Ambient Waves - Neoclassical Solo Piano is a collection twelve original piano solos composed and performed by the award-winning German composer and multi-instrumentalist, Gerhard Daum. Recorded on a prepared and modified piano at GDME Studio in Berlin, the album offers an invitation to reflect and meditate as well as to simply enjoy the beautiful music inspired by the element of water. A "prepared piano" can mean a lot of different things, but in this case, some of the pieces have a more "felted" and muted effect than others; a few allow sounds from the inner workings of the piano to come through and become part of the music. All twelve tracks are slow and peaceful, allowing the music to easily slip into the background, but it is also descriptive and emotionally complex, making it easy to get blissfully lost in with full concentration. All twelve tracks are between two and three minutes, so they present a series of musical vignettes. I have reviewed quite a few of Gerhard Daum's albums and love the expressive quality of his music. Along with his recordings, Daum is an award-winning film music composer who writes music for US and European films and TV. Much of his music has a very visual feeling along with expressing deep emotion.

Ambient Waves begins with "Seaside Walk," a relaxed and tranquil piece that sets the tone of the album. The rhythmic sounds from inside the piano resemble a drum played with brushes, moving at an easy walking tempo. "Natural Spring" is a little bit livelier, but is also more ambient - very beautiful! Going in a different direction, "Distant Shores" is darker and more mysterious. This one would easily fit into a suspenseful movie soundtrack! "Morning At the Beach" is something I have experienced quite often, and this piece captures the calm beauty and soft colors of the early hours by the water. Daum makes beautiful use of reverb and the internal sounds of the piano on "Rain Droplets," which is also very ambient. "Water Blossoms" captures the hypnotic motion of waterlilies or some other aquatic flowers as they move to the rhythms of a body of water - profoundly peaceful yet somewhat unpredictable. For me, "Ocean Serenity" perfectly expresses the feeling of walking on the beach and realizing that you can let go of any stress and just breathe. "Low Tide" is a magical time when the ocean reveals many of the mysteries that lie just below its surface. The piece with that title moves slowly, undulating like the movement of some of that sea-life - hypnotic. "Reflecting Waves" is one of the most ambient of the tracks - very still, peaceful and soothing. It's a great close to an outstanding album!

Ambient Waves - Neoclassical Solo Piano is excellent from the first note to the last and is available to stream or download from Amazon and Apple Music/iTunes as well as on many streaming platforms including Pandora and Spotify. Very highly recommended!