THE VOCAL MUSIC

One thing is clear from the astounding success of The Three Tenors, the Spanish monks, the Bulgarian Women's Choir, and other crossover phenomena: despite the conventional wisdom in the classical radio and recording industries that vocal music is not as popular as instrumental works, it is the vocal albums that listeners respond to more than anything else. And the two collections entitled Magnum Mysterium I and Magnum Mysterium II present a survey of five centures of the glorious sound of massed human voices.

 

Magnum Mysterium I focuses specifically on the sacred choral music of the fifteenth to seventeenth centuries. The music of Pierre de la Rue and Giovanni Palestrina is a beautiful and resonant today as it was nearly 500 years ago. Respected figures like Thomas Tallis, Carlo Gesualdo, and William Byrd are joined by currently overlooked Iberian masters Manuel Cardoso and Duarte Lobo. The CDs' liner notes add the the musical interest: the exalting sounds of Byrd's Infelix Ego take on new layers of significance when you read that he was a known Catholic in the fiercely Protestant court of Elizabeth I, but that a blind eye was turned towards him and his family because his music was considered so sublime.

 

Magnum Mysterium II also draws on the rich liturgical music heritage of both Catholic and Protestant rites. Four hundred years of sacred contemplative music are represented here, from the spectacular choral polyphony of sixteenth century Englishman Thomas Tallis to the heartfelt Psalm settings of his twentieth century countryman Herbert Howells. Magnum Mysterium II also includes some brilliant yet reflective organ interludes by Bach, Mozart, Langais, and others.

 

The sacred music included here reflects the long historic ties between classical music and Western Christianity. Most Italian and Spanish composers set the Latin text of the Catholic liturgy: this included composers like Vivadi and Verdi, who are more generally thought of as instrumental or operatic composers, respectively. But Vivaldi's Gloria or Verdi's Stabat Mater, both included here, are glowing choral works that show how strongly these composers felt about their ancient texts. Bach as a figure of great importance in the Lutheral services in his native Germany. In addition to his sacred cantatas, Bach's position in the church allowed him to display his musical genius in his organ contemplations, which were often improvised and only later written down. Two of these fantasies and fugues are inclued in Magnum Mysterium II. Another great master, Johannes Brahms, drew on Lutheran texts for his A German Requiem, which is also excerpted here.

 

There are some musical surprises as well: a setting of the seventh century text Vexilla Regis by legendary pianist/composer Franz Liszt, for example; or an example of early liturgical music for the young Anglican Church by Thomas Tallis. And there are also some familiar masterworks: the Sanctus from Bach's glorious Mass in B Minor, for example; and the timeless beauty of In Paradisum from the Fauré Requiem.

THE CELESTIAL HARMONIES ADAGIO SERIES

Over 500 years of the greatest classical composers are represented in this series; some of their finest, most ethereal, pastorale, or nocturnal works have been carefully selected and sequenced on these records, each of which sustains a contemplative, distinctive mood. That mood may pleasantly surprise listeners who have been put off by classical music's reputation for complexity and bombast. Whether it is a vivid music depiction of moonlight on a lake at night by Debussy, or one of Messiaen's piano musings that seem to break free of this earth altogether, the works compiled here are finely wrought musical impressions, suggestions, and meditations.

 

Since 1981 Celestial Harmonies' compilations have been used worldwide for relaxation, meditation and even music therapy. And in a stunning reversal of music industry rules, absolutely no advertising or promotion was needed to achieve substantial sales figures. And while the rest of the classical world scurried around looking for the next big hit, Celestial Harmonies released an updated digital version of an already proven winner: The CELESTIAL HARMONIES ADAGIO SERIES, a total of seven double-CDs. The reason for the series' success is no mystery. As modern life has become increasingly complex and stressful, listeners have turned to music as a source of relief -- especially the timeless, contemplative sounds of classical music. It seems that as the pace of our lives gets progressively faster, the music that many listeners are seeking is increasingly slower. The CELESTIAL HARMONIES ADAGIO SERIES presents over seventeen hours of the world's finest slow music -- making it the largest such collection anywhere.

 

Two of the CDs are devoted to slow orchestral music, two more to solo piano works. A further CD focues on chamber music, and the final two CDs on the glorious history of sacred choral music. Sales of this series have been through word of mouth -- a testament to the enduring quality of the music, the care with which it is compiled, and the attractive way in which it is presented.

 

There is an additional reason for the success of the ADAGIO series. For centuries, the greatest composers have presented some of their most beautiful and profound musical ideas as slow movements. Some have been smaller parts of larger works (the well-known Adagio cantabile from Beethoven's Pathétique Sonata, for example); others, like Vaughan William's pastoral and evocative The Lark Ascending, are major pieces of their own.

 

While names like Beethoven and Brahms appear throughout this series, the new audience for classical music has shown that it is not so impressed with names; these listeners want a particular sonic atmosphere. Many deeply affecting works have been written by composers whose names have faced with time, or who are still awaiting rediscovery. By including them, each of these remarkable collections captures the fleeting, fragile beauty of this music and sustains it for over two hours.

 

For those who are impressed by names, all the greats of Western music are represented: Palestrina, Mozart, Beethoven, Liszt, Vivaldi, Wagner, Debussy, and dozens more. But listeners will hear, perhaps for the first time, equally beautiful music by Duarte Lobo, Federico Mompou, and the modern mystic Olivier Messiaen.

THE PACKAGING

Using the duobox case pioneered by Celestial Harmonies, each double-CD in this series combines practical packaging with beautiful cover art and handsomely designed CD booklets. Paints by such masters as John Constable, Thomas Gainsborough, and Caspar David Friedrich adorn each cover -- reflecting the classical/romantic style, the slower pace, and the serene mood of the music within.

 

The terms adagio, andante, and largo are the musical terms most commonly used to identify slow movements. But the CDs that bear these names are not so concerned with literal tempo markings; adagios, andantes, largos, larghettos and nocturnes appear throughout each compilation. The titles are associated, though, with a particular form of classical instrumental composition: Adagio I and Adagio II are collections of orchestral works; Andante presents over two and a half hours of chamber music classics; and Largo I and Largo II together contain some of the greatest piano music ever written. Magnum Mysterium I and Magnum Mysterium II complement the instrumental collections with five hours of sacred choral music.