Riley Lee shakuhachi 尺八 A Goose Singing in the Empty Sky / Gankyo Koku 鵝吟虚空 Honkyoku by Riley Lee

An original 'honkyoku', Gankyo Koku was composed by Riley Lee, and recorded in July 2024 in the concert hall (Konservatoriets Koncertsal) of the DKDM (Det Kongelige Danske Musikkonservatorium) — the Royal Danish Academy of Music.

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In 2024, John Cleworth, as his last official project as a graduate student at the Royal Danish Academy of Music, co-composed and over five days, recorded with me, enough new material for as many as three new albums.

One day, John's professor asked him if we wanted to do any recording in the Concert Hall. John said that one of his jobs at the Academy was to do recordings in the hall; it would be easy for him to set up for solo shakuhachi and I'd be foolish not to accept this offer.

In 2008, the Academy of Music moved into what was headquarters of DR, the Danish national radio broadcasting corporation. Until then, the hall had been the main concert hall in Copenhagen. It is still considered by many to rival acoustically the newer, bigger hall that superseded it.

Despite our own project required day-long recording sessions, took an afternoon off, and set up in the hall. The sound did not disappoint!

I recorded 10 solo,, mostly traditional shakuhachi pieces — another album in the making! This is a track from the afternoon recording session.