Music of the Ars Nova & Renaissance

On this CD:

1. Mass of Tournai Agnus Dei
Composed by Anonymous

2. Kyrie Jhesu dulcissime (polyphonic trope)
Composed by Anonymous
Performed by Thomas Rosenberg, Jytte Gorki Schmidt

3. Kyrie
Composed by Anonymous
Performed by Finn Videro

4. Chon brachi assai
Composed by Giovanni Da Firenze
Performed by Thomas Rosenberg

5. Notes Pour Moi Ceste Ballade for 3 voices
Composed by Anthonello de Caserta
Performed by Thomas Rosenberg

6. Veni Sancte Spiritus, isorhythmic motet for 4 voices, MB 32
Composed by John Dunstable

7. Soy contento y vos servido (villancico)
Composed by Juan del Encina

8. O mia cieca e dura sorte, for 4 voices
Composed by Marchetto Cara

9. O mia cieca e dura sorte
Composed by Vincenzo Capirola
Performed by Desmond Dupre

10. Gesangweise (Meistersinger melody)
Composed by Hans Sachs
Performed by Holger Norgaard

11. Magnificat octavi toni
Composed by Cristobal de Morales

12. Komm, Gott Schöpfer, heiliger Geist
Composed by Johann Walter

13. Mon Dieu me paist (1564 Psalter)
Composed by Claude Goudimel

Conducted by Niels Moller

14. Mon Dieu me paist (1565 Psalter)
Composed by Claude Goudimel

Conducted by Niels Moller

15. Hear the voice and prayer, anthem for 4 voices
Composed by Thomas Tallis

16. Laudate Dominum
Composed by Hans Leo Hassler

Tracks:

Palladio: I. Allegretto
Palladio: II. Largo
Palladio: III. Vivace
Adiemus Variations: I.
Adiemus Variations: II.
Adiemus Variations: III.
Adiemus Variations: IV.
Passacaglia
String Quartet No. 2: I. The Fifth Season
String Quartet No. 2: II. Tango
String Quartet No. 2: III. Waltz
String Quartet No. 2: IV. Romanze
String Quartet No. 2: V. Bits

Customer Reviews:

You've seen the commercials...........2007-07-07

The diamond commercials are good, but the music is even better! Jenkins's Palladio is what caught my attention in the diamond commercials, and I knew I had to find that particular piece of music! I bought the CD for that one piece only, but the entire CD is wonderful. The CD makes for great calming moments when things begin to get a little hectic. It soothes, calms, and relaxes.

very excellent indeed.......2007-06-08

I have thoroughly enjoyed this Cd...I am a big Karl Jenkins fan anyhow, but this is definately worth the little money it costs.

Diamond Music - wow!.......2006-11-10

Love listening to this while preparing dinner or cleaning in my kitchen!

Minimalist classic fails in subliminal messaging.......2006-04-18

This is the popular music from the diamond advertisements on TV--the repeated string motif increases in urgency, creating a mood of excited expectation. I liked the music in the ad, and it's fun to have the CD.

Sadly, I had hope the recording would contain subliminal messaging to coerce anyone within earshot to buy me lavish jewelry for birthdays and Christmas. I have to report that so far, even playing this judiciously at holiday times, it has not worked for me.

The music samples don't do it justice.......2006-03-04

I bought it only for Palladio and the fact I couldn't get it on i-tunes. I'm still working through the rest of the music which sometimes sounds like a music class going through exercises and scales.

However, I'm finding other diamonds in the rough (pun intended). Specifically, Adiemus Variation II (track 5) which is another beautifully put together piece. My only regret is that I wish there were more variations of Palladio like those that were done on the de Beers commercials (I recall 2 or 3 variants during the run).

Aaron Copland is still the top composer of the 20th century, but Palladio alone puts Karl Jenkins in his company.

Average customer rating:

Deep Peace
Music Therapy
Deep Peace ~~ Bill Douglas.......Superb!
Not classical
More than music

Deep Peace
Bill Douglas featuring the Ars Nova Singers
Manufacturer: Hearts of Space
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

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Solace
Luminosa
Libera
Free
Liquid Mind VIII: Sleep

ASIN: B000000X7J
Release Date: 1996-10-01

Tracks:

Deep Peace (Choral Version)
Flow Gently, Sweet Afton
Piping Down The Valleys Wild
The Wandering Moon
O Earth, O Earth, Return
The Secret Forest
The Hills Of Glencar
Red Rose, Sad Rose
Return To Inishmore
The Voices Of Children
Evening Star
Irish Lullaby
Deep Peace (Reprise)

Product Description

1. Deep Peace - (choral version)
2. Flow Gently, Sweet Afton
3. Piping Down The Valleys Wild
4. Wandering Moon, The
5. O Earth, O Earth, Return
6. Secret Forest, The
7. Hills Of Glencar, The
8. Red Rose, Sad Rose
9. Return To Inishmore
10. Voices Of Children, The
11. Evening Star
12. Irish Lullaby
13. Deep Peace (Reprise)

Format: CD

Amazon.com

Bill Douglas--composer, pianist, and bassoonist--excels at sentimental, romantic music. Deep Peace, a collection of modern classical compositions both instrumental and choral, fits in snugly with the musician's rather prolific output of slightly cloying melody. Drawing on his jazz background, love of folk music, and lyrical language, Douglas finds inspiration in the poetry of William Butler Yeats, Robert Burns, William Blake, and Alfred Graves. The Ars Nova Singers, a Boulder, Colorado, choral group, function here as on Douglas's Earth Prayer as another instrument used to relate the largesse of sound as worship, celebration, and tender feeling. Traditional, skilled, and dynamic, the Singers are well suited to the composer's majestic orchestral canvas. This baker's dozen--lively, reverent, and overall sweetly harmonious--is sandwiched between two versions of the title cut, a traditional Gaelic blessing, effectively setting the blissful tone for these Celtic-tinged pieces of the whole. --Paige La Grone

Customer Reviews:

Deep Peace.......2007-04-10

I first heard this CD in a Pilates class and couldn't concentrate on the exercises because I was so caught up in the music, particularly the track, "Flow Gently Sweet Afton". The women's harmonies are breathtaking. It is truly a "Peaceful" CD.

Music Therapy.......2006-11-22

I purchased this CD during the lowest time of my life emotionally. Every track brought solace and comfort beyond belief, especially the title track, Deep Peace. I would listen to it over and over, bathing in the lush healing sounds. Each element, from the perfectly balanced vocals to the simple piano and violin motifs, is seemingly structured at a spiritual level. This is more than ambient music, it's true music therapy.

Deep Peace ~~ Bill Douglas.......Superb!.......2005-08-03

Talk about heaven! This CD is divine. Just perfect for that needed relaxation on a daily basis. The jacket insert has the words to the songs, which is nice as I like to memorize the words -- makes the meaning of the songs come together nicely. Spiritually moving. I've recommended this CD to family and friends.

Not classical.......2005-04-26

The Amazon reviewer seems to think this is "modern classical" music, which only proves how much the term "classical" has been cheapened. This CD is full of pretty, easy-listening tunes, none of which have a thing to do with classical music. Spa music personified, but anyone expecting a more serious level of music will be disappointed. Very well produced and recorded though.

More than music.......2004-09-26

"I love poetry almost as much as music, and it is particularly satisfying for me to present these musical settings of some of my favorite poems. For me, these poems express the utmost tenderness, purity, joy, and poignancy." Bill Douglas

Has music ever overtaken you so that it became more than music? It was like your spirit entered its essence? Like it spoke to your soul on a level you cannot fully express with human words, yet your heart burns to share it? DEEP PEACE does that for me. I truly believe DEEP PEACE is inspired and approved by a Higher Power. I hope you will buy this and experience it for yourself. Until then, I leave you with some lyrics from the first song, my favorite, DEEP PEACE:

"Deep peace of the running wave to you / Deep Peace of the flowing air to you / Deep Peace of the quiet earth to you / Deep Peace of the shining stars to you / Deep Peace of the gentle night to you / Moon and stars pour their healing light on you / Deep Peace to you."
--a Gaelic Blessing o8E

Soar!

