Times and Dreams is a seven-track EP by Colorado pianist/composer Gary Schmidt. Five of the tracks are original compositions and the other two are arrangements from classical sources. The album was conceived as “centering music and a journey through various universal times and dreams of the human experience.” The album also marks ten years since Gary released his first album, the multiple-award-winning Landscapes of the Heart, and is his seventh full album to date (plus some singles). Two of the tracks are piano and cello duets with Hannah Alkire. Calling it “New Music for Recentering,” the mood of the album is peaceful and very soothing.

Times and Dreams begins with the title track, the first of the two piano and cello duets. Smoothly-flowing and very graceful, it’s a beautiful start! “Rumi’s Truth” was released as a single in September 2025, and is named for a 13th century Sufi poet whose writing Gary has always found to be inspiring and encouraging. The repeated left hand pattern is hypnotic while the right hand melody gently weaves in and around it. “In Paradisum (After Faure)” is from Gabriel Faure’s (1845-1924) Requiem and is a musical vision of what Paradise might be like. The piece gently overflows with warmth, peace and calm. “Dance In Shadows” is the second piano and cello duet and is my favorite track on the album. Tinged with mystery, quite a bit of the piano part is in the upper half of the piano keyboard while the cello stays mostly in its lower range - a fascinating contrast! “Amber Horizons” picks up the tempo a bit and weaves together several themes that are quite different from each other and yet fit so well together. I really like this one, too! “De La Crosse (After Couperin)” is the second classical arrangement and is based on a piece by François Couperin (1668-1733). It “was chosen for its intimate reflective quality showing that the human experience lives in a continuum.” Very Baroque in style with some contemporary touches, it fits right in! “Peace Prayer” brings this beautiful album to a close with gentle feelings of hope and light.

Times and Dreams is available to stream and download from Amazon and Apple Music/iTunes and can be streamed on many platforms including Spotify and Pandora. I give it both thumbs up!