Kirtan Concert with Wynne Paris & Cheryl Chaffee

Groove out with sacred mantras, exotic Indian melodies and the powerful voice of kirtan leader, WynneParis and his fellow devoted musician friends singer Cheryl Chaffee and drummer Heather DeRigo.

Wynne Paris is best known as a kirtan and mantra rock artist with 25 years of adventures in leading Kirtan  concerts at yoga studios and festivals. With call-and-response group chanting and storytelling, he creates a space of prayer, heartfelt devotion and harmony that  opens the heart and welcomes the spirit. 

about the artists:

WYNNE PARIS is mantra rock artist, a kirtan singer and yoga studio troubadour. He composes original Bhakti, or devotional music, that mixes ancient mantras and raga scales with contemporary sounds. Wynne, like his influences George Harrison and Paramahansa Yogananda, blends guitar, harmonium, and percussion with call and response chanting and audience participation to create that spiritual effervescence or Bhava. This is the collective energy that happens when people chant, sing, dance, clap and breathe together in kirtan.

As a child, he was introduced to yoga by his grandmother, who was a devotee of Paramahansa Yogananda. After college, Wynne became a full time musician, playing blues Rock and funk in nightclubs around the Washington DC area. By the mid 90's the seeds of karma bore musical and yogic fruit when Wynne first played guitar with the kirtan band lead by Mata Amritanandamayi, the beloved hugging saint. Shortly thereafter, In 1997, Wynne began collaborating with kirtan legend Krishna Das, appearing on several of his CDs (Pilgrim Heart, All One,) and performing with him in California, New York and Washington.  Since then Wynne has been a proponent of yoga, rock and new age music. He has performed/recorded with GuruGanesha Singh, Bhagavan Das, Tina Malia, David Newman, Girish, Gurunam Singh, and has recorded 4 CD's or original music. He also keeps one foot in the mainstream music industry, playing his improvisational world beat style of with a diverse array of stellar musicians including: Rick Allen (Def Leppard), Badal Roy (Miles Davis), Mark Karan (Bob Weir's Ratdog), JT Thomas (Bruce Hornsby) Tony Levin & Jerry Marrota (Peter Gabriel), Jim Donovan (Rusted Root), Sole (hip hop artist), Professor Griff (Public Enemy) and many more. Wynne's music has been featured on radio, tv and film but his favorite expression is playing live. In his spare time, he serves as an advisory board member for the Bonobo Conservation Initiative in Washington DC. Wynne is also a cofounder of the Lovelight Yoga & Arts festival.

CHERYL CHAFFEE is Sarasota's own beloved kirtan singer and operator of Garden of the Heart Yoga. Cheryl has a beautiful voice and is gifted with natural yogic and musical talent that shines in her kirtan music. Her debut recording,  Wynne and Cheryl have been singing together for years, both at Garden of the Heart and various festivals including Bhakti Fest and the Lovelight Festival.

Heather Derigo - percussionist

HEATHER DERIGO -Born into a family of professional and touring musicians, Heather grew up immersed in Musical & Artistic culture with a strong influence in Funk, Rock & Jazz styles. She is an experienced performer, comfortable on the stage as a drummer & percussionist - as well as having garnered experience as a soulful lead & back up vocalist. Often creating hybrid set-ups from drumset, djembe, cajon, tabla and a buffet of dynamic hand percussion, Heather is characterized by many in her field as a 'pocket' player' with a flair for world beat rhythms & creative grooves. She is an experienced Music Director and teacher in both the private sector & class environment, teaching Music and Drums at various Schools, including Tampa's premier Music School The Patel Conservatory. She has played with numerous bands & artists in a wide variety of Musical styles - including World Music, with celebrated Fusion musicians such as Sandip Chatterjee,  Shankh Lahiri, 'The Violin Brothers', Abhik Mukherjee, Morikeba Kouyate & more. Invited by world renowned drummer, musician & composer- Ranjit Barot, Heather was invited to perform for India's television program 'Coke Studio @ MTV' in 2012. In 2017, she was nationally selected to be the drummer for the new band & Reality Television show 'Frequenci', where she recorded Drums & Vocals for the pilot episode in Philadelphia. Heather has also enjoyed using her musical creativity in uplifting environments such as Kirtan musical scene where she has performed with leading Kirtan bands & artists such as Girish, David Newman, Fantuzzi, Visvambar Sheth, Kirtan Rabbi & more.

listen to Wynne's song DREAMING RADHE