Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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12 of 13 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Gorgeous, September 7, 2000
This CD is absolutely incredible. O'Carolan is about the best composer that ever lived, it is about time that someone compiled some of his best works. I listen to this CD nearly every day. I find it very relaxing. Whenever I hear Planxty Burke, or Eleanor Plunkett - my mind is bombarded with images of rolling greens and Irish rain. A truly beautiful compilation of music that flow and work very well with each other.
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12 of 13 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Wonderful performances, but don't always suit the tunes, April 1, 1999
By A Customer
While the quality of the selections on this album is uniformly excellent, I wasn't as satisfied with it overall as I have been with other collections of O'Carolan tunes. I finally figured out why: O'Carolan wrote his melodies for harp, where the resonances in the empty spaces between the notes are as important as the notes themselves. The most successful tracks on this album are those featuring the harp itself, or plucked/hammered string instruments that emulate it, such as guitar and piano (I think Donna Long's "Mrs. Judge" is brilliant). Other selections, e.g., John Whelan's lively "Carolan's Concerto," work well because the tune requires agility rather than expressiveness. But the slow tunes are less effective on an instrument such as the flute, where the melody becomes a series of legato notes with no breaks between them: compare Jerry O'Sullivan's rendition of "Carolan's Farewell to Music" with, say, Patrick Ball's, and you'll see what I mean. I still enjoy the album in general, but I tend to skip some tracks when I play it!
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6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
A lovely collection! Soothing renditions of classic Irish tunes, September 30, 2006
"Celtic Treasure" is an elegant, engaging tribute to the work of someone who was, and still is, a "Celtic Treasure" himself: Turlough O'Carolan, the blind, itinerant harper from Baroque-era Ireland who's considered to be Ireland's first national composer. Narada has brought together a collection instrumental recordings from various artists who share a gentleness of spirit and wistfulness of soul, each presenting a one of O'Carolan's compositions in a fitting, original arrangement. Artists featured include Deanta, Orion, Shelley Phillips, Dordan, William Coulter and John Whelan, and the instruments used are generally Celtic harp, whistle, acoustic guitar, accordion, cello and piano. O'Carolan (whose name, did you know, is more properly spelled "Toirdhealbhach O Cearbhallain"?) left a legacy of some 200 surviving tunes that bridge the gap between folk music and art-songs, enchanting his wealthy patrons as much as listeners today. Earl Hitchner, Celtic music expert, sums up the impact of O'Carolan's legacy in his liner notes: "[O'Carolan was] someone who never set foot outside his homeland, yet produced music of transporting grace and radiance destined to touch every corner of the earth." Couldn't say it any better! For more laid back Celtic music try anything from the Maggie's Music label, and also Narada's "Celtic Treasure II," which is a bit livelier than "Celtic Treasure I." The groups Orion and Deanta (both featured on this album (in tracks #2 and #3 respectively) have excellent solo albums as well.
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