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Red Tara by Dan Blake

From the album

Album Title: Got My Wings
Label: Adhyâropa Records
Released: 2025
Duration: 00:35:17

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About the Album

Adhyâropa Records is thrilled to announce Got My Wings, the new album by internationally acclaimed saxophonist and composer Dan Blake. Got My Wings is inspired by the life and writings of Jarvis Jay Masters, whose eloquent exploration of freedom in the memoir That Bird Has My Wings led this award-winning composer to compose this genre-bending ballet score and educational workshop. Got My Wings represents the power of art and creativity to transcend boundaries, with Blake and Masters maintaining a close personal collaboration over years despite Masterss ongoing being incarceration in California. As their collaboration has unfolded, Got My Wings developed as a commentary on the Masters’ personal story, but also a window into the broader theme of freedom and justice: “this album is a dedication to the human capacity for finding freedom without losing our dignity and deep love for one other.” For this work Blake received a fellowship from the New York Foundation for the Arts, and the work received additional support from Composers Now founder and Pulitzer Prize-winning composer Tania León. The six tracks on the album show a new side to Dan Blake as both a composer and performer eager to find new directions to meet the present moment. Red Tara is named after the spiritual practice Masters’ has developed for years following in the lineage of Chagdud Talku Rinpoche. The piece shows Blake’s command of electronic layering, where he weaves an intricate yet simple pattern of melodies that evolve into an intensely churning groove. The track also led to a newly filmed dance work choreographed by Tomiko Magario (New Rising Sun Dance Company, Joffrey Ballet), with whom Blake has collaborated since the work’s premier as a ballet in 2022. The album’s title track Got My Wings introduces the theme of flight, where “birds” are sonically painted throughout the arrangement. Heart Connection and Pema are companion pieces dealing with the theme of love, with the second piece dedicated to Jarvis’ longtime mentor, the famed Buddhist teacher Pema Chödrön. The album builds towards its conclusion with the final movements named after Jarvis Masters’ powerful message that resonates deeply in our present era of cascading crises: “Just because you’re out, doesn’t mean that you’re free.” In the final track we get to hear Masters’ voice intoning these and other reflections over the music, which builds toward a fast-paced groove supported by Bryan Copeland on drums and additional production by Mike Sempert (who also contributed on track 2). In addition to being a performance piece, Got My Wings is an educational project funded by Humanities New York that helps students and educators think about the arts as a vehicle for social justice. Jarvis Jay Masters has been a collaborator and partner The work has led to meaningful partnerships with a range of educators, advocates, and organizations working on the front lines in the struggle for justice such as ENUBuilds, Darrian Bennett, Tom Ray, Rehabilitation Through The Arts, Release Aging People from Prison (RAPP), Sing Sing Family Collective, and of course Jarvis Jay Masters (www.freejarvis.org). Visit www.gotmywings.org for more info.

Tracks

Red Tara; Got My Wings; Heart Connection; Pema; Just Because You're Out; Doesn't Mean You're Free

Personnel

Dan Blake

saxophone, tenor

Additional Personnel

Bryan Copeland, drums; Mike Sempert, sound design (on tracks 2 and 6); Jarvis Jay Masters, voice (on track 6)

Date featured

December 28, 2025

This song appears by permission of the contributing artist and/or record company. It is for personal use only; no other rights are granted or implied.