Parijat, a multi-instrumentalist from Cologne, Germany, says that his musical journey began when he learned to play the mandolin at age nine. Shortly after he switched to acoustic guitar. After many years and the acquisition of a high level of technical skill Parijat stopped playing—for ten years. He traveled, practiced meditation and began a personal education during this time. When he was 30 the impulse to play returned.

“It was like a new birth, enough time had passed and I had painfully learned my lesson,” says Parijat. “Looking back, I see that everything was all right the way it was.”

His first CD, Buddha Garden was recorded with him playing all the instruments, handling all the recording as well as the mastering. The release came out on New Earth Records in Santa Fe and reached the top ten of the New Age charts.

He describes his music as “music out of silence for silence.”

As far as gear he uses solid body nylon string guitars.

“For me the sound of Solid body Nylon guitars work the best. The Tone is right there and the sustain makes it possible to create space and play less notes,” says Parijat. “On my album Buddha Garden, I mainly used a Gibson Chet Atkins Nylon. In these days I play a Guild SC3 Paloma (also a solid body Nylon).”

He says the most important sound to him is the Guild. After trying Other brands, including Sadowsky, Yamaha and Godin he decided the Guild was the thing.

“The Guild has the best warmth and the right sustain, easy to play. With it I use a Lexicon MPX 1 Multieffekt,” he says. “I use only one setting which I customized to my own liking and use. The added effect of the MPX1 is part of my sound and tone--No pre-delays. Also I do not want to miss my Taylor 914 Steel string acoustic. For me this Taylor works the best for Strumming, picking and soloing. It has a very fine Tone and I use light strings.”

Besides the guitar Parijat also uses a Jerry Jones electric sitar, a Chinese Gu Zheng and a Yamaha Motif for a bit of atmosphere.

But he says that if he were to go anywhere and take only one instrument it would be the Guild (and his Lexicon).

“I do know, that the world of equipment is so vast, and the more one goes into it, the more one thinks one needs.” He says. “In my experience one does not need a lot of gear, when the stuff one owns has good quality.”