Stephen Smith began composing music to Hazrat Inayat Khan's poetry in the late seventies. His first recording of Inayat Khan's poetry , Promise of the Dawn (1980), was a collaboration with Dilwara Fletcher and Shams Kairys with original compositions by all three performers. He studied classical piano, jazz piano, and composition at Berklee College of Music, and classical composition and piano at City College of San Francisco.
Dilwara Fletcher fell in love with the poetry of Hazrat Inayat Khan in the late 1970's. At the time she was already singing having grown up in a musical family and studying voice with her mother, Patricia Heuermann-Nowik. After reading Hazrat Inayat Khan's work on music, Dilwara began studying Indian Classical music which she continues to study today. She has also studied Music Theory and Composition. Her teachers include such world renowned artists as the late Pandit Pran Nath, Terry Riley, W.A. Mathieu, Zuleikha, Krishna Bhatt, and the late Vasant Rai.
Ananda Eric Pritchard, violinist, enjoys an active career as a classical performer and supporting musician for the Dances of Universal Peace. The winner of the National Federation of Music Clubs Award in Violin, he has performed as soloist with many orchestras in the United States including the Boston Pops and the Indianapolis Philharmonic as well as with orchestras in Europe and South America. As the First Violinist of the Ciompi Quartet he appears on chamber music series throughout the United States and Europe and serves on the faculty of Duke University. He holds degrees from Indiana University and the Juilliard School.
Latifa Noor Elizabeth Anderson is an improvising cellist and vocalist who has performed throughout the United States, Austrailia, Italy, Germany, Finland, Israel, Japan and India. As cellist of the Meliora Quartet she was winner of the Naumburg Award and she currently performs with the New York City Opera at Lincoln Center. She has created a CD of original improvisations for cello, voice and tamboura, titled Latifa Noor. As a recording artist she has recorded for Telarc, Nonesuch, and RCA.
Jewelsong is an eclectic women's vocal ensemble who share the joy of music through inspirational songs from many different spiritual traditions. Betsy Bickel, Farrunnissa Lila Rosa, Marilyn Grubbs, and Sofianna Sue-Anne Solem have been musicians most of their lives and have been singing together since 2002. They released a 2006 CD of their music, The Beauty We Love.
Michael Thompson, Guitarist, holds a degree in guitar performance from The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and a Masters in Music Education from East Carolina University. After serving for over 10 years in Artist-in-Residence programs with the NC Arts Council, he worked as an Entertainer aboard the Mississippi Queen Riverboat for several years before returning to NC to teach, perform and record.