Customer Reviews

Tavener: Ikon of Eros

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

 

 

The composer notes in the booklet that "in one sense the music must fail because of the impossible task of reaching Divine Eros. However, it is humbly offered to those 'with ears to hear.'" Should Tavener's music be unfamiliar to you, please approach this with an open heart and mind. You will not find 'Ikon of Eros' unrewarding! The solo violin lines may haunt you for days, though, fair warning.

As noted by other reviews, you'll find it difficult to have this as background music; it will likely engage all of your attention. (This truly is serious music.) While entirely different from Gorecki's Third, this music does speak to us of what the world lacks and yearns for. It may turn out to be as widely played.

The recording is absolutely splendid, capturing the resonance of the St. Paul Cathedral wonderfully. The booklet, with notes by Michael Steinberg as well as the composer, is very informative. As a great bonus, the CD concludes with a ten-minute interview with Sir John Tavener. I would highly recommend this piece to any lover of music.

I have been a HUGE fan of Reference Recordings and Keith O. Johnson's impeccable recording engineering for years. This recording is beyond description (but I'll give it a shot).

First, the music...

The music is awe inspiring in the best sense. What Tavener captures in this work is nothing short of miraculous. The sense of depth, purity, divinity and transcendence is quite unlike anything I have ever heard in classical music. I think Tavener and Arvo Part are trying to aspire to the same musical space with very different musical methods. The sense of infinity their music both attest to are the same and leave their listener truly moved, involved and elevated. This music is not as much listened to as it is experienced.

Now, onto the recording...

Reference Recordings and Keith O. Johnson's talents are truly instrumental in bringing such a breathtaking work to its full fruition on Compact Disc. As much as the music tries to communicate depth and space, the recording engineer captures the depth and space of the venue and music. You can tell where each performer is in a truly remarkable realization of the three-dimensional soundstage. How this can be done with two speakers is simply astounding.

This recording is most unequivocally recommended!!

I was busy typing away at the computer on a project. I had the radio tuned to NPR and was totally oblivious; oblivious that is until Tavener's "Ikon of Eros" began. I stopped and listened. I immediately emailed the station to find out if a recording was available. There is something different about this music that should appeal to all mystics and closet mystics, those who can appreciate how good music can help us transcend the mundane.
He makes use of the chorale as a Greek chorus heard off in the distance that provides a hauntingly beautiful quality that truly must be heard to be appreciated. Above this chorus is a soaring violin and soprano voice along with Tibetan bowls a Greek Cantor along with the Minneapolis Orchestra undergirding the effort. The acoustic of the Cathedral of St. Paul in Minneapolis in which it was recorded, adds to the mezmerizing quality of this music.There is also a short and delightful interview with Tavener that closes out the disc. If you are looking to buy a CD that will provide you with a profoundly moving experience - this is the disc!

This piece was commissioned by the Minnesota Orchestra as part of its centennial celebration last year, specifically for orchestra concertmaster Jorja Fleezanis and specifically for performance in a cathedral setting. It is absolutely breathtaking...haunting...deeply spiritual. As I understand it, the recording was done in the same cathedral (with glorious music just roiling around the dome) and is of excellent technical quality. Take a chance....

** -- first half
**** -- second half, with 5 stars for the 3rd movement.

Skip the first movement, which is repeated almost exactly by the last one. The 2nd movement is annoying, with a few lovely female choral bits punctuated by lots of silly ethnic drumming (as I am myself a silly ethnic drummer, I'm allowed to say this). Instead buy a CD of Faure's or Durufle's Requiem--you'll get the same sublimity without the interruption of the Mickey Hart concert. The 3rd movement is marvelous, and calls to mind Tavener's "The Protecting Veil," as well as works such as Vasks' violin concerto and even Arvo Part's "Tabula Rasa." Worth the price of the disc, in my opinion. It is marred only by the reappearance at the end by the reappearance of the above-mentioned tantric drumming. "Why, Sir John, why?" one wonders. The last movement is virtually identical to the first, except for the addition of some choral "alleluia's." As the reviewer below says, the baritone solo can get old, but if you listen only to the last movement and skip the first it's bearable.

Also a note about the spirituality: the composer seemingly has moved into a more syncretistic expression of religion, incorporating not only his Eastern Orthodoxy, but also elements of Hinduism, Buddhism and Islam. This makes his Orthodoxy suspect, and thus, if a potential listener is looking for the lofty and intense Orthodox content and spirituality of some of his earlier works (Veil, Thunder, etc.) he will decidedly not find it here.

I own almost 30 Tavener CDs. This one is awful. It goes on and on. Surely people must have been walking out on the performance. The poor baritone sounds like he's getting exhausted with his endless intonations of "metemorphothes." There are some bits that sound like soundtrack for a Kiplingesque movie about a bazaar thief running down an alley with an idol's eye-jewel under his arm. A choir shouts "Fight!" (or something) occasionally. Tedious. Tavener makes much of trusting intuition... I guess this is the result.