architecture works on the human nervous system and brain waves?
Inspired by the tradition of Nada Yoga, the yoga of deep listening, the ASE method integrates ancient sonic therapies with neuro-acoustic research, emerging technology, and innovative recording techniques. Our multilayered approach begins with primal frequencies found in nature aligning with our inherent circadian rhythms, establishing a connection to the natural world.
Building upon this foundation, we explore the harmonic series, a phenomenon found throughout nature, deepen the listener’s connection to their environment, creating a sense of inner balance through the profound experience of natural resonances and ratios. Tempo also plays a significant role – with BPM carefully curated to positively influence the listener’s heart rate and encourage a state of relaxed awareness.
Research has shown that spatial listening supports brain regeneration, particularly in the hippocampus, the center for memory and learning. Inspired by the latest psychoacoustic research, spatial audio techniques are central to the ASE process creating an immersive experience that promotes measurable cognitive benefits. Additionally, the natural tendency of our brain waves to entrain with repeated sounds is utilized, allowing listeners to enter various states, from deep relaxation to heightened focus.
By integrating these elements with innovative recording and mixing techniques, we have crafted a truly immersive sonic experience, an endeavor we were honored to develop alongside the late legendary engineer John Kurlander and Dolby Atmos Mixing Engineer Emre Ramazanoglu. ASE’s sonic architecture facilitates brain-body health through a heightened connection that unifies the listener, their inner world, and the world around them.
The Schumann Resonance, Earth’s natural electromagnetic frequency (7.83 Hz), plays a significant role in ASE. How do you harness this frequency in your compositions, and what effects does it have on consciousness and well-being?
This is fundamental to the ASE process. The Schumann Resonance, a natural phenomenon, is a constant, unseen force shaping our world. Vibrating at 7.83 Hz, it forms when lightning strikes the Earth, generating energy waves between the ground and sky—like a planetary drumbeat sustained by over 2,000 simultaneous storms.
Though inaudible, this resonance profoundly affects all life on Earth. Its harmonic series holds vast creative potential, weaving together concepts of lightning, thunder, and electricity. Notably, 7.83 Hz falls within the Alpha brainwave state, associated with relaxation, meditation, creativity, and heightened focus, illustrating how the ASE Method harnesses frequency to enhance mental states and unlock deeper creative expression.
Your upcoming album, The Athenaeum of Sound, will feature seven transformative tracks based on the ASE Method. Can you share insights into the creative process behind this album and how each track serves a distinct purpose?
The Athenaeum of Sound (A.O.S.) is my first immersive concept album ~ a nonlinear exploratorium, a library of consciousness integrating art, science, technology, yoga, and ancient literature. Each composition is set to a root frequency focusing on the transformational power of sound that represents the orbits of planets referenced by NASA’s planetary fact sheet and the concept of the ‘Music of the Spheres’ dating back to the Ancient Greek philosopher and mathematician Pythagoras and Mathematician and astronomer Johannes Kepler’s “Harmonices Mundi.”
The record explores Alchemic Electronica ~ a new sub-genre of electronic music based on the ASE Method combined with classical, space, dance, electronic, world, ambient, and deep listening influences.
The concept of A.O.S is inspired by the nonlinear odyssey of our Universe, our symphonic brain, and the Star Wars film franchise. Akin to the groundbreaking release of Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope, the first in the series of the A.O.S ~ Composition IV, Essence 136.10 Hz The Earth’s primal frequency will pave the way for six subsequent works, set to unravel the multidimensional tapestry of sound each poised to reveal the mystical resonance and harmony of our existence. A canvas to wonder and enchant the listener on a transcendent journey through the wonders of our sonic universe.
You collaborate with neuroscientists, healing arts practitioners, and sound researchers. Can you share some of the key individuals or organizations that have been instrumental in the growth and validation of ASE.
Neuroscientist Rohan Dixit; Founder Lief Therapeutics; Aurelio C. Hammer, Founder Svaram Musical Instruments & Research Centre; Dr. Alfred Tomatis, The Tomatis Method; Dr. John Beaulieu, Founder, Biosonic Repatterning; Joshua Leeds, Author, The Power of Sound; Alexander Tannous, Ethnomusicologist, Sound Therapist & Researcher; Dr. Jeffrey Thompson, Founder, Neuroacoustic Research Centre; Conductor David Murphy; Professor Gascia Ouzounian, Oxford University; Daniel Hulme, Studio Manager & Co-Director, Electronic Music Practice & Research Group (EMPRes) Oxford University; Maestro Chintan Upadhyay, Alembic Dhrupad Foundation; Mckinsey Brain Health, and CW+ Arts in Health, Charity at the Chelsea and Westminster Hospital.
As ASE evolves into a NeuroSound research and technology platform, what role do you see artificial intelligence and spatial audio playing in the future of therapeutic soundscapes?
AI has the potential to revolutionize the way we approach the integration of sound, music, and health, offering a range of exciting possibilities for personalization and real-time biofeedback with heart rate, brain activity, psychological, neurobiological, and emotional responses to distinct types of sound and music. There is immense potential to create personalized deep listening experiences that can help alleviate anxiety, depression, and other mental health conditions. Brain Computer Interfaces are also an exciting avenue of emerging technologies that can help develop precision sound-based interventions. Although there’s a concern that AI might overtake human creativity, it’s crucial to recognize its limitations and focus on its potential as a powerful tool. By embracing AI, we can usher in a new era of music making, integrating spatial audio, epigenetics, and cognitive neuroscience to unlock music’s full transformational potential with the advent of Quantum Computing.
