The Merlin Mystery

Alkaemy | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (September 8, 1998)
• Original Release Date: September 8, 1998
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Earthtone
• ASIN: B00000AFY6
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (22 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #48,845 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Track Listings

1. Wizardry

2. Le Morte D'Arthur

3. Nimve's Lament (Vocal Version)

4. Stonehenge (Eighteen)

5. Faerie Entertainers

6. Winter

7. Uther

8. Legend Of The Stone

9. The Wand Of Alchemy

10. Enchantment

11. The Cave

12. Nimve's Lament (Instrumental)

13. The Mystery

14. Dream Sweet King

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

16 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Mesmerizing, June 11, 2000

By 

Karin L. Gibby - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Merlin Mystery (Audio CD)

I first heard Alkaemy on a different CD called Celtic Journey while looking for traveling tunes for my trip to Ireland in April of this year. From The Merlin Mystery were two tracks, "Le Morte D'Arthur" and "Nimue's Lament", they were the initial and final tracks respectively on the Celtic Journey CD. The others in between were beautiful in their own right, but they were gravy. Alkaemy's tracks were truly the best I had heard in a long time. Not since Loreena McKennitt's "The Visit" had I heard such ethereal vocals and music. Wonderfully mesmerizing. The "Merlin" narration by Joss Ackland, who has one of those great narrative voices, featured on Alkaemy's CD, is an added bonus.

If you like a mystery, buy the Book and buy this CD to accompany you on a quest for Merlin's Wand of Alkaemy. Who knows, you might even find the prize, but even if you don't you won't lose with this CD. I've about worn out my copy and I still find myself singing Nimue's Lament in my head while I'm working.

16 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars I haven't heard a CD this good for YEARS - non-stop play!!, November 17, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: The Merlin Mystery (Audio CD)

This CD is a truly magical experience. From the opening swirl of wind, strings and pipes and incantantions of Merlin's Wizardry, you KNOW this is special.

The style is a wonderful fusion of the Celtic new age and classical, so popular with the Titanic soundtrack. However, this record has very much its own sound, somewhere between Enya, Enigma and Elgar, but with subtle looping rhythms and soaring, emotion-packed vocals. Later on, the music is not afraid to build to a real big noise - particularly on "Uther" and "The Cave". But the strength is really in the subtle, quieter passages. Le Morte d'Arthur and Nimue's Lament are haunting tales of lost loves, of angels and mermaids. The vocals recall Adiemus at their finest - but that isn't surprising when you see that Miriam Stockley, the voice of Adiemus, is part of the Alkaemy experience!

The CD is linked to a fiendishly difficult puzzle book (I've spent hours listening to the music but getting nowhere with the challenge of "the Merlin Mystery"!). It loosely acts as a "soundtrack", but it is a superb stand-alone record as well. It has a real freshness every time you play it. A joy. A real joy.

Buy it. I predict it will never leave your CD player....

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars surprisingly powerful, January 27, 2003

By 

Crystal C. Loh (London, ON Canada) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Merlin Mystery (Audio CD)

I was skeptical at first when I bought this CD (mainly due to my then-obsession with anything related to the Arthurian saga) and was unsure what to expect. I wasn't sure whether simple instruments and vocals would be able to capture the essence of the famed Merlin and the tragic tale of King Arthur, but I was pleasantly surprised by the depth and power inherent within this CD.

The girls of Alkaemy have managed to create a resounding, enchanting sound that carries with it all the fabled storytelling power of the ancient bards, who's stories have captivated audiences throughout the centuries with their lyrical expression and tales of gods and heroes. Le Morte D'Arthur, Faerie Entertainer's, Nimue's Lament and the Mystery are four of the most compelling tracks on the CD and through them many facets of the Arthurian saga are brought to life. The rest of the CD is just as good, but those four songs are the ones that clearly stand out in my thought.

The Merlin Mystery did not let me down, and it certainly will not let any other listener down, either!