Duo En are Americans Elizabeth (koto) and John (shakuhachi) Falconer. On this wonderful album, the duo, together with some collaborators, play the compositions of Tadao Sawai (1937-1997), probably the greatest composer of contemporary koto music and a fine koto player himself. Elizabeth studied under Tadao Sawai and his wife Kazue, in Japan for many years. The clear passion and love she has for the music shines through in these wonderful versions of some of Sawai's most famous compositions. These include a quite magical performance of Tori no Yo-Ni (Like a Bird) performed solo by Elizabeth, while John plays shakuhachi on two tracks and the experimental vision of Sawai is acknowledged with a koto and violin duo on Naki Suna Yo. One thing is for sure, Tadao Sawai would be proud of his former student. 1. Kaze no Uta (Song of the Wind) 2. Tori no Yo-ni (Like a Bird) 3. Naki Suna Yo (Singing Sand) 4. Haru no Gotoku (Spell of Spring) 5. Hotaru (Fireflies).
