Would you like to travel the entire world someday? When traveling as a tourist do you enjoy visualizing the new new cultures, sounds, and experiences? For persons who are not frequent globetrotters having neither time nor opportunity to travel the world firsthand, an excursion awaits you by listening to many distant exotic lands through a musical journey that will fit your schedule and budget. The international flavors of performer, composer, and conductor Colin O’Donohoe is your ticket for real world influenced music. His most recent album Songs of the Saints released in 2007 on the Ocean Media label, is inspired by music native to Africa, Asia, Europe, the Middle East, and also includes musical varieties of North and South America, making your itinerary complete.

The ensemble of instruments and vocals used in the Songs of the Saints album is as diverse as the music itself, exploring many geographical destinations in each of the 10 individual songs. One explanation for Colin O’Donohoe’s choice of using foreign influences might be his self described inspiration being drawn from reading a Chinese book of poetry titled Shi Jing. Another explanation could be his current position as Artistic Director of the Pangean Orchestra or other held positions as director of the New Moon Orchestra, and Phoenix Chinese Orchestra. 

Colin openly admits that his sound and technique is challenging for some people to embrace, by offering such a wide range of influences that almost creates a new music genre, which I did find correct, but appreciative by his blending of pleasant vocals, chorals, and harmony of music spanning the globe, having genres ranging from international, jazz, easy listening, light rock, and slight touches of rap and hip hop, even having a light jazz title track version of Amazing Grace.

While visiting the Pangeanorchestra.com website to learn more about Colin O ‘Donohoe, I did learn he is committed to this unique style of music, and being a kindred soul, his mission in life is to unite and bring people of the world closer together through the common bond of music, something that friendly and peaceful tourists around the world will appreciate.