Browse by Label: CELESTIAL HARMONIES

Artist:	RILEY, TERRY
Title:	In C
Label:	CELESTIAL HARMONIES
Format:	CD
Price:	$14.00
Catalog #:	CH 13026CD

1989 performance of the 53-part minimalist masterpiece originally written by Terry Riley in 1964, performed here by the Shanghai Film Orchestra, along with two other compositions by David Mingyue Liang: "Music Of A Thousand Springs" & "Zen (Ch'an) Of Water". The version of 'In C" is the first performance of a Western new music work by a Chinese ensemble in mainland China (performed on only indigenous instrumentation: various lutes, zithers, mouth organs, flutes and percussion). This version has been mixed by Brian Eno, Jon Hassell and Terry Riley and adds a whole new layer of Eastern mystic to this undisputed pulse classic.

Artist:	VA
Title:	The Music of Islam, Volume 1
Label:	CELESTIAL HARMONIES
Format:	CD
Price:	$14.00
Catalog #:	CH 13140CD

Classic 1997 series of Islamic music, 15 volumes spread out over 17 CDs, available individually or all together in a wooden box. "Nearly all traditions of Arabic music, including Egyptian, are strongly defined by rhythm. A glance at the history and structure of Arabic music, the most modern of which is based in Egypt, imparts an insight into an unheard of multifaceted aspect of traditions and functions; styles and repertoires, genres and instruments, forms, and structural principles. Arabic music shows a dynamic and changing historical evolution. This first volume in The Music of Islam series clearly reflects this, belonging to both old and new styles -- in repertoire and performance the music in this recording reflects the new Egyptic style while the orchestration follows the older Arab practices.

       What is unique about this volume is that it incorporates only instrumental recordings. This is highly unusual. But this one sideness is toned down as all other instrumental pieces are determined thematically -- except the pure musically bound solo taqsim (instrumental improvisations) and the sama'i (Turkish, aristocratic art music) -- be it through renowned texts of the songs performed by the instruments or through programmed indications, which are characteristic for many new Egyptian instrumental compositions.

       The musicians featured in this volume are regarded as some of the most outstanding and sought-after studio musicians in all of Egypt. They play traditional Arabic instruments and are masters of classical, folk and popular music. The ensemble includes Mamdouh El Gbaly playing 'ud (lute), Mostafa Abd El Khalek playing the qanun (zither), Mohammed Foda playing the nay (flute), Khaled Gomaa playing tabalah (goblet drum), Ibrahim Gomaa playing duff (frame-drum), and Hesham El Araby playing riqq (tambourine with small cymbals)."

Artist:	VA
Title:	The Music of Islam, Volume 2
Label:	CELESTIAL HARMONIES
Format:	CD
Price:	$14.00
Catalog #:	CH 13141CD

"The Sinai, under the control of Egypt today, is a triangular peninsula bridging North Africa and the Middle East. The unique and varied landscape, resources, demands and dangers of the South Sinai has allowed the Bedouin there to develop their own lifestyle and culture. The Bedouin music culture also developed against the backdrop of the desert -- a place of intense silence. Out of the silence, the desert Bedouin culture has evolved a profound sensitivity and mystical appreciation for sound which permeates every aspect of Bedouin life. The piercing cry of women's ululations express acclaim on festive occasions, the plaintive melody of the shepherdess's flute accompanies her watch over the sheep and goats, and the rhythmic beating of framedrums exorcise evil spirits from holy places and tombs. But for the Bedouin, the most subtle and charged of man-made sounds is the spoken or sung word.

Bedouin music is probably the oldest part of the entire repertoire of folk music in the Arab world. Thus, this recording is a celebration as well as a sound document of their traditional culture and unique identity. From the harsh and beautiful land of desert plains and rugged red-brown and black mountains -- the South Sinai --this volume features the traditional folk music of the legendary desert nomads. Recorded in a single night, in a dry riverbed under a full moon, the backdrop of the desert offered a priceless doorway into this ancient culture, people and music, capturing their very essence."

Artist:	ASWAN TROUPE FOR FOLKLORIC ARTS
Title:	The Music of Islam, Volume 3
Label:	CELESTIAL HARMONIES
Format:	CD
Price:	$14.00
Catalog #:	CH 13142CD

"From ancient times, Nubian peoples have flourished in the land along the Nile River. But Egyptian projects to dam the river at Aswan have, over time, submerged the Nubian territories along the Nile under water. And with the completion of the Aswan High Dam and Lake Nasser came the inundation of the entire Nubian valley in southern Egypt. As a result, the Egyptian Nubians irrevocably lost what remained of their ancestral lands along the Nile and were forcibly relocated. The resettlement has given rise to a range of social problems, and many aspects of Nubian culture and social organization that previously existed have now changed or disappeared.







       Despite efforts to survive or revive their culture, at this present point in the epic history of the Nubians, when their ancestral land is lost, and when their language is no longer the medium of either their religion or their government, music may in fact prove to be the best means for preserving something of the ethos of Nubian culture, and for adapting it to further changes in the future.







       The traditional instruments featured, which are used to accompany Nubian song and dance, include the 'ud (fretless, short-necked lute), tabla (or tabalah, single-headed tapered drum) and tar (or duff, round framedrum). The typical song style is based on alternation of a solo singer with a chorus. Both song and dance are often accompanied by intricate patterns of hand-clapping and foot-stomping. Wedding celebrations, which can last up to a week, are the main social setting for performing traditional Nubian music and dance."

