Michael Robinson: Gangadhara (Azure Miles Records)

Michael Robinson's continuing study of raga forms leads to this meditation on the revered Hindu god Shiva. The title, meaning "Bearer of Ganga," describes how the sacred Ganges River supposedly flows through the hair of Shiva as it travels from heaven to earth. The result is a fluid reflection, based on an elegiac melody with trumpet and kawala timbres accented with sparkling bells and rainsticks.

- Amanda MacBlane, NewMusicBox, November 2002