Gilles Bedard's
Near-Death Experience and Music Research
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Gilles
Bedard (www.inerson.com)
is a near-death experiencer and
specialist in contemplative
music. From 1982 to 1997, he
worked as journalist, concert,
radio and record producer. His
knowledge and expertise,
combined with the thoroughness
of his research, have made him
Canada's New Age music
specialist and one of the
genre's most active proponents
on the international scene.
Through the years, Gilles has
developed a unique way of
working with music. After years
of research and experimentation,
he has created Inerson, a set of
practices that enable people to
develop their potential through
music. His study of the
psycho-spiritual dimension of
death and dying has taught him
that the sacredness of life is
found in the simplest things of
our everyday lives. Since 1990,
Gilles has worked as counsellor
for near-death experiencers and
has given individual and group
workshops and seminars.
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The
doctors at Sacré-Coeur hospital in
Cartierville, Quebec, just north of
Montreal, did not expect Gilles Bédard
to live. Ravaged by a severe intestinal
disorder for nearly five months, the
19-year-old five-foot, eight-inch Bédard
weighed just 75 lb. on November 17,
1973, when he developed a 105º fever and
lapsed into a coma. A priest
administered last rites, and Bédard's
parents were at his bedside. But he
recovered, and in the months that
followed he had vivid recollection of
his glimpse of what he calls an
afterlife. Now 38 and living in
Montreal, Bédard told deputy Chief
Researcher Sharon Doyle Driedger that
the experience has affected his life
profoundly, leading him to his present
career, as a producer of New Age music.
The following is the account of his
journey beyond death:
"All
day long, I went in and out of a
coma. Around 2 a.m., the doctors
came and put me on my back to
examine me. Then I saw a round
light at the ceiling. I felt as
if I were looking at the moon.
Suddenly, I couldn't see any
walls. Then I saw myself from
the ceiling. I was nine feet
higher than my body and I was
looking down at the people
around me. It was very strange.
I had never experienced anything
like it. I could see myself, the
people around me, the doctors,
the nurse, my family, but I felt
no emotion. It was just like
watching television.
"In
the blink of an eye, my vision
expanded and I went into a place
like a cosmos where there were
twelve people standing in a
half-circle. They were all pure
white lights and they had no
faces. Beyond them was a tunnel.
I wasn't afraid. I somehow knew
these people although they
weren't family or people I could
recognize. It was as if they
were waiting for me. I asked
them what was happening, and
they told me, 'You are not going
to die. You are going back to
Earth. You have something to
do.' I asked them what it was,
and as soon as I asked it was as
if I knew the answer. They said
I would know what I had to do
when the time came. At that
moment, I could sense the future
and I realized I had the choice
to do what I wanted to do. I
felt pure peace.
"What
I remembered most is the music I
heard when I was out of my body.
It was fascinating. It was hard
to tell how long the experience
lasted. It could have been five
seconds or half an hour. When I
came back into my body, it felt
very small. But it was OK. I
felt calm, very warm. When I
came to, around 5 a.m., I felt
ready for a party. It was as if
nothing had happened to me. I
didn't remember the experience
at that time. But a month after
I left the hospital, I had
another one.
"During
the night, I had a sensation of
falling into a tunnel. Going
into it, I knew I was about to
die, but just before arriving at
the end of the tunnel, I woke
up. It was not a dream. It was
real. And it was then that I
remembered the earlier
experience. After I left the
hospital I felt secure, as if I
were in a large protective
bubble. I knew I could cross the
street without looking and not
be hurt.
"During
my convalescence, I began to
remember the special sound I had
heard on the other side. It was
slow and calm, like very deep
breathing. At this period, I had
a vision. I was with a sage in
the mountains and we were
looking into a valley and he
said, 'You are going to bring
this music to the people.' Then
one day, a few years later, I
heard the special sound on an
album by Steve Roach, a composer
of electronic music. I had
always been interested in music.
I played the guitar and
performed in a small rock group
with some friends, but after I
discovered that album I turned
to electronic music.
Later, in 1988, I met Roach at a
New Age music conference. There
I found out that as a motorcycle
driver, he had had a near-death
experience. He said that when he
wrote music, he tried to
re-create the music he heard
when he was in the light. I kept
the experience to myself for a
long time because I didn't know
who to tell and I didn't want to
be considered a freak. I am not
afraid to talk about it now
because people have heard about
near-death experiences and it
isn't as shocking. It happened
to me and it changed my life. If
people don't believe me, that's
OK. I'm not a salesman for
near-death experiences.
"I'm
an ordinary guy. I'm into
reality. The near-death
experience was not a mystical
experience. It was a major step
that helped in my life. It
opened a new dimension for me, a
new way of thinking. It changed
my relationships with other
people, with friends, with
people near me, because I
realized that it's not other
people who create your
unhappiness. My near-death
experience opened me to the
possibilities of life. I know
that I am going to live a long
time. But I am not afraid of
death now because I know what it
is. People are afraid to die
because they don't know what's
there. But now I know that life
will continue after death."
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2. Gilles Bedard's Analysis of
NDE Music Based on His NDE |
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Gilles Bedard analyzes the
sound her heard from his NDE:
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"Based on my experience, I would
say that people usually have a
romanticized view of the music
heard during near-death
experiences. That's why most
people think first of new age
music, harp or soothing music.
