Biography
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Years Active
1997 – present (28 years)
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Founded In
Kelowna, Regional District of Central Okanagan, British Columbia, Canada
AVITAS is Victoria Wilson James & Kinan Atassi; a musical duo who believe their work to be an expression of Spirit, and that their symphonies encourage a certain lifestyle or philosophy of living to aid in dissolving the distractions of modern day existence. The name Avitas, is an anagram of their names; and is in essence, like the music, a fusion of their different cultures & creative spirits. One part of Avitas, Kinan Atassi hails from the mystical land of Syria in the Levant, and the other, Victoria Wilson James, from “the holy land of Indiana.” Destiny caused their paths to cross at a dinner party in the Summer of 2000, and shortly thereafter they began experimenting together to envisage a way of synergising the ancient, as well as, the contemporary musical influences of the Occident & the Orient.
Incorporating East & West, Arabia & India, Classical & Medieval Europe; the indigenous world music influences of Asia, Africa & the Far East; and then fusing them with contemporary VST, analogue & digital sequencing techniques. The end result, the stunning debut album A Course in Miracles, is a creation of incomparable & symbiotic compositions with a mystical message that transcends the ordinary and that ushers in an evolution in World Beat, Soul & Vocal Dance music. It is an experience that allows one to connect with the inner, extra-ordinary spirit, and therein realise a philosophy of life - a Lifestyle.
The Avitas Lifestyle is a musical & esoteric one. Accompanying the sumptuous CD package of A Course in Miracles is the Avitas story which holds the key to unlocking the messages, concepts, words, background history & spiritual philosophies that the music & singing enshrines and radiates to its listeners.
AVITAS is derived from Kinan Atassi and Victoria Wilson James.
From a very early age, Kinan Atassi was sighted as somewhat of a prodigy. By the time he was 18, he had won the Voce & the National Association of Teachers of Singing competitions for California. Over this period he began to envisage a way of synergising Arabic, western classical, ancient, and indigenous/world music influences that he was constantly exposed to. As he progressed in his formal musical studies, the desire to comprehensively combine different genres of music became paramount! He pondered: “Why can one not fuse all genres of music - The scales of the West (pentatonic, major, minor, etc.) intermingled with the modal system of early music, and fused with those of Arabic and eastern origin (musical traditions incorporating 8th & Quarter tones and rhythmic variations generally absent in Western music) to create extraordinary & symbiotic compositions?”
Having always been interested in the fields of science and technology, His field of musical studies logically progressed to music programming and music technology. With the advent of VST (virtual studio technology) instruments and analogue sequencing, Kinan Atassi found the platform on which to bring his dream of musical symbiosis to life.
Victoria Wilson James immigrated from the U.S. to England shortly after her graduation from the prestigious Los Angeles Academy of Theatre Arts, when former Elton John manager, John Reid, spotted her in an audition. After a disappointing first 18 months in the UK, she had the good fortune of meeting up with Jazzie B. and became the featured vocalist on their classic cut “A Dream’s a Dream”, taken from their critically acclaimed album: Club Classics Vol. II - A New Decade” as well as being a front woman on their sell out one time only world tour where she received rave reviews. She then went on to record her debut solo album “Perseverance” (released on SONY / Epic) which yielded the top 20 Billboard hit “Through”. Disenchanted with having to spend so much time in the U.S., Victoria returned to her beloved England. It was shortly after this time that she met up with Mr. C of the new meteorically rising techno-pop band The Shamen, where for the next 6 years, she made her mark on the techno music scene as the band’s front woman. It was during this time that she was offered another solo project by SONY / Dance Pool and released her “Colorfields” album and the single “Reach 4 the Melody” which not only boasted productions and re-mixes by the likes of Boris Dlugosh and Alex Party, but also topped dance charts around the world.
Avitas had the additional good fortune of meeting up with legendary producer/engineer Kenny Jones (The Smiths, Nigel Kennedy, Dead Can Dance, Bauhaus & Lisa Stansfield to name a few) just as Kenny was setting up his new recording facility in North London, and it was then that the stage became set for the next evolution in World / Dance music!
Signed to London's Thirteen , two remix EP's have recently been released featuring the likes of Mr C, Murk, Alan X, Jake Cymo, J-Level, Bhooka & T-Bone and Lo-Key remixes of tracks "Cantate" and "Re-Creation", both of which are making big waves on European club circuit.
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