Ancient

Kitaro | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (May 8, 2001)
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Domo Records
• ASIN: B00004YLJ3
• Also Available in: MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (8 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #61,169 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Editorial Reviews

Take an extravagant excursion through the ancient civilizations of Egypt, Mesopotamia, the Indus Valley and China. Kitaro manages to transport the listener to a mystical and contemplative place with the glorious textures of Great Pyramid. This magical journey also features the majestic and dramatic resonance of Nile and the eloquently evocative Unicorn, with it’s airy, almost playful melodies.

Ancient manages to create audio imagery with exotic, unpredictable sounds, ancient wind instruments, and among other things, the synthesizer. The result is a sound that seems primeval, yet Kitaro’s artistic sensitivity makes it distinctly modern, ultimately exploring the connection between humans and the earth itself, which remains eternally beguiling and wonderously captivating in its mysteries.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

22 of 22 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars If you liked Kojiki..., July 8, 2001

By 

Gwen Kramer "gwenhwyvar" (Sunny and not-so-sunny California) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Ancient (Audio CD)

...then you'll probably like this album. I agree with the previous reviewer, this is closer to Kitaro's 80's albums. I'm glad of it since his 80's period is my personal favorite.

The first track reminds me of the dramatic and then elegant opening of Kojiki. Kitaro's main talent lies in making dramatic music that is not over the top and romantic music the is not syrupy. Some of the faster tracks reminded me of the Light of the Spirit.

I have been listening to this album quite a lot since I bought it.

(To the uninitiated Kitaro listeners: Kitaro is intrumental new age. He takes his influences from many countries but you can always feel the delicate Japanese sound of his music. His music ranges from soft, dainty songs, to dramatic scores that sound like they are from an epic movie to mysterious and sometimes menacing pieces. Note Crystal Sands on this album for an example of the latter.)

22 of 22 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Not to be confused with "Ancient Journey", June 24, 2001

By 

eveoflove (North York, Ontario Canada) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Ancient (Audio CD)

Made in USA in 2001, Serial# 79401-73000-2-3, Playing Time 56:07

I started listening to KITARO 20 years ago when he released "Oasis"; there was something I found extremely soothing and spiritual in his music.

The problem was finding his albums as most were only available as japanese imports...

Since then KITARO has evolved (and Americanized) but still produces some amazingly "charming" music. Mostly inspired by nature, the melodies presented here still use abundant layers of synthesizers with some interesting use of percussion.

I personnally prefer the arrangements he used in the 80s, where melodies had an almost "lyrical" touch: albums like "Silver Cloud" (my all-time favorite), "Oasis", "Millennia" are classics of the genre.

Still, KITARO now has a broader audience: he's finally won a grammy for "Thinking Of You", an album that's closer in style to the 80's than his 90's efforts like "Gaia" or "Heaven & Earth".

There's also a 2-disc set released in 2001 called "An Ancient Journey", but "Ancient" is an entirely separate effort (not a sampler).

I didn't find "Ancient" as emotionally rich as "Thinking Of You", but it's still a warm album. If you've only been exposed to his recent efforts out of his 20+ albums, I would suggest you pick up "Ten Years" aka "These 10 Years", a 2-disc compilation of re-interpreted songs.

KITARO can make music that touches your soul, not artificial drivel that so often pollutes the new-age genre.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Kitaro-another side, August 6, 2001

By A Customer

This review is from: Ancient (Audio CD)

Being an AVID Kitaro fan, I found this album to be wonderful. It is not the continuous soft, melodic version most are use to but it is wonderful. What an amazing musician. Such talent!