Loreena McKennitt
An Ancient Muse
Play An Ancient Muse
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AMG Review of An Ancient Muse
James Christopher Monger
All Music GuideCanadian Celtic//p>
ew age/worldbeat architect Loreena McKennitt may be an odd choice for the legendary jazz label that released benchmark albums from Charlie Parker and Miles Davis, but Verve may have been moved by the undeniably talented harpist/composer/vocalist's large collection of globe-spanning gold, platinum, and multi-platinum sales awards. McKennitt's records (this is her first set of new material since 1997's Book of Secrets) tend to play like independent soundtracks to National Geographic documentaries -- kind of like a more ornate, expensive version of Dead Can Dance. An Ancient Muse may break little new ground for McKennitt, but it won't disappoint longtime fans. Her fascination with Celtic, Mediterranean, and Middle Eastern instrumentation (hurdy-gurdy, nyckelharpa, kanoun, uilleann pipes, bouzouki, lyra, and oud) and her preoccupation with mythology and poetry have won her great favor with the /p>
ew age/adult alternative crowd, and rightly so, as Irish-tinged allads such as "Never-Ending Road (Amhrán Duit)" and "Penelope's Song" are just Enya songs with more instruments than vocal tracks. Her penchant for quality instrumentals, in this case "Kecharitomene" and "Sacred Shabbat," sets her apart from the more stereotypical /p>
ew age artists like David Arkenstone and John Tesh, and her extensive, diary-like liner notes invoke ancient archeological sites and obscure Rumi poetry without coming off as too self-absorbed. This CD was nominated for a Grammy award in 2007 for Best Contemporary World Music Album.
Penelope's Song
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I am in the grueling process of getting my next book, "Beloved," a novel about a young woman who discovers what family, war, country and swordfighting mean to her (I'm still working on my "elevator quote.") ready for publication. I was correcting the manuscript the other night while listening to Loreena McKennit's new album, and "Penelope's Song" came on.That's when I heard the lines:Now that t...
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Penelope's Song
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Artist:
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I am in the grueling process of getting my next book, "Beloved," a novel about a young woman who discovers what family, war, country and swordfighting mean to her (I'm still working on my "elevator quote.") ready for publication. I was correcting the manuscript the other night while listening to Loreena McKennit's new album, and "Penelope's Song" came on.That's when I heard the lines:Now that t...
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 "An Ancient Muse")
