Balance of Nature is a soothing collaboration by Chuck Offutt on Native American flutes and Michael Dulin on piano and keyboards. The inspiration for the album came from a week Dulin spent in the mountains of North Carolina. Retreating from the noise of the city and a hectic recording schedule, Dulin returned with a new mission - “to create music that could flow wordlessly into the heart of the listener as naturally as the peace and power of the mountains had flowed into me.” The music was not intended to be representative of Native American culture, but the wooden flutes were the perfect medium to express the beauty of the untouched world. All of the pieces are played at a leisurely tempo which gives the album a consistent flow from start to finish. The flutes have a rather limited range, and Dulin keeps the individual pieces distinctive by varying the keyboard and piano sounds. Dulin’s work on this album is more or less in the background, but it is his sensitivity and expressive playing that bring out the beauty of the flute’s haunting and evocative quality. No rhythm tracks are used, and if I had to classify it, I would call ‘Balance of Nature“ ambient” because of the floating quality and lack of distinct melody lines. Listening to this album can melt away the stresses of the day and provide a musical massage for the mind. Very nicely done! Balance of Nature is available from www.equitydigital.com. Samples are also available on the site.