Radiance Within
Neuma, 2025
9/10
The pianist and composer Phillip Schroeder is joined by Margaret Jones and Alan Zimmerman for these 7 original and meditative tunes.
The title track opens with Jones’ atmospheric violin and Schroeder’s elegant keys making for much care and strong attention to mood, and “An Awakening” follows with preparations complementing the piano via a very artistic and mysterious landscape.
“Avian Fields” and “Being In Wonder” land in the middle. The former is a solo violin moment of meticulous energy, and the latter is just the piano that can rumble and also emit eloquence thanks to the precise keys.
Near the end, “Stillness At Night” allows for the emotive keys to cultivate a stirring and thoughtful bout of bare beauty, and “Shed The Pedestrian” exits with a fuller interaction, where the 5 string electric violin, piano, and Zimmerman’s gongs radiate a cinematic appeal.
A body of work that instills solace in a turbulent world, Schroeder and company flesh out plenty of introspection, grace and emotional depth that’s gripping from beginning to end.
Travels well with: Alex Lubet- Amy Levy: Songs Of Love And Loss; Peter Van Zandt Lane- Axils