Music and health are converging in exciting ways, how do you envision ASE combining these two paths and creating a broader impact?
The intersection of music and health holds boundless potential, and ASE is working to leverage this synergy by developing an integrative ecosystem.
Despite growing evidence of therapeutic benefits, current sound therapy-based studies often lack randomization and control groups. These limitations, along with variations in study design, treatment methods, and outcome measures – plus diverse patient demographics and conditions – hinder the ability to draw universally applicable conclusions and to account for placebo effects and personal preferences. More rigorous large-scale studies with standardized protocols and long-term follow-up are needed to help us fully understand the role of sound and music from a precision medicine perspective.
At ASE, we are working to connect the worlds of Frequencies, Music, Technology, Mental Health, and Brain-Body Health, and believe this convergence can lead to exciting new frontiers in these fields. ASE has been sharing its experiences in diverse environments to cultivate an ecosystem that connects musicians, neuroscientists, healthcare professionals, and technologists. Our recent sharing of ASE at BrainMind and the eMHIC ( e Mental Health International Congress) 2024 and our residency last month at London’s Chelsea and Westminster Hospital demonstrated how developing strategic partnerships with the global health community will enable ASE to democratize access to the healing power of sound and music whilst first building towards the delivery of evidence-informed health and wellbeing solutions that resonate deeply with each individual listener, then moving towards precision music medicine.
This collaborative approach aims to drive innovation, encourage research, and facilitate the development of new applications, advancing the field and improving patient outcomes.
The music industry is shifting towards immersive and transformative experiences. How do you envision ASE influencing live music performances, festivals, and even virtual reality environments?
At the heart of the ASE Method lies a commitment to creating immersive and transformative deep listening experiences. By partnering with artists, musicians, festivals, and other virtual and augmented reality environments, we bring the ASE Method to life in unique and profound ways.
Our ASE Method workshop with The Royal Philharmonic Orchestra and Synergy Choir, for example, resulted in a highly successful immersive concert, Harmony of the Worlds, in Luton where we combined Essence, with Beethoven’s 6th Symphony in an entirely immersive format. Our ASE Method recording and mixing techniques we invented with the late iconic engineer John Kurlander and Dolby Atmos mixer Emre Ramazanoglu have given us a framework to develop the next compositions with precision and detail. Our recent collaboration with Impeccable Imagination for The Sublime Nature of Being in Dubai was another success, transforming the Summer Garden of ICD Brookfield Place in Dubai into a peaceful haven for six weeks with a custom 20-speaker Spatial Audio environment. People are transported into different states of consciousness as they walk into an Alchemic Sonic Environment.
As we explore new opportunities to collaborate with festivals, museums, performers, and beyond, we see immense potential in partnering with the music industry. Together, we can elevate music beyond entertainment and celebration, transforming it into a profound, immersive experience that deeply resonates with audiences.
You have presented ASE at prestigious events like the World Government Summit, MUSEXPO, and Berklee India Exchange. What are your next steps for expanding ASE’s presence globally, and are there specific markets or collaborations you are targeting?
My vision for ASE extends beyond prestigious events, aiming to highlight its immersive potential through collaborations with artists and spatial audio experts at iconic venues like The Royal Albert Hall, Carnegie Hall, and The Sphere. To expand globally and enhance accessibility, we are focusing on three key strategies:
- High-Impact Collaborations – Partnering with renowned artists and participating in major summits, experiences, and immersive art installations to highlight ASE’s transformative power on a global stage.
- Digital Accessibility – Developing an app that allows users to experience ASE at home, ensuring adaptability across various settings.
- Strategic Partnerships – Aligning with like-minded companies and organizations to expand ASE’s reach, engage diverse audiences, and enter new markets.
Our goal is to share ASE’s healing potential worldwide, fostering personal well-being and harmony. A key focus for our expansion is the creation of permanent ASE installations in spaces dedicated to healing, wellness, and luxury. Building on our success at Chelsea and Westminster Hospital, we aim to collaborate with hospitals, wellness centers, architects, and designers to craft bespoke ASE experiences—seamlessly integrating sound, space, and design for a deeply immersive and restorative journey.
Looking ahead, what is your ultimate vision for the Alchemic Sonic Environment? How do you hope ASE will redefine the way people experience and engage with sound in the coming years?
I envision a world where Alchemic Sonic Environments are recognized as essential components of our well-being, considering the connection between music, sound, and health. Just as food affects brain chemistry via the vagus nerve, countless studies proved music’s influence on our psychology, physiology, and neurobiology. Researchers at John Hopkins University state: “Music is structural, mathematical, and architectural.” It’s based on relationships between one note, the next, and the environments we listen to them within.
Despite extensive research, music’s healing potential remains unrecognized in the mainstream. An IFPI study shows that people listen to over 20 hours of music per week worldwide, yet engagement is still shaped by genre divisions, and listeners rely on devices for access.
With advancements in cognitive neuroscience, quantum technology, and neuroethics, ASE, working alongside the music industry, can redefine the future of sound. By combining music with innovative research, ASE highlights the importance of sound on human experience, economic growth, and productivity, transforming how we perceive sonic environments and their role in well-being.
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