Sanctuary: Music from a Zen Garden

Editorial Reviews
Amazon.com
As peaceful and enchanting as a sunset's afterglow on a cloudless summer evening, the gentle music of Riley Lee (playing shakuhachi flute, an instrument traditionally used by Japanese monks) and Bert Moon (on koto, a 13-string zither) stirs a warm, caressing breeze that calms the spirit and stills the mind. Lee, an Australian, is one of the few non-Japanese musicians to be acknowledged as a dai shihan (grand master) of the shakuhachi, a fairly primitive flute made from a bamboo root. His talents are artfully displayed on this tranquil assortment of improvisational duets with Moon, recorded in 1984 and first released in 1991 as a meditative cassette titled Evening Mist. Lee's elegant, prolonged tones are gentle to the point of weightlessness, residing in comfortable low and middle ranges without sounding a shrill note. Moon, though not credited on the recording's front cover, admirably handles an egalitarian role throughout the disc's 61 minutes, handsomely complementing Lee's cerebral textures with dignified, unobtrusive accents. Listeners raised on Occidental music will find little alien about Lee and Moon's graceful, unhurried duets, ideal for periods of restfulness or contemplation. --Terry Wood

Sanctuary: Music from a Zen Garden,Riley Lee,Narada,New Age,New Age / Meditation,Pop,Spiritual

Sanctuary: Music from a Zen Garden

Average customer rating:

Stillness and motion

Good stuff!

My Favorite "Plinky" Music CD

Wonderful, Relaxing, Uplifting

I have it playing right now.....EXCEPTIONAL!!

Sanctuary: Music from a Zen Garden
Riley Lee
Manufacturer: Narada
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

General | New Age | Styles | Music
Meditation | New Age | Styles | Music
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Shakuhachi Meditation Music

ASIN: B00004U90V
Release Date: 2000-07-18

Tracks:

Evening Mist
In The Monastery Garden
Moon Shadows
Moon Flowers
Wintry Wind
Morning Calm

Amazon.com

As peaceful and enchanting as a sunset's afterglow on a cloudless summer evening, the gentle music of Riley Lee (playing shakuhachi flute, an instrument traditionally used by Japanese monks) and Bert Moon (on koto, a 13-string zither) stirs a warm, caressing breeze that calms the spirit and stills the mind. Lee, an Australian, is one of the few non-Japanese musicians to be acknowledged as a dai shihan (grand master) of the shakuhachi, a fairly primitive flute made from a bamboo root. His talents are artfully displayed on this tranquil assortment of improvisational duets with Moon, recorded in 1984 and first released in 1991 as a meditative cassette titled Evening Mist. Lee's elegant, prolonged tones are gentle to the point of weightlessness, residing in comfortable low and middle ranges without sounding a shrill note. Moon, though not credited on the recording's front cover, admirably handles an egalitarian role throughout the disc's 61 minutes, handsomely complementing Lee's cerebral textures with dignified, unobtrusive accents. Listeners raised on Occidental music will find little alien about Lee and Moon's graceful, unhurried duets, ideal for periods of restfulness or contemplation. --Terry Wood

Customer Reviews:

Stillness and motion.......2005-02-23

An interesting series of interpretations; evocative, occasionally and (somewhat ironically) intense; rich with soaring emphasis. A string of adjectives is pointless since this is one of those special collections which has precisely the meaning that you bring to it. The pace and timing is exceptional - most notably the intensity of the silences that have been artfully bracketed in a way that is a wonderful metaphor for the visual textures of the 'Zen Garden' that is the album's namesake. One of the most rewarding aspects of the album is the duality of the listening experience. It lends itself to active listening - if you are in the mood for (say) meditative visualisation, while being equally good for providing a landscape or background for a centring exercise where the goal is stillness.It is HIGHLY recommended that you listen to an original and not an MP3 or some other ersatz reproduction which will lose all spaciousness and simply will not do the work justice. Check out your local library (yay Libraries!). It was a librarian that pointed me to the album 'Rainforest Reverie' - also by Riley Lee - which is much better than the title suggests and is a worthwhile companion to 'Sanctuary'. It is also interesting to note that other reviewers have found this album useful in combination with Yoga. Personally, I'd suggest that unless your Yoga is moderately advanced (in which case why would you need music?) you'll find it a distraction and at best it will detract from the intensity of focus necessary for a truly rewarding Yoga session.

Good stuff!.......2004-06-29

I love this CD in the background -- it's there when I'm driving the kids, picking up toys, flipping through the newspaper during a free moment. So it isn't music I focus on front and center, but it enhances my life while I'm involved in other activities. It's serene, it's calming without being engaging. Good stuff!

My Favorite "Plinky" Music CD.......2003-07-05

This is my favorite CD for relaxing, doing yoga, or just playing for background music. As one of my friends say, "It's just about the best plinky music CD around!"

Wonderful, Relaxing, Uplifting.......2002-01-28

This is a wonderful CD for meditation or spiritual study. Very centering and peaceful. I'm glad I found it.

I have it playing right now.....EXCEPTIONAL!!.......2001-11-29

"Sanctuary: Music from a Zen Garden" by Riley Lee is a rare gift. I usually play this when I am on the Internet working and I am rewarded with a working environment that is pleasant, toned down, moderate. Not gentle, boring, sleepy, just relaxed and casual. I am still able to concentrate on my work without distraction but am not bombarded by unpleasantness.

A KAYCEYGIRL AUDIO LIBRARY MASTERPIECE!!

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