LIGHT ON THE WATER BY TIMOTHY COOPER

TIMOTHY COOPER – ALREADY KNOWN AS A NOVELIST, PHOTOGRAPHER, FILM-MAKER & ACTIVIST – RELEASES FIRST MUSICAL RECORDING

TIMOTHY COOPER
Timothy Cooper strives to bring enlightenment to the world through his art as well as his job as Executive Director of Worldrights, the human rights advocacy organization. His goal of calling attention to today's problems, and offering solace and solutions, is evident in his latest artistic endeavor, the new age solo piano recording Light on the Water.
The album, influenced by the tragic terrorist acts of 9/11 and the subsequent healing process that the American public went through, is available for purchase at the record company website (http://www.new-piano-age.com/), online retailers such as http://www.cdbaby.com/ and http://www.amazon.com/, and various digital download locations including iTunes.
Cooper, who lives in Washington, DC, creates thought-provoking art in several fields. In addition to being a pianist and composer, he is a novelist, photographer and film-maker. His first novel, World One, was about "nuclear war with a happy ending when the entire planet finally learns to live together in peace." His second novel, 2008, deals with Jesus Christ returning to earth and running for President. "This time around instead of being a religious leader he becomes a politician. It's a comedy."
With his visual art, Cooper has created his Worldlights collection (www.world-lights.com), photographs taken all over the world showing the globalization of culture and the exultation of commercialism. The photos are placed in large-format lightbox triptychs that emphasize light and shadow "to symbolize the dramatic tension between consumerism and humanism, and the diminishing of individualism." Cooper also has long been involved with film-making and his most recent projects are three documentaries on human rights ("China Rising" will debut in the autumn of 200 from his company Freedom's Gate Films.
Beyond shining a spotlight on world problems through the use of art, Cooper also heads Worldrights (http://www.world-rights.org/), whose mission is "to promote and protect human rights under principles of international law, recognizing that a violation of human rights anywhere is a violation of human rights everywhere." The organization makes appearances on behalf of political and religious prisoners, disenfranchised populations and victims of racial discrimination. Worldrights utilizes diplomacy and legal petitions, lobbies governing bodies, and uses speeches, lectures and publicity to disseminate information and build awareness. Cooper has spoken before numerous international human rights organizations including various United Nations' committees.
"I want to help our global society any way I can to make it more peaceful and harmonious," explains Cooper, "and another way to do that is to release positive and peaceful music into the world." The Light on the Water CD "represents two essential ingredients of life - light and water; and more philosophically it stands for my deep hope that out of the darkness can come light, out of tragedy can come renewal and rebirth. I began recording these pieces during the week following 9/11 when there was a lot of pain and tension in the air, and I could hear jet-fighter planes screaming over Washington, DC, even in the middle of the night. But after contemplating the depressing aspects of those terrorist acts, I also understood there was a positive side to the events as people bonded together with a sense of patriotism and brotherhood, spirituality increased, and society began rebuilding in many ways. I continued recording new music for the CD for several years."
Light on the Water contains 19 instrumental tunes recorded as solo piano improvisational pieces without overdubs. "Some of the tracks begin with progressions or melodic motifs that I had played around with lightly on previous occasions, but had never fully explored. Other pieces were simply a sudden musical expression being entirely created at the very instant of recording it. But all of the material is improvisational from the standpoint that it was not worked out in advance or written down. I never knew where the music was going, but let it reflect the emotions I was feeling in that moment."
The CD begins with "Worldscapes" which is "a hopeful clarion call for global unity." "Why" asks "why the destruction, the catastrophic deaths, and the lack of resolution of the conflict that caused it?" "Rising" is "deeply optimistic that despite wars and attacks, we will overcome and make a better tomorrow." The piece "Soundings" represents "sounding out how we are going to move forward as individuals and as a people to deal with tragedy." "Curve of Madness" expresses "the sheer terror and confusion we felt about the events, but also the wonder at why some people on this planet would want to do what they did to others. But the next tune makes the statement that simple gestures of love, goodwill and kindness are needed, and maybe peace begins with 'One Smile'."
The tune "Open Soul" characterizes "the need to listen to other people and to try to understand them." "Autumn Tears" turns to "the on-going mourning and grieving" the terrorist acts brought. In the aftermath, everyone faced "The Struggles," "how do we cope with this and what is my duty to my country and to the world?" "Glad Sorrows" sums up "the conflicting emotions we felt for the sacrifice and heroism of the firefighters and rescue workers as well as the citizens on the plane who fought back." With "Ribbons of Starlight," "I was thinking about the light shining on our planet from throughout the universe and that we must never forget that what we do here on Earth matters." "Solstice" expresses "the need to get back on the trail of a united human destiny." The recording ends with "Advent," "a call for shaping a better future."
Cooper began his musical career at age seven singing in the choir at the Cathedral of St. Peter and St. Paul in Washington, DC. At the Washington National Cathedral, one of the largest sanctuaries in the country, he spent two years as a chorister in the junior choir and then moved up to the Cathedral Choir of Men and Boys while also attending and singing at the St. Albans School for Boys. "I received a very deep exposure to choral and sacred music, and I got to sing many of the best compositions by the top composers from the 16th Century through the modern era. It was very, very rigorous training because we rehearsed five days a week, sang programs four times during the week, and then performed at two services on Sunday. We also toured the United States and United Kingdom, and recorded several albums."
When he was 17 and 18, Cooper traveled extensively and began taking photographs, primarily of people, in Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico, England and Ireland. "I was beginning to understand humanity and the human condition. It gave me a sense of the global community." During his high school years Timothy also learned to play guitar, but after hearing Ravi Shankar on sitar, Cooper began playing that instrument for several years. Cooper also had a passion for film-making. One of his short student films was about the Spanish Inquisition ("man's inhumanity to man"), and it won numerous national and international film awards. This led to Timothy being the youngest student (at age 1 ever accepted at that time to the American Film Institute's Center for Advanced Film Studies in Los Angeles, which primarily offered a two-year upper-graduate program. There Cooper studied classic films, wrote scripts and shot videos for critiquing, and attended lectures by Steven Spielberg, David Lean and Martin Scorsese. After graduation, Cooper produced a feature film, "The Big Deal," about the end of the Sixties.
At age 19, while at the American Film Institute, Cooper began learning to play the piano, and from then on he has regularly practiced his improvisational creativity. "I love the piano's ability to create oceanic sound, that floating feeling, countless waves tossed across endless seas." Over the years Cooper has been inspired by acoustic-oriented artists such as Keith Jarrett, Liz Story, Will Ackerman, Philip Aaberg and Suzanne Ciani.
"Even though the events of 9/11 are reflected in Light on the Water, the music is really my plea for peace and understanding in the world among all people."

