music from within

For the last 20 years I've listened frequently and regularly to "Inside the Taj Mahal II" by jazz flautist Paul Horn, recorded inside the dome of the Taj Mahal in March of 1989. It's not the sort of thing you hum along to, and is more sounds than compositions. It was the first "new age" disc I ever owned, and remains to this day an excellent accompaniment to meditation. It's the only music I've ever owned which never seems to get old.

Inexplicably, I never acquired the disc which preceded "Inside II" by 21 years and is titled simply "Inside," but have had it playing in the background pretty much non-stop since buying it last night on i-tunes.

The later work has a greater variety of sounds, as Horn plays soprano sax, a bass flute, and a Chinese bamboo flute (ti-tze) in addition to the western flute we know. Both include the voices of Indian singers, who either perform short chants or just sang notes -- I can't tell which.

It's a quiet, cool, wet day here in Seattle, a perfect day for reflection.