There is something very different about experiencing a crystal singing bowl in person.
We often think of sound as something we hear through our ears, but sound begins as vibration. When a singing bowl is played, it creates mechanical vibrations that travel through the surrounding air as sound waves. Unlike light, sound cannot travel through a vacuum. It needs a medium — such as air, water or solid material — for that vibration to move through.
When those sound waves reach us, our auditory system translates them into what we experience as sound. But vibration can also be experienced physically. Because the body is made up of tissues, fluid and bone, vibration can travel through it too, and we can perceive some of this through the skin, muscles and deeper tissues.
Perhaps this is part of why being in the room with crystal singing bowls can feel so different from simply listening to a recording.
There is the note we consciously hear, but there are also the quieter overtones, the vibration moving through the space around us, and the gradual fading of the sound back into silence.
For me, that relationship between sound, vibration and silence is one of the things that makes crystal singing bowls such a beautiful complement to meditation.
Over time, they have become an important part of many of the meditation experiences I offer at State of Harmony in Glen Iris, Melbourne.
My collection includes a complete eight-bowl 432 Hz crystal singing bowl set, from low C through to high C, as well as four very different Crystal Tones® Alchemy singing bowls.
But I don't simply bring out all of my bowls and play them.
There is an understanding, a method and an intention behind the way I use sound.
What Are Crystal Singing Bowls?
Crystal singing bowls are generally made predominantly from quartz crystal. When they are gently struck or played around the rim, the bowl vibrates and produces a sustained tone that can continue long after it is first played.
Although we often identify a crystal singing bowl by a particular musical note, what we actually hear is more complex.
Alongside the main tone are overtones — additional frequencies that contribute to the richness and individual character of the sound.
This is one of the things I have come to appreciate more deeply as I have learnt to work with the bowls.
A bowl isn't simply a C, an E or an A.
Two bowls may sound beautiful individually, but what happens when they are played together can be completely different. Some combinations blend beautifully and create a sense of spaciousness. Others create more movement, tension or noticeable vibration between the tones.
That relationship between the bowls matters.
Sometimes I allow one bowl to sound and fade before introducing another. At other times, I may layer particular bowls together and allow their tones and overtones to interact.
And there are also times when I deliberately leave silence.
For me, silence is part of working with sound too.
What Are Crystal Tones® Alchemy Singing Bowls?
Alongside my traditional quartz crystal singing bowls, I have gradually built a collection of Crystal Tones® Alchemy singing bowls.
Alchemy bowls begin with quartz crystal but incorporate different minerals, gemstones, precious metals and other materials depending on the particular bowl.
This gives each Alchemy bowl a very distinctive appearance and sound.
Some are translucent, some metallic, some soft and luminous, while others have much deeper colours and finishes. They can be incredibly beautiful instruments.
But while I certainly appreciate how beautiful they are, ultimately what draws me to a bowl is its sound.
Each of my Alchemy bowls has a different character.
Some feel deeper and more grounding to me. Others feel lighter or more spacious. Some work beautifully with particular bowls in my collection, while other combinations create a very different atmosphere.
This is why I don't think of my Alchemy bowls simply as another musical note.
The note matters, but it isn't the whole story.
My 432 Hz Crystal Singing Bowl Set
At the foundation of my collection is a full eight-bowl 432 Hz crystal singing bowl set:
Low C – D – E – F – G – A – B – High C
When we talk about a set being tuned to 432 Hz, it doesn't mean that every bowl produces a frequency of 432 Hz.
Rather, 432 Hz refers to the tuning reference — the note A is referenced to 432 Hz, with the other notes tuned in relationship to it.
I enjoy the sound of this set and the way the bowls relate to one another. Having a complete scale also gives me flexibility when I am creating a sound experience.
That doesn't mean I use all eight bowls every time.
Sometimes one or two are enough.
Sometimes I use several.
And sometimes I combine selected bowls from the 432 Hz set with my Crystal Tones Alchemy bowls.
The choice depends on the meditation, the intention behind it and how the sounds work together.
My Crystal Tones® Alchemy Bowl Collection
My Alchemy collection has grown slowly and intentionally.
These aren't bowls I wanted to collect simply for the sake of having more instruments. Each one has brought something different to the collection I already had.
Ebony Aura Gold Alchemy™ — C♯ −5
My 8-inch Ebony Aura Gold Alchemy bowl is a C♯−5 and was described as a Base or Root-focused Prosperity Alchemy.
It has a very different quality from some of my lighter bowls, and I am often drawn towards it when I want to establish a deeper or more grounding foundation for a practice.
White Alchemy Gold / Platinum Alchemy™ — E +30
My 7-inch White Alchemy Gold / Platinum bowl is an E+30 and was described as an Illuminated Brain / Divine Feminine Alchemy.
Its tone has its own distinct character, and depending on the other bowls I combine it with, it can bring quite a different quality to the sound experience.
Pink Ocean Gold Alchemy™ — F♯ −40
My 8-inch Pink Ocean Gold bowl is an F♯−40 and was described as a Heart Pathway Alchemy.
I find myself naturally drawn towards this bowl in practices centred around compassion, softness, the heart or creating a warmer quality within the experience.
