One remarkable aspect in the past music world of 10-15 years is the revival of the wood-winds as a solo instrument. From the time after the "Romantic Virtuosi", solo performances at concerts were mostly the Piano and the Violin. The wood-winds always had to remain in the shadows of these instruments.

Advancement in technique was one big reason this revival became possible but at same time, people started to prefer the lush and full-blown tonalities of late-romantic pieces. The colorful affluent sound of the winds became used to the ear which also helped this aspect.

The Flute held the leadership as the solo in the wood-wind world but the Bassoon was not accepted as a solo instrument until recently. And as it is often called the "clown of the orchestra", it was thought as an instrument that was best for performing amusing low sounds. But as Marcel Moyse said, "the time has long passed in prototyping an instrument's character with a conventional mind", With much improved playing-technique of the preasent, the Bassoon became a solo instrument with affluent expression.

Masahito Tanaka is one of most virtuosic Bassoonists who can bring out all the possibilities of the Bassoon, with his pyrotechnics, noble and beautiful tone, big dynamic range and great compass which spans more than 4-octaves.

He treats his instrument as an extension of the human throat, phrasing with a great singer's flexibility. He is the player who could do for the Bassoon what Rampal has done for the Flute.

We can already hear the wonderful performance of him through his albums. When listening to his "Flight of the Bumble Bee" and "The Carnival of Venice", both originally flute repertorie, one thinks the Bassoon is capable of anything.

The excellent Japanese group Trio Calamus has just come out with a classy little collection of atmospheric short pieces. Having exhausted much of the repertoire for flute, bassoon and piano on their debut album (Pavane ADW 7176), Nocturne features nine solo works as well as five brief trios.

Much of the material presented here is arranged from other versions (Gounods Ave Maria and the Offenbach Barcarolle from Tales of Hoffmann for trio, the Rachmaninoff Vocalise for bassoon, etc.) and all of the well-chosen selections share a languid, dreamy evening feeling. Bravo, Trio Calamus (whose name is Latin for "reed," by the way) for another well-turned recording. But when will we hear your version of the Beethoven Trio?

Tanaka shows us a completely different side of his bassoon character here in this assortment of works by the young Japanese composers Ozaki, Kaneta, Kaneda, Sumi, Uchikawa and Ban. Filled with contemporary techniques such as glissandi, multiphonics, tongue pizzicati and pitch bending, these works have more in common with the stress of modem urban Japan than with the serene, more traditional sound of composers like Takemitsu. Tanaka handles it all with facility and an attractive sound.

It is absolutely criminal how easy Tanaka, with his incredible technique, makes the chromatic run up to the high e2 (diminuendo!) sound! Similarly the way he knocks out the very difficult passages in the Paganini/ Allard is positively spellbinding (not to mention the high f2 in the Dutilleux!) I have always admired him in the past for his technique and control. But with this CD you can add beauty of tone and style as well. This is a wonderful recording all around. I was really taken with the beauty of his performance of the Noel- Gallon - warm, luscious, completely delicate and controlled. The recording technique is also first- rate. The entire CD has excellent balance between bassoon and piano, and a definite "concert" presence to the sound. Tanaka, who has been principal bassoon of the Royal Chamber Orchestra, Tokyo, since 1996, may not be that well known in the West. If you are unfamiliar with his artistry, this will be a perfect first album for you to thoroughly enjoy. He is truly one of the bassoon masters of our era!