This music may soothe your soul, awaken your spirit. Check out live concerts this weekend

Just close your eyes and listen.

At a performance by Gaavani, happening this weekend in North Jersey, you might hear a bow across the strings of violin. Or hands tapping the skins of a bongo-like drum called a tabla. Or the voices of women performing Kirtan, Sikh devotional music with song, poetry and instruments.

Gaavani, a group of women who perform devotional Sikh music in the classical form, will perform for the first time in New Jersey — at two Bergen County temples known as gurudwaras. The performances are open to everyone — and Giani Baljinder Singh Ji, the head priest for Guru Nanak Mission in Oakland, invites attendees to take it all in.

"They just sit and listen. You can't shout, you can't cry. Just close your eyes and listen," Singh said. "You have to sit on the floor or if you are unable, you can sit on chairs."

Three renowned Sikh devotional singers — Biba Guneet Kaur from Denver, Biba Simrit Kaur from Canada, and Biba Amrita Kaur from New Zealand — will perform Saturday at Guru Nanak Mission, 138 Bauer Drive in Oakland from 5 to 9 p.m., and Sunday at Gurdwara Sri Guru Singh Sabha, 541 Prospect St., Glen Rock from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. The only other American concerts this year were in Texas.

The songs sung during the weekend performances will be a "celebration of Guru Nanak Sahib’s music and message by female voices," according to the Gaavani website. Guru Nanak is the founder of Sikhism.

Sikhism is the world’s fifth-largest religion — as many as 1 million Sikhs live in the United States and 100,000 in New Jersey.

Dating back to the 1400s, the monotheistic religion teaches the fundamental principles of truthful living, service to humanity, and devotion to their Divine and Infinite Creator.  Sikhs believe that every person, regardless of race, gender or sex, is equal.

Singh, the head priest for Guru Nanak Mission, expects about 400 people to attend the event, which is usually the number of congregants for the temple. The mission expects there may be closer to 800 to 1,000. The performers are expected to last about 45 minutes each.

During the performances at both temples, a traditional vegetarian meal will be served. Also, attendees are asked to remove their shoes and cover their heads with a scarf when inside the temple.

The Gaavani events will also be live-streamed and conducted in both English & Punjabi on the Gaavani YouTube channel.

An earlier version of this story misspelled the first name of the person who provided photos. Her name is Navpreet Kaur. It also referred incorrectly to the manner in which Sikhs refer to their creator. It is Divine and Infinite Creator.

Ricardo Kaulessar covers race, immigration, and culture for NorthJersey.com. For unlimited access to the most important news from your local community, please subscribe or activate your digital account today.

Email: kaulessar@northjersey.com

Twitter/X: @ricardokaul

This article originally appeared on NorthJersey.com: This music may soothe your soul, awaken your spirit. Check out live concerts this weekend