Average customer rating:

A Group for the Ages
one of the first classical rock fusions

Ars Nova
Ars Nova
Manufacturer: Sundazed Music Inc.
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

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Sunshine & Shadows
The United States of America
Together
Release of an Oath
Definition

ASIN: B0002CX1Z2
Release Date: 2004-06-29

Tracks:

Pavan For My Lady
General Clover Ends A War
And How Am I To Know
Album In Your Mind
Zarathustra
Fields Of People
Automatic Love
I Wrapped Her In Ribbons
Song To The City
March Of The Mad Dukes Circus

Album Description

Zig-zagging through a debut album of brass laced avant-rock originals like " General Clover Ends A War"—an an eye opening cover of Richard Strauss's "Zarathustra"—Ars Nova was anything but three chords and a cloud of dust. The brainy NYC combo, led by Wyatt Day and Jon Pierson, scored its first gig of note in 1968, opening for the Doors at the Fillmore East. The group's album got rave notices everywhere—and Ars Nova has since become one of art-rock's undiscovered treasures.

Customer Reviews:

A Group for the Ages.......2004-07-16

The first age of man is childhood. I grew up in the sixties in a household that listened to classical music. I did not like rock and roll music until I heard Ars Nova. They allowed me to make the transition into the mainstream. Their classical approach to music made rock and roll palatable to me.
The first song "Pavane For My Lady" has a pleasant sentiment and melody. It is sung in a high register that made me afraid that I was in for an entire album of that. The next song "General Clover Ends a War" banished those fears with its more powerful vocals and pounding drums. It begins with a fanfare. If you listen to just the right, and then just the left channel of the fanfare, you will hear a good example of harmonics. "Album In Your Mind" sounds like a precursor to Cat Stevens'
"Matthew and Son," and features an amusing prototypical father character. "Fields of People" is the original version of that song despite what is written elsewhere, and is a fine one at that, featuring matchless vocals by Jon Pierson. The rest of the songs on the album live up to their enigmatic titles.
The second age of man is adolescence, a time when young people tend to rush through their lovemaking. Likewise, instead of a gradual progression up to modern music over a long long period of time, Ars Nova put plenty of jazz, bossa nova, and be-bop on their second album, and seems to end up with nowhere to go from there. The first harbinger of this was disconcerting bits of what sounds like dixieland on their first album during the song "Automatic Love". So instead of a long musical journey, Ars Nova arrives at their destination on the second album when half the fun (and half the success) could have been in getting there. Ironic that their successor group called album three "'Terminal' Barbershop," since they had already arrived at their last stop.
The third age of man is adulthood, when people need to make a living. I think with all its talent, perhaps Ars Nova could have become a franchise like the Beach Boys (who spent three months making "Good Vibrations," which was the same amount of time Ars Nova spent making their first album, and the care taken by Ars Nova really shows) or Chicago (which was another horn group like Ars Nova). Sadly, Ars Nova might have been gradually working their way up musically to the present day, instead of shooting the works in 1969. So maybe it wasn't a poor performance after a long layoff that did them in after all.

one of the first classical rock fusions.......2004-06-30

ars nova's debut was one of the 1st classical/ rock fusions. the band mixed elements of the psychedelic style of the period with a heavy infusion of classical and renaissance music. along with acts like the new york rock and roll ensemble, ars nova pioneered the style of 'baroque rock', a subgenre of rock that is little remembered today.

ars nova's album is , overall, a mixed bag, but still pretty good. for me, the highlight of the album is fields of people, a very middle ages sounding kind of thing that was later covered by english legends the move on their 2nd lp, shazam. the move version, a rather heavy extended piece with spanish bolero parts and a raga rock ending, is a classic, but ars nova's original is hardly weak. the eerie march of the mad duke's circus is another standout track, as is and how am i to know, a droning psychedelic number with cool guitar. the band do a not very successful version of zarathusra. pavane for my lady is a nice, breezy , laid back opening number. there are some other decent tracks here, and one wonders what the band might have come up with. unfortunately, the band's performance opening up for the doors at one of the very first fillmore east concerts, was apparently a disaster. the band broke up soon afterwards despite a feature article in newsweek magazine. about a year later the band reformed, with most of the original members absent from their 2nd lp, sunshine in shadows, a more pedestrian affair that nevertheless included a few decent cuts. ars nova featured good musicianship, interesting song ideas, and a quite original concept for a rock band. sometimes the vocalists are not all that effective though. while certainly not a great band, they remain an interesting curio from the golden age of rock. their album is worth a try for fans of obscure 60's rock music.

