Etain

1. Spell Is Cast, A

2. In the Wind Above the Sea

3. Weary Heart, The

4. Haven

5. Cup of Wine, The

6. Time Between, The

7. Chieftain's Daughter, The

8. Time Between- Reprise, The

9. Meeting at the Well, The

10. Wedding Feast in Eochaid's Court, A

11. Remembering

12. Walk in the Woods, A

13. Game of Chess, A

14. High Stakes

15. Angry Waiting

16. To the Center

17. Flight of the Swans, The

18. Cheftain's Daughter-Reprise, The

Tracks:

Cu Chullain
The Eternal Knot
Palace Of The Crystal Bridge
The Wooing Of Etain
King Of The Sacred Grove
Saint Declan's Drone
Salm O 'Dewi Sant'
Connla's Well
The Dagda
Children Of Dannu
Ceridwen's Curse
Hermit Of The Sea Rock
Isle Of The Mystic Lake
Math Was A Wizard

Amazon.com

When British composer Karl Jenkins launched Adiemus with the Songs of Sanctuary album in 1995, it was a fresh and exhilarating take on global music. Jenkins used choral vocals similar to Enya's, but spiked with a language of the imagination (merging African and Latin phonemes) and stoked by Jenkins's pastoral arrangements. Never wholly original--Lisa Gerrard and Elizabeth Fraser had already worked out fantasy vocal designs and the 1960s African mass "Missa Luba" effected a similar choral/African/Latin sound--Adiemus nevertheless found a new take on English composers' penchant for choirs. However, after six years and four albums mining this vein, Jenkins's sound rings more hollow with each recording.

The Eternal Knot is drawn from Jenkins's soundtrack to a BBC documentary called The Celts. You might recall that Enya also evolved her sound in the late 1980s doing a soundtrack for another documentary called The Celts. Taking his titles from the Celtic legends that populate the documentary, Jenkins orchestrates cinematic landscapes full of swelling crescendos and dynamic cadences. Less oppressive than the heavily orchestrated Adiemus II, The Eternal Knot still wears thin. He casts Miriam Stockley's voice into a boys-choir register, turning her staccato phonemes into incessant prattle. But when she's in her warmer middle range, her layered voice is enveloping. Despite the theme of the album, Celtic music is only used as an occasional touchstone, with uilleann piper Davy Spillane, a few bodhran-style percussion grooves, and harpist Catrin Finch providing some relief from Jenkins's string-laden classical pretensions. --John Diliberto

Customer Reviews:

Adiemus IV.......2007-05-07

This is another celtic cd which stirs the blood to your core. It has great melodies and wonderful arrangements to compliment the vocals. I will look forward to purchasing more of Adiemus in the future.

whaaaaaat?????.......2007-01-06

that was the first thing that popped into my head when i heard this album. i loved `songs of sanctuary' and was heartily disappointed not to also love this album. while it is obvious that the music is celtic-inspired, it is *only* the music that is so. the vocals seem to float along on their own with no relevance to the instrumentals beneath them. the language, which is the same play-language as `sanctuary', is blatantly out of place here. while with `sanctuary', despite the make-believe quality of the words, the quality of the vocal sound was instantly recognizable as south african. but those nasal tones and front-of-the-mask, brassy notes don't translate well to a celtic sound. (in fact, the whole album sounds like a clash of two cultures. as if a south african choir accidentally got routed to the shannon airport and collided with the chieftans.) on the whole, a disappointing album. if you want celtic music, buy a putumayo collection or *anything* by narada, clannad, celtic woman, etc. don't buy this album.

Good...Although two of the Songs are on my Ipod..........2006-01-24

My favorite songs are "Cu Chullain" and "Math was a Wizard". Cu Chullain is a good song for a ballet performance.

By the way, I own these two songs on my Ipod!

