Andrew Jilin has been playing music all his life. Having music in his blood, he played drums, bass and other instruments in rock bands. However, he felt particularly inspired when he heard the deeply touching sound of a flute. He describes its discovery as follows:

"It sounded like an ocean breeze, like a wind in the trees, like a whisper on the ear saying something very important and sacred. Time stopped. I was drifting freely through my feelings and thoughts, looking at them from the distance."

The instrument he had heard was a Shakuhachi, a Japanese Bamboo flute. In Japan, it had been played by Zen monks Komuso for ages. They had used it for enlightenment, not entertainment.

This moment in time marked a turning point in Andrew's life. He got his first flute, gave up smoking and started studying Japanese music at Moscow State Conservatory. Exciting things happened next: Andrew became a part of Moscow State Conservatory ensemble of Japanese music Wa-On (a harmony of sound in Japanese), found Marco Lienhard (his primary teacher now), and finally participated at the World Shakuhachi Festival 2012 in Kyoto, where he was the only one to represent Russia. In 2012, his first record followed: shakuhachi flute recorded live in different parts of the world.

Andrew Jilin is the founder and leader of the Russian Shakuhachi Society (http://shakuhachi.ru). His second album came out in September 2014, followed by concerts at Moscow State Conservatory, tea houses and clubs with solo shakuhachi, shakuhachi and classical guitar, shakuhachi with traditional Japanese instruments. Shakuhachi master-classes were scheduled for July, August, November and December in Moscow, Minsk (Belarus) and Saint-Petersburg.

Andrew plays music in any project he is involved in. In fact, creating music for the people is his biggest passion because he truly believes that music is a language of the Universe. Through music, we can exchange feelings and senses, dreams and hopes, peace and freedom of our souls. Music is always with him and everywhere he goes. Andrew never separates from his flute and tries to express his feelings in different places of the world. As he says:

"I do not need to have a full pack of amplifiers, wires, mikes and light equipment just to say: 'Hey, the sun under the sea today is so beautiful!'. In my music, there is the Sound and the Silence, which is as important as the Sound! This is real Zen life!"

For more information, visit:
http://www.andrewjilin.com - The official website http://toriband.com - Tori band - shakuhachi, classical guitar and violin http://www.shakuhachi.ru - Shakuhachi in Russia

Last Day of Summer