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Harmony – Sayama and Zen World – Thierry David (both Real Music)
Harmony – Sayama www.sayama.de and Zen World – Thierry David www.thierrydavid.com (both Real Music) It is often a bit of a mixed blessing when the New Age adopts a new sound (thank god that over-obsession with making farty noises down hollow antipodean tree-trunks has abated somewhat), and sadly here Sayama resorts to a sprinkling of oriental ‘pastichés’ (my made-up word for clichéd pastiches), providing the topping for his competent but unremarkable new age layer cake. His Chinese Xiao and Japanese Shakuhachi flutes are played more in the style of their North American Indian counterparts, which of course is very much safe and predictable terrain for the new age market. It’s not that this CD is bad in any way, just unadventurous and a little disappointing given that it has apparently been crafted to ‘flow with the qi gong form of a modern day Shaolin master, Shi Xinggui’. If chillin’ and relaxin’ is what you’re after then Thierry David’s Zen World, also from the mostly reliable Real Music label, is certainly a better bet than Sayama’s Harmony. Although it could be placed in the new age/relaxation genre, Zen World also crosses over into cooler ambient, downtempo and trip-hop territories, whilst simultaneously benefi ting from some human warmth provided by fi ne female world music voices. Another plus to this CD is that a donation from sales goes to the EarthSea Institute. Fans of Ursula Le Guin’s epic tales shouldn’t get too excited as the Institute’s plans don’t as yet include the reintroduction of real live dragons into the wild, or seeking wise counsel concerning the Balance from Ged the archmage at the Roke School of Wizardry. However, Real Music’s educational foundation is committed to promoting environmental awareness through various programmes such as the Cousteau Society and the Tree Life Connection.
by Kinski
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