Remede de Fortune
Average customer rating:

Enduring Poetry

Remede de Fortune

Manufacturer: New Albion Records
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

All Works by Machaut | Machaut, Guillaume de | ( M ) | Featured Composers, A-Z | Classical | Styles | Music
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The Island of St. Hylarion: Music of Cyprus, 1413-1422

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Homage to Johannes Ciconia

Machaut: Le vray remede d'amour /Ensemble Gilles Binchois * Vellard

Perotin / The Hilliard Ensemble

ASIN: B000000R3S
Release Date: 1994-05-16

Tracks:

Biaute paree de valour
LAI: Qui n'aroit autre deport
Liement me deport
COMPLAINTE: Tels rit
CHANT ROYAL: Joie, plaisance
BALADELLE: En amer a douce vie
Toute Flour
BALLADE: Dame, de qui toute
Dande ballade (arr. Kammen/Mealy)
CHANSON BALLAD E: Dame a vous
RONDELET: Dame mon cuer en vous remaint
Rondeau: Rose Liz

Amazon.com

Machaut was not only a composer of liturgical music, but also was equally famous for his secular works. Among these secular pieces is "Remede de Fortune" (Remedy of Fortune)-which became one of the most popular love poems in medieval Europe, securing Machaut's position as the premiere poet musician of 14th century France. The very lengthy work-- 4300 lines, selections of which are performed here--describes a deeply emotional outpouring of feelings of romantic love-of pain, desire, devotion, beauty, hope, and longing--which the speaker/writer never can reveal to the subject of his love. The poetic language is extraordinarily beautiful, and the melodies perfectly reflect the varying moods and lyricism of the words. Ensemble P.A.N. performs these widely varied songs with such skill and feeling that we don't even have to know French to understand the meaning of the texts. --David Vernier

Customer Reviews:

Enduring Poetry.......1999-10-02

The first time I heard Remede de fortune, I had no idea what it was. I'm so glad I took the time to listen. The title means Remedy of Fortune and the songs tell the story of a bard in love with a beautiful woman of high standing. It's ages old, but the poetry still applies today, as it concerns love, longing, hope, and finally the realization of a dream of passion. It's written in French, but comes with English translation. The medieval music is every bit as enchanting as the lyrics. I especially enjoy the music on account of its stylistic variety: ballad, chant, instrumental, female and male vocals. Haunting, plaintive, and celebratory, the artist's musical and lyrical subjects and styles change at the will of his mood. He believes that one must compose under the dictates of present emotion to be true to oneself and one's art. Definitely a worthwhile buy which incorporates history, great literature, enduring themes, and captivating music.

Average customer rating:

Stunning...Breathtaking...
love it love it love it
Ars Nova Singers
Peaceful and Reflective.
Enjoyed Enormously

Eternity's Sunrise
Bill Douglas , and Ars Nova
Manufacturer: Hearts of Space
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

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Amarantine

ASIN: B00004W5LW
Release Date: 2000-08-22

Tracks:

Heaven In A Wild Flower
The Hills Of Glencar
Into The Twilight
Flow Gently, Sweet Afton
Farther Than The Stars
My Love Is Like A Red, Red Rose
Return To Inishmore
I Shall Not Live In Vain
Karuna
Earth Prayer
Elegy
Tara
O Earth, O Earth, Return
Deep Peace (Choral Version)

Amazon.com

Bill Douglas has spent much of his career playing with Richard Stolzman, especially during the crossover years that spawned albums such as Begin Sweet World. Douglas composed much of that material, and he brings the same crossover idea to his solo recordings. Eternity's Sunrise, a collection of music from his seven recordings on the Hearts of Space label, showcases a quasiclassical sound that borrows from world music and New Age influences with overtones of spirituality and sentimentality--especially sentimentality. Primarily a bassoonist, Douglas also plays extensive keyboards on his solo albums, accompanied by the Ars Nova singers and a smattering of classical instrumentalists. Douglas's choral compositions are featured heavily on Eternity's Sunrise in settings of poems by William Blake and Robert Burns. These are lugubrious affairs that might be solemn if their close harmonies weren't so smothering. Douglas is shown to better effect on tracks like "Farther than the Stars," with its Celtic affectations, and "Karuna," which laces keyboard orchestrations around an Indian mode. Douglas has a pleasant melodiousness that occasionally prevails over maudlin arrangements. --John Diliberto