From the outside, it would seem
like that, but the music
experienced from within is
deeper and more profound than
that. When I first heard the
music of
Tangerine Dream [www.tangerinedream-music.com]
("Mysterious
Semblance at the Strand of
Nightmares" from their CD
called "Pheadra")
in 1974, I thought that was
almost it. But ten years later,
when I heard
Structures from Silence from
Steve Roach [www.steveroach.com],
I recognized the sound I heard
on the Other Side. The music of
Steve Roach is by far the most
accurate and closest to the real
sound of the near-death
experience. When you go to the
source of that sound, you then
find yourself beyond the
emotional side that we usually
associate with the music on
Earth. In my twenty-five years
of research, on the television
and radio programs I was invited
to, I played that music and
hundreds of people 'recognized'
this particular sound. This
happened also at the
IANDS
conference.
"The
music of
Constance Demby [www.ConstanceDemby.com],
especially the piece "Celestial
Communion" from her album
Set Free is the musical
illustration of being bathed
into the light. For many of the
people who assisted at my
conferences, that piece unfolded
on many occasions, as a souvenir
of the near-death experience for
those who lived one.
"If
you would like to explore the
music of the near-death
experience, here are some
suggestions. These are a part of
my workshop Sound Quest to
Omega that recreates the
near-death experience in music.
Each listening has that power,
if I may say so, to unveil
forgotten memories. Each
listening takes you beyond to
the Source of the light. Some
people who have never had a
near-death experience and who
came to my workshops,
experienced a light experience
through this music similar to
the near-death experience, but
without dying."
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3. A List of Music Approaching
the Sound of the NDE |
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Here is a list of music
which Gilles Bedard says approaches the
sound of his near-death experience:
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"There is much
music available to give you this feeling
but first you must be aware of the
cleansing and the sound quest to go
beyond to the Source of the light in
Sound. You have to go beyond the
esthetic aspect of music to the source
of the power of sound. This is what I'm
doing in the workshops. People
surrendering to the sound will
themselves have a very deep experience.
"While giving my
Inerson workshops over the last 10
years, I have seen powerful catharses
and profound transformations in people.
Some have commented that the workshop
opens a door within them that not only
shuts itself after they’ve crossed its
threshold, but disappears behind,
leading them to follow the call towards
their soul within the sound. And once
they have surrendered to the sound's
resonance, they find the courage and
determination to travel the path of
profound transformation unfolding in
front of them, a labyrinth of choices
and consequences.
"What I share
with you through Inerson is a way to
connect yourself, to attune your whole
being to the sound current. Thirty years
ago, I didn’t know what to expect from
the sound, except that there was a
direction, a call to follow. I was drawn
towards that call. Over my years of
listening, I’ve found a way to probe
into the sound, to access and experience
sacred inner realms, allowing myself to
be touched by the unknown, to be
surprised by the sound. The music, or
should I rather say, the sound I heard
in my NDE, and which is now an integral
part of my life, is the expression of
consciousness, the manifestation of the
Void in the Light, the Sound Current,
the breath of the Universe, the breath
of God.
"I hope that
this music will give you a glimpse of
what I heard in my near-death
experience."
Be sure to read the article
NDE and Music Research Conclusions.
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NDE Music
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Phaedra
[Audio CD]
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by Tangerine Dream
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Although
Tangerine Dream has released
numerous studio and live
recordings, a substantial number
of their fans were introduced to
Tangerine Dream by their film
soundtracks, which total over
sixty and include Sorcerer,
Thief, The Keep, Risky Business,
Firestarter, Legend, Near Dark,
Shy People, and Miracle Mile.
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Structures from Silence [Audio CD]
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by Steve Roach
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Steve Roach is a
near-death experiencer, U.S. composer
and performer of ambient, electronic
music and tribal ambient music, whose
recordings are also classified in the
genres of space, drone, and New Age.
Roach is recognized as one of the
"leading innovators of contemporary
electronic music. As Roach's approach to
ambient music matured, he has typically
been beatless, although his rhythmic and
trance-based groove and tribal-ambient
releases are nearly as numerous as his
more atmospheric releases.
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Dreamtime Return [Audio CD]
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by Steve Roach
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Steve Roach
plans on releasing three new
collaboration albums, along with the
solo album
Soul Tones which is the first part
of a three-CD project. The second album
(Future
Flows) and the third album are timed
releases meant to incorporate the music
into the seasons.
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Cavern of Sirens
[Audio CD ]
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by Steve Roach and Vidna Obmana
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Vidna Obmana
is a pseudonym used by Belgian
composer and ambient musician Dirk
Serries. The name Vidna Obmana, a
phrase in Serbian, literally
translates to "optical illusion" and
was chosen by Serries because he
felt it accurately described the
music. Vidna Obmana's music has
often been described as anamorphic
and organic. He uses the techniques
of looping and shaping harmonies,
minimizing the configurations to a
few notes.
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Set Free: The Definitive Edition [Audio
CD]
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by Constance Demby
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Constance Demby
is a performing and recording artist,
vocalist, original instrument designer,
painter, sculptor, and multimedia
producer. Her Contemporary Classical
Electronic Symphonic Spacemusic falls
into several categories including
ambient or space music.
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Duality [Audio CD]
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by Lisa Gerrard and Pieter Bourke
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Duality is a
collaborative album by Lisa Gerrard and
Pieter Bourke released in 1998. It was
Lisa Gerrard's second post-"Dead
Can Dance" album after "The
Mirror Pool" from 1995. The
beginning of the song "Shadow
Magnet" will sound familiar to many
because it influenced, in part, the
music at the beginning of the
Gladiator soundtrack (music by Hans
Zimmer and Lisa Gerrard).
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The Book of Secrets [Audio CD]
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by Loreena McKennitt
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Loreena
McKennitt is a Canadian singer,
composer, harpist, accordionist and
pianist who writes, records and performs
world music with Celtic and Middle
Eastern themes. McKennitt is known for
her refined and clear soprano vocals.
She has sold more than 14 million
records worldwide.
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