Mirror Floating On The Water
Outside In, 2025
9/10
Listen to Mirror Floating On The Water
The composer/arranger Zhengtao Pan blends plenty of strings into this introspective body of work that is often symphonic and never short on melody and grace.
“Blue Sky” starts the listen with Maria Grig’s meticulous violin and Natalia Nazarova’s strategic cello, as the setting turns upbeat and playful thanks to Shota Yamaguchi’s flugelhorn, and “Cyclic Change” follows with Isamu McGregor’s flowing keys amid Pan’s well timed bass.
Halfway through, “I Should Care” relies on the tense and dynamic strings to draw us into the lush delivery, while “Sonatine” benefits from Giovanni Hoffer’s rich French horn alongside the quivering strings via a cinematic appeal.
Getting close to the end, “Snowy Days” is an intimate moment of beauty thanks to Nick Finzer’s soulful trombone and Tomoko Omura’s stirring violin, and the title track exits with Federico Gucciardo’s skilled drums that complements Landon Frayser’s alto sax prowess in the layered album highlight.
A record where each song is meticulously executed, Pan’s vision is one of adventurousness that embraces influence from the Japanese composer Ryuichi Sakamoto for a truly enlightening journey.
Travels well with: Zhengtao Pan Jazz Orchestra- Scenery In My Story; Michael Ragonese- Chasing Calm