A Hawk and a Hacksaw - Forest Bathing

Vinyl LP pressing. 2018 release. Forest Bathing, or Shinrin-yoku, is a term that means "taking in the forest atmosphere." It was developed in Japan during the 1980s and has become a cornerstone of preventive health care and healing in Japanese medicine. "Taking in the forest atmosphere" became the inspiration for A Hawk and a Hacksaw's album. Their forest bath of choice is the Valle de Oro National Wildlife Refuge in New Mexico. This album features ten original compositions by Heather Trost and Jeremy Barnes. The opening track "Alexandria" features Barnes on the Persian Santur, an ancient hammer struck dulcimer, and Trost's string and woodwind melodies. The composition evokes the long trader's route between what is now Bulgaria and the wealthy cities of Istanbul and Alexandria. The band has always had a bird's eye view of this part the world-looking for the connections between places and even eras: a belief in the power of music to reach across borders and unite. The band is based on t