Welcome to “Sounding Sacred Space,” a special memorial episode (#45) of the Secret Sound podcast. Here we celebrate the life and music of composer, producer, musical instrument designer, and sound healer Constance Demby (1939-2021). Inspired by Allen Kaprow’s happenings, world music, spiritual philosophy, and experimental sculpture, Demby became active in the art and music scenes of New York and California. By the 1980s she’d become a hugely successful pioneer in the emerging genre of new age music, and she would remain known primarily for her 1985 magnum opus, “Novus Magnificat.” A multi-instrumentalist and instrument inventor, Demby also became known as the inventor of the “Space Bass,” a unique sonic steel instrument which she used in much of her music.

From start to finish her work was spiritually oriented, enduringly inspired by the teachings of her guru, Sant Ji, as well as diverse metaphysical traditions. In this episode host Matt Marble explores Demby’s transcendent discography and the spiritual traditions which informed it. He also interviews the artist’s longtime friend and collaborator, two-time grammy-nominated audio engineer, Warren Dennis Khan. Constance passed away on March 20, 2021, but her legacy will continue to be discovered by new generations. This one-and-a-half hour episode, made exclusively for Dublab, is a wonderful way to explore the prolific “sacred space music” of this cosmic American artist. Welcome to the Stargate…

To explore other visionary American musicians and their spiritual influences, please visit Secret Sound.

To contact the host, Matt Marble, email: scrtsnd@gmail.com