Artist:	LELO & HAITHAM HASAN, MOHAMMED SALEH ABD AL-SAHEB
Title:	The Music of Islam, Volume 4
Label:	CELESTIAL HARMONIES
Format:	CD
Price:	$14.00
Catalog #:	CH 13143CD

"During the early phase of conceptualizing what would become The Music of Islam, at least one volume was planned to be recorded in Iraq, in the ancient city of Basra. However, the tempest of world politics prevented us from accomplishing this goal. With no legal means to enter Iraq our approach changed to a global search for Iraqi musicians. And to our surprise, in the beautiful port city of Doha in the small Emirate of Qatar on the east coast of the Arabian peninsula (not too far south of the Iraqi border), we discovered an expatriate community of Iraqi musicians, all born in Baghdad and graduates of Baghdad University.

The Music of Islam, Volume Four embraces some of the most beautiful Islamic music from Iraq, featuring the 'ud and various percussion instruments, performed by Iraqi master musicians who keep their music traditions alive in Qatar. Born in Iraq in 1389/1969, Mohammed Saleh Abd Al-Saheb Lelo, holds a degree in music from the Faculty of Fine Arts, Baghdad University, with a major focus on the 'ud (oud, a short-necked fretless lute) and qanun (a type of plucked board zither). Haitham Hasan, born in 1389/1969, began playing percussion instruments at the age of nine. In this recording, Haitham is featured on the tabalah (a goblet drum), kasur (a small single-headed drum), riqq (tambourine), tar (a single-headed frame drum), sajat (copper finger cymbals), drenga (like the tabalah but more metallic in sound) and the tabl (a double-headed cylindrical drum)."

Artist:	VA
Title:	The Music of Islam, Volume 6
Label:	CELESTIAL HARMONIES
Format:	CD
Price:	$14.00
Catalog #:	CH 13146CD

"This volume features songs from various sections of the lila (music ritual) repertoire of the Gnawa. The Gnawa inhabit the same religious world as Arab Muslim Moroccans, yet find their entry into it via a different path. Instead of reciting prayers in preparation to trance ceremonies, the Gnawa's authority is invoked by recounting their people's experience as in Ulad Bambara (track 1). A long suite of songs, it opens with praise to God and the Prophet Muhammad and his daughter Lalla Fatima, but also refers to the Gnawa centers, including Marrakesh, as well as entreat the assembly to make pilgrimage to the local awliya' saints. Thus establishing the present location in Muslim Morocco, the song moves south and recalls the Gnawa's lands and people of origin as well as some spirits of West African origin and the abduction and transporting of slaves from the Sudan. The singing ends with the proclamation of faith and gives way to a series of dances. Singing in a call/response style -- the lead singer being answered by other members of the group in chorus -- the lead singer determines the length of sung portions, while the sintir signals changes in tempos or meter, announces new songs by switching the melody, and signals the ends of songs with cadential cues. The songs are flexible in length, allowing the leader to shorten or lengthen a song to accommodate the needs of dancers in trance. The Gnawa use three main instruments, which are particular to them: the sintir or hajhaj, a long-necked lute of the guinbri family; the qraqeb or qraqesh, a pair of hand held metal clappers; and the tbel, a barrel drum with two heads struck with sticks."

Artist:	VA
Title:	The Music of Islam, Volume 7
Label:	CELESTIAL HARMONIES
Format:	CD
Price:	$14.00
Catalog #:	CH 13147CD

"North Africa became the stronghold of Arab-Andalusian music after the fall of Granada in 897/1492, yet the existence of the nubah (plural nubat, literally rotation or succession) system in Morocco can be traced back earlier, to at least the XI/12th century. Much of the repertoire has been lost over the years, and different areas preserve different nubat. In Morocco today, there are at least two distinct styles of Arab-Andalusian music, al-Ala, which is the most prevalent one across the country, and Gharnati, specific to Oujda in eastern Morocco and to Tlemcen in Algeria. These traditions are considered to be Morocco's classical musical hertiage.

       The repertoire of the al-Ala today is highlighted in this volume. It consists of eleven nubat which were standardized in the late XII/18th century. A nubah is divided into five sections, each corresponding to a particular mizan -- rhythmic pattern. Within each of these rhythmic phases, there is a slow and a fast version of each mizan. A nubah is actually never performed in its entirety, for this could take over six hours. Each Moroccan nubah contains between 95 and 153 songs and instrumental pieces. The layout of the nubah functions more as a matrix of possible performance choices than as a plan that must be adhered to. A typical nubah performance will consist of several pieces from a few different rhythmic phases.

       The musicians of the featured ensemble are ambassadors of this living tradition. Led by El Kacimi Mohamed, the ensemble uses traditional Arabic instruments. El Kacimi Mohamed plays the kamanja (violin), Ahmed El Kamas plays the 'ud (lute), Abdelkarim Doukhou plays the nay (flute), and percussionists Abdelilah Azlas and Mohamed El Rhouni play the darabukka (clay goblet drum) and tar (tambourine)."

