Circle, The - The International Shakuhachi Society

Circle, The

"John is joined by 2 musicians from India and 7 from Japan. Music composed, arranged, produced and played by Neptune."

John Kaizan Neptune
Nippon Columbia (Denon) - 33C38-7770
1986

Track	Title	Kanji	Length	Artist
1	Circle, The		06'27	Shakuhachi: John Kaizan Neptune
	The pentatonic theme in this tune is a simple one that keeps returning after various rhythmic and melodic detours. The fast 3/4 meter lends itself to many interesting configurations and at one point, three different meters can be heard simultaneously. 'The Circle' naturally ends with a "round".
2	Soul of the Deep		06'17	Shakuhachi: John Kaizan Neptune
	Neptune originally thought of calling this album "Musashi", after the book about a 17th Century samurai. In the final chapter, "Soul of the Deep," as the hero prepares for his last battle, he gazes into the ocean and calms himself - a feeling conveyed by this composition's descending melody. The big 2.4 (bass) shakuhachi deepens the mood, while the interplay between the two five-tone scales of traditional and folk music of Japan give it life and hope.
3	Tokyo Pace		04'49	Shakuhachi: John Kaizan Neptune
	"For anyone familiar with Tokyo," notes Neptune, "the title of this piece pretty much says it all." The pace is fast, but it is the playing in unison that creates the pressure and intensity. "Sometimes I wonder," Neptune says, "why I write music that is so difficult to play. The answer is simple: it's fun!" The rattling jug sound, by the way, is made on an Indian clay pot instrument called ghatam.
4	Ryukyu	琉球	05'12	Shakuhachi: John Kaizan Neptune
	A part of the unique culture of Okinawa and the other islands in the Ryukyus is the traditional five-tone scale used in this piece. It is enhanced without the three-stringed, banjo-like sanshin instrument of those islands to give the composition a folksy, distinctly non-Japanese flavor.
5	India Indigo		08'09	Shakuhachi: John Kaizan Neptune
	As the title suggests, this is a marriage of Indian sounds and American blues. Indian ornamentation and slides on violin seem to suit the blues very nicely, as does the Indian "alap," a flow of free rhythm at the introduction, used to explore the raga.
6	Mountain Mist		05'21	Shakuhachi: John Kaizan Neptune
	A mellow, relaxing work that features an unusual chord progression and a diminished scale (with alternating whole and half steps) whose symmetry allows for some interesting improvisation. This piece was written to feature two instruments - the shakuhachi and violin - that can sustain long tones so as to explore the differences and similarities in their tone color and techniques.
7	Spring Breeze		06'31	Shakuhachi: John Kaizan Neptune
	Many traditional Japanese compositions feature themes of the seasons. Here, Neptune plays the shorter 1.6 shakuhachi, which has a slightly different, "prettier" tone color than standard 1.8 to enhance the springtime theme. As in 'Soul of the Deep', Neptune uses the two different Japanese five-tone scales, supported by the lovely sounds of the 13-string koto.
8	Spirit Lift		06'10	Shakuhachi: John Kaizan Neptune
	The rhythmic and melodic excitement of this piece recalls the traditional devotional compositions of South India which are intended to be "spiritually uplifting." The bright melody itself and the use of many different kinds of percussion enhance this joyful aim.
9	North of No Place		06'11	Shakuhachi: John Kaizan Neptune
	This is the fourth in a series of tunes that includes 'West of Somewhere', 'South of Someplace' and 'East of Everywhere' whose nonsensical titles, says Neptune, "point out the impossibility of classifying my music which draws on music and instruments from around the world." Here, a major scale with a sharp fourth and a flat seventh is used, although within it, the melody is allowed to "wander freely" where it pleases.
10	Musashi	武蔵	07'40	Shakuhachi: John Kaizan Neptune
	Like the hero of the book of the same name this compositions has many moods: meditative, heavy, playful, disciplined, free. Note the contrast of the straight 4/4 meter, which uses the Japanese "country" scale, against the swing 3/4 meter using the "city" scale. The final phrase fades naturally to end the piece - and the album - in an appropriately wistful Japanese way.