Customer Reviews:

Stunning...Breathtaking..........2003-12-02

It is difficult to find the right words to express just how beautiful and stirring Bill Douglas's music is. I have many of his CD's and never tire of them. "Eternity's Sunrise" contains selections from his past CD's and yet I found pieces I had not hard before. "Elegy" alone is more than worth the price of this CD. "Elegy" is stunningly beautiful and heartfelt. It unearths feelings of deep gratitude for those people in our lives we hold most precious. Performed with cello and piano and some slight strings it will remain etched on your soul the first time you hear it. As for the rest of the CD, there are too many wonderful pieces to be able to adequately describe here. "Deep Peace" is a gorgeous, moving song that Bill Douglas wrote for his father. The separate CD "Deep Peace" is also worth owning--as are all of Douglas's works. And the Ars Nova Singers who perform on about half of Douglas's songs are easily the most hauntingly beautiful blend of voices you will ever hear. The quality of their harmonies is striking. Bill Douglas is a highly gifted artist whose music will touch you deeply. Do yourself a favor and listen.

love it love it love it.......2002-12-17

Highly recommended, along with Paul Schwartz's State of Grace. I stumbled on these two in Tokyo and bought them because of the beautiful covers and was not disappointed with the music!

Ars Nova Singers.......2001-12-26

The review by Diliberto has a link to a group which is NOT the Boulder, CO -based group Ars Nova Singers found on Bill Douglas recordings. You may find more info about this group and its recordings at arsnovasingers.org.

Peaceful and Reflective........2001-03-31

My father passed away recently and I wanted to add my own touch to the Wake Service-so I chose Bill Douglas-it was very well taken and many persons wanted a copy of the CD-including the funeral home. I felt it was a fine piece of music to give the service a less-mormid air-very pleased and will treasure this CD -FOR LIFE.

Enjoyed Enormously.......2000-11-08

Dear Bill,

You have acheived another tremendous high. Your music creates such a sense of peace and tranquility. I had never really appreciated such gentle and refreshing music until I met a certain someone whom you know well and am very grateful to have been turned on to such wonderful sounds. Those that I have played your CD's for have felt them same uplifting spirit that you bring to us all with your God given talent. I know you will continue to produce more wonderful sounds for your faithful listeners to enjoy and we will pass it on to new liseners.

Tracks:

Angels We Have Heard On High
O Tannenbaum
We Three Kings
Adeste Fideles
Christmas Time Is Here
Good King Wenceslas
Greensleeves
The Holly And The Ivy
My Favorite Things
O Holy Night
God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen
The Christmas Song
Once In Royal David's City
Big Bad Drummin' Dude
Away In A Manger

Album Description

Experience the incredible sound of the all-brass Capitol Bones Big Band, playing both classic and fresh new Christmas arrangements!

"A Stan Kenton Christmas" is a new recording of the classic charts from Stan Kenton's "A Merry Christmas" album (1961), plus new Christmas big band arrangements by Mark Taylor, Matt Niess, Jim Roberts and Tony Nalker.

Customer Reviews:

What an audible treat!!!!.......2005-12-23

My father literally introduced me to Stan Kenton and his music before I was a teenager, and I have been a fan ever since. This Christmas, I had the distinct pleasure of attending a Capitol Bones performance of "A Stan Kenton Christmas" and thought I had reverted to the days of my youth when I attended every Stan Kenton concert that came within driving distance. Whether you are a "bone" aficionado or just a fan of the Stan Kenton style of jazz, you must treat yourself to this excellent collection of music recorded in state-of-the-art HDCD. It will put your sound system and foot tapping to the test.

Better than Kenton.......2004-12-26

I'm been a Kenton fan for a half century, so when I say that this is a magnificent album, don't think I'm knocking Stan. The Bones album has added six pieces to the 1961 album (now re-released with a junky monologue and Maynard screaching carols), and the musicianship is higher. Check out that lead trumpet! And the trombone solos are magnificent. This is jazz; Stan's recording is mostly Ralph Carmichael. Get it!