Artist:	JORMANA GROUP, LOTFI
Title:	The Music of Islam, Volume 8
Label:	CELESTIAL HARMONIES
Format:	CD
Price:	$14.00
Catalog #:	CH 13148CD

"According to producer David Parsons this volume was the most difficult in the series, both technically and information-wise. 'It was a classic case of trying to record, with one stereo microphone, a group of singers who also played drums', exclaims Parsons. Yet, however technically challenging it may have been, the end result is nonetheless superb. Two of the most beautiful songs (tracks 2 and 7) on the recording feature the mawwal -- a vocal form which usually follows the performance of the layali --vocal improvisations. The form was known as early as the III/9th century where it was described in connection with the working class. Also featured is a modern composition (a rarity in this series) by group leader and vocalist, Lotfi Jormana. As in traditional music, the melodic component of this song is shaped by the concept of maqam -- or mode -- which governs the construction of melodic phrases, standard melodic formulae, cadential patterns, and vocal range. Recorded in a house in the medina, the old quarter of the city of Tunis, the capital of Tunisia, this volume features the traditional instruments and songs of the folkloric music of Tunisia which thrive as a living testament to the wide spectrum of cultures and practices across the World of Islam.

Performed by the Lotfi Jormana Group, this volume features the melodic mizwid -- Tunisian bagpipe played in the central regions of Tunisia accompanied by percussion. The mizwid has two melody pipes and no drone pipes. In instrumental music the long flowing melodies of the mizwid seem to soar above the pulse of the percussion group. In vocal music, the mizwid echoes, punctuates, and connects individual vocal phrases."

Artist:	GALATA MEVLEVI MUSIC AND SEMA ENSEMBLE, THE
Title:	The Music of Islam, Volume 9
Label:	CELESTIAL HARMONIES
Format:	CD
Price:	$14.00
Catalog #:	CH 13149CD

"Sufism, the mystical branch of Islam, has long had a tradition of art music, and one of the most celebrated mystical traditions in the world, that of the Mevlevi dervishes, evolved in Turkey. Mevlevi or Mawlawiyah music, developed in the VII/13th century and nurtured by several centuries of sultans, poets, and musicians, remains arguably the greatest Turkish contribution to the music of Islam. Although this music is the focus of this volume its influence is also strongly felt in volume 14.

Tracks 1-6 in this volume represent a complete sema ritual, and other rituals of mystic Mevlevi music are included as well. As a branch of Sufism, the Mevlevis practice the ritual called zikr (Arabic dhikr) -- an ecstatic ceremony of invocation and remembrance of God through, among other things, the repeated chanting of his many names. The zikr is practiced by Sufis throughout the Islamic world, and it has been noted that even the Turkish sema is a specific subdivision of this genre of ritual. The Mevlevis also present their mystical music in what might be viewed as a kind of concert suite (tracks 7 and 9). Track 8 is a prelude of sorts that introduces the mode used in the final suite. Each suite is united by a different mode. In every case, the music draws its inspiration from the text, and its structure from a sophisticated set of modes, rhythms, and traditional forms."

Artist:	VA
Title:	The Music of Islam, Volume 10
Label:	CELESTIAL HARMONIES
Format:	CD
Price:	$14.00
Catalog #:	CH 13150CD

"Many orthodox Muslims have traditionally held that music is generally detrimental to the listener's religious life, and as a result there is relatively little sacred music in Islam. But there is some. Central to Islamic life is the chanting of the holy scripture, the Qur'an. Two associated works, the call to prayer known as ezan (adhon) and the tekbir, are known throughout the Islamic world, and are also performed in a highly stylized, richly embroidered style of chant. These prayers are the subject of this volume. A further prayer, the mevlud (mawlid) and regional prayers for the month of Ramadan are reserved for special occasions. All of these sacred works are sung/recited (the distinction becomes almost a semantic one in these performances in Arabic, of course; but difference in pronunciation and inflection have led to distinctly regional styles of performance. The five reciters recorded in this volume are all based in Istanbul, Turkey, where the tradition of Qur'anic chant is particularly strong.

The sound of the Qur'an recitation can be a striking one for Western ears. The modes can range from the slightly piqant to the starlingly exotic. But it bears repeating that, for all the musical interest in these performances, this is basically not music at all. It is prayer; and like the chanting of the Buddhist monks of Tibet, has as its ultimate aim not a musical goal but a spiritual one."

Artist:	VA
Title:	The Music of Islam, Volume 11
Label:	CELESTIAL HARMONIES
Format:	CD
Price:	$14.00
Catalog #:	CH 13151CD

"The music culture of Yemen is a domain which has, until this recording and accompanying annotation, been scarcely known or documented. Yet, it has deep historic roots. The music of Yemen is extremely rich in genres, repertoires and configurations, functional relationships, modalities of performance and instruments. Yemenite music in general, and regardless of all the differences between layers of tradition and local and regional styles, has a particular attraction and charm, virtues which have been praised since ancient times.

The traditional music life in Yemenite towns knows no concerts or concert halls. Music performances form part of various functions. In Sana'a there are two main occasions: magyal, a social afternoon gathering and samra, night time entertainment. Recorded at a modern magyal, this volume features the classical traditional style of Yemen."

Artist:	VA
Title:	The Music of Islam, Volume 12
Label:	CELESTIAL HARMONIES
Format:	CD
Price:	$14.00
Catalog #:	CH 13152CD

"The instrumental compositions in this recording belong to Persian art music as passed down to the present. The marked preference of the Persians for instrumental music contributed to the dedication of greater attention by the Arabs, oriented more towards vocal music, to the development of instruments and instrumental performance.

