|
Remarkably, it is now over 30 years since George
Winston's "Autumn" became the first piano release of the
Windham Hill label. This collection was put together in
2001 to celebrate 25 years of consistently high standard
piano releases from this small company led by Guitarist
Will Ackerman at the helm. He has since relinquished his
responsibilities at the label, and has taken to
producing the music for up-and-coming pianists, who
might well have found their way onto the Windham Hill
roster if they had composed their music decades ago.
For
the Windham Hill label itself, time has not been kind
and, in line with many other labels covering the New Age
genre, it now ceases to exist. It is through wonderful
CDs like this one, that the music lives on to be enjoyed
by future generations.
"Beautiful, relaxing music" are words synonymous with
the label, and the collection does not disappoint.
The CD opens fittingly with a
contribution from the legendary George
Winston. "Dubuque" is taken from his
"Plains" CD from 1994. It is a catchy
and melodic piece which gets the
listening experience off to a great
start. Track 2, "Wedding Rain" is
arguably Liz Story's most popular
composition. Classically trained, this
influence shines through in her
compositions. Few people can have
changed style as much as Jim Brickman,
the creator of the album's third track,
"If You Believe". Brickman's original
releases were solo-piano. Since then, he
has gone on to a lucrative career with
the label, reverting to more "pop"
music. This change in direction might
not be appealing to piano lovers, but it
certainly has had an effect on sales. He
has sold more than three million records
in seven years. No wonder the label is
content with his new style! Happily,
this track is from his early days and is
a spritely little number. Øystein Sevåg
provides the curious fourth track of the
CD. "Children's Song" is a very
beautiful piece and is full of
innocence.
"As For Us" is a track by
Fernando Ortega. It is a very
pleasant little number,
originally from Piano Sampler
II. Track 6, "In Flight" is by
Michael Harrison, not to be
confused with Michael Allen
Harrison. Listening to this, the
listener can picture themselves
soaring through the sky with the
migrating birds. It's a
wonderful, imaginative and free
spirited piece. Michael Harrison
later went on to focus on piano
compositions written purely in
intonation, but this track is
far more accessible. "Inside
Out" is another offering from
the ever-popular Liz Story.
Again, there is a catchy melody,
and her classical influences are
apparent.
It's back to Jim Brickman again for Track 8, and
the composition he credits with launching his
career. "Rocket to the Moon" is a lovely,
extremely melodic piece and quickly became a
favourite amongst his hoards of fans. W.A.
Mathieu (Walter Allaudin Mathieu, but sometimes
known as Allaudin Mathieu) features in the
collection's ninth track- "To the Well". There
can be no disputing the fact that this is his
most popular composition and very beautiful it
is too. Originally written as a solo-piano
piece, both Allaudin and Will Ackerman agreed
that the track needed that little extra
something. Together, they concurred that
wordless vocals should be added, and they
managed to secure the services of
internationally acclaimed composer and vocalist
Bobby McFerrin. The addition of the vocals
allows the composition to reach new heights and,
as such, has become one of my all-time favourite
tracks. It has a timeless quality. It's also
worth noting that "To the Well" is one of Will
Ackerman's favourite tracks in the entire
Windham Hill catalogue- and that runs into
several hundred tracks.
Windham Hill are certainly looking to the future
by including the debut track from a talented 16
year old by the name of Taylor Eigsti. Taylor
certainly shows much potential in his track,
"Past Voices" and hints at his jazz roots. "A
Morning With the Roses" is just as appealing as
the title of the track would suggest. It is a
fine piece by Richard Dworksy, originally
released on a Piano Sampler from Windham Hill.
George Winston provides the CD's penultimate
track, with a typically melodic piece entitled "Loreta
and Desirée's Bouquet- Part 1", taken from his
"Summer" CD. The honour of providing the
compilation's closing track goes to Philip
Aaberg who recorded four albums for the label
and has since gone on to producing his own CDs
on his own label- sometimes with a blues
influence. This is not the case with "Montana
Half-Light" which has classical and new-age
traits. What is clear, however, is Aaberg's
remarkable ability for playing the piano. It is
no surprise to see Montana in the title, for his
homeland has been the source of great
inspiration to this exceptional composer.
What a collection! Windham Hill have released
many gems in their 25+ years, and this is an
excellent collection. My only surprise and
slight regret is that the label saw fit to only
release a 53 minute CD. With the quantity of
tracks at their disposal, a double CD (such as
Narada released when celebrating their
anniversary) would have been ideal, with no
sacrifice to quality. Still, good things often
come in small packages, and this is the case
here.
I highly recommend this CD. It quite possibly
will motivate you into exploring the artists'
own work.
S.C.
|
