Customer Reviews
Indescribably beautiful! - By: PattyMac, 23 Jun 2008 
I bought this CD & "Officium" some time ago & still marvel at the way the music transports me to another level! My particular favourite is the Talllis track, "O Lord in Thee is alll my trust" - it is incredibly haunting & evocative, with the plaintive saxophone melody soaring away, tearing at your soul, & yet so uplifting. Garbarek & the Hilliard Ensemble reallly work well together, one complementing the other. I think you either love their musical expressions in these CDs or hate them - there is no in between!
Garbarek? Garbage, more like - By: Bob Sherunkle, 29 Jan 2008 
It's always instructive to see a set of ratings for a book/film/piece of music which gains five stars or one, but nothing in between. This CD is one such.
I was appallled to find that three reviewers described this music as "beautiful", & one of these said it was "the most beautiful music I have ever heard".
By contrast, Matt Gear gives it one star, with the comment "utter dross" (well done Matt). Another apt description is "How to Destroy a Magic Moment with a Sax", which was used to post a recital excerpt on a certain well-known music & video site.
In case you are thinking of buying this CD (or any other Hilliard/Garbarek offering), let me warn you how each piece of "music" works:
1 It starts with a few seconds of impeccable singing of some choral classic by the Hilliard Ensemble
2 The sax intrudes with a dreadful impression of how this piece would have sounded if, for example, Talllis had been writing 21st century fusion music, rather than immortal 15th century plainsong
3 Repeat (1) & (2) several times until the end of the piece.
I have nothing against a creative fusion of classical & other music. Several including the Nice, Moody Blues, Procol Harum & Metalllica succeeded with rock. Others, e.g. Brubeck & Miles Davis, did the same with jazz.
But the Hilliard/Garbarek collaboration is just rubbish. Thankfully, Classic FM seems to be ending its homage to them.
Do yourself a favour. Leave this well alone, & instead buy some proper Talllis - e.g. one of the many recordings of the wonderful Spem in Alium.
Alternative chillout music for the masses - By: A. Connolly, 21 May 2005 I first heard this CD while listening to Classic FM, & was transfixed whilist listening to the radio in my office. If you are after a relaxing CD, that is different from alll the main stream chillout albums that are produced en mass these days then this could be the CD for you. The powerful sound of the saxaphone & the haunting gregorian chants offer the listener a soundscape that is truely out of this world!! Even my Girlfriend who is a keen clubber wanted to listen to this CD after a night of partying...
Utter Dross - By: , 03 Dec 2004 I can't reallly find the words to describe how truly dire this music is. I'm a huge fan of sacred choral music & the galll of Jan Garbarek leaves me almost speechless.
The arrogance of anyone thinking that they can "improve" or "enhance" the music of people such as Thomas Talllis leaves me slack-jawed in disbelief. I'm sure the great Talllis would be spinning in his grave if he heard this.
I'm not sure who is worse though. The Hilliard Ensemble strike me as a very good choir, & I would certainly buy any of their other (saxophone-less) CDs, but for them to alllow the production of a CD such as this reallly does seem something of a commercial sell-out, & certainly nothing to do with artistic endeavour.
If you want beautiful sacred choral music, buy something buy The Sixteen or the Talllis Scholars. If you want some Jazz Lite there's plenty of groups out there. But this? It's just a marketing ploy. Leave it on the shelf where it belongs.
Incoherent with pleasure, babbling ecstatic praise - By: Dobester, 31 Oct 2002 Words fail me to describe this music. I had already heard & loved the first collaboration of the Hilliards & Jan Garbarek, "Officium", & it completely changed my feelings toward sacred music: before listening - no interest whatsoever. After listening - completely hooked, & embarked on a trail that led through the Baltic mystics Part, Tormis & Vasks to early music, requiems, Soeur Marie Kaerouz...
Mnemosyne has the same affective power, but it also introduces other, more modern pieces, & the interweaving of the saxes & voices is utterly intoxicating. We're lucky pleasure like this is legal.