       Gusheh-ha -- designating small dimensioned tonal melodic tone groups -- form the foundations of the great complex creations of the classical music of Iran. A gusheh (singular) is comprised of a dastgah -- a kind of five-part suite. The connection with classical music is first established by the integration of all recordings in two very popular dastgah-ha (plural), Shur and Homayoun, also found in most regional music traditions. The instrumental compositions combining the kemenche and santur offer an excellent rendering of the feeling for sound or of the sound ideal of classical Persian music culture. They are accompanied in the rhythmical formation by the zarb or duff.

       The Iranian musicians featured in this recording; Agha-ye Sadjadifard, Agha-ye Djamshidi and Agha-ye Sahihi, were very enthusiastic about representing Islam and Iran and were passionately devoted in presenting a balanced program offering a broad spectrum of Iranian classical music. Traditional instruments featured include the santur (a trapezoidal zither), kemenche (Arabic kamanja, a bowed spike-lute), tombak (a large goblet drum) and duff (a large framedrum with cymbals)."

Artist:	KHAN, USTAD BARY FATEH ALI
Title:	The Music of Islam, Volume 13
Label:	CELESTIAL HARMONIES
Format:	CD
Price:	$14.00
Catalog #:	CH 13153CD

"The classical music of Pakistan has its roots in pre-Islamic times. Hence the names of the majority of ragas have Hindu connections and are from the Sanskirt language. Muslim musicians from Pakistan will generally sing in the Urdu language and the lyrics, if religious, will be in praise of Allah. Islamic culture, and in particular Persia, has had a profound influence on the evolution of music. Today, Muslim musicians play a major role in the music world. Whether they are from Pakistan or India, names like Ustad Bary Fateh Ali Khan, Vilayat Khan, Amjad Ali Khan, or the late Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan are among the great musicians of the XIV/20th century.

In this recording, Ustad Bary Fateh Ali Khan presents three ragas for three different periods of the day: early morning, early evening and evening. The concept of set periods of the day to which ragas are attached is based upon how one generally feels at different times. This is further defined by scale and the ascending or descending structure of the raga. Each raga is in the tin-tal rhythmic cycle, the closest to the Western concept of 4/4 time."

Artist:	VA
Title:	The Music of Islam, Volume 14
Label:	CELESTIAL HARMONIES
Format:	CD
Price:	$14.00
Catalog #:	CH 13154CD

"This volume focuses on the mystic music of the Islamic world -- specifically Turkish mystics. To Westerners, Islamic mysticism is practically synonymous with Sufism. Sufi poetry and music have endured for centuries in various Islamic countries. In the mystical brotherhoods music always had a revered and acknowledged place. Although the term music is never used in mystical writings, but rather listening -- voice, gesture and musical instruments are all aids to the devotee in his spiritual exercise, which leads him to ecstasy and to supreme union with God. In every case, the music draws its inspiration from the text, and its structure from a sophisticated set of modes, rhythms, and traditional forms.

The tracks on this recording literally date from the V-XIV/11th-20th centuries featuring many famous compositions such as Tekbir and Salavat-i Serife, known throughout the Islamic world as two of the masterworks of one of Turkey's greatest composers. Also featured are ilahis (hymns), excerpts of the sema ritual and dhikr (zikr in Turkey) ceremonies. Completing the volume is a vocal performance of Surah 19, Ayet 115-117 of the Qur'an."

Artist:	VA
Title:	Music Of Laos: The Buddhist Tradition
Label:	CELESTIAL HARMONIES
Format:	CD
Price:	$14.00
Catalog #:	CH 13218CD

"Laos has remained a mystery to most Westerners even after the names of its neighboring countries -- Vietnam, Cambodia and Thailand have become commonplace. Music Of Laos: The Buddhist Tradition is the result of a collaboration between the University of Applied Sciences in Linden, Germany, and the Ministry of Information and Culture of Laos. If Laos is still a mystery to the West, its music is even more obscure. As producer Gisa J�hnichen points out, little research has been done on musical practices in Laos. She determined that only 22 albums were ever issued of Lao music -- some on cassette only, many of dubious quality, and most generally unavailable. Apart from the khen, most types of Lao music were woefully underrecorded. Recording the ceremonial ensemble of Champasak in Champasak province (which is the source of the first four tracks on this collection) offered an opportunity to record a fabulous set of instruments that had been made in 1750 and are still in use. J�hnichen also found that the religious/ritual music of the province was far less accessible than the classical court and entertainment styles. The last five tracks on this collection come from Luang Prabang, featuring the Pi Mai ensemble, and while they clearly feature a 'classical' ensemble and some fairly obvious 'popular' tunes, they nevertheless show the pervasive influence of Buddhism, as they were all part of the Buddhist New Year celebration held in April."