Meghan :)

New Age with an eclectic blend of styles from across the musical map!.......2005-11-23

Some earlier reviewers would suggest that this isn't up to the standards that Karl Jenkins achieved in some of his earlier output. I couldn't respond to that because this is the first Adiemus recording I've ever heard and, frankly, I loved every second of it. I'm thrilled that other listeners think the earlier recordings are better because I've now got something to really look forward to.

For me this recording evinced a blend of emotional responses - quiet contemplation, relaxation, toe-tapping, a satisfied smile, that whole body moving response to a driving rhythm and a joyful sense of participation in an all-encompassing musical experience. The recording is an eclectic blend of styles that cover an enormous range - Celtic rhythms and fiddling tunes in the style of River Dance; hard rock and steady beats that took a page out of Enigma's play book; a beautifully blended chorus of female voices that might well have included Enya, Diane Arkenstone and Loreena McKennitt; orchestral backgrounds that ranged from lush full orchestral accompaniment to pizzicato violin arpeggios that would have done Tchaikovsky proud in The Nutcracker; simple but effective, pleasing blues style acoustic guitar; full-bodied high speed choral sections that might have been penned by Karl Orff as part of the unforgettable Carmina Burana; and, a very effective seven beat piece that reminded me of the rhythms of Dave Brubeck's Unsquare Square Dance or Moe Kaufman's Swingin' Shepherd Blues!

Well, to each their own I suppose. It's certainly possible that this CD suffered by comparison to the quality of his other works but as a first time listener, I've got nothing but praise for it!

Paul Weiss

Unimaginative.......2004-06-14

Unlike 'Songs of Sanctuary', this album lacks imagination and invention. It comes across as somewhat monotonous and overly 'camp'.

Cu Chulain is a reasonable start but even there the urgent contribution by the violins comes too early, and by the end of the 'song', the concept becomes tiresome. The title track seems to be depicting something monumental in its climatic outbursts but if so, the effect is more visual (the documentary itself) than aural. It's odd how there is apparently no language used here yet 'Palace of the Crystal Bridge' manages to sound like some clueless surfer-girl taking herself way too seriously.

'The Wooing of Etain' is a beautiful instrumental and one of the very few pieces on the album that is thought-provoking, as is 'King of the Sacred Grove' (which is mellow and sounds suitably regal)....this is more of what I've come to expect/appreciate in Jenkins. Even so, he could have done more to build a climax towards the end of this, the third longest piece on the album.

'Songs' such as 'The Dagda' would be interesting diversions/fillers for the album if it wasn't for the synthesized, mass-product result of the album overall. Less 'ethnic-sounding' and more towards 'tacky' (e.g., the duo separated by 1 octave sung in unison at the end of 'Hermit of the Sea Rock'), this isn't as moving an experience as some would laud it to be.

Etain
Average customer rating:

A departure from his typical sound...brilliant none-the-less

Wonderful Celtic Music

Different

A beautiful, haunting, stunning CD with incredible vocals!

Etain
Tim Janis
Manufacturer: Tim Janis Ensemble
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

Celtic New Age | New Age | Styles | Music
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ASIN: B00004TQSZ
Release Date: 2000-06-27

Tracks:

A Spell Is Cast
In The Wind Above The Sea
The Weary Heart
Haven
The Cup Of Wine
The Time Between
The Chieftain's Daughter
The Time Between (Reprise)
The Meeting At The Well
A Wedding Feast In Eochaid's Court
Remembering
A Walk In The Woods
A Game Of Chess
High Stakes
Angry Waiting
To The Center
The Flight Of Swans
The Chieftain's Daughter (Reprise)

Customer Reviews:

A departure from his typical sound...brilliant none-the-less.......2004-05-24

This is not exactly the typical epic neo-classical orchestrations you'll find on the other Tim Janis releases. Etain is a fair bit more diverse in sound, than any other release, which makes this easily my favorite Janis album. If you're not a fan of the Celtic sound, this won't be your cup 'o tea. But this album would serve most fans of Secret Garden well, myself included.

