A Light Shining Through

A rich tapestry of ideas both concise and drawn out are delivered by David Friesen, who plays the Hemage bass, piano and percussion with a mix and match team of saxist Joe Manis, percussionists Alex Fantaev & Charlie Doggett and the guest appearances of the Kyiv Mozart String Quartet. The sixteen pieces include a handful of pieces 5-6 minutes with strings such as the graceful "Softly Tells The Story" and A Light Shining Through" that include subtle percussion, sensitive reed work and lyrical bass lines, with Manis' tenor majestic on the melodic "Staircase". More concise material in the 1-2 minute range have festive tribal percussion on "Blue and Red", Middle Eastern grooves on "Time Through Light" and tropical textures on "Islands". Friesen's piano is stately on "Dressed In Red" and his bass tells a warm story on "Festival". A musical mosaic that looks better each visit, and the further you stand back.