music for quiet moments
a resting child
space for a few slow breaths
stillness
sleep
SCROLL DOWN FOR MORE
Here is some music I made a long time ago…
Would you like an hour of calm?
Tell me where I can send you one of my albums
Here is some music from a more recent album.
Take a break
…breathe
Shakuhachi player since 1971
Grand Master since 1980
Grandfather since 2010
Riley Lee has been playing the shakuhachi for 50 years. His repertoire spans many musical genres. This site is devoted entirely to music that can help you be mindful of your precious moments.
“Remember the lips where the wind-breath originated, and let your note be clear. Don’t try to end it. Be your note.”
Rumi
quotes from the Press:
Sydney Morning Herald — [Lee’s} sound is so astonishingly pure: it aches with the sadness of loss and the sadness of wisdom, pulses with the joy of being alive and whispers of an elegance almost too exotic to be true.
International Herald Tribune — “Affecting, moving, admirable, the performing techniques involved, especially the breath control, defy belief”.
New York Times — “…atmospheric, even spell-binding music”, “Echoes of eternal time…haunting”
Sydney Morning Herald — “He is, by any standards, a remarkable musician with an amazing command of fractional inflections of tones, achieved with a wide range of finger and breath attacks on every note”. “… Beautifully evocative sounds”
The Australian — “Lee could serve as any performer’s model in his ability to capture the attention of his audience immediately and straightforwardly”.
Sydney Morning Herald — “…a superb musician and an innovative and prolific composer.” “The shakuhachi is a transcendentally beautiful instrument and Lee’s playing has an emotional and meditative power which overwhelms his obvious technical expertise”.
Breathe deeply
…breathe slowly
your own Custom Music
Would you like me to create and record a composition of solo shakuhachi just for you? For a friend? Or your child? A truly unique gift for a very special occasion?
Tell me who the music is for, what kind of mood you want to create, what the occasion is, and anything else that might help me create something just for you.
You will receive a demo of the recording. If you like what you hear, you can then send me one or more photos to use for a slide show or video.
You can also write your own dedication or explanation for the music.
Or you can leave everything to me. I’ll do it all for you.
Once it’s all done, the music with photo or slide show, will be posted on my YouTube channel, or you can keep it totally private.
You’ll be acknowledged as the person who commissioned the music, if you want me to do so.
You or your loved one will be honoured every time someone around the world listens to your music.
more Riley Lee Music
listen to
Wind Song
Riley Lee collaborates with Christina Leonard on sax and Elena Kats-Chernin on piano.
listen to
Breath-Sight
Traditional solo shakuhachi music from the Zen meditation repertoire, honkyoku.
listen to
Nalu
Riley Lee shakuhachi and Andy Rigby harp. Surf the ‘ocean waves’ of your fondest memories.
listen to
Wild Honey Dreaming
Riley Lee shakuhachi and Matthew Doyle digeridoo. From Earth’s oldest continent.
listen to
Shakuhachi Water Meditations
Riley Lee plays old and new music. Meditate on the tranquil sounds of the Zen flute.
listen to
Autumn Field.
Traditional solo shakuhachi music from the Zen meditation repertoire, honkyoku.
listen to
Shakuhachi Flute Meditations
Riley Lee performs solo shakuhachi. Zen music to calm the mind, to relax and to focus.
listen to
Calm
Riley Lee solo shakuhachi. Conceived by Paul Wilson, author of the “Little Book of Calm”.
listen to
Riley Lee on Spotify and on YouTube
Almost all of my music is on Spotify, with more being added to the Riley Lee channel all the time.
I’m also regularly adding tracks and playlists to my Riley Lee Music YouTube channel.
Join the thousands who are already following my Spotify and my YouTube channels.
learn more about the Shakuhachi
Please visit my shakuhachi website for more about this fascinating instrument, and about the journey it has taken me over the past half a century.
You’ll find articles, and even my PhD thesis on the shakuhachi. There are also tips on playing the shakuhachi.
Have you considering learning to play the instrument? You can find out more on the shakuhachi website.
Stay in Touch
Would you like to be informed of my latest releases, upcoming tours and other things of interest?
Riley Lee
riley@rileylee.com
PO Box 939
Manly NSW Australia 1655