Product Description Spacious and inspired, this recording has wings. These beautiful compositions by Grammy-nominated pianist Peter Kater soar higher and higher with Richard Hardy's bamboo and silver flutes and Grammy-nominated Paul McCandless playing penny whistles, oboe, bass clarinet and soprano saxophone. Patient, poignant and very present, this music was created for our times of need and our times of expansion and relaxation. Let it carry you home. Amazon.com Pianist Peter Kater has orchestrated a gentle, introspective series of ambient chamber works that stays just the right side of sentimentality and, at times, attains the sublime. Each disc is dedicated to one of the elements: Earth, Water, Fire, and Air. Of the four, Air is the most contemplative and ambient, with a quartet of extended compositions, each riding atop synthesizer ambiences and pads. The CD has a hymn-like feel, a style that Kater frequently plays in church concerts. The synthesizers double as atmospherics and spacey church organ, but Richard Hardy's serene bamboo flute on tracks like "Wings of Sound" gives them a more plaintive sound, like wind blown across a desert floor. Kater eschews dynamics and overt melodies, and some of the tracks recall Brian Eno's Music for Airports--especially "Flying Dream," with Kater's layered, wordless choral vocals. He plays the textural alchemist on Air, an album that quietly exults in sonic interactions. --John Diliberto Review From Air s ambient nature to the melodious spectrum of Water and Fire, Kater has reinvented himself while never sounding pretentious. -- Michael Debbage, Solo Piano Publications, January 2006The bass clarinet, flute, piano, and soprano saxophone form a symphony of elements to help you become calm and relaxed. -- Bridget Eldridge, American Spa Magazine, January 2006 About the Artist Twice Grammy-nominated, multi-platinum selling pianist, Peter Kater has written the music for over seventy television and film programs including eleven On and Off-Broadway dramatic plays. His more than 30 critically acclaimed CD releases in 20 years range from Contemporary Jazz, World Fusion and Native American collaborations to full orchestrations and of course, his signature solo piano recordings. His PIANO recording, released in October of 2003 was just nominated for the "Best New Age Album" of 2004 Grammy Award. Receiving extensive world-wide airplay on a diverse array of radio formats, Kater’s broad creative stroke has touched millions of hearts. Over the last few years his music was heard in the NBC broadcast of the 2000 & 2004 Summer Olympics; he collaborated with Kenny Loggins on his December CD and performed at Carnegie Hall in New York City. The majority of his albums have appeared in the Top 10 of National Airplay charts and in the Top 20 of Billboard’s New Age and Contemporary Jazz charts. Of German birth and descent, Peter moved to New Jersey from Munich, Germany at the age of four and began studying the piano, at his mother’s demand, when he was seven. Seven years of classical training led into playing Rock & Roll and Top 40 bands around New Jersey and New York while studying contemporary improvisation. Moving to Boulder, Colorado at the age of eighteen, he began a six-year period of playing only improvisationally in clubs throughout the Rocky Mountain region. "I didn’t want to play anything the same way twice, being in the moment and spontaneous was very important to me, both musically and personally", said Kater. Since then he's recorded and performed nationally and internationally with some of the worlds most talented and accomplished musicians, actors, directors and authors. See more