As an active traveler, it was hard for me to decide on where to get my first handpan from. A lot of uncertainty comes from buying a handpan. When will it arrive? How will it really sound? Will it still be tuned? Sela helps clear the stress on my mind. With many cheap, half-intentionally crafted handpans coming into the market now, it was comforting to know Sela is a trusted brand that produces quality handpans. My C#minor 9 Melody Handpan arrived while I was touring through the US, which I shortly after flew with to Brazil and Spain. The handpan sounded as expected, for a reasonable price that didn’t feel like a huge investment for my first handpan. The padded bag has been really comfortable and still fits in the carry-on space above in airplanes so I don’t have to worry if the airline denies my handpan bag and check under the plane where most handpans go to get detuned instantly. Though, through my travels, the handpan did lose a half note of tuning, Sela made it easy for me to have it returned with them once I was done traveling. They have always been very communicative online and caring for my concerns.
Overall, I have been satisfied going with Sela for my first handpan and have recorded multiple tracks in the studio along with my weekly handpan collab music series on YouTube. I play my C#minor handpan almost every day and I continue to find new sounds within its 9 notes to explore. I’m also very excited for my 2nd Sela handpan soon - Harmony Handpan Phoenix Steel D Amara with more notes!
Thank you Sela for taking care of me during my journey with such an ethereal instrument.
Hailing from Florida and Puerto Rico, Javier Ortiz, aka Zitrovision, is renowned for his cinematography and is now exploring handpan music while collaborating with artists worldwide like Alex Serra, Shevonne, and Sealskin. Together with Sealskin, his partner and co-creator, the Barcelona-based music duo are working on evolving the sounds of neo-soul, electronic, world, synth, and percussion while infusing sounds of ancient times with shamanic elements, light language, and ethereal instruments. Catch their debut US shows in Spring 2024 for a unique sensorial and cinematic experience. Europe shows coming soon for Summer 2024.
Javier’s creative journey started in 2012, studying analog, darkroom photography and exhibiting his works in galleries, art events, and museums across Florida. 2019 is when he started focusing on cinematography more, creating music videos and nature drone films as he traveled through various countries, co-creating with artists across the USA, Costa Rica, Spain, and most of western Europe. After connecting with Sealskin more in Barcelona and meeting a new friend in Brazil who introduced him to the handpan, Javier bought his first handpan from Sela Percussion in 2023.
Diving all the way in to the world of handpan music, Javier put all his creative resources and wisdom into collaborating with conscious creators with the mission of introducing the handpan into all realms of music with guitar, harp, cello, violin, drums, flute, and more. 6 months later, he has collaborated with 20+ artists in his Handpan Music Sessions series on YouTube, is releasing new music with Sealskin and playing their first live shows in the USA in celebration of their song “Love Temple”
Love Temple pairs Sealskin’s soulful glosolalia singing with a neo-bossa nova beat she produced in Zitrovision’s C#minor handpan scale for him to come in with a subtle melodic devotion of love. This mixture flows into a neo-soul sound and grows with stellar synth progression into a loving space of intentional co-creation. Recorded and produced by Charly Chicago at Chicago Way Studios in Barcelona, Spain [January 2024] the song was inspired and made from the idea of wanting to introduce the handpan, a new-age steel drum percussion instrument, into the everlasting realm music has ventured through – from the nostalgic saudade sounds of bossa nova to the future space sounds of the synthesizer.
Now, Zitrovision is an official artist of Sela Percussion and producing more handpan music with multi-instrumentalists for releases in 2024.
