THE TRAVELLER - 11 JOURNEYS WITH GOD
CD by Simeon Wood. 1999. Eagle. £10.99
GREAT IS THY FAITHFULNESS
CD by Simeon Wood with Graham Hepburn. 2000. Eagle. £10.99
Simeon Wood is an accomplished flautist, composer and arranger, who has made many recordings during the last decade. Two latest offerings, 'The Traveller' and 'Great is Thy Faithfulness', may be welcome additions to the CD collections of those who like their music soothing, atmospheric, uplifting and uncluttered by words.
The Traveller is a collection of original pieces inspired by the composer's own travels. It is a kind of world tour for the ear, with pieces from traditions of the East and West. I particularly liked the track 'Steps of sorrow', a musical interpretation of Christ's journey to the cross. Listen to it as your meditate on the gospel narrative.
Great is Thy Faithfulness is in the style of instrumental praise album of which there have been many in recent years. 12 well-known, traditional hymns are played by Simeon Wood on flute and Graham Hepburn on piano, plus one or two others. What marks this collection is the diversity of the arrangements from gentle simplicity to complex harmonic variations. The playing is beautiful and particularly effective on the more Celtic tracks such as 'Be Thou my vision'.
