CD #1 Darshan [8:47] Inward Journey [10:22] Parikrama [18:58] Devourer of Worlds [16:18] Gulra Mandhata [7:00] CD #2 Kang Rinpoche [11:49] Dawa Gompa [14:00] Tarpoche [22:24] Manasarovar II [12:08]

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Composed, performed, recorded and produced by David Parsons Mt. Kailas, the holy mountain of the Hindus, Buddhists and Bons (the old religion of Tibet), is situated in a fairly remote part of Western Tibet, near the Indian border. It is a natural pyramid, standing alone and perpetually capped with snow. For Hindus it is the primal abode of Lord Shiva who sits in eternal meditation on its peak. The basic architecture of Hindu temples is based upon its shape. The Buddhists associate it with their tantric deity Chakrasamvara and the Bons believe it is the giant crystal that their founder Thonpa Shenrab descended on from the heavens. At its base are two lakes­Manasarovar and Rakshas Tal representing positive and negative energies. The site is quite remote and for most it is an arduous journey in itself to reach. Many pilgrims make a parikrama (circumambulation) of Mt. Kailas that usually takes from three to four days, although some take longer because they prostrate themselves at every step. With this project, David Parsons attempts to create a sonic "parikrama" of Kailas and the surrounding area. Most tracks are intentionally quite long in order to give the feeling of an odyssey, in hopes that the listener will experience, more than just listen to, the soundscapes. Press Information

review

David Parsons is a New Zealand veteran of deep-space music. But for the last decade, he's been traversing Indonesia, India, Armenia, and the Middle East. From his travels, he's recorded and compiled definitive collections of traditional music, among them the 17-volume Music of Islam series. Now Parsons has returned to New Zealand, cranked up his synthesizers, and put out three albums of his own music in little more than a year, all of which draw from his travels. Parikrama is his latest and most difficult to enter. A soundscape work on the order of his 1992 Dorje Ling CD, Parsons creates a trans-Asia electronic world. Mixing synthesizers with droning tambouras, chanting voices, and whining bowed strings, Parsons orchestrates what he calls a "parikrama" or circumambulation of Mt. Kailas in Tibet. Judging from the music, this must be a foreboding place and a perilous trek. Of his recent albums, Ngaio Gamelan and Shaman, Parikrama is easily the most inhospitable, lacking the melodic and rhythmic signposts that guided you through those albums. He doesn't hit a groove until 50 minutes into the first disc and it's a welcome contrast. Parsons moves from densely packed soundscapes like "Darshan" and "Kang Rinpoche" to airy echoes of Tibetan singing bowls on "Inward Journey" and dream-state synthesizers on "Gurla Mandhata". Parikrama is a fascinating, richly textured trip, but perhaps one for the initiated. John Diliberto

review

World Music: the self-conscious grafting of non-western classical elements to form an original yet familiar music. The current crop of innovative offerings out of the electronic music community often incorporate elements of "World Music" into their aesthetic values. 4th World Music as well as the nascent Tribal Ambient can trace their roots back to this idea of borrowing sounds and approaches from the Earth's varied cultures. Parikrama, the double CD from David Parsons, does draw on ideas and sounds from exotic lands, but the album has less to do with the theoretical than it does with the empirical. Parsons is one of the few musicians who have physically covered as much geography as his music has. He has actually traveled to many a far off land, compiled recorded accounts of indigenous music and soaked in the local colour and overall influences of different societies. Parikrama is a somber journey inward and exposes the breadth of Parsons' vast experience. The pieces on Parikrama are lengthy and slow to develop. Parsons' ever-evolving electronic drones are both absorbing and harmonically interesting. The reflective and contemplative nature of pieces like "Inward Journey" seems almost ceremonial. The bowed strings of "Darshan" offer focus and melody. "Devourer of Worlds", with its pensive mood, recurring chants and driving percussion, adds contrast while the peaceful "Manasarovar II" (meaning "lake of the mind") harkens back to 1990's Yatra and gently concludes the album. David Parsons is a true native of World Music. On Parikrama he has realized an album that feels like a companion on a sonic voyage into the wisdom and insight gained by this well traveled artist. Chuck van Zyl / Star's End