Our Beloved Land

Amazon.com
Hawaiian slack-key guitar and Native American flute aren't the most likely combination one could think of. Slack-key guitar is a sound both laconic and light, made from loosely tuning the guitar strings. The Native flute is renowned for its frail, lonesome call. But two masters of these instruments, Keola Beamer and R. Carlos Nakai, find common ground and lay some new turf on their first full collaboration, Our Beloved Land.

Beamer is a guitarist who makes it look easy as he peels fingerpicked melodies from his instrument the way Tiger Woods peels off a long drive. All but three of the tunes on this album are either traditional Hawaiian songs he arranged, or his own originals. Hawaiian and Native American chants share a certain sound, and you can hear that when Nakai joins in singing on "E Manono." On "Lapule (Sunday)," Beamer picks up the Hawaiian nose flute and duets with Nakai over the sounds of a rain forest. Together, they create a sound far from the tourist music you may have heard before. Instead, they orchestrate a tribal mood full of ambience and rumination. Shakers, rattles, double gourd drums, and coyote echoes encase their often fragile melodies. R. Carlos Nakai has a knack for bringing out the more soulful side in musicians, but Keola Beamer probably didn't require any prompting. He remains the most original and exploratory of modern slack-key guitarists. --John Diliberto

Our Beloved Land,R. Carlos Nakai,Keola Beamer,Canyon Records,Contemporary Instrumental,Ethnic Fusion,Hawaiian,Hawaiian Music,Int'l & World Music,Pop,Traditional

Average customer rating: Two worlds meet... Awesome Powerful, atmospheric, full of mana Two native masters join hands across the big water gives you "chicken skin"

Our Beloved Land R. Carlos Nakai , and Keola Beamer Manufacturer: Canyon Records ProductGroup: Music Binding: Audio CD General | International | Styles | Music Hawaii | Pacific Islands | International | Styles | Music General | New Age | Styles | Music Similar Items: Moe`uhane Kika: Tales From The Dream Guitar Soliloquy: Ka Leo O Loko Music as Medicine People of Peace In Beauty, We Return ASIN: B0009VI5K2 Release Date: 2005-07-12

Tracks:

1. Waipi'o Paka'alana
2. Aia I Moloka'i Ku'u 'Iwa
3. Ka Honua - 'The Earth'
4. Ke Ha'a Ala Puna
5. E Manono
6. Ka Mano - 'The Shark'
7. Ia 'Oe E Ka La - 'For You, O Glittering Sun'
8. Nani Ha'upu
9. Ke Ao Nani - 'The Beautiful World'
10. Lapule - 'Sunday'
11. The Good Road

Product Description

1. Waipi?o P?ka?alana(5:00)
2. Aia I Moloka?i Ku?u ?Iwa(3:25)
3. Ka Honua – “The Earth”(4:57)
4. Ke Ha?a Ala Puna(4:41)
5. E Manono(4:30)
6. Ka Man? – “The Shark”(5:34)
7. I? ?Oe E Ka L? –“For You, O Glittering Sun”(5:22)
8. Nani H??upu(4:45)
9. Ke Ao Nani – “The Beautiful World”(3:53)
10. L?pule – “Sunday”(6:41)
11. The Good Road(2:36)

Format: CD

Amazon.com

Hawaiian slack-key guitar and Native American flute aren't the most likely combination one could think of. Slack-key guitar is a sound both laconic and light, made from loosely tuning the guitar strings. The Native flute is renowned for its frail, lonesome call. But two masters of these instruments, Keola Beamer and R. Carlos Nakai, find common ground and lay some new turf on their first full collaboration, Our Beloved Land.

Beamer is a guitarist who makes it look easy as he peels fingerpicked melodies from his instrument the way Tiger Woods peels off a long drive. All but three of the tunes on this album are either traditional Hawaiian songs he arranged, or his own originals. Hawaiian and Native American chants share a certain sound, and you can hear that when Nakai joins in singing on "E Manono." On "Lapule (Sunday)," Beamer picks up the Hawaiian nose flute and duets with Nakai over the sounds of a rain forest. Together, they create a sound far from the tourist music you may have heard before. Instead, they orchestrate a tribal mood full of ambience and rumination. Shakers, rattles, double gourd drums, and coyote echoes encase their often fragile melodies. R. Carlos Nakai has a knack for bringing out the more soulful side in musicians, but Keola Beamer probably didn't require any prompting. He remains the most original and exploratory of modern slack-key guitarists. --John Diliberto

Customer Reviews:

Two worlds meet..........2006-06-23

I first listened to Keola Beamer's slack key guitar music on Putumayo's "Gardens of Eden." I also listened to his music when I worked at an Alzheimer's home,where it was played for the residents' comfort&relaxation.This is a haunting collaboration with Carlos Nakai,who is more famous for bringing Native American music into the mainstream.

Highlights-
1)Ka Honua-It's all about the earth.Natural sounds are used to accent the piece.
2)Ke Ha'a Ala Puna-A song about hula dancers,but it's not the tacky tiki song you'd expect.
3)E Manono-A song in praise of a woman who sacrificed herself for her beloved husband.
4)Ka Mano (The Shark)-A beautiful instrumental.
5)"for you,O glittering sun"-Both Carlos Nakai&Keola Beamer provide vocals in this interesting piece that honored a Hawaiian monarch for circling the globe&being initiated as a Hindu Brahman in the Himalayas.
6)The Beautiful World-Carlos Nakai provides powerful narration.
7)Sunday-Beautiful instrumental using natural sounds.
8)The Good Road-Carlos Nakai powerfully chants the words of the Blessing Way of the Navajo.

It's a fascinating fusion of Navajo&Hawaiian music.Perfect for relaxation&meditation!

Awesome.......2005-12-31

The atmospheres musically created by these two masters results in one of the most awesome CDs ever recorded. In this day of cloned & sampled digital music, it is so refreshing to hear two virtuoso musicains laying down fresh material never before attempted, and with astounding success. Nakai is at his usual spendid self, but Keola goes where no one has gone before. Singing deep spiritual Hawaiian chants while his Slack Key minor chord useage creates soulful atmospheres and melodies that Nakai fills with his haunting Native American flute. This CD is a true masterpiece and Keola's finest recording.

Powerful, atmospheric, full of mana.......2005-10-25

We have a lot of Nakai CDs and quite a few of IZ's and other Hawaiian artists' work. This album is as good as IZ's Facing Future and has instantly become one of my favorite top ten albums of all time. Nakai is amazing as always. But here Keola Beamer is not the warm, talented slack key Hawaiian master we know and love. In this release he is even better -- powerful, haunting vocals in Hawaiian, accented by understated minor key guitar arrangements. The songs stir your soul and feel like the raw power of primal, pre-Captain Cook Hawaii. If you've never strayed from the resorts that might sound weird, but if you've been deep in the rainforest or visited the top of Mauna Kea, you'll know the feeling. What IZ did for love with Facing Future, Beamer does for spirituality on this album, and both will give you goosebumps.

Two native masters join hands across the big water.......2005-09-15

These two masters of native music create a blend never heard before. As a collector of native american recordings I find this refreshing, haunting, mellow and full of spirit. I listen when my soul needs to be nourished, which is often in this material world.

gives you "chicken skin".......2005-09-12

I read about this cd in a Hawaiian newspaper. It is amazing. One of those masterpieces that transports you into the spiritual spaces of the performers. Mahalo nui loa to Mr. and Mrs. Beamer and Mr. Nakai.

Average customer rating: On the Subject of Intelligent and Sensitive Recitals Lovely A Beautiful Disc A stunning burst onto the world stage Wonderful songs, and a singer with great potential

Magdalena Kozená - Love Songs (Dvorak, Janacek, Martinu) Antonin Dvorak , Bohuslav Martinu , Leos Janacek , Magdalena Kozená , and Graham Johnson Manufacturer: Deutsche Grammophon ProductGroup: Music Binding: Audio CD General | Dvorák, Antonín | ( D ) | Featured Composers, A-Z | Classical | Styles | Music Janácek, Leos | ( J ) | Featured Composers, A-Z | Classical | Styles | Music All Works by Martinu | Martinu, Bohuslav | ( M ) | Featured Composers, A-Z | Classical | Styles | Music Chamber Music | Forms & Genres | Modern, 20th, & 21st Century | Historical Periods | Classical | Styles | Music Vocal & Song | Modern, 20th, & 21st Century | Historical Periods | Classical | Styles | Music Chamber Music | Forms & Genres | Romantic (c.1820-1910) | Historical Periods | Classical | Styles | Music Vocal & Song | Romantic (c.1820-1910) | Historical Periods | Classical | Styles | Music General | Classical | Styles | Music General | Folk | Styles | Music General | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music Folk Songs | Songs & Lieder | Vocal Non-Opera | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music General | Songs & Lieder | Vocal Non-Opera | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music Deutsche Grammophon: Music | Specialty Stores | Music Similar Items: Songs: Magdalena Kozena Magdalena Kozená - Le belle immagini (Mozart, Gluck, Myslivecek) Lamento French Arias Bach - Cantatas BWV 199, 179, 113 / Kozená · Towers · Padmore · Loges · Gardiner ASIN: B00004SDO1 Release Date: 2000-08-08

Tracks:

1. Love Songs: Oh, Our Love Does Not Bloom
2. Love Songs: Death Dwells In So Many A Heart
3. Love Songs: Now I Stumble Past The House
4. Love Songs: I Know That In Sweet Hope
5. Love Songs: Gentle Slumber Reigns Over The Countryside
6. Love Songs: Here In The Forest By A Brook
7. Love Songs: In The Sweet Power Of Your Eyes
8. Love Songs: Oh, Dear Matchless Soul
9. New Miniatures: The Rich Sweetheart
10. New Miniatures: The Forsaken Lover
11. New Miniatures: Lounging
12. New Miniatures: The Inquisitive Girl
13. New Miniatures: The Cheerful Girl
14. New Miniatures: The Unhappy Lover
15. New Miniatures: The Request
16. New Miniatures: The Tall Tower
17. Songs For A Friend Of My Country: Ponies On The Fallow Land
18. Songs For A Friend Of My Country: The Lost Little Slipper
19. Songs For A Friend Of My Country: A Religious Song
20. Songs For A Friend Of My Country: An Invitation
21. Four Songs: You Heartfelt Songs
22. Four Songs: Oh, That Was A Beautiful, Golden Dream
23. Four Songs: In Pain, My Heart Often Broods
24. Four Songs: Silence On The Mountains
25. Lullaby
26. Songs For One Page: Dew
27. Songs For One Page: Unlocking With A Single Word
28. Songs For One Page: Journey To The Beloved
29. Songs For One Page: The Footpath
30. Songs For One Page: At Mother's
31. Songs For One Page: The Virgin Mary's Dream
32. Songs For One Page: Rosemary
33. New Slovak Songs: So Tell Me
34. New Slovak Songs: I Had A Blouse
35. Moravian Folk Poetry In Songs: Who Is The Posy For?
36. Moravian Folk Poetry In Songs: A Lover's Picture
37. Moravian Folk Poetry In Songs: Little Posy
38. Moravian Folk Poetry In Songs: Constancy
39. Moravian Folk Poetry In Songs: Love
40. Moravian Folk Poetry In Songs: Parting
41. Moravian Folk Poetry In Songs: My Lover's Horses
42. Good Night, My Darling

Amazon.com

The composers Antonín Dvorák, Leos Janácek, and Bohuslav Martinu might not be the names that first spring to mind when love songs are mentioned, yet this fascinating collection gives us a taste of what delights we have been missing. They range from seven Moravian folk songs, collected by Janácek at the turn of the century, to songs written by Martinu in the U.S. in 1942. There's also early Martinu--including songs he collected in Slovakia in 1920--plus the world-premiere recording of Songs for a Friend of My Country, a cycle he wrote in France in 1940 on his way to America. All of these songs are of interest in giving us another aspect of each composer's work; most have much more to offer. Many are achingly lovely, especially those by Dvorák--including his Op. 2, a reworking of four songs from a cycle he had written almost 20 years earlier, and Love Songs, a revision of eight songs from the same cycle. "Good night, my darling," from his 1886 cycle In Folk Tone, is worth the price of this CD alone. Czech mezzo Magdalena Kozená, who put together the program, sings with pure, attractive tone. Graham Johnson is her excellent accompanist. --Richard Fawkes

Customer Reviews:

On the Subject of Intelligent and Sensitive Recitals.......2005-05-19

Combing the recorded literature to find CDs that showcase singers who not only own brilliant vocal gifts but who also possess the intelligence to program recordings of lesser known works in a sequence that makes for intelligent recitals, it is becoming more obvious that there are many singers who opt for purity of purpose rather than 'salesmanship' of careers in the PR arena. Magdalena Kozená is one of these gifted singers whose intelligence and sensitivity match her physical and vocal beauty.

LOVE SONGS is a tastefully selected panorama of lesser-known songs by Kozená's fellow countrymen (Czech) Antonín Dvorák, Leos Janácek, and Bohuslav Martinu. And while many of the Dvorák and Janácek songs have been occasionally heard in recitals, the Martinu "Songs for a Friend of My Country", an exquisitely beautiful work written in 1940, here receives its World Premiere recording. Kozená's voice is in prime condition for these songs and she is ably accompanied by pianist Graham Johnson. The special flavor of these Slavic emotions and songs has rarely been so well captured.

But over and above the beauty of Kozená's performance of these neglected masterpieces shines the glow of her sensitive programming. Recordings such as these are rare and should be included in the libraries of those who appreciate the lieder genre. Highly recommended. Grady Harp, May 05

Lovely.......2004-03-25

This is a beautifully performed selection of Czech lieder. Kozena has a lovely voice and sings with precision and nicely modulated emotion. The accompanying pianist, Graham Johnston, is excellent. Despite the title, not all these songs are love or romantic songs but all are well worth hearing. The selection of songs is excellent. Different listeners will prefer different songs. For me, the highlight of this recording are the rarely heard Martinu songs, many of which exhibit the lyrical aspect of his compositional style. Recommended strongly.

A Beautiful Disc.......2002-01-06

This is simply a magnificent recording. I like it better every time I put it on. The voice is fresh, supple, and expressive. I even find myself trying to learn some of the Czech words (from the translation in the booklet) they sound so nice. Both Kozena and the brilliant piano contributions by Graham Johnson are faithfully caught on the recording. There is enough variety and contrast that one doesn't tire in the least (over the generous 67 minutes of playing time) of hearing these playful, sometimes poignant, songs. One of the best discs, in terms of programming, performance, and sound quality, of the past couple of years.

A stunning burst onto the world stage.......2001-12-17

Magdalena Kozena is suddenly known around the world, thanks to this stunning disc of 42 lieder from her Czech homeland. Most of the songs are short - some come in under a minute, the longest 3-4 minutes. Each is a little gem and many have never been recorded before.

Kozena's voice is sheer delight. She does have resonances in her voice which are reminiscent of her compatriot, Lucia Popp, but is certainly a mezzo - although she has chosen her repertoire well so we hear no strain at the top. Her low resonances are delightful and consistent with her head voice. To compare Kozena's voice to that of the late diva (Popp), it is more pure, more consistent in tone from top to bottom, and doesn't have so much of the `squeezey' quality which Popp used to great effect in evincing the passion of her characters. Kozena can empty her voice of vibrato or let it out rich and full, and uses all her vocal resources to great effect in contrasting the individual songs. She has astoundingly mature lieder-singer's technique for such a young singer.

This recording rightly won a Gramophone award this year. Kozena deserves all the accolades she receives for this - doubtless all listeners will develop their own favourites from these delightful miniatures.

Wonderful songs, and a singer with great potential.......2000-10-08

What a wonderful, carefully thought out CD! Kozena obviously revels in these rarely performed songs by Dvorak, Martinu, and Janacek, and Johnson accompanies with his usual ease and sensitivity. What a pity the piano is balanced distantly -- we hear little of Johnson's variety of touch and dynamics. As for Kozena, she is obviously an intelligent musician with a voice of great potential. It is qutie beautiful as it is, yet the colour is still rather pale. Yes, there is something of the late Lucia Popp's timbre, yet it has little of Popp's depth and range of colour. BBC Legends released a CD of Popp a year ago which includes three Dvorak songs also sung by Kozena. The differences are quite marked -- while Kozena's timbre and interpretation suggests a dreamy yet earnest youth, Popp brings out an autumnal glow and a sharp pain that pierces at least this listener's heart. Kozena has started a wonderful career. Only time will tell how her voice will develop. I do hope it goes in the direction of Popp's unique lyric timbre. No one could ever equal Popp (perhaps it's obvious by now that Popp is my favorite singer of all time), but perhaps Kozena will become something of Popp's heir, while still being her own person. I hope so. But her musicality is not in question. Let's keep our ears open!

Average customer rating: A Pretty Darn Good Lohengrin

Wagner: Lohengrin Manufacturer: Sony ProductGroup: Music Binding: Audio CD All Works by Wagner | Wagner, Richard | ( W ) | Featured Composers, A-Z | Classical | Styles | Music General | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music Romantic (c.1820-1910) | Historical Periods | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music German | Languages | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music ASIN: B0000025UN Release Date: 1990-05-17

Customer Reviews:

A Pretty Darn Good Lohengrin.......2005-04-14

I got this Lohengrin from the local library, and I tried to get a taste of what I was in for by looking it up here on Amazon.com. But to my dismay there were no reviews. And later, to even greater dismay on my part, I found that there is no reason for such a lack of reviews! For this is a solid Lohengrin. While Peter Hofmann is not the most vocally resplendent Lohengrin (he isn't a Konya or a Domingo), he turns is a good performance, and Karen Armstrong is a passionate Elsa who plays the part admirably. The rest of the cast is strong on the whole. But the real splendors of this set spring from the pit - Woldemar Nelsson (of whom I had never heard until I discovered this recording) leads the Beyreuth Festival orchestra in a burning account. They are a truly Wagnerian orchestra (it would be a shame if they weren't), and Nelsson brings out all the Master's colors. The energy of a live performance just pours out. Never have I heard the preludes and prominent sections played with such an intense timbre. It's amazing to hear.

Therefore, though this set doesn't match Kempe, Solti, or Leinsdorf overall, it is a strong alternate set that should not be ignored.

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