Hana Ori – with Esoh and Ema

This track is a trio for shakuhachi with yangqin (Chinese hammered dulcimer) and erhu (Chinese two-string fiddle).  It was recorded in Nara, Japan with the Japanese musicians Esoh and Ema, founder members of the group Yurai.

Ema is also a singer, known in Japan as the ‘Rainbow Voice’. She is a pioneer of the use of the erhu outside of its usual context of Chinese folk music. Esoh is well known in Japan as a multi-instrumentalist, composer, music producer and inventor of original instruments made from wood and stone. Adrian first performed with Esoh and Ema in Kyoto, 1991 and in March 2018 the next chapter of their collaboration will continue with a concert and recording on Awaji Island in Japan.

Sweet Avre – with Neil Davey and Rebecca Jackson

This piece was recorded in Amiens, France, as part of the original soundtrack for Souterrain, a theatre production with Wildworks Theatre. Adrian is playing shakuhachi and accordion on the track, together with Neil Davey, bouzouki, and Rebecca Jackson, cello. Neil and Rebecca both live in Cornwall. Neil Davey is a highly respected as a pioneer for modern interpretations of Cornish folk music. He is a founder member of the groups Dalla, Bucca and Anam, with whom he has recorded many albums and toured all over the world.

Hafra – with Iwan Kushka

This track is a duet for shakuhachi and frame drum.

Iwan is a Belgian storyteller and multi-instrumentalist who plays the Zimbabwean mbira, the Armenian duduk, the Arabic oud and the Moroccan Guimbri of the Gnawa tradition. He is a member of the African fusion band Ombiviolum. Iwan and Adrian have collaborated on many projects over the years. This piece, Hafra allows Adrian to explore Persian scales on the shakuhachi against a backdrop of the rolling rhythms of Iwan’s frame drum.

Peace Mother – with Heather Golding

Singer Heather Golding has an extraordinary gift. She sings totally improvised music with a unique style, in which she improvises the words in a spontaneously new language, as well as the melodies. She sings with pure inspiration, in a voice that blends perfectly with the shakuhachi. Peace Mother is an intuitive dialogue between Heather and Adrian in which the voice and flute blend seamlessly in a lyrical flow.