Celtic Origins [Limited Collector's Edition]

Anuna | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD
• Number of Discs: 1
• Format: Limited Collector's Edition
• Label: Elevation
• ASIN: B000TU14II
• Also Available in: MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #75,566 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Editorial Reviews

(1) The Rising Of The Sun, (2) Sivil A Ruin, (3) Gaudete, (4) Our Wedding Day, (5) Pie Jesu, (6) Ceann Dubh Dilis, (7) August, (8) Sanctus, (9) Kells, (10) Greensleeves, (11) Scarborough Fair, (12) I Drempt I Dwelt In Marble Halls, (13) Fionnghuala, (14) The Flower Of Maherally, (15) Aisling, (16) If All She Has Is You, (17) Dulaman, (18) Si Do Mhaimeo I, (19) Annie's Song

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

44 of 44 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Amazing as always, July 29, 2007

By 

David Reinwald - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Celtic Origins (Audio CD)

I have been a huge fan of the Irish vocal group Anuna for over a decade. They have hit it big now with their niche audience when their PBS special begins to air around the nation. I believe they are such an amazing ensemble, that this acknowledgment of their work is long overdue! I wasn't sure if I should purchase their recording that is at Borders, as I already own all of their recordings. They are singing all of their great songs (although they have plenty, plenty more!) on this recording, and I didn't know if it was just a compilation their past albums. If you are unfamiliar with Anuna, their music really displays a whole spectrum of sound... from the ethereal to toe tapping rhythms, and it's all filled with soaring melody and rich and lush harmony-- some of which is modern, other parts which are a modern revival and reinterpretation of medieval sound.

So back to this album-- I did buy it yesterday, and I am so overjoyed as I'm listening to it, as this is a new recording of their PBS program material recorded at the same time as their TV special was, at a church in Cleveland, Ohio. The album was recorded separately, as there is no applause after the tracks. All of the pieces are approached with the same grandeur as their originals and there is no need to refresh the material, because it is truly timeless. They have added a couple of standards to appease the masses on this recording-- Greensleeves, as well as Scarborough Fair. John McGlynn (brother to Michael-- the group's director and composer extraordinaire) also includes one of his own beautiful songs, "If All She Has is You."

If they are coming to your town, go and hear them. They open their mouths and sound just as heavenly as they are on their recordings. It is stunning and breathtaking.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Sadly, a disappointing album, April 14, 2008

By 

Tricia K. "Tricia in Washington" (Issaquah, WA, USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Celtic Origins (Audio CD)

First - I love Anuna's other albums, without exception, and any other one would have gotten five stars from me. That's what made this one such a disappointment for me - I expected better.

This one is "messy" sounding; I don't know if it's the engineering, the fact that it was recorded live, or something else entirely, but it just doesn't work. Everybody on the recording (with a couple of notable exceptions) sounds nervous; if I didn't know better, I'd say they recorded at the first concert of the tour. Timing seems off, instruments go flat, and they just don't seem to be listening to each other in the way I've come to expect from this group of normally fine and experienced singers.

The exceptions I mentioned include "If All She Has is You," and "Our Wedding Day." These came off nicely, so it's not a total loss as an album. It's still Anuna, and that means it's not BAD; buy it, as it's still worth having, but don't expect what you've heard in the past.

4.0 out of 5 stars Lovely choral music, November 2, 2010

By 

Anne B. "anneb" (Tarrytown, NY United States) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Celtic Origins (Audio CD)

This is very nice stuff. It's not the sort of thing I can listen to over and over, though, as I get bored. Still, it's a very good chorus, and very beautiful songs, soft, melodic, sweet.