Reviewed by Stephen Luff

Other volumes in this series are 'Hymns' and 'Worship'. Here we explore the world of nature intertwined with well-known classical pieces by Mozart, Bach and Elgar amongst others. Each has sound effects added at different parts of each piece such as ocean, whale song and dolphins. Classical music enthusiasts may well stop reading this at this point, but there are superb performances here (although not by well-known musicians) and some of the effects do seem to surprisingly work such as "Air From Suite 3 in D", Bach's masterpiece, played here by the London Fox Orchestra and featuring sounds of the humpback whale. Others seem to bear no connection to the music at all such as Chopin's "Prelude In E Minor" which features woodland birds and as a result sounds clumsy. Then there's the obvious, such as "Sheep May Safely Graze" (Bach) with its alpine meadow/sheep recording! Although the musical performances are good (Britain's Simeon Wood and John Gerighty both have music here), by the time track 19 arrives, I was finding the sounds of nature effects irritating rather than calming.

The opinions expressed in this article are not necessarily those held by Cross Rhythms. Any expressed views were accurate at the time of publishing but may or may not reflect the views of the individuals concerned at a later date.

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