Soulrise Melodies is a musical duo consisting of husband and wife, Zafar and Chelsea. The couple met in Haifa in 2005 and were married in 2006. They have two sons born September 2008 and March 2011, and a daughter born in January 2015. They currently live in Australia.
Although the two always enjoyed singing, playing, and composing music together, their desire to write music to selections from the Baha’i Writings intensified after becoming parents. They found that singing prayers and quotations allowed them to share the beautiful words in an accessible and heart-warming way with their young children. Singing also encouraged the whole family to memorize the Baha’i verses in an enjoyable way. Thus the “At First Light” series was created.
Chelsea and Zafar have endeavored to write simple, easy-to-learn tunes. Along with acoustic guitar and percussion, you will also hear a bit of piano and violin. “At First Light” has natural sound, with uplifting instrumentals and soft beats that will appeal to children and parents alike. Their son Zorion was also featured in a couple tracks. He had just turned 4 years old at the time of recording.
About Zafar
Zafar’s parents are from Samoa and New Zealand, but he grew up in Papua New Guinea. He enjoys skate boarding, spending time outdoors, and meeting people of all backgrounds.
He works as a doctor in the Emergency Department and is passionate about improving medical conditions in the Pacific region, in particular Papua New Guinea.
You can read about some of his health initiatives here: http://zafarsmith.com
About Chelsea
Chelsea grew up in the United States. She enjoys writing, taking photos, and music. She is passionate about the advancement of women and promoting the nobility of motherhood, and believes supporting mothers practically and emotionally is crucial for community development.
She is co-creator of the website www.enablemetogrow.com dedicated to assisting Baha’i families with spiritual development and also blogs at www.momentsaday.com where she offers resources for families to build character.
A Word of Thanks
We wish to acknowledge everyone who has supported us in creating this music, especially our parents who instilled in us a love of singing and playing instruments as we were growing up. We would also like to express our heartfelt gratitude to Karyn Robarts, who sponsored the creation of the “At First Light” series. Without her generosity, this music would not have been professionally recorded at all. We thank her with all our hearts for the amazing gift of being able to share our music with you.
Sincerely,
Zafar and Chelsea