Incredible! A real treat for the ears!!!.......2004-11-24

This is a phenominal recording of Kenton's christmas charts, and they are finally performed as they should've been! The Capitol Bones Big Band is tremendous. Note after note, each arrangement is flawless. Again, it's great to hear these Kenton Christmas charts recorded with concern for intonation, contrast, and outstanding musicality. Once you've listened to The Capitol Bones blowing down these charts, you'll never listen to Kenton's "Merry Christmas" the same way. Buy it!

past is prologue.......2004-01-02

the mastery of instruments by todays musicians makes this CD fantastic.any fan of large ensembles must have this.if you are a kenton fan buy it NOW.

Buy!.......2002-12-30

If you are a Kenton fan, a brass orchestra fan or a Christmas music fan this is the one to buy!

Average customer rating:

COMPREHENSIVE GUIDE TO A MAJOR 20TH CENTURY COMPOSER

Messiaen Edition

Manufacturer: Warner Classics
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

Etudes | Forms & Genres | Classical | Styles | Music

Preludes | Forms & Genres | Classical | Styles | Music

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Shostakovich: The Complete Symphonies - Mariss Jansons (10 CD)
Power, Faith, and Fantasy: America in the Middle East: 1776 to the Present

ASIN: B000A2ACWO
Release Date: 2006-04-18

Customer Reviews:

COMPREHENSIVE GUIDE TO A MAJOR 20TH CENTURY COMPOSER.......2006-08-03

This is a quite wonderful and pretty comprehensive survey of Messiaen's music. And, at just over $7 a disc it represents seriously good value. Pretty much all the major works are here, barring some of the later pieces - e.g. the opera, St. Francois, the last great organ cycle, the Livre du Saint Sacrament, and the late orchestral pieces like the Quadruple Concerto and the Eclairs sur l'au dela. For the rest, all the performances are at least very good and, in many cases, definitive.

The orchestral pieces are perhaps the main place where one can do better elsewhere. Nagano's Turangalila is certainly good as far as it goes, but it lacks the raw energy of Previn or the lushness of the sleepy Love Garden that Rattle draws from his players. (I've often wished that the conductor of the premiere, Bernstein, had recorded it - it's his kind of piece!) Boulez's Et Expecto is very good indeed, but his later DGG version has better sound. For the orchestral version of L'Ascension, seek out one of Stokowski's amazing recordings. Des canyons and Reveil des Oiseaux, however, are about as good as you'll find. The 3 Little Liturgies still await a recording worthy of this wonderful piece for women's choir and Ondes Martenot dominated orchestra. The one in this set, the earliest recording here (1964), will have to do meanwhile.

The recording of the Quartet for the End of Time dates from around the same time, but is a classic - Guy Deplus' clarinet playing still never ceases to amaze me with its fluid liquid quality and stunning breath control.

But it is really with the recordings by Messiaen's second wife, Yvonne Loriod, that we come into the realms of the unbeatable. Pretty much all his piano repertoire is here from the early Preludes to the late Esquisses d'Oiseaux. There are definitive performances of the 20 Regards (her later recording from the 70's) and, especially, of the vast-ranging Catalogue d'Oiseaux, including its pendant Fauvette des Jardins. Her contribution to the concertante pieces - the Reveil d'Oiseaux, the Couleurs de la Cite Celeste and the 7 Haikai - ensures not only their authenticity but also their magical range of colour and tone, not to mention her apparently easy virtuosity. She is also the perfect accompanist in the three Song Cycles.

And, to cap it all, there is Messiaen himself on the Cavalle-Coll organ at the Trinite Church in Paris, which he played regularly for over 60 years and for which his organ music was conceived. Here he plays the big cycle of Meditations sur le Mystere de la Saint Trinite from the late 60's and plays it better than anyone else has since.

If you have any taste for the rich colours, infinite rhythmic subtleties and vivid portrayals of nature in Messiaen's unique music (and even if you don't share his religious convictions), this is a treasure-trove indeed. I recommend you snap it up soon because it looks to me like one of those sets that won't stay in the catalogue for too long.

