Sezoni

Amazon.com
Balkan music from Australia might not seem a logical mix, but when it works this well, why not? The brainchild of Mara Kiek, who leads the Mara! Ensemble and directs the Martenitsa Choir, Sezoni has a rich beauty. The instrumental tracks serve as a reminder that the distance between Balkan melodies and klezmer is very short, while the harmonies and singing are as strong as those of any Bulgarian Choir--in fact, Silvia Entcheva, from Le Mystère des Voix Bulgares, sings on this record. The CD seems to play more as a suite than a series of unrelated tracks, and there's little doubt that the singers have learned how to capture those unearthly harmonies, letting them shimmer through the spare musical settings. Excellent. --Chris Nickson

Sezoni,Mara! and the Martenitsa Choir,Narada,Int'l & World Music,Pop,World Beat,World Music

Sezoni
Average customer rating:

Beauty comes in many shapes and sounds

Powerful choral music - stirring and exotic

Sezoni
Mara! and the Martenitsa Choir
Manufacturer: Real World
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

General | International | Styles | Music
World Dance | Dance & DJ | Styles | Music
ASIN: B00000JCGE
Release Date: 1999-06-29

Tracks:

Call From The South
To My First Love
A Curse On You Strange Places/Harvest
All Summer (Part One)
Hey Harvesters (Part Two)
A Shepherd Plays
He Plays (Part Three)
Travelling Light
Autumn/Grape Picking
On The Grapevines (Part One)
Sorrow Suppressed (Part Two)
Eyes Like Berries
Tomorrow (Part Three)

Amazon.com

Balkan music from Australia might not seem a logical mix, but when it works this well, why not? The brainchild of Mara Kiek, who leads the Mara! Ensemble and directs the Martenitsa Choir, Sezoni has a rich beauty. The instrumental tracks serve as a reminder that the distance between Balkan melodies and klezmer is very short, while the harmonies and singing are as strong as those of any Bulgarian Choir--in fact, Silvia Entcheva, from Le Mystère des Voix Bulgares, sings on this record. The CD seems to play more as a suite than a series of unrelated tracks, and there's little doubt that the singers have learned how to capture those unearthly harmonies, letting them shimmer through the spare musical settings. Excellent. --Chris Nickson

Customer Reviews:

Beauty comes in many shapes and sounds.......2002-03-17

This disk took me completely by surprise, mixing the beautiful Bulgarian choral voice with the enchanting Australian Mara!Ensemble musical talents. This is my first experience with such collaboration, but I can't praise it enough for bringing up images of my homeland, 'mojata rodina, Bulgaria'. Each track flows into the next in harmony, and the four seasons come alive through the music. I would recommend it to anyone looking for a new sound, for a soothing and beautiful experience.

Powerful choral music - stirring and exotic.......1999-08-20

I don't have much experience with choral music, especially not with Bulgarian choral ensembles, but "Sezoni" is amazing. The chorus swells powerfully over plucked strings and woodwinds, trading off with Mara for the lead, sprinkled with instrumental interludes.

The best this uneducated listener can do to summarize "Sezoni" would be a folksy Carmina Burana - folksy without being hokey, folksy with all the power and vigor of the best traditional music, but without the Western operatic pretenses.

An interesting listen.

World Music: