Album Notes

EASTERN ENCOUNTER was produced from a live performance at Chikushin Sound Studio, an acoustic recording environment in Navarro, California.

The improvisational exploration captured on this CD brings to the listener the sensitivity and power of two master musicians, Rahul Sariputra, sitar, and Masayuki Koga, shakuhachi.

Both the sitar of India, and the shakuhachi of Japan are traditional instruments, and both are taught in the manner of oral tradition. If the essence of each tradition is deep enough, there should be communication and common content upon which to meet and to play together. That shared belief provided a simple motivation and stimulating challenge: to get together and experience a new zone of music, while keeping the essence of old traditions.
"The CD resulting from this session, Eastern Encounter, not only clarifies the vague concepts of oral tradition, but also we opened a gate of combination for two diverse cultures -- refreshingly, we hope. "
The first piece is Mt. Fuji (19:13), and the second is Spirit of the Ganges (18:32). Both are non-cut and a slight adjustment is provided to get the closest true sound of that studio.

Flower Inside Music; by Masayuki Koga

Playing notes(music)is exactly throwing a beautiful flower into the sky; each note is a each beautiful flower. Life of flower may be short, but it does not matter short or long, the fact of existence of beauty is the most important than any other facts at the moment we are dealing with music.
In the moment and after the moments we fly up and beautify-up, it is the exact opening action of mind. Then the deep beauty of our music filled with is really flower ? or person ? or ... yes it is freedom of whatever we want to do, we want to imagine, and visualize as long as we don't hurt any body, any situation, it is more than OK.

Are there any differences between Indian flower and Japanese flower? Yes, the appearance may be very different, but how about the beauty itself? One is better than the other? Or one is superior than the other? Maybe preference is vary from one person to another, but the beauty is beauty. The feeling toward its attractiveness is the same. We respect every diverse cultures and music on this Earth. It is a common sense. However in music, we respect common sense and also imagination - I mean non-common sense: we need both while playing music. Half, we try to provide sound as people expect, and another half people need refreshness which is unexpected. We hope that you feel the stability and the flashing smiles with small surprises. Come to join our music of this "Encounter". Some people say that musical sound is not only invisible scientific wave, but it is particles for feeler, or particle of spirit which I deeply agree with.