Jazz / Contemporary Instrumental
Recorded: Apr 2002-Nov 2002
Apig - Performer
Biug - Performer
Buah - Performer
Che Chien Chang - Children's Chorus
Cheng Cheng Hu - Children's Chorus
Chiao Ying Ku - Children's Chorus
Chien An Chiu - Children's Chorus
Chien Hui Chen - Translation
Chih Hsin Chang - Children's Chorus
Chin Lung Chiu - Children's Chorus
Chin Niang Hu - Vocals
Chin Sheng Chen - Children's Chorus
Chiu Yu Hu - Vocals
Chun Nan Chiu - Children's Chorus
Chun Yu Chiu - Vocals
Dahu - Performer
David Darling - Arranger, Cello, Editing
Duncan Baker - Design Coordinator
Elaine Hsiung - Translation
Elsa Ke - Project Coordinator
En Tien Lu - Children's Chorus
Guang Da Chen - Project Coordinator
Hsin Hsien Chiu - Children's Chorus
Hui Chen Chiu - Children's Chorus
Hui Wei Chiu - Children's Chorus
James Tuttle - Editing
Jin Niang Hu - Translation
Jon Moon - Mixing
Lanihu - Performer
Meng Hsin Chiu - Children's Chorus
Mickey Houlihan - Engineer, Mastering, Mixing
Mu Tsun Chiu - Children's Chorus
Roger Li - Assistant Engineer
Sean Fu - Executive Producer
Sean Houlihan - Assistant Engineer
Sheng En Chiu - Children's Chorus
Sheng Hui Lin - Children's Chorus
Sheng Wei Chiu - Children's Chorus
Tommy Skarupa - Editing, Engineer, Mixing
Valis - Performer
Wei Li - Children's Chorus
Winter Chiang - Photography
Yun Ju Chen - Children's Chorus
The Wulu Bunun people of Taiwan specialize in a gloriously subdued style of harmony singing. In fact, their song "Pasibutbut" changed the way Western ethnomusicologists thought about the evolution of harmony. It's included here, a mystical, magical vocal prayer with a coda from David Darling's expressive cello. The vast majority of the pieces here intertwine voice and cello more closely, although there are solo cello pieces ("Wulu Dream" and "Wulu Mist") and pieces just for the singers. Recorded in a valley near the village of Bunun, it's cloaked in ambient natural sounds which blend perfectly alongside Darling's individual playing style and the voices of adults and children. The marriage is close to perfect as the styles complement each other, as on "Bunun Tuza," where Darling simply lets bowed notes hang under the voices. The harmonies themselves are exquisite and without thought, and obviously fire Darling's plentiful imagination. He never adds too much, just what's needed to color and enhance the singing, whether something simple like arpeggios, or even a single note, or decorating with harmonics. The parts themselves are impressive; together they make something wonderful, more than their sum. It may never receive the exposure it deserve, but it's a gem.
---Chris Nickson, All Music Guide
David Darling
Active Decades: '70s, '80s, '90s and '00s
Born: Mar 04, 1941 in Elkhart, IN
Genre: Jazz
Styles: Avant-Garde, Chamber Jazz, Classical, Contemporary Instrumental, Film Music, Post-Bop
Eclectic composer/cellist David Darling incorporates jazz, classical, country, pop, and new age music into his playing and compositions. Starting as a child, Darling displayed facility with many different instruments and styles of music; he began with piano at age four, moved to cello six years later, and played string bass in his high school band (while also serving as bandleader). After finishing his studies in classical cello at Indiana State College in 1965, Darling stayed on as an instructor for four more years.
In the '70s, Darling divided his time between working in Nashville, working as a studio musician with country artists including Johnny Cash, and touring the world with the Paul Winter Consort as a soloist, composer, and singer until 1978. 1979 saw his solo debut as well as the beginning of his collaboration with Ralph Towner, with whom Darling founded the chamber jazz group Gallery.
After Gallery ended in the mid-'80s, Darling went on to work with artists as diverse as Glen Moore, John Clark, Spyro Gyra, and Bobby McFerrin. During those years, he also collaborated with ECM producer Manfred Eicher in a series of dark, introspective works. The '90s found Darling continuing to challenge musical boundaries. His score for the 1992 Wim Wenders movie Until the End of the World drew great acclaim, as did his solo recordings of that decade, including 1993's The Tao of Cello and Dark Wood, which feature Darling's renowned improvisational skills. At the turn of the century, Darling did two albums for Relaxation Music's Musical Massage series: Musical Massage: In Tune and Musical Massage: Balance. He also recorded Cello Blue for Hearts of Space in 2001.
---Heather Phares, All Music Guide |
