On November 3, after what seemed like forever, Scratches of the Wind received its digital release! This album was always intended as a sequel to Lutalica, my 2019 album which looked at contemporary solo flute music from a Pacific Rim perspective. Scratches of the Wind continues its exploration of composers who live in (or hail from) Pacific Rim countries — but through the additional lens of the 2020/21 global pandemic. Back in March 2020, when music and recording venues were shut and this album was less than half complete, I converted my bedroom into a recording studio and recorded the remaining tracks. I won’t reveal which pieces were recorded in the recital hall and which were recorded next to piles of unsorted laundry (and, thanks to some exceptional mastering, you’ll likely not notice the difference). Suffice to say, this album has extra meaning for me: it isn’t just the conclusion of a years-long exploration of identity and hybridity in music, but also the thing that kept me focussed, excited, and balanced at a time when arts events had completely ground to a halt and morale in the community was arguably at an all-time low. 

Scratches of the Wind features solo flute works by Nirmali Fenn, Alfredo Santa Ana, Eunho Chang, Ramsey Sadaka, Chun-Ju Yen, Chris Kovarik, and Rósa Lind Page. This album was impeccably mastered by Don Harder and Piotr Wieczorek, with cover artwork by Vancouver painter Nancy Blanchard and graphic design by André Cormier. It’s released on Redshift Records and owes much of its existence to support from the Canada Council for the Arts. At the moment you can listen to the album (and purchase it!) on Bandcamp, with forthcoming releases on iTunes, Spotify, and all those other juicy platforms.