The lure of hidden treasures and fabled cities has long inspired those of us who fancy ourselves as globe trotters, as world explorers. For Betty Anne Siu Junn Wong and the Phoenix Spring Ensemble, the fabled oases towns in Xinjiang On Northwest China¹s Silk Road, embodies such a dream. Xinjiang also known as Eastern Turkestan is home to Turkic Uyghurs, Kazakhs, Mongols, Tajiks and recently, the Han Chinese. For the Phoenix Spring Ensemble, the Silk Road is Œa state of mind¹ rather than a locality. This is the conception leading to the creation of the CD ³In Xinjiang Time². The title refers to the way the Turko-Muslim population of Xinjiang sets its clocks- Two hours behind Beijing time. Xinjiang aka Eastern Turkestan has received its moment of fameon the world map ever since the film ³Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon² placed the heroine and hero¹s romantic chase scene in the desert. Tajikistan and other Central Asian Republics have also made headlines since the War to recapture Afghanistan from the taliban.

The seventeen pieces in this recording create a dreamfield of American Eurasian nomadic music performed on a mosaic of international instruments from Xinjiang, Arabia and China to America.

Begin the Long Journey; with Parting at Yangguan Pass played on the Chinese double-reed guanze ( track 2 ) ; Submit to the aromatic whispers of indigenous flutes, as they meet on the Silk Road ­ ( Desert Dreams of Light ­ track 9 ) Chinese xiao, Japanese Shakuhachi, Australian didjeridu, American Indian cedar flute, Iranian ney Turkish ney. Embrace the music of modern day travelers on saxophone, piano and Turkish instruments, as they relish the art of conversation ( Sohbat ­ track 7).