Wonderful Celtic Music.......2004-03-12

It's too bad that the first review that customers see is the one from the person with no appreciation of Celtic music. This CD is an outstanding example of beautiful, haunting, and authentic Celtic music, and while I like all of Tim Janis's music very much, this is my favorite. I would love to have it as a SACD as well.

Different.......2003-01-11

If you're looking for this CD to be the same style of all of his others you're in for a disappointment. I own all of his CD's and absolutely love them...except this one. If you like this type of music it's alright but I was disappointed as I like the easy listening type..not the songs of Ireland.

A beautiful, haunting, stunning CD with incredible vocals!.......2000-09-01

I just bought Etain a few weeks ago, and already it's one of my favorite CDs! It is an Irish myth, the story of Etain (pronounced Ay-deen), a woman in Tir na nOg in love with a man named Midir. Midir's first wife, jealous of thier love, turns Etian into a golden fly and sends strong winds to blow Etain away from her love. Weary after struggling against the winds, Etain comes across a house of feast. She rests for a bit, and falls into a cup of wine, after which she is swallowed by a woman who thereby conceives a daughter. Etain is reborn into the human world with no memory of her past life. She matures and eventually marries Eochaid, King of Ireland. One day, while they walk in the woods, they come across a stranger who challenges Eochaid to a game of chess. Eochaid wins thefirst two games, and the stranger wins the third and demands as a prize a kiss from Etain. Eochaid tries to surround Etain with the best warriors of Ireland, but Midir (for that is who the stranger is) walks through without shedding any blood to claim his kiss. As they kiss, they both transform into swans and fly away together.

The music of Etain is beautiful-haunting and captivating, passionate anmd powerful. Kate Chadbourne's stunning voice carries and enhances the music.

Tracks:

Spell Is Cast, A
In the Wind Above the Sea
Weary Heart, The
Haven
Cup of Wine, The
Time Between, The
Chieftain's Daughter, The
Time Between- Reprise, The
Meeting at the Well, The
Wedding Feast in Eochaid's Court, A
Remembering
Walk in the Woods, A
Game of Chess, A
High Stakes
Angry Waiting
To the Center
Flight of the Swans, The
Cheftain's Daughter-Reprise, The

Customer Reviews:

Beautiful!.......2001-11-22

Since I first heard Along the Shores of Acadia, I have been a big fan of Tim Janis and with each new album my respect and admiration for his talent and music grows. This particular album is my favorite, because unlike his other music, which is often inspired by his surroundings, Etain was inspired by an Irish folktale. His music introduced me to the story and I was so inspired that I've researched both the story and name in more detail, and now I have a daughter who bears the name...Etain. If you have never listened to new age music, start with this album. You won't regret it!

Celtic revival.......1999-09-18

This CD is yet another addition to the Celtic revival in the US, and should be added to anyones library of celt/world music. It seamlessly blends synthesizers with traditional celtic music (i.e. Altan or The Chieftans). I was introduced to this CD a few years ago by a dear friend, I copied it onto a tape, not altogether delighted with it, but willing to listen as he was my best friend. I played it a few times, and it has an infectious quality to it. I was soon not able to keep the rousing reels, jigs and aires out of my mind. I played the tape so many times it is now so warped I fear it will break the next time I play it! (will be buying the CD shortly!) Fabulous CD all around, I highly recomend it.

lively and lifting.......1999-08-05

Tim Janis's music touches both the hearts and souls as well as the ears of those who hear his music. His scores are full and lush and always leave you breathless. I first stumbled across Tim Janis at a crafts festival in Upstate New York and the first CD i picked up was Etain. There was a small ensemble performing it and after hearing only a few bars i knew i had to add this cd to my collection. it is now one of my most favorite cd's. A must have for relaxation.

Average customer rating:

All One
Etain
Manufacturer: Dolphin Safe Records
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD
ASIN: B00005EBNH
Release Date: 2001-05-22

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