Artist:	PARSONS, DAVID
Title:	Surya
Label:	CELESTIAL HARMONIES
Format:	CD
Price:	$14.00
Catalog #:	CH 13227CD

"I wanted to create a more 'off-worldly' environment on this project. Surya is my tribute to the sun, and so this album leans a little more toward 'space-music' than a lot of my previous projects. The sounds and atmospheres are mainly generated by oscillators, rather than processed sound samples, to give a more electronic sound -- like the original analog systems that I first began composing with. Surya is the Hindu sun god. I always find track titles difficult as they tend to set in concrete a certain way of relating to the music. I would much prefer the listener to relate to the music in their own way. So the titles simply suggest what occurred to me during the composition and production process. The title track 'Surya' was inspired by the fluid light images of Lynn Augstein on her DVD Borealis. Composed on Kurzweil, Novation, Emu and Roland synthesizers, the tracks are, apart from a Varanasi (India) atmosphere on 'Alien Dreaming,' entirely electronic and all patches are programmed by me." --David Parsons. "From his homeland in New Zealand, David Parsons travels frequently to Asia for spiritual and musical inspiration. After collecting musical samples and studying different musical and cultural traditions, Parsons returns to his studio to integrate these influences with his own experiences. In the process, he bridges disparate elements with seamless grace, and creates a unique musical affirmation of our common humanity and cultural endowment. Parsons' recordings make the Eastern sensibility comprehensible to the Western listener and formulate a unique and captivating new expression. To Parsons' credit as a musician, composer and performer, he has evolved into a rare and highly-acclaimed producer of cultural music traditions. His work is often featured in film, television and radio scores, and continues to be widely praised by reviewers."

Artist:	ATHERTON/JAMES ASHLEY FRANKLIN, MICHAEL
Title:	Aurora
Label:	CELESTIAL HARMONIES
Format:	CD
Price:	$14.00
Catalog #:	CH 13236CD

"The music of Aurora is, in a number of respects, a piece of sonic research, an experiment, the outcomes of which are tested in sound. One aspect of the experiment is that of space and spatiality. Apart from the usual technical process whereby instruments recorded in a relatively lifeless studio are artificially placed in a reverberant space, an attempt has here been made to explore the placement of sounds in somewhat unusual spaces. In addition to pieces such as 'Blue Globe Saltarello', which use a relatively conventional approach to panoramic placement of the instruments, we find 'At the Rising of the Dawn', in which the listener is presented with the instruments from a possibly unfamiliar position: that of the performer. 'Caverns' and 'Again the Stars' are, at one level, spatial fantasies. Within the framework of the stereo recording medium, these pieces construct spaces by analogy with their sound sources. The ruined piano, which forms a major textural layer of 'Caverns', becomes a space through which the shakuhachi travels. The music of Aurora is also an experiment in cultural interaction. Two of the instruments employed, the shakuhachi and koto, derive from traditional Japanese musical culture. They interact here with instruments from western cultures: piano (albeit in a ruined state), guitars, marimba, double bass. In summary and as a totality, Celestial Harmonies offer the results of these researches in sound, in their various facets, as an enrichment of the source traditions on which Atherton and Franklin have drawn -- Eastern and Western."

Artist:	HAMEL, PETER MICHAEL
Title:	Vom Klang Des Lebens/Of The Sound of Life
Label:	CELESTIAL HARMONIES
Format:	CD
Price:	$14.00
Catalog #:	CH 13256CD

Solo piano, performed by Roger Woodward. "A co-production between Celestial Harmonies and Bayerischer Rundfunk, Vom Klang Des Lebens/Of The Sound of Life features pianist Roger Woodward on a Steinway model D, playing Peter Michael Hamel's cycle of works composed for and dedicated to his wife and new son. The producer/engineer for the recording sessions in January 2006 was Ulrich Kraus. Long before he discerns the light of the world, still in the womb, nascent man begins to sense the sounds of life. Long before his spirit attempts to differentiate experiences, develop ideas or make his mark on the path of history, he begins to hear the force that creation determined for us. The French doctor Alfred A. Tomatis was able to demonstrate that the sense of hearing is already fully developed in the fifth month of pregnancy. The sound of his mother's voice, the music that accompanies her and the notes that could harmonize with his own personal sounds, all are experienced by the ear while still bathing in the amniotic fluid. Passionately devoted to all that sound has ever meant to man, the already multiple father accompanied the latest pregnancy of his wife in the early '90s in more than one sense -- Peter Michael Hamel, an excellent improviser and interpreter at the keyboard, played the piano. He had always delighted in creating metrically complex pulsating rhythms, as if this gift were given to him from the start. In this manner he journeyed into his subconscious, demonstrating, to the joy of the mother and the growing empathy of the yet unborn child, the music of our world. Hamel extemporized and begun to write down short passages: private notes, day by day, month by month new tonal discoveries, revealing the experiences and ambitions of his own life story. Some of these ideas -- a melody, a turn of phrase -- found themselves represented in several pieces. The final embodiment of the music was to be a group of twelve meaningfully arranged studies for piano. Composed over a period of fourteen years, between 1992 and 2006, the cycle can be understood as an idealized diary, embodying central motifs from Hamel's understanding of himself as a person and an artist. The order of the pieces and the general structure of the cycle Vom Klang Des Lebens/Of The Sound of Life were only determined by Hamel quite late. Two almost identical pieces dedicated to John Cage frame the work: 'Arrival and Departure,' between which are works dedicated to Alfred A. Tomatis, Miles Davis, Morton Feldman, Walter Bachauer, Dane Rudhyar, Pandit Patekar, Olivier Messiaen, Giacinto Scelsi, Iannis Xenakis, and his son, Johann David Antonin."

Artist:	OTTE, HANS
Title:	Stundenbuch/Book of Hours
Label:	CELESTIAL HARMONIES
Format:	CD
Price:	$14.00
Catalog #:	CH 13259CD

Solo piano, performed by Roger Woodward. "It is fitting that Hans Otte's Stundenbuch/Book Of Hours, recorded by pianist Roger Woodward on a B�sendorfer at the Radio Bremen concert hall, is a co-production between Celestial Harmonies and Radio Bremen. The piece was commissioned by Radio Bremen for its Pro Musica Nova 1996, the highly-regarded biennial festival for contemporary music founded (in 1961) and directed (from 1962) by Hans Otte, during his tenure as Head of Music at Radio Bremen (1959 to 1984). Through this festival, Otte had opened doors to countless composers, had given opportunities to realize ideas and concepts, and had helped composers such as John Cage, David Tudor, La Monte Young, Nam June Paik, Steve Reich, Terry Riley, Karlheinz Stockhausen, Mauricio Kagel, Gy�rgy Ligeti and Dieter Schnebel. Writes pianist Roger Woodward, 'In the closing years of the twentieth century, perhaps it comes as no surprise that the Bremen pianist-composer, Hans Otte, disciple of the visionaries Walter Gieseking and John Cage, emerges as the unsurpassed master of the sublime, lyric poetry with his composition of a true masterpiece in moment form for piano entitled Stundenbuch/Book Of Hours.' In a universe of exalted, fragmented but delicately-balanced sonorities, the audacious design of time-suspended galaxies in Otte's highly-intimate, miniature-art and enigmatic but constant shift of movement and mood, form four books in twelve parts each, to span a golden arc extending from prima and seconda prattica to the sonnets of Shakespeare; divine melodic genius of Mozart; inscrutable logic of late-Beethoven; Elysian fields of Schubertian L�ndler and Chopinian cantilena of the Nocturnes, in poetic homage and as an inclusive part of his magnificent North-German inheritance."

Artist:	HAUSER AND MICHAEL ASKILL, FRITZ
Title:	Space: Music For Bells, Cymbals and Gong
Label:	CELESTIAL HARMONIES
Format:	CD
Price:	$14.00
Catalog #:	CH 13262CD

"Recorded at Therme Vals, in Switzerland, over the course of two predawn mornings in June, 2005, there was a kind of sound alchemy that took place as Fritz Hauser and Michael Askill played the simple bells normally worn by cows, sheep and goats in the beautifully reverberant space of the thermal spas. Write the performers: 'The music on this CD has been created through improvisation. Based on the instrumental material -- about 40 cow, sheep and goatbells, various cymbals and a small gong from China -- we developed playing concepts, and in dialogue with the room and the unusual sound environment we recorded the takes. In the studio some of the pieces have been used for multi-track arrangements, but most of them have been left untouched. We have put them in an order that now carries the title Space: Music for Bells, Cymbals and Gong.'"

Artist:	HAUSER, FRITZ
Title:	Flip/Solodrumming
Label:	CELESTIAL HARMONIES
Format:	CD
Price:	$14.00
Catalog #:	CH 13275CD

"Twelve pieces for drums, cymbals, percussion. The music for Flip was recorded at Radio Studio Z�rich in Switzerland. Studio 2 -- where these recordings were realized -- is a generous room with a high ceiling and very natural acoustics. The drum set pieces (1, 3, 5, 7) are free improvisations and were mixed directly to two-track with no overdubs. The other pieces -- concepted improvisations -- were recorded in a way that the components would finally form the desired compositions: Track 2 is a combination of three layers of cymbals. For track 4, three different flatride cymbals were recorded in slightly varying tempos to result in a constantly changing time pattern. Track 6 consists of several layers of woodblocks. Track 8 is composed again with multiple layers of cymbals but also with the sound of rubbed woodblocks (with added reverberation, the only electronics.) For track 10, I used a collection of noise and sound devices which I have collected over the years, most of them everyday objects. The cymbal installation for 'Ocean One,' 'Two,' and 'Three' consists of a selection of Zildjian cymbals of practically all sizes and types. Rather than placing the cymbals on stands in the traditional manner, we hung them from racks. The hanging position allows the cymbals to ring freely and hence produce much more sound. Martin Pearson used several microphone set-ups (ambient and very close) to capture the whole range of the sounds produced. In a similar way the drum set was recorded. Spot microphones provide the presence of the individual elements of the set-up, ambient microphones convey a natural sense of the space."

Artist:	RILEY, TERRY
Title:	The Harp of New Albion
Label:	CELESTIAL HARMONIES
Format:	2CD
Price:	$25.00
Catalog #:	CH 14018CD

1986 release, in stock for the first time. "The Harp of New Albion is a transfixing solo piano recording, conceived and performed by world-renowned minimalist composer, the ever-innovative Terry Riley. His inspiration for this work came from a legendary harp, left behind in the New World in 1579, on the shores of Nova Albion, which is now called San Francisco Bay. A Native American medicine man is said to have found the harp and placed it on a cliff where the westerly winds played upon it and temperature and humidity changes created an ever-shifting set of tonalities. Riley bases the ten movements of The Harp of New Albion on the concept of tonalities. The liner notes enclosed in both the compact disk and cassette explain the complicated ratios Riley devised for tuning his octaves. He says, 'The idea of piano as harp influences my method of playing, as does the tuning from which the particular consonances and dissonances determine the emerging energies that flow through both instrument and performer.' Although Riley improvises throughout The Harp of New Albion, each movement is defined by structural or composed elements. Astonishingly, the halo of harmonics drifting above his solo piano creates an orchestral sound, complete with horns, reeds, strings and voices. At times, the melodic interplay is ethereal, the micro-tonal relationships within the standing waves of sounds creating a haunting spectrum."

