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| 'A Quiet Revolution: 30 Years of Windham Hill' Windham Hill Records is an amazing story of a music company that began as a labor of love on a shoestring budget and soon evolved into one of the world's most distinctive record labels. In anticipation of its 30th anniversary in 2006, the label will be releasing a beautiful four CD collection, A Quiet Revolution: 30 Years of Windham Hill. Housed inside the evocative package is an overview of a historic musical movement brought alive by a colorful roster of innovative musicians. Each disc on the Sony Legacy collection titled "Elements, " "Peace, " "Artistry" and "Excursions" respectively, showcases classic compositions by stalwarts Will Ackerman, George Winston, Liz Story and Michael Hedges, as well as songs from newer members of the Windham family such as Jim Brickman, Janis Ian, Snuffy Walden and Cesaria Evora. In addition, A Quiet Revolution ... contains never before released live tracks from the syndicated radio show "Echoes, " a 40 page booklet that includes archival photos and an in-depth timeline and historical essays by John Diliberto, Sam Sutherland and founder Will Ackerman. A Quiet Revolution: 30 Years of Windham Hill is released on November 8th. The set kicks off with Will Ackerman's "The Bricklayer's Beautiful Daughter" -- the first track from the first Windham Hill release from 1976, In Search of the Turtle's Navel. The heartfelt acoustic project bathed in an aura of quietude captured the attention of jaded music listeners with the force of a bomb. Subsequent releases expanded upon the musical "statement" and it soon became clear that Windham Hill had introduced a "new" and cohesive musical sensibility. Windham Hill artists created aural compositions that effectively weaved together the sound of acoustic, instrumental, folk, pop and jazz music. Maverick musicians such as Will Ackerman, George Winston, Michael Hedges, Liz Story and Philip Aaberg became indelibly associated with the sound of the new age -- a sound characterized by pastoral ambiences introspective melodies and immaculate song craft. Says Will Ackerman: "Windham Hill was an experiment in innocence as much as music. We had no money for advertising, knew nothing about promotion and generally were babes in the very unsentimental woods of the record business. Windham Hill offered a radical alternative; intimate music on a human scale. The heartfelt sincerity of our records quietly earned a loyalty from our listeners that was unprecedented. It was blessed from the beginning." 30 years on, Windham Hill remains the reference standard for a genre of music. The label's new motto for this banner year and beyond is "Windham Hill-In Tune With Your Life" -- a sentiment that pays tribute to the label's legacy and carries its spirit into the future. Windham Hill will steadfastly continue to release projects by respected and innovative artists. Here's to the next 30 years! write your comments about the article :: © 2005 Jazz News :: home page |