The piano can be one of the most soothing and romantic
\ninstruments in the musical world. There is something about
\nlistening to those who have mastered the 88 keys, hearing them put
\nmusical visions into a form we can hear which captivates the senses
\nand tugs at the heartstrings.<\/p>\n
Maybe this is why I knew I was going to like
\nSongs Without Words II<\/i>, the latest compilation of
\ninstrumental works from new age pianists, before I even heard the
\nfirst note. Even if I had only heard of a handful of the artists,
\nlike Jim Brickman, David Benoit and Janis Ian, I had an inkling
\nthat this was going to be a special disc.<\/p>\n
Thankfully, executive producer Benoit does not disappoint
\nthroughout this 45-minute, 11 song collection. Don’t let the term
\n“new age” or the fact this is released on Windham Hill fool you;
\nthese songs refuse categorization, wanting only to be accepted on
\ntheir own merits – of which, they have plenty.<\/p>\n
Interestingly enough, the duet between Brickman and Benoit
\n(“Glory”), while pretty, is not the highlight of this collection.
\nThat honor I’ll give to Barbara Higbie with her selection “Charlie
\nRiley”. Originally released on her CD
\nVariations On A Happy Ending<\/i>, this tune captures the feel of
\nragtime blues locked in the body of Vince Guaraldi. It’s a lot of
\nfun to listen to, and makes me wonder why Higbie isn’t more
\nwell-known. It also makes me want to hear more of what she has to
\noffer.<\/p>\n
Simply put, though, there is not a bad song to be found on
\nSongs Without Words II<\/i>. It is interesting to hear the
\ndifferent approaches to the keyboard that each artist brings to the
\ntable, realizing that these artists have more in common than you’d
\nthink. Of special note are the performances by Janis Ian (“Days
\nLike These”), Alan Pasqua (“To Love Again”), Brian Culbertson
\n(“You’re Not Alone”) and Taylor Eigsti (“Past Voices”). No slight
\nis meant towards any contributor I haven’t named individually –
\nfrankly, without their input, this disc might not have been as
\nmagical as it is.<\/p>\n
Time, then, for the sole complaint I have – this disc is so
\nenjoyable that 45 minutes seems too short. Still, a minor
\nquibble.<\/p>\n
\nSongs Without Words II<\/i> is an exceptional collection of some
\nof the best pianists of this age, and is a disc that should appeal
\nto music lovers of all ages and styles. It kind of makes me wish I
\nhad reviewed this one for Valentine’s Day – but then again,
\nromance, like this disc, shouldn’t be bottled up for special
\noccasions.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":26110,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"tags":[],"artist":[5827],"rating":[5646],"class_list":["post-37325","review","type-review","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","artist-various-artists","rating-rating-a"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/dailyvault.adishjain.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/review\/37325","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/dailyvault.adishjain.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/review"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/dailyvault.adishjain.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/review"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyvault.adishjain.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyvault.adishjain.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=37325"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/dailyvault.adishjain.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/review\/37325\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyvault.adishjain.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/26110"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/dailyvault.adishjain.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=37325"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyvault.adishjain.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=37325"},{"taxonomy":"artist","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyvault.adishjain.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/artist?post=37325"},{"taxonomy":"rating","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyvault.adishjain.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/rating?post=37325"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}