Zen Ensemble – Garden of Time LP

Description

Following the releases of “Tam’ by Soft meets Pan in 2021 and “WaNoWa’ by WaNoWa in 2023, this is the third installment of triple-name releases from CROSSPOINT, Tuff Beats, and 17853 Records (curated by Chee Shimizu).

It features recordings of extended tracks reconstructed by Juzu aka Moochy from free improvised sessions conducted by Christopher Fryman (tp), Jun Sakata (shamisen), Yuji Hiromoto (tabla), and KND from SOFT (electronics), who have been active primarily in Kyoto and the Kansai region from 2018 to 2022.

The unique blend of modular synthesizers juxtaposed with Eastern and Western instruments creates a fourth-world soundscape reminiscent, such as Toru Takemitsu’s works by integrating traditional Japanese instruments into Western music theory, and akin to the works of Codona by Don Cherry, Nana Vasconselos, Collin Walcott, and also, Jon Hassell.