INCREDIBLE CONCERT -- FEATURING DAVID ARKENSTONE, NICHOLAS GUNN, LOREN GOLD & JOHANNES LINSTEAD – SOLD AS A COMBINED PACKAGE INCLUDING A CD AND DVD

GEMINI SUN RECORDS PRESENTS
THE AUDIO & VISUAL CONCERT EXTRAVAGANZA
Live!
Starring DAVID ARKENSTONE,
LOREN GOLD, NICHOLAS GUNN
and JOHANNES LINSTEAD

Gemini Sun Records, one of the top new age music labels, has released their first concert recording, appropriately-titled Live! and featuring four of the company’s best-selling musicians – David Arkenstone, Loren Gold, Nicholas Gunn and Johannes Linstead. In addition, the package comes with both an audio CD as well as a DVD containing a full-length film of the show.

This is Gemini Sun’s fifth CD/DVD package in their “Audio Visual Connect Series.” Distributed by Ryco/WMG, this two-disc set (and the entire Gemini Sun catalog) can be purchased at many record retail stores throughout the United States, and is available internationally at online outlets such as amazon.com and cdbaby.com. The audio portion can be purchased at numerous digital download locations including iTunes. For more information on this package, the artists and the label, go to GeminiSunRecords.com.

The 74-minute concert, taped at an intimate Southern California theater in front of an enthusiastic audience of fans, features the four “Gemini Sun All-Stars” playing separately and together with dynamic backing from an eight-piece band of top pop, new age and world music musicians specially-selected for this show. While the four featured performers sometimes play a variety of instruments when they record in the studio, on-stage for this event they are spotlighted on their main instruments – Arkenstone on electric guitar, Gold on acoustic grand piano, Gunn on flutes and Linstead on nylon-string acoustic guitar. The backing band adds violin, accordion, bass, drums and a wide variety of percussion.

The resulting sound combines the best elements of both energetic new age and world music for a unique global fusion sound. Even though the 15 instrumental tunes presented here can be found on other albums in their original studio versions, this collection contains unique and special arrangements of the material that comes across with an energy and excitement that can only derive from a live concert.

One of the show’s highlights is when Arkenstone, Gold, Gunn and Linstead all appear on-stage together with the full backing band for the concert climax – the seven-and-a-half-minute world-beat jam on Linstead’s “Djunga.” The recording kicks off with Arkenstone’s eight-minute Mid-East-flavored “Desert Crossing” with Gunn sitting in on congas. In addition, Arkenstone performs a Latin-inspired tune (“Gypsy Camp”). Other world music influences are evident throughout. Johannes Linstead is known for his Latin-style acoustic-guitar playing, but he also exhibits his versatility by showcasing Greek influences on “Ambrosia” and Caribbean stylings on “Streets of Old San Juan” and “Spanish Town.”

