The renowned New Age (but classically trained) flautist Christa Michell and the octogenarian expert of traditional tibetan instruments Ben Scott, both English, have joined their musical forces to actualize this remarkable project. It is a totally acoustic collection of soothing musical compositions dedicated to the chakras, i.e. the seven main energy centres of the human body according to the hindu tradition. That's not something new in New Age music, but this album sounds different from other recordings of similar inspiration mainly because of the more lyrical atmosphere contributed by Michell's masterly interpretation. Her flute delicately wraps the ancestral and magical sounds of the tibetan singing bowls played by Scott, smoothing the edges of a possibly unfamiliar music with with harmonic constructions more evocative of western musical tradition. While this CD can be appreciated also in an exclusively listening mode, its ideal playing time is while meditating or performing other spiritual practices. In fact, the liner notes contain also an exercise to do while listening to the various tracks, each dedicated to a specific chakra. One last thing to note is that a 5% royalty from the sale of each copy of this album is being donated to the Tibetan Relief Fund, to support the Tibetan people.

Ben Scott/Christa Michell

Tibetan Chakra Meditations

Oreade

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It's a well know fact that New Age music can be most beneficial also as a component of stress reduction programs. And particularly so when it's played on the acoustic piano, with its soothing, ageless sound. In fact, it's no coincidence that among the first recordings to be labelled "New Age" or "relaxing music" a couple of decades ago there was one by the American pianist George Winston. With this album, another gifted American pianist, Kenneth Grey Hope, seems to follow in Winton's footsteps, offering us 10 lovely and emotionally rich piano miniatures that combine New Age atmospheres with folk music influences and, in addition to providing a pleasurable listening experience, can be used to bring thoughts and emotions into harmony. In fact, Hope's music is already being played in hospitals and clinics, since, in the words of one of the specialists who "prescribes" it, "it represents a significant contribution to a healing environment". Anyway, our prescription is to use it at home, and it can help you recover from a stressful day.

Kenneth Grey Hope

Night Musik

Pivotal Records

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Putting the principles of musicotherapy into practice, a group of musicians of the famous Dutch Label Oreade has conceived the Smart Music Series. Through the combination of gentle electronic music, nature sounds and advanced recording techniques (like the Natural Surround Sound), the main purpose of this series is to improve the listener's well being and psychophysical health. All the titles published so far are very interesting, but this one by the Welsh musician Gomer Edwin Evans is probably the best from a strictly musical stand-point, with its hauntingly beautiful melodic climate and its soft and hypnotic rhythmic patterns. Of course, it has also a precise therapeutic purpose (as the title Tuning Into the BodyMind - How To Increase Your Health clearly indicates), which best expresses itself when you listen to the music in a comfortable and relaxed state, or even better during meditation sessions.

Gomer E. Evans

Smart Music 7: Tuning In To the Body-Mind

Oreade

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In spite of the new title and the new (and much better looking) cover, this is not a new CD of the famous English New Age musician Mike Rowland. It is the reprint of an album dedicated to the sign of Pisces, released in 1993 in the Oreade "Zodiac Music" series. With their liquid and rarefied atmosphere, the twelve tracks contained in this album sound like an appropriate musical representation of the most "aquatic" of all water signs, but they can be listened to with much pleasure and great benefits by people of any sign. In this sense, taking such an inspired album (probably one of Rowland's masterpieces) out of a series is a way to recognize its dignity as an autonomous work. Compared to other, more acoustic titles by the same author, this one features a more intense use of electronic keyboards, which spreads a layer of sober elegance over all the tracks, and makes Rowland's typically simple melodies even more suggestive. So, if you didn't buy this album when it was first published, then this reprint is a great opportunity to fill the gap in your New Age discography.

Mike Rowland

Lady of the Lake

Oreade

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