Artist:	GURDJIEFF/DE HARTMAN
Title:	Seekers of the Truth, Volume 1
Label:	CELESTIAL HARMONIES
Format:	2CD
Price:	$25.00
Catalog #:	CH 14020CD

Originally released in 1987 by Celestial Harmonies, in stock for the first time. The complete Piano Music of Georges I. Gurdjieff and Thomas De Hartmann -- Cecil Lytle, Pianist. Recordings from 1987. "This three volume compilation is tribute to the genius of three uniquely talented men -- a philosopher, a composer, and a pianist-musicologist. These works began with the philosophical searchings of Georges Ivanovich Gurdjieff, an Armenian intellectual at the turn of the 20th century. His homeland was the crossroad for the diverse cultures that ringed the Black, Caspian and Mediterranean Seas. His fascination with the human spirit and his searching for the truth took him on vast journeys through India, Tibet and China. A keen observer, Gurdjieff, began to accumulate bits and pieces of musical traditions. These he combined with his provocatively inspired visions as a universal symbol of his philosophical beliefs. Gurdjieff, however, did not have the musical ability to transform his abstractions into reality. Fortunately, one of his disciples was a gifted and successful composer in St. Petersburg, Thomas Alexandrovich de Hartmann, whom he met in 1917. As a fellow searcher for the truth, de Hartmann was eager to transform the raw musical utterances of Gurdjieff into sophisticated piano compositions. Those scores, sadly, were left in a state of disarray in the estate of de Hartmann. Decades later, musicologist, professor, and pianist Cecil Lytle, became the final element of the equation. In the mid 1980s, he and a team of researchers began a three year quest, scrupulously studying the scattered files of de Hartmann's scores, assembling the first truly accurate arrangements of the Gurdjieff/de Hartmann legacy. A man in touch with the philosophical, as well as the musical nature of the works, Lytle performs them with deep emotion and unsurpassed skill. The three volumes vary in their nature. Seekers of the Truth presents the reflective, ceremonial music of Gurdjieff/de Hartmann's majestic suites."

Artist:	VA
Title:	The Music of Islam, Volume 5
Label:	CELESTIAL HARMONIES
Format:	2CD
Price:	$25.00
Catalog #:	CH 14144CD

"'Aissaoua Sufi Ceremony, the first of three volumes in this series recorded in Morocco, captures the public performance of 'Aissaoua rituals, called hadra. 'Aissaoua is the brotherhood comprised of followers of one of Morocco's most well-known and highly regarded spiritual leaders, Shaykh 'Abd Allah Sidi Muhammad Ben 'Aisa as-Sufiani al-Mukhtari (870/1465-933/1526). 'Aissaoua performances work on several levels: for members of the brotherhood, they form part of their spiritual training; for ceremony sponsors they serve to bless the event; and for the individual pilgrim or participant, the ritual provides access to the tangible baraka (blessing) of the Shaykh (Arabic Sheikh), which can be activated for purposes of healing and guidance. The trance possession which occurs during the hadra is the most dramatic manifestation of this therapeutic function of the performance. The baraka which effects these transformations is activated and brought into the hadra by means of recitations, singing and music, all of which is traditionally featured on this double length recording. Perhaps Parsons has captured even more than the Islamic music represented here, like, the transcendence of baraka from Shaykh ben 'Aisa for all who listen."

Artist:	VA
Title:	The Music of Islam, Volume 15
Label:	CELESTIAL HARMONIES
Format:	2CD
Price:	$25.00
Catalog #:	CH 14155CD

"This final volume introduces the world to the Muslim Music of Indonesia. A land of about two hundred million inhabitants, Indonesia is home to the largest Muslim nation in the world. It is extraordinarily rich in musical genres which derived originally from the Arab-Persian world but were transformed by local genius into unique musical styles and genres, generally practiced by all-male or all-female groups. The great majority of Indonesian Muslims adhere to Sunni beliefs, but a few Shi'a outposts still remain, especially in west-coastal Sumatra. Disk one features many of these rich genres, such as: Sunni prayers; samples of the Shi'a ritual (tabut or tabuik) characterized by passionate vocal music and group drumming; religious or secular songs with body movement accompanied by frame drums (indang); and a musical genre performed by a pair of male singers accompanying themselves with rhythmic beating on round brass trays (salawat).

       One of the first provinces to develop Muslim art forms was Aceh, the northernmost province of Sumatra. Aceh has a wealth of Muslim musical genres and body movement or dance forms among its ethnic groups. Disk two features many of the rich genres, such as: music and dance associated with syncretic animist and Hindu-Buddhist beliefs with added Muslim components or prayers (daboih ceremony); the well-known male martial dance called seudati; the female dance-vocal form pho, based on the expression of grief at the death of a child, and very sad songs (ratap or ratep meuseukat); and a form of worship and courage raising via male group vocal and frame drum performance (rapai daboih).

