Craig C. Downer

An album meant to accompany The Wild Horse Conspiracy, a book about protecting wildlife, seems like a risky proposition—especially one with terrible song titles like “Mane as White as Snow,” “Afternoon Snooze and Frolic,” and “Foals at Play.” But instead, it’s a mostly tasteful collection of solo piano instrumentals composed by Downer and performed by Joanne Grauer. The music is simple and sentimental. And the music is often oddly evocative of the galloping rhythms of wild horses. A lot of it seems a little rudimentary, like children’s music or Christmas carols, but it’s not really intended for close listening. It’s music meant to be put on in the background while one reads about conspiracies of environmental law—which is a unique enough aim for a piece of music to call it a success.