David Bedford, Star's End (side A)

1974's Star's End contains one continuous, 45 minute piece, that is divided in the middle between the two album sides.  The piece consists of a series of swells with quiet sections between them.  The palette of sounds does not emphasize an intricate or subtle set of textures, but at the same time, the piece focuses more on the shifting groups of sound than on tonality.  Sounds with tonal notes are used to create a shifting field, which draws attention to the dynamic shifts over time.  The piece is performed by a symphony orchestra augmented by Mike Oldfield and Chris Cutler.  Bedford seems to exploit Oldfield's personality as a guitarist more than Cutler's idiosyncratic approach to percussion.  Both soloists are featured prominently in the mix, with a more rock-like recording approach used to emphasize their contributions.  The packaging of my US copy is non-descript, but the original UK album had a more interesting cover image.