When local singer-songwriter Ida Jo started reciting Sanskrit passages during a recent interview it was easy to imagine the words were designed to raise the dead or to open some secret passage buried deep beneath the Egyptian pyramids.

The truth, it turns out, is far more pedestrian.

Lokah Samasta Sukhino Bhavantu, she said, means may all beings be happy and free.

The passage is one of many chanted during yoga classes run by Vinyasa Mantra Music, a new musical endeavor featuring Jo, longtime musical cohort Scott Lamps (the two also perform together in laid-back folk trio Bello) and local yoga instructors Ken Kloes and David Lincecum.

Kloes and Lincecum initially conceived of the class last summer and approached then-students Jo and Lamps to assist with the musical aspect.

I think music and yoga go hand-in-hand, said Jo. Therell be teachers that play Lady Gaga or something, and then there will be teachers that play very meditative music thats really slow and peaceful. Then theres everything in between.

Vinyasa Mantra Music performances tend towards the more peaceful end of the spectrum, with Jo and Lamps providing acoustic instrumentation (Lamps plays guitar, Jo violin) for the classes, which generally run about two hours in length. The sessions include a full yoga workout, as well as additional time for reflection and meditation.

Theres a section in the class where David talks to people about what they want more of in their life, said Jo. And people actually have paper and a pencil and write that down, and then use that for meditation.

But the most important element of the class and the one most first timers are usually more hesitant to embrace is the chanting.

Its fun to see the progression of the class, because in the beginning people are like, Oh, I dont know how much I want to sing or how loudly I want to sing, said Jo. Then towards the end everybody is really singing and really into it. The energy from the beginning of the class to the end of the class changes quite dramatically.

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Local yoga enthusiasts unwind to live music