Customer Reviews

Mnemosyne / Garbarek, Hilliard Ensemble

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

A fantastic journey through time and space, ranging from ancient Greece to present-day compositions by Garbarek. No less spirited than Officium, but much more varied. Whereas Officium was very much the Hilliards with Garbarek adding (at times rather exhibitionist) comments, here they play together almost as a band - and what a band! With beautiful packaging and stunning production, this is immensely enjoyable and uplifting.

I was fortunate enough to see Garbarek and the Hillard Ensemble perform pieces from this disc in Tokyo; one of the true surprises and delights of the evening (which I haven't found on the CD yet) was Garbarek's decision to quote from Albert Ayler's "Ghosts" on one piece. You might wonder with a classical vocal group who focus on early music and modern avant-garde choral composition have to do with Albert Ayler -- it seems a difficult gap to bridge. Hearing this two disc set will do much to make it clear. There is something genuinely spiritually uplifting in this music; it never approaches the New Agey wallpaper of Garbarek's weakest disc, VISIBLE WORLD, however -- it's not a tritened, mass-consumable spirituality at work here. There is grief, suffering, sorrow, pain, and fear acknowledged and embraced in this music; and yet it is still life affirming and inspiring (and beautiful to dream to). The spiritual aspect of Ayler's music, of free jazz itself, deserved the acknowledgement; Ayler was one of the most spiritually uplifting jazzmen of the movement, which often spoke in the idiom of the spiritual -- it would have been just as well (though far less moving, somehow, and far less musically appropriate) to quote "A Love Supreme"). Don't be worried by the unusual combination of jazz and classical elements; as another reviewer notes, Garbarek's voice blends in perfectly with the rest of the group, sounds a part of the whole. You'll forget that choral music usually doesn't include a soprano sax in a surprisingly short time. (Note - Garbarek brought a tenor to do the Ayler bit; I really don't know if it's on these discs, as I haven't listened to them in completion yet, but he does play tenor sax on them, so we can hope). Highly recommended stuff. The art for the booklet, by the way, is taken from Ingmar Bergman's SEVENTH SEAL, which is very, very appropriate. People who like and admire Meredith Monk's music (particularly BOOK OF DAYS, her finest work, by me) will appreciate this greatly, too. And vice-versa.

This album is pure bliss. Garbarek's soaring saxaphone playing accents and brings passion to the already rich and wonderful midieval choral pieces. Although the sax's melody lines are similar from certain tracks to certain tracks, I couldn't get tired of listening to this CD.

Though I am not much of an expert in music as to write a good review, I have enjoyed Jan Garbarek's saxo for many years now, and most recently his previous work with the Hilliard Ensemble, "Officium".
What else can I say?
Just imagine a cold winter's night (and nights are cold these day in the Southern Hemisphere), cudled inside your home, by the fireplace, with the company of a good book, smoking your pipe, sipping some good french brandy and listening this marvelous music.
What else can compare to such an experience?
Tomás Linn

This album is great in all of the ways that my fellow reviewers have so eloquently stated so I won't try to expand upon their praise. My one issue with this album is the same issue I have with many Garbarek albums. The saxophone is simply too high in the mix. During his beautifully complementary swells the saxophone creeps in and then proceeds to overpower the voices. I don't know if it's an ego thing or what but this (in my opinion) mixing flaw is present throughout much of the Garbarek catalog. Otherwise a beautiful collection of deeply spiritual music.

This set of CDs can only be described as AMAZING!!!
I heard one selection from it at a friend's, and simply HAD to order the set... and not only was i not dissapointed; it exceeded expectations. The combination of early music from various periods and traditions with modern instrumentation is out of this world.

Officium proved to be a surprisingly popular collection that got lots of air play and plenty of word of mouth publicity. To their credit, neither the record company nor the artists rushed to record a follow-up in an attempt to cash in commercially on Officium's popularity. Instead, Garbarek and The Hilliard Ensemble continued to work together from time to time, slowly adding to their familiarity with each other and jointly discovering new music to add to their repertoire. Finally, several years later, ECM released a new two-CD set featuring this uniquely talented ensemble.

This time around, the music is more varied, with compositions ranging from old to new, from strictly composed to mostly improvisational. Officium maintained a fairly consistent musical mood throughout, while Mnemosyne is more varied in its musical and emotional content. Some will find the new recording refreshingly eclectic, while others may miss the focused vision of the earlier release.

Both recordings were made in the same venue, a monastery, and the sound quality of the new release is exemplary. Mnemosyne is an extraordinary venture that showcases the talents of these extraordinary musicians as they venture into new and sometimes uncharted musical territory.

This CD shows Garbarek and Hilliard Ensemble one step further than their previous collaborations. It shows that they are more mature working together. If you like Officium for instance try this one to see the difference

"Jan Garbarek&The Hilliard Ensemble, un saxo y cuatro voces, ofrecen en MNEMOSYNE la mejor síntesis entre la música de los últimos veinte siglos -que nunca habiamos oido-, y un saxofón del jazz más tradicional". "La experiencia de sentir la conjunción de voces e instrumento en un gregoriano es sobrecogedora". "Cuando has terminado la audición te preguntas que vas a hacer mientras llega la proxima".

Cheesy saxophone and Gregorian chants do not go together, or if they do, they'll end up sounding like this. The Hilliard Ensemble is wonderful and I love to listen to it, but not with a bunch of tacky and unnecessary smooth jazz lines over top.