Except for the finale, each featured artist gets his own segment in the spotlight. Nicholas Gunn begins with a short bamboo-flute piece “Earth Bones” followed by the Grand Canyon-inspired “Elves’ Chasm.” “Apasionado Uno” features passionate percussion (even Gunn lays down his flute long enough to join in on congas), and the tempo cranks up another notch on the fast-paced “Breathe.” Pianist Loren Gold starts softly with “Falling” (a piano-flute duet with Gunn), but cranks up the energy on “For My Baby” where he shows his pop sensibilities, and the jazzy “Sunnyside” with backing by the band as well as Gunn on flute. “On the studio version,” explains Gunn, “there was a piano and saxophone interplay, but for this concert we changed the sax to flute which gives you an idea of how different some of these tunes sound in this live setting versus the original recordings.” Arkenstone’s portion of the show includes what he describes as the “happy and carefree” tune “New Day” and the complex, vibrant, rocking “Dance in the Desert” (he says it is “born out of my love of swash-buckler adventure movies”).

In addition to the spectacular musical performances, the CD and DVD both include brief interview interludes that give insights into each artist’s personality and music. Nicholas Gunn produced the music on Live! and Girshon Rutstein directed the film (they co-produced the visuals). Gunn also is the founder and CEO of Gemini Sun Records which during the past decade has become one of the leading new age music companies.

According to Gunn, “Fans of our music are constantly asking us about performing concerts. By offering this Live! album as both an audio and visual package, we feel it gives those fans a very good indication of the experience of attending one of our shows. By offering the concert on CD and DVD, it makes it easy to enjoy the music anywhere, anytime.”

The first two decades of David Arkenstone’s career includes garnering three Grammy nominations and millions of fans. His music is a modern orchestral amalgam of electronic technology and warm, earthy, acoustic instruments that create progressive sonic textures behind mesmerizing melodies. This multi-instrumentalist and masterful arranger debuted with Valley in the Clouds and over the course of 16 more solo recordings he has explored both the known universe as well as places from his imagination on a stellar series of albums including In the Wake of the Wind, Quest of the Dream Warrior, The Celtic Book of Days, Caravan of Light, Atlantis: A Symphonic Journey and his new Echoes of Light and Shadow.

Loren Gold began playing Beatles songs on the piano at age five and soon after started his classical training. But the classical world could not contain his exuberance and experimentation as he went on to play Mozart piano sonatas a la Fats Domino followed by jazz improvisation in the style of Keith Jarrett. Gold has composed pieces for films on HBO, Showtime and Cinemax. In the music industry he is known as a consummate professional backing pianist (and often concert music director as well) for singers such as Hilary Duff, Mandy Moore, Taylor Hicks, Tiffany, Jeff Trachta and McKenzie BC. Gold has two contemporary instrumental solo albums, All Around Me and the smooth jazz Keys.

One of the world’s best-selling flutists (more than two-million albums sold), Nicholas Gunn was born in England and classically-trained at Great Britain’s prestigious Royal School of Music. After moving to the United States, Gunn embarked on his solo career with albums such as The Sacred Fire, Crossroads, The Great Southwest and Breathe. His awareness and appreciation of the importance of nature inspired him to create a series of beloved recordings based on the beauty of America’s National Parks (with a portion of the proceeds donated to help preserving these landmarks) – The Music of the Grand Canyon, Beyond Grand Canyon, Through the Great Smoky Mountains, Journey to Yellowstone, and others.

Johannes Linstead has quickly become one of the most popular and best-selling acoustic guitarists in the nouveau flamenco genre. He was immediately acclaimed with the release of his first CD, Sol Luna Tierra. His Guitarra del Fuego was named “Best Contemporary World Album” by New Age Voice magazine and his Mediterranea CD won the New Age Reporter Lifestyle Music Award for “Best World Album.” Other CDs include Kiss The Earth, Zabuca and Café Tropical. Much of his inspiration has come from extensive traveling in Latin and South America, the Caribbean, Europe and the Mediterranean region. He performs regularly throughout the United States.

“It’s interesting that all four of us started our careers playing in pop and rock bands, and we are all experienced live performers,” explains Gunn. “By putting all of us into one concert situation, it really keeps the action moving. From artist to artist and style to style, there is lot of powerful music being presented in this Live! recording.”