Although Parker can rightfully lay claim to the title of a contemporary master among double bassists he is also a composer of note, and this handsomely packaged box set highlights the reach and originality of his orchestral imagination. Although each one is markedly different in character the three discs are bound by Parker's ability to build a coherent bridge between eastern and western traditions of large-scale works. Whether he is using percussion or not, much of his writing evokes both drum ensembles and double reed groups, thus channelling the energies of Senegalese sabar troupes and Moroccan or Pakistani wind bands into a creative well that equally acknowledges the texturally dense oeuvre of his former employer Cecil Taylor. The music thus has a strong Afro-Asian slant but Parker's other key achievement is to retain a small group cohesion in the midst of a big band, which varies here from an 11-piece, in which the superb vocalist Leena Conquest stands tall, to an epic collaboration with the National Forum Of Music Symphony Orchestra and Choir of Poland, bolstered by the presence of tenor maverick Charles Gayle. The deployment of these substantial resources pays dividends but a thrilling contrast is created by a bonus quartet session that really brings the operatic beauty of Conquest's voice to the fore. The lattice-like interplay between her, pianist Eri Yamamoto and soprano saxophonist Darryl Foster on ‘Feet As Roses’ is almost unbearably poignant. Music of gravitas from a modern day icon.