Editorial Review:

Album Description:
An Ancient Muse is 'eclectic celtic' - singer/composer Loreena McKennitt's highly-anticipated first new studio recording in nine years. Taking up where her previous work left off, McKennitt fuses the melodic sensibility of Celtic Balladry with musical traditions from Greece, Turkey, Spain, and beyond. Once heard, never forgotten, Loreena MacKennitt leads the listener on a timeless journey from the Scottish borders to the caravanserais of the Silk Road to the wine-dark seas of Homer's Odyssey. McKennitt's worldwide multi-platinum sales culminated in her most recent album, 1997's The Book of Secrets, which reached #17 on the Billboard Top 200 Chart.

Amazon.com:
It's been nearly a decade since Loreena McKennitt's last studio album, The Book of Secrets, but An Ancient Muse picks up the caravan exactly where she left off on her mystical journey through the cultures of the Middle East and northern Sahara. The Canadian singer opens this album the same way as she did her last two recordings: with an incantation, calling out in a wordless voice across an echoing space, cleansing the air and the mind. What follows is a lot like those albums as well, a pan-global excursion centered on Middle Eastern themes and instruments cast into a dramatic exotica. Oud, dumbek, kanoun, hurdy-gurdy, duduk, nyckleharpe (a Swedish-keyed fiddle), and other ancient sounds from the region and beyond ornament her music, though 'ornament' might no longer be accurate. With the exception of Hugh Marsh's gypsy violin solos and a handful of other players, it's the Western instruments that serve as ornaments on An Ancient Muse. McKennitt long ago evolved the Celtic sound that launched her career. She's virtually abandoned the harp, which hasn't appeared on her CDs since 1991's The Visit. The lone uillean pipe on 'Beneath a Phrygian Sky' sounds like an echo calling from the McKennitt's past. Nevertheless, the Celtic ballad form remains central to her music, and she still draws inspiration from ye olde writers of the British Isles. Lyrics from Sir Walter Scott adorn 'The English Ladye and the Knight,' recalling 'The Lady of Shalott.' But despite McKennitt's soaring alto, the tale drags under the dirge-like meter and ponderous arrangement. The epic track of this album is the aforementioned 'Beneath a Phrygian Sky,' with distorted electric guitar accents and an acoustic guitar melody carrying McKennitt on another journey into her romanticized version of the ancient world. --John Diliberto









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Related Items:
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Related Items:

• The Book of Secrets
• Nights from the Alhambra - (Jewel 2 CD + DVD)
• The Visit
• The Mask and Mirror
• Elemental
• see more

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Disc 1:

1. Incantation
2. The Gates Of Istanbul
3. Caravanserai
4. The English Ladye And The Knight
5. Kecharitomene
6. Penelope's Song
7. Sacred Shabbat
8. Beneath A Phrygian Sky
9. Never-Ending Road (Amhrán Duit)

Rating: - * Excellent, her best yet! ... I always liked Loreena McKennitt, but it wasn't until I saw her "Nights of the Alhambra" DVD that I became a real fan. Prior to that, I was attracted by her beautiful voice and her haunting arrangements of traditional Celtic music. But after seeing "Alahambra", I realized that she also plays several instruments with virtuousity, and is a great performer! Now, when I listen to her new Ancient Muse DVD, I get more out of it, because it recalls the concert and makes the experience a (virtual) visual as well as an audio treat! Rating: - * Subtle New Ground ... She explores new ground- but subtly, so it is not surprising that many reviewers missed it- she took the train to Istanbul and her fans are still milling about on the Morocco platform... Rating: - * Hypnotic shades of the desert and beyond ... I've had this album for about a year, and I can tell you it really is one of my favorites! The blending of musical styles and instruments, not to mention the musical expertise of all the accompaniament is quite unique! Like many others, I am particularly fond of the Middle Eastern influence in such pieces as 'Caravanserai.' To me, pieces like this are written in 'camel time,'which is the cadence of camels crossing the endless desert, going somewhere, but a long, long way to go.... Excellent music for driving long distances, background music, music for contemplation and many other things as well, it is at once mesmerising, soothing and illuminating as well. While it has taken Loreena ten years to come out with something new, when you consider the work and expertise by all parties that has gone into this, it really doesn't surprise me at all; perfection takes a long time to master! I styrongly recommend this one, and if you like it (and I am pretty sure you will!) then try the new 'Night at the Alhambra' as well...... Rating: - * \"this prayer for Mother Earth\" ... Fans of Loreena McKennitt will be pleased with this long-awaited album. It has a lot of similarities to her earlier work, but is different enough that I didn't feel like it was a rehash. You'll especially like this if you enjoyed the increasing Middle Eastern influences in McKennitt's last few albums. _An Ancient Muse_ is where the scale tips, more Middle Eastern than Celtic. You might guess that just by the (gorgeous) cover, though! What I noticed most, besides the sheer beauty of the music, is that the recent years of war have weighed heavily on McKennitt. Several of the songs on _An Ancient Muse_ deal with the theme of war, and the tragedy thereof. "Caravanserai" and "Beneath a Phrygian Sky" mention war explicitly, mourning the "years of war," the "sword and gun and hatred." "Penelope's Song" is less blatant, but as it's about the Greek heroine who waited for her husband to come home from Troy, it fits. Even when McKennitt returns to the tragic love ballad, with "The English Ladye and the Knight," there's something in the "feel" of the song that seems to focus more on "love one another" than on these two lovers in particular. I don't think it's an accident that McKennitt chose a ballad that features a Crusades death and has the refrain "for Love shall still be lord of all." This is a beautiful album and I definitely recommend it. It has her usual haunting vocals and entrancing melodies, and seems to possess a subtle but inescapable moral: war is hell, and love is the only hope. Rating: - * This One Gets My Very Own 6 STARS ... In this very humble devotee's opinion, Loreena McKennitt could sing "99 Bottles of Beer on the Wall" and it would sound as if inspired by a great poet of yore, sung by the priestess of a mystic goddess. Needless to say, all of her CDs receive my highest rating. The only difference between them in my estimation is that one or the other my have certain all time favorite songs or poems--and ALL of them feature a lot of those. One thing that immediately stands out in AN ANCIENT MUSE is the degree of Middle Eastern musical phrasing, even more prominent than in NIGHTS FROM THE ALLHAMBRA. I love the Middle Eastern sound. Another element that really shines out in this CD is the superlative quality of the accompanying instrumental composition & musicians. "Kecharitomene" is a powerful non-vocal composition & performance. It's really great to hear the hurdy gurdy played on many of the pieces. I can't single out any performer because they all sounded wonderful. Also, there were some instruments I wasn't familiar with--and synthesizing made identification difficult at some points. The lead instrument in the "Caravanserai" selection sounded like a violin. was SO GOOD. In fact, it reflected a very pleasant overall romantic feel to this CD. "Caravanserai" bestows "the gift of tears" (at least for me) and beckons like a ray of light in this very sad world. This lovely song can be heard as a musical prologue to the next song The English Ladye and The Knights, with its Palestrina like choral intro and conclusion. "Kecharitomene" is a powerful non-vocal composition & incredible performance AN ANCIENT MUSE really is my favorite McKennitt CD--now THAT's a recommendation. I had to create my own 6 Star rating for it. Nights from the Alhambra - (Jewel 2 CD + DVD) The Book of Secrets The Mask and Mirror The Visit Elemental Parallel Dreams