David Darling continued his extraordinary journey as a solo cellist, which began with Journal October in 1979 and continued with Cello in 1992. Darling's solo works, characterized by a cinematic atmosphere, have been featured in films by Jean-Luc Godard and Wim Wenders. With the album Dark Wood, Darling inspires another art form: The CD booklet includes the short story "Disturbing the Night," written especially for the album by Barry Lopez, the renowned American author of Arctic Dreams, as a literary accompaniment to the music. Lopez wrote this text as a literary counterpart to the powerful music of Dark Wood. The compositions on Dark Wood again utilize the innovative multi-track recording techniques already employed on Cello, creating dense layers of sound and captivating harmonies. The cello sound Darling produces has been described as ravishing—the result is captivating and seductive, according to Gramophone. Down Beat highlights the stylistic range, which spans from early music through impressionistic, ethereal moods to folkloric elements. Echoes Radio describes the music as soulful and alluring.
