Julie Waters: The Book of Light

1	Arabesque	4:01
2	The Penguin Dance	3:30
3	Blues Before Breakfast	3:55
4	The Snowy Egret	5:38
5	Crossing the Line	4:52
6	Nighthawks	3:38
7	Swallowtail	3:49
8	Pine Siskins	2:34
9	Parker River	3:49
10	Joy	3:33
11	Dawnflight	5:49
12	Bosque del Apache	6:04
13	Whispers	5:15
14	The Book of Light	4:42

Ah, the joys of creation.

I rarely use banjo as a solo instrument. Challenging myself to develop an entire CD based on banjo works was a bit of a revelation for me and I love the results.

This CD includes music that spans centuries. Two pieces are based originally on Bach. One is solid blues. Others mix contemporary music with traditional jigs or other dances. Some are just me having fun.

Arabesque and Joy are both pieces that are derived from Bach works and adapted into something new and original.

I've recorded The Penguin Dance and Whispers before, but not on Banjo. I like these versions a lot. They were a worthwhile adaptation of songs I'd used before on other CDs

Crossing the Line is one of my favorite new pieces. I've been experimenting with it for a few years, on multiple instruments. I will probably record a guitar version of it down the line, but I do like this arrangement.

Blues Before Breakfast is just a very nice, straightforward, blues piece, the kind you rarely hear performed on banjo.

The Book of Light is a piece that was improvised on the fly during the recording sessions. It seems as though something like that tends to happen for me in recording and sometimes the first take I ever do of something new and original turns out to be the best.

The remaining pieces on this track are all named for birds, birding experiences or birding hotspots. I felt like those pieces reflected some very specific moods and feels about certain creatures or plces, so they're a kind of tribute to the primary obsession I have in life aside from music.