Average customer rating:

The best song on the album is...
Ars Nova "Sunshine & Shadows" reissue still fresh and most welcome!
WILL THE BETTER NOVA PLEASE STAND UP !
mediocre 2nd lp

Sunshine & Shadows
Ars Nova
Manufacturer: Collectables
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

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Ars Nova
Appaloosa

ASIN: B000B2WJVU
Release Date: 2005-11-15

Tracks:

Sunshine and Shadows
I Was Once
Temporary Serenade
She Promises Everything
Well, Well, Well
You Had Better Listen
Round Once Again
Walk on the Sand
Rubbish - Ars Nova
Please Don't Go Now - Ars Nova

Customer Reviews:

The best song on the album is..........2006-06-26

...Walk on the Sand. The acoustic guitar of Sam Brown is inspired. The whole album is interesting in a late 60s kind of way and quite listenable, but the tune to come back to again and again is Walk on the Sand. It has a similar feel to another great underground radio classic "The Wind" by Circus Maximus. I've read that the album was recorded live in the studio. Great song, should have been a hit.

Ars Nova "Sunshine & Shadows" reissue still fresh and most welcome!.......2006-06-16

Great to have this little gem available on CD! "Sunshine & Shadows" is one of the most unique sounding late 60's efforts put to wax. An early example of "Jazz-Rock" fusion of sorts, this release boasts the talents of Wyatt Day who sings and writes pretty satisfying lyrics, Sam Brown, who provides lead guitar, Jimmy Owens, who plays some very tasty trumpet, and Warren Bernhardt, who adds a nice keyboard timbre. All in all this album has a great deal of variety ranging from "Old-Timey" sounding tunes like "Rubbish" to delicate statements like "She Promises Everything" to powerful rock items like the title track and "Please Don't Go Now." Do yourself a favor and pick this recording up, put it in an auto cd player - turn up the volume and cruise down the highway! The alternative is to invite friends over for a get-together and turn them on to this neglected fusion masterpiece! A must have!

WILL THE BETTER NOVA PLEASE STAND UP !.......2006-01-21

BOTH ARS NOVA RELEASES WERE BEFORE THEIR TIME. BOTH GREAT FOR WHAT THEY WERE/ARE. I LIKE BOTH FOR DIFFERENT REASONS .
AS FOR "MEDIOCRE" AS THE OTHER REVIEWER SUGGEST JUST AIN'T SO.
SUNSHINE AND SHAWDOWS WAS ONE OF THE LAST AGE OF ALBUMS WERE ALL THE INSTRUMENTS WERE REAL . NO SYNTH JUST RAW TALENT. THE CONCEPTS OF BOTH ALBUMS ARE DIFFERENT HENCE THE DIFFERENT PACE,SOUND,SOMEWHAT STYLE. I THINK THIS ALBUM WILL GROW ON YOU. THE TITLE TRACK IS POSSIBLY,ARGUABLY ONE OF THE BEST ROCK POP SONGS OF THE TIME. [ I KNOW I WILL GET FLACK FOR THAT STATEMENT] GET BOTH ARS NOVAS PLUG IN THE HEADPHONES AND TAKE OFF TO A BETTER MUSICAL TIME.

mediocre 2nd lp.......2005-12-24

This second album from 1969 is inferior to the debut of the year before. Only Jon Pierson and Wyatt Day were still around from the first album. While there is a variety of styles explored on the album, from jazz to folk rock, ballads to pop, the songs aren't as consistently intriguing. It isn't an awful album, the title track is pretty good for instance. However, like the first it was commercially unsuccessful, and it's easy to see why as this is a bland release for the most part.

Music Review:

Music Review

music review

Recommended Music:

Flag [CD-single] [Import]

Music that Moves the Heart

Prokofiev: Romeo and Juliet, Suites

Music: 16 Original Hits

The '60s: Original NBC Motion Picture Soundtrack [Soundtrack]

Roll Out the Red Carpet

Seventh Sojourn

Midnite Vultures [Extra tracks] [Import]

Scotland: Accordion Harp & Fiddle

Shostakovich: Cello Concertos

Quickening

One Man Show [Import]

Rated XXX [Explicit Lyrics]

Choice Cuts: Best of Chris Daniels & The Kings

The Chittlin Circuit 1.5