About In Praise of Shadows In Praise of Shadows is the first album recorded by New Orleans/Brooklyn guitarist, composer and oud player Brian Prunka. With the exception of Aria, Prunka's arrangement of a theme by Heitor Villa-Lobos, the album consists entirely of original music composed by Prunka while living in New Orleans. The album is named for the well-known book on aesthetics by the major early 20th century Japanese writer Jun'ichirō Tanizaki, which discusses themes of light and darkness that Prunka felt mirrored his approach to music. Featuring a tightly-knit quartet composed of some of the standout musicians of New Orleans' more adventurous side, the album's spare instrumentation of guitar, violin, bass and drums leaves plenty of room for the music to breathe; each musician has a space in which to shape their personal individual contribution to the music. The compositions give equal weight to memorable, singable melodies, unsettling ha...