Nights from the Alhambra - (Jewel 2 CD + DVD)

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Similar Items:

•	An Ancient Muse
•	The Book of Secrets
•	No Journey's End
•	The Mask and Mirror
•	The Visit

Editorial Reviews:

Amazon.com
After nearly a decade off the scene, Loreena McKennitt returned to the performance and recording stage in 2006 and 2007. The Canadian singer picked up exactly where she left off, traveling through the Celtic-Middle Eastern fusions she explored on The Book of Secrets with her latest studio album, An Ancient Muse. Now, with momentum behind her, she's released a DVD document of her performance at Alhambra palace in Granada, Spain. This is the same performance that has been running on PBS station pledge drives for the last year, but with a double CD included. McKennitt's renditions of songs from An Ancient Muse and her earlier albums are impeccable. As she is something of a perfectionist, there isn't much deviation from the original studio versions, but McKennitt is in fine voice and the band gets to rave it up a few times on tracks like "The Bonny Swans," where violinist Hugh Marsh and guitarist Brian Hughes trade increasingly frantic leads. This is an expanded group for McKennitt, with players from England, Greece, and the Middle East playing oud, dumbek, kanoun, hurdy-gurdy, duduk, and other ancient sounds from the British Isles to Turkey. The advantage of this edition of the Alhambra performance over that seen on PBS is that we're spared McKennitt's earnest and precious interstitials, talking about the location and her inspirations while slowly running her hands over Celtic carvings. But if you want it, that version of the performance is also on the DVD, as the commentary track. The CDs wisely drop even the between-song patter, which is fine, but not something to sit through on repeated listenings. Although the performance is beautifully, if conventionally filmed, and it's great to see this virtuoso band playing in communion, it's ultimately McKennitt's songs themselves that brim with visual imagery as she creates her ancient evocations as effectively on the concert stage as she does in the studio. --John Diliberto

More from Loreena McKennitt

An Ancient Muse	The Book of Secrets	The Visit
To Drive the Cold Winter Away	The Mask and Mirror	A Winter Garden: Five Songs for the Season
Parallel Dreams	Elemental	Live in Paris and Toronto

Album Description
An enchanting musical performance, set beneath the stars in the breathtaking Moorish heart of medieval Spain. Captured in concert in September 2006, singer/composer Loreena McKennitt leads viewers through the multi-textured landscapes of her catalog, from traditional Celtic ballads to literary narratives and highlights from her latest recording, An Ancient Muse.

Filmed in rich HDTV, Nights from the Alhambra evokes the otherworldly magic of Granada's palace of dreams, the fiery and inspired performances of a stellar cast of supporting musicians and, of course, the unforgettable voice and songs of Loreena McKennitt herself. The package includes the complete footage on DVD and 2 separate audio CDs that encompass the complete evening.

Customer Reviews: Read 47 more reviews...

5 out of 5 stars

Wonderful Concert August 24, 2007
78 out of 78 found this review helpful

For fans of Loreena McKennitt, this is the concert video that we have all been waiting for... it is just stunning!

There is a possible point of confusion here, as there are TWO versions of the same performance offered on Amazon. The ONLY difference is the packaging, both contain 3 disks (2 cd's and one DVD). This set is packaged as a jewel box set, and the other is packaged in a DVD sized container. At first, I ordered both, thinking that one set was a DVD video and the other was a CD audio version. After I realized my mistake, I canceled this jewel box order and got the DVD sized package (which was cheaper at the time).

Whichever version you buy, I am sure you will be captivated by this magnificent performance, recorded in a magnificent setting!

5 out of 5 stars

A Visual and Aural Extravaganza November 7, 2007
14 out of 14 found this review helpful

If this box set did not include the DVD, it would not take on the significance it has. After all, most long time fans of Loreena McKennitt are already quite familiar with most or all of the songs on it. Without the DVD, it would just be an excellent live concert CD. With it, the listener can grasp a fuller sense of the visual and aural extravaganza that Nights From the Alhambra was.
We all like McKennitt's unique sound and the way her songs borrow from a wide swath of cultures stretching from the Emerald Isle to Anatolia. Here we can not only relish that sound, but we can see how it is created by an array of strange and wonderful instruments, many of which are unfamiliar to the average listener.
Each CD offers a little more than three quarters of an hour's worth of music. The DVD is a bit longer than the two CDs combined because the songs are interspersed with McKennitt's commentary. On the DVD, the cameras wander around, providing the viewer not just with a lot of close-ups of McKennitt and her band, but also of the Alhambra itself.
Of course I have my favorites, but I find the entire package a delight. If you are already a fan of Loreena McKennitt and have not yet heard or seen Nights From the Alhambra, then its time to do so now. This is one of those CDs likely to be regarded by posterity as an essential work of the early 21st century.

5 out of 5 stars

Beauty, Elegance and Class September 4, 2007
12 out of 14 found this review helpful

My God ...

That was the first coherent thought to go through my mind after I started watching this DVD. The next 3 words were: Beauty, Elegance and Class.

I've been a fan of Lorrena McKennitt's music for some time. I suppose it was a combination of her ability to find common themes throughout the world, her beautiful voice and her ability to weave in the use of "unusual" instruments. Yes, I'm well aware that as a man from the Midwest USA "unusual" is a pretty wide term ... please bear with me.

My first taste of her live material came with "Share The Journey" which is my favorite of her CDs ... well, WAS my favorite. :-)

I am finding more and more in common between Lorrena's music and that of another old favorite of mine; Dead Can Dance. Both use Celtic and "Eastern" styles in their music and I feel "Nights from the Alhambra" to be a less-gothic cousin of DCD's "Towards The Within".

The video of this live performance (for me anyways) falls somewhere inbetween the solemn theatricality of Peter Gabriel's "Secret World Live" and the near-grandeur of Yanni's "Live At The Acropolis" ... with a bit of Dead Can Dance thrown in. ;-)

"The Mummers' Dance" (still my favorite) showed that while the themes the band generally work with are grand they can still have an awful lot of fun. "Penelope's Song" widened my mind a bit more to the feelings my girlfriend has about us being 2 time zones away from one another and is a wonderful companion to my girlfriend's favorite; "Never-Ending Road". Those 2 songs also gave me the peace of mind and openness of heart to ask her to hold my heart carefully until we are together.

Another wonderful feature of the video is the constant energy and talent playing between violinist Hugh Marsh (fantastic!) and the classically beautiful and very talented cellist Caroline Lavelle.

While I personally do not find Loreena a "classic beauty", during and after my watching of "Nights from the Alhambra" when I see her sing a beauty is always evident ... throw in her smile and laugh and I feel pure joy! It is that beauty that she presents with such elegance and carries with the class I'm beginning to believe perhaps only a woman can provide that makes this an experience I can't help but recommend to any lover of music.

When it's all said and done, it was 1 hour and 38 minutes that passed like a float down a calm river ... and all too quickly.

5 out of 5 stars

Gorgeous August 29, 2007
10 out of 10 found this review helpful

I don't feel 5 stars does Loreena McKennitt any sort of justice. I had the distinct pleasure of sitting 6 rows away from her this April in Ann Arbor, MI, and she is enchanting. Her band is the most diverse, talented, and passionate group of musicians I have ever seen live, and Loreena herself is a mystical, soulful, playful presence who is just as grateful that we were there as we were to be there.

This CD/DVD set completely captures the ambiance of her live performance style, and while it is no replacement for seeing her live, will certainly tide me over until I do get the pleasure of seeing her perform again.

Certainly an international treasure, I cannot say enough good things about Ms. McKennitt.

5 out of 5 stars

EXCEEDED MY EXPECTATIONS! September 18, 2007
9 out of 10 found this review helpful

After being introduced to Loreena McKennitt by a previous CD and really enjoying it I decided to purchase this CD/DVD. Loreena and her band sound just as good live as they do in the studio. It exceeded my expectations! The setting of the concert, an historic building with stunning Moorish architecture in Alhambra, Spain is gorgeous and it's just perfect for this type of music! The talented Loreena sings as well as plays three different instruments and the musicians in her band just blew me away with their exotic instruments. Great concert, next best thing to being there!

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