An Ancient Muse is "eclectic celtic" - singer/composer Loreena McKennitt's highly-anticipated first new studio recording in nine years. Taking up where her previous work left off, McKennitt fuses the melodic sensibility of Celtic Balladry with musical traditions from Greece, Turkey, Spain, and beyond. Once heard, never forgotten, Loreena MacKennitt leads the listener on a timeless journey from the Scottish borders to the caravanserais of the Silk Road to the wine-dark seas of Homer's Odyssey. McKennitt's worldwide multi-platinum sales culminated in her most recent album, 1997's The Book of Secrets, which reached #17 on the Billboard Top 200 Chart.
It's been nearly a decade since Loreena McKennitt's last studio album, The Book of Secrets, but An Ancient Muse picks up the caravan exactly where she left off on her mystical journey through the cultures of the Middle East and northern Sahara. The Canadian singer opens this album the same way as she did her last two recordings: with an incantation, calling out in a wordless voice across an echoing space, cleansing the air and the mind. What follows is a lot like those albums as well, a pan-global excursion centered on Middle Eastern themes and instruments cast into a dramatic exotica. Oud, dumbek, kanoun, hurdy-gurdy, duduk, nyckleharpe (a Swedish-keyed fiddle), and other ancient sounds from the region and beyond ornament her music, though "ornament" might no longer be accurate. With the exception of Hugh Marsh's gypsy violin solos and a handful of other players, it's the Western instruments that serve as ornaments on An Ancient Muse. McKennitt long ago evolved the Celtic sound that launched her career. She's virtually abandoned the harp, which hasn't appeared on her CDs since 1991's The Visit. The lone uillean pipe on "Beneath a Phrygian Sky" sounds like an echo calling from the McKennitt's past. Nevertheless, the Celtic ballad form remains central to her music, and she still draws inspiration from ye olde writers of the British Isles. Lyrics from Sir Walter Scott adorn "The English Ladye and the Knight," recalling "The Lady of Shalott." But despite McKennitt's soaring alto, the tale drags under the dirge-like meter and ponderous arrangement. The epic track of this album is the aforementioned "Beneath a Phrygian Sky," with distorted electric guitar accents and an acoustic guitar melody carrying McKennitt on another journey into her romanticized version of the ancient world. --John Diliberto

Customer Rating:
Summary: An Ancient Muse
Comment: This was a great CD and it lived up to all I hoped it would be. Very good purchase.

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Customer Rating:
Summary: So glad she's back!
Comment: I love Loreena McKennit and here with An Ancient Muse I love her even more! She has such strength and purpose and her passion comes through clearly in all of her songs. Even the instrumentals are extremely moving. I never grow tired of Loreena and I hope she keeps on going strong!

Beautiful...as usual!

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Customer Rating:
Summary: Excellent, her best yet!
Comment: I always liked Loreena McKennitt, but it wasn't until I saw her "Nights of the Alhambra" DVD that I became a real fan. Prior to that, I was attracted by her beautiful voice and her haunting arrangements of traditional Celtic music. But after seeing "Alahambra", I realized that she also plays several instruments with virtuousity, and is a great performer! Now, when I listen to her new Ancient Muse DVD, I get more out of it, because it recalls the concert and makes the experience a (virtual) visual as well as an audio treat!

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Customer Rating:
Summary: Subtle New Ground
Comment: She explores new ground- but subtly, so it is not surprising that many reviewers missed it- she took the train to Istanbul and her confused fans are still milling about in Morocco...

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Customer Rating:
Summary: Hypnotic shades of the desert and beyond
Comment: I've had this album for about a year, and I can tell you it really is one of my favorites! The blending of musical styles and instruments, not to mention the musical expertise of all the accompaniament is quite unique! Like many others, I am particularly fond of the Middle Eastern influence in such pieces as 'Caravanserai.' To me, pieces like this are written in 'camel time,'which is the cadence of camels crossing the endless desert, going somewhere, but a long, long way to go.... Excellent music for driving long distances, background music, music for contemplation and many other things as well, it is at once mesmerising, soothing and illuminating as well. While it has taken Loreena ten years to come out with something new, when you consider the work and expertise by all parties that has gone into this, it really doesn't surprise me at all; perfection takes a long time to master! I styrongly recommend this one, and if you like it (and I am pretty sure you will!) then try the new 'Night at the Alhambra' as well......

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