Cycles

Although cellist David Darling is perfectly capable of creating entire worlds from a single string, the magnification thereof on this recording with Collin Walcott on sitar and tabla, pianist Steve Kuhn, saxophonist Jan Garbarek, bassist Arild Andersen, and guitarist Oscar Castro-Neves is unprecedented. As the title Cycles implies, there is a Möbius strip quality to the music, reaching breathtaking heights in “Fly.” Walcott’s sitar is a surprisingly fitting companion to Darling’s cello, and Garbarek’s soprano has rarely sounded the same before or since. This stellar record sounds like nothing else on the planet. Don’t hesitate.