Lotus Land

Gandalf

Product Details

• Audio CD (May 22, 2007)
• Original Release Date: May 22, 2007
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Real Music
• ASIN: B000P46QCC
• In-Print Editions: MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #72,567 in Music (See Bestsellers in Music)

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  Music > World Music > Europe > Continental Europe > Austria

Editorial Reviews

About the Artist
As you listen to Gandalf's music, you know exactly why this "painter of musical landscapes" chose his name, years before J.R.R. Tolkien's cult-epic Lord of the Rings captivated filmgoers around the world. Austrian by birth, Gandalf has traveled widely through Europe, North and South American and Asia. The more cultures he has come in touch with, the more he has been touched by the realization that far more things unite than separate the various peoples on our planet. His goal in composing and recording is to create music that dissolves boundaries.

Gandalf's music is inspired by the beauty of nature and by the wisdom and myths of various cultures. He tells sound stories and describes moods and magical moments that point to other realities behind the scenes in this fast-paced modern world. He wants us to discover our incomparable and individual selves as we relax and "lose" ourselves in the listening. The music is intimate, tender, rich with grandeur and always heart opening.

Gandalf plays many and varied instruments (acoustic and electric guitars, sitar, saz, charango, bouzouki, balaphon, piano, synthesizers and sample-keyboards, and various percussion), blends acoustic with electronic and spherical sounds and weaves folk-elements into symphonic structures to create his unmistakable and unique style. He has worked with international artists, including former Genesis guitarist Steve Hackett, Tunesian vocalist and oud player Dhafer Yossef and English cellist and vocalist Emily Burridge a.k.a. White Horse, whom he met while on a concert tour in Brazil. Gandalf has also written music for theatre and film.

Product Description
Music being played from the very depth of the heart sometimes reflects a glimpse of the secret paradise within all of us, the boundless and eternal Lotus Land.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars In a state of languid contentment, July 6, 2007

By	ShriDurga (Japan) - See all my reviews

If you know the name Gandalf, you've probably seen the Lord of the Rings films. Or perhaps you're a longtime fan of Tolkien's tales of Middle Earth. Chances are, though, that unless you've been following the New Age music scene, you've never heard of Heinz Strobl.

He's one of several musicians from the 70's and 80's that grew up with Tolkien and took his musical persona from what until Star Wars came along was the most popular fantasy "franchise" in the English language. And so we have David Arkenstone, still active today and named after a mystical gem; Shadowfax, one of the first groups to record for Windham Hill and named after a sorcerer's horse; and Gandalf, the sorcerer himself.

Like the wizard for whom he is named, Austrian Heinz Strobl has a masterful command of the elements, which he employs to great effect on his latest recording, Lotus Land. Featuring nine original compositions, the album is a literal one-man show, with Strobl playing acoustic nylon and steel string guitars, electric pedal-guitar, bouzuki, saz (a kind of lute), electric sitar, piano, keyboards, percussion, and programming.

Conjuring blissful images of tranquil gardens, or perhaps a heavenly realm of Buddhas and Bodhisattvas, Lotus Land is a collection of serene, languid melodies suitable for either. Half the compositions are performed without rhythmic accompaniment, and of those with percussion two are so understated as to be missed. Even so, the melodies themselves have enough rhythm and movement to accompany a yoga workout.

Six of the album's eight tracks clock in at over 6 minutes, giving the artist plenty of space to develop his themes. Most of the songs begin with light synth effects, creating the aural canvas on which the lead instruments paint their pictures. Among the highlights are the piano climax of Love Opens the Gates, the synthetic choral effects on Mystic Voyage (that might remind some of Randy and Pamela Copus' 2002), and the charming interplay of sitar and oboe on Life is Love.

Lotus Land is Gandalf's 19th release in a professional career that began 26 years ago as a prog-rock hippie. While time may have softened his approach, his sorcerer-like instrumental and production skills are still as sharp as ever, if not better and more refined. I look forward to a monumental 30th anniversary release in 2011.

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2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Beautiful music for the practice of yoga, April 20, 2008

By	E. Maya - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

I'm a Yoga instructor and I'm using this music for my classes. People are enjoying it very much. Beautiful music for the practice of Yoga or just for the pleasure of listening to something very relaxing. I love it!!!!!!

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Relaxing, July 25, 2007

By	R. Curtis (Corona, CA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Great for massage and energy work... Clients love it. They are zzzzzzzzz in moments.