Larimar / White Light Angel Gold Alchemy™ — G +50
My 9-inch Larimar / White Light Angel Gold bowl is a G+50 and has a completely different sound and presence again.
Its traditional Alchemy associations include communication, wisdom and remembering, but what is most important to me is how the actual bowl sounds, how it works with the rest of my collection and what it contributes to the practice I am creating.
Crystal Singing Bowls and the Chakras
A commonly used framework with crystal singing bowls associates the seven main musical notes with the seven main chakras:
C — Root
D — Sacral
E — Solar Plexus
F — Heart
G — Throat
A — Third Eye
B — Crown
This is a framework I understand and take into consideration when working with my bowls.
But I don't choose a bowl simply because a particular note corresponds with a particular chakra.
The note gives me useful information.
It just isn't the only information I use.
Why I Don't Choose Bowls Only by Their Note
This is an important part of the way I work.
Through completing Level 1 and Level 2 crystal singing bowl training, I developed an understanding of notes, intervals, resonance and how different bowls can interact when they are played together.
So I absolutely look at the note.
There is a method behind what I am doing.
But I also listen.
I listen to the individual tone and overtones of each bowl. I listen to what happens when one bowl is played beside another. I notice whether the combination feels harmonious and spacious or whether it creates more movement and tension.
I consider how a particular bowl fits within the wider collection I am using.
And then there is another part of the process that is very important to me.
The intention behind the practice.
The Intention Comes Before the Sound
Before I guide a meditation, I usually have a clear intention for the practice.
It might be centred around grounding.
It might be self-compassion, letting go, deep rest, awareness or creating an opportunity to stop doing for a while and simply be.
I then consider which bowls and sounds may best support that intention.
A grounding practice may lead me towards a very different combination of bowls from a meditation centred around the heart. A Yoga Nidra practice focused on deep rest may call for something different again.
I believe the intention and care with which a practice is created can influence the experience.
I don't mean that setting an intention changes the physical frequency produced by the bowl.
Rather, the intention influences the choices I make — which bowls I use, which ones I don't use, how I combine them, how much sound I introduce and how much space I leave for silence.
There is training and understanding behind the choices I make, but there is also intuition and listening.
The aim is never to play as many bowls as possible.
The aim is to use sound intentionally in a way that supports the meditation rather than overwhelms it.
Can Crystal Singing Bowls Support Relaxation?
One of the things I love about sound is that it gives our attention somewhere to rest.
When we are listening closely to a sustained tone, our awareness may naturally move towards the rise and fall of the sound, the layers within it, the vibration we can feel or the moment when the sound finally disappears.
In this way, sound can become another anchor for awareness.
We also know more broadly that our sensory environment can influence our state. Calming music and sound, periods of rest, slower breathing and practices that bring attention into the present moment can all form part of an experience that supports relaxation.
In my sessions, however, I don't approach the bowls as something that needs to make someone relax.
Instead, I think of them as part of creating the conditions in which rest may become more accessible.
And this is also why the order of my sessions matters.
What Is a Crystal Singing Bowl Meditation Like at State of Harmony?
In my sessions, I generally begin with the meditation first.
Depending on the practice, you may be guided to bring awareness to your body, connect with your breath, observe thoughts and sensations, explore a particular theme or intention, or move into deeper rest through a practice such as Yoga Nidra.
This gives you time to gradually arrive, settle and turn your attention inward.
When the guided meditation finishes, I then move into the crystal singing bowls and sound.
At that point there is nothing else you need to follow.
Nothing you need to achieve.
You can simply lie back and receive the sound.
I may begin with one bowl and allow its sound to travel through the room before gradually introducing another. Sometimes I layer particular bowls together, while at other times I allow one sound to fade completely before the next begins.
The combination of bowls changes depending on the intention of that particular practice and what I feel will best support the experience.
And there are spaces of silence too.
For me, those spaces matter just as much as the sound.
Some people notice the vibration of the bowls quite strongly through their body. Others become absorbed in the different tones and overtones. Some find themselves deeply relaxed, while others simply enjoy having a period of time when there is nothing they need to do.
There isn't one particular experience you are supposed to have.
The invitation is simply to rest, listen and allow the experience to unfold.
Meditation, Yoga Nidra and Crystal Singing Bowls in Melbourne
At State of Harmony in Glen Iris, Melbourne, I use crystal singing bowls and Crystal Tones Alchemy bowls within a number of my meditation experiences, including meditation and sound sessions, Yoga Nidra and sound, private meditation sessions and selected small-group experiences.
The meditation remains at the heart of what I offer.
The bowls are there to support it.
After all of the notes, intervals, frequencies, Alchemies and different ways of combining sound, I often come back to something very simple:
sound doesn't need to fill every space to be powerful.
Sometimes it is the sound that draws us inward.
And sometimes it is the silence that follows that allows us to notice just how much has shifted.
If you're curious about experiencing crystal singing bowls, Crystal Tones Alchemy bowls and meditation in Melbourne, you are warmly invited to explore the meditation and sound experiences at State of Harmony.
With warmth and gratitude,
Sithara
