Apo World

Chen was China's first woman to be awarded a master's degree in composition; she often incorporates Chinese instruments and melodies in her music. Born in the southern Chinese city of Guangzhou, Chen Yi (b. 1953) learned the violin at a young age and continued to play the instrument up to her graduate student years at Columbia University in the late 1980s. In fact, during the Cultural Revolution, Chen had continued to practise the violin even after having been sent to the countryside. By the early 1970s, she had returned to the city where she served as violinist with the local operatic troupe. All of these experiences provided inspiration for the compositions featured on this CD, whether in borrowed operatic and folk tunes, calligraphic gestures, huqin fiddling techniques, imitative sonorities of Chinese traditional instruments (sheng, suona, xiao or qin), inventive use of percussion, or in the vivid depiction of nature. Chen has lived and breathed Chinese operatic tradition and folk culture for decades, while at the same time steeping herself in the study of the Western canon of music.

1994 Grammy winner for Best World Music Album. American composer, musicologist and guitar legend Ry Cooder teams with North Indian musician Vishwa Mohan Bhatt to create an exquisite musical realm, with both musicians playing exceptional slide guitar. Their collaboration evokes musical elements from many cultures and styles. Percussion by Sukhvindar Singh on tabla and Cooder's 14-year-old son Joachim on dumbek. The album is included in Tom Moon's 2008 book 1,000 Recordings to Hear Before You Die.

"Apagorevmeno" is Greek singer Anna Vissi's 25th studio album, and was released on December 9, 2008 in Greece and Cyprus. The album is her first studio album in three years, and contains 13 songs, including the single "To Parelthon Mou" from the soundtrack of the film Bank Bang as a bonus song, as well as the Greek cover "Kontra", bringing the number of songs to 15. This will be Vissi's first album to not include any songs by Nikos Karvelas since her 1981 album Anna Vissi.