This album by Michelle Qureshi was different than any album she has previously released.
The album “Within” recently won Best Acoustic Album at One World Music Radio 8th Annual Awards.
“This is strictly solo guitar, it’s 62 minutes long with 24 tracks,” the Carmel resident said. “I just haven’t made one like this before, and it’s also a debut album for me on myndstream. So in that sense it marks a different stage of my career for me. For example, next month myndstream will release a ‘Summer Song Flight’ consisting of one single from six different myndstream artists. I will have my new ambient guitar track as part of this release, “Night of a Thousand Stars.’”
Qureshi was working on the album when the COVID-19 pandemic intensified in mid-March 2020.
“The pandemic changed this album’s plans quite a bit,” Qureshi said. “The music label, myndstream, brought me on as a new artist in January 2020 after hearing my demo of some music from what would become the album ‘Within.’ The plan was to have Will Ackerman, Windham Hill founder and guitarist, produce and record it at his recording studio, Imaginary Roads Studios in Vermont. We booked a week in May at the time. Then as things began shutting down in March and it became clear that travel could not happen, we decided I would do what I’ve done with every album thus far — I recorded it myself in my home studio.”
Qureshi said the final project was sent to be mastered remotely by Tom Eaton, who works with Ackerman. The album still hit the target of a September 2020 release.
“it just became a time that I again wore the hat of performer, artist, engineer etc., so more work for me during some highly stressful times in the world with this pandemic,” Qureshi said.
Qureshi’s album also was nominated by Zone Music Reporter, but was not selected as the winner earlier in July.
This was Qureshi’s second award from One World Music Radio awards. Her 2016 album Scattering Stars won Best Ambient Album.
