Eastwind: Japanese Shakuhachi Music
Shakuhachimaster,Masayuki Koga, is a  fascinating Renaissance man: a master musician, composer, producer and  engineer, trained in law, with a penchant for philosophy. His music  reflects those many aspects of his personality and his skills.Born in  Japan at the height of World War II, Koga followed his father's footsteps  in learning to play theshakuhachi, the Japanese bamboo flute that  is associated with Zen Buddhism. Although secular music has been performed  on theshakuhachifor a hundred years now, it still retains its  distinctly Zen aesthetic. It is capable of very subtle tonal variations and  expressive nuances, all of which Koga explores with his full spirit,  emotion and intellect.Koga's unique contribution has been to expandshakuhachimusic, playing not only the traditional music of Japan,  but blending it with Western influences. His musical training was  traditional, receiving his master-teacher degree from the Tozan school.  Subsequently, Koga became the youngest member of the award-winning Ensemble  Nipponia.In his mid-twenties, Koga withdrew from the orchestra to  broaden his musical horizons, experimenting with jazz and free form styles.  Koga moved to the United States in 1972, continuing to perform widely. To  further spread the understanding of his tradition in the West, Koga founded  the Japanese Music Institute of America.Eastwind: Japanese Shakuhachi  Musicis undoubtedly an impressive production. The packaging includes a  stunning rice paper booklet. The selections are carefully chosen titles  from three of Koga's previous releases,Beyond Time and Space,The Distant Cry of DeerandMoon at Dawn, a perfect  compilation for the audiophile interested inshakuhachimusic.Masayuki Koga is a profoundly talented artist, devoted to his  instrument. "The quality of your life is reflected in the quality of your  sound. I can sometimes fool myself, but I can never fool the sound. I am  theshakuhachiand theshakuhachiis me."