After 20 years,
Paul Horn
returned to the site of one of
new age
music's monumental events. On
Inside the Taj Mahal, Vol. 2
, he uses a soprano saxophone in addition to his flutes. By total coincidence, the guard who had accompanied him in 1968 was on duty again and provided similar Hindi
chants
. The beauty of these pieces is pristine. Using the 28-second unbroken echo perfectly,
Horn
's acoustic instruments take on space music textures and
ambient
timbres. The ethereal soundscapes are full and dense and the atmospheres are cool and smooth; there are no flaws in this recording. The natural sounds are perfect. This is a recording among recordings -- its only peer is the first volume. ~ Jim Brenholts