       The instruments heard in this volume are both traditional Muslim instruments such as double-headed drums, frame drums, brass trays and the lute, as well as non-Muslim instruments such as bamboo flutes, oboes and bronze ensembles."

Artist:	VA
Title:	Music Of Indonesia: Malaku & North Malaku
Label:	CELESTIAL HARMONIES
Format:	2CD
Price:	$25.00
Catalog #:	CH 14232CD

"Celestial Harmonies has commenced a series of recordings which eventually will feature music from all of Indonesia's 26 provinces, as well as from the island of Timor, now divided into Timor and independent East Timor. At their closest point, Indonesia is about as far away from Australia as Cuba is from the United States, but there are worlds between the neighbours. Whilst the sounds from Bali and Java are quite well-known, in the west, the traditional music from the lesser known provinces has been a well-kept secret to most. The province of Maluku contains many diverse musical cultures, each based on a unique, creative synthesis of local traditions and outside influences. Many musical forms are linked to religious practices, including the church music-influenced styles of the Christians, the Middle East-influenced musical expressions of the Muslims and the music associated with ancestor and nature spirit-based religious beliefs."

Artist:	HILLER, WILFRIED
Title:	Buch Der Sterne/Book of Stars
Label:	CELESTIAL HARMONIES
Format:	2CD
Price:	$25.00
Catalog #:	CH 14257CD

Solo piano, performed by Silke Avenhaus. "We are surrounded and embraced by stars peacefully circling around our world. Even to people of today, the night sky exerts a profound influence. We may even secretly believe in the music long said to emanate from this overwhelming silence. Those of us who have the fortune of knowing the stars can find answers to their innermost questions. Wilfried Hiller's Buch Der Sterne/Book Of Stars is a result of such a dialog. Wilfried Hiller developed his own personal dialog with the stars early in his childhood. He knew as a child how his parents had communicated over long distances by gazing at Alkor, the little rider of the second star in the handle of the Big Dipper. As a teenager he was fascinated by the world of Greek mythology, the stories of which are littered in the stars. As an adult he experienced the proximity of the stars from the coast of Turkey, later from his refuge on the Aegean island of Phournoi. Astronomical aspects are present, openly or hidden, in many of his works. Buch Der Sterne/Book Of Stars is a documentation of his personal study of the constellations and of the efforts of humans of all times and places to make sense of what is written in this vast nocturnal mirror of anthropomorphic dreams. Fantasies become sound and the kaleidoscopic poetry of masked games. Buch Der Sterne/Book Of Stars is founded on the principles of order and mass, acknowledging the power of numbers. Without sacrificing the individual characters of the sometimes quite stormy pieces, the 72 miniatures are arranged with great care. Each piece is associated with one particular musically gravitational note; fortuitously, Hiller could ascribe one of the 88 keys of the piano to each constellation of the northern and the southern hemisphere. Simultaneously, the traditional emphasis on the constellations of the Zodiac is reflected in an ascending cycle of fifths, beginning on D1. Wilfried Hiller's own personal impulse glows through everything, whether contemplative or speculative. In many of the pieces, particularly the more formally far reaching constellations, he describes scenes from real life. A wonderful example is the drama of Perseus and Andromeda. Initially, a curtain seems to rise, into which is delicately but threateningly woven the W motif of Cassiopeia. Andromeda must suffer a horrible punishment because of her mother's arrogant speeches. But then Perseus leaps into a fierce battle with the monster Cetus, while her father Cepheus watches silently and passively. Hiller's music is a gripping description of all this, focusing on the battle with Dionysian fervor. So rich in sonic ideas is Buch Der Sterne/Book Of Stars, and rich in secrets. The latter must never be revealed, and the former cannot adequately be enumerated. It is safe to say, however, that even in the smallest bagatelle, Hiller was entirely concentrated on finding a truthful representation of the spirit of each constellation."

Artist:	VA
Title:	The Music of Islam
Label:	CELESTIAL HARMONIES
Format:	17CD BOX
Price:	$205.00
Catalog #:	CH 19907CD

"Ten years in the making, The Music of Islam series recorded in Egypt, Morocco, Tunisia, Turkey, Yemen, Pakistan, Indonesia, Iran and Qatar represents the most comprehensive sound documentation available to Westerners today, of a world religion dating back to 1/622. Although governed by strict rules for fourteen centuries, contact with other cultures has radically affected Islamic music throughout history. As the world enters the XV/21st century the timing of this collection serves an even larger purpose, documenting the traditions that have survived and will continue to survive for centuries to come. Today, one fifth of the world's population, over one billion people, are Muslims, occupying a large territory stretching from the Atlantic shore of north and west Africa, through west, central, and south Asia to island southeast Asia, and attracting an increasing following in India, western Europe, north America, east Asia, and southern Africa. This is a global presence which cannot be ignored.

With 17 CDs in 15 volumes, The Music of Islam boxed set artistically presents nearly 20 hours of diversely rich Islamic music recorded throughout the Islamic Belt with over 800 pages of synoptic scholastic text written by leading scholars and ethnomusicologists from around the world. Creating a class of its own, and perhaps setting a new standard, The Music of Islam is an unequalled sound document destined to live beyond our time and, regrettably, most likely surpass the very existence of some of the people and cultures featured."

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