Visionary new age music for nourishing and rejuvenating body, mind and spirit
Visionary new age music for nourishing and rejuvenating body, mind and spirit
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Quiescence: A World at Peace by Amberfern CDs and digital downloads available for purchase at:
This sublime album transports the listener around a peaceful inner world. From a quaint English fishing village to the exotic Far East. From a beautiful Greek beach to a Bedouin desert sunrise. From a snowy village church to a sensational sunset on the plains of Africa, and more besides. It is the ultimate audio antidote to a busy day — a personal escape.
| 1. Misty Harbor 7:33 |
| 2. Magharibi 7:12 |
| 3. Undercurrents 6:01 |
| 4. Lights on Water 5:09 |
| 5. Paleokastritsas 5:58 |
| 6. Flowers in the Air 6:24 |
| 7. Bedouin Sunrise 3:14 |
| 8. Dharmasala 4:39 |
| 9. Clear Skies 5:38 |
| 10. Ayuba Aye 6:07 |
| 11. Art of Serenity 5:52 |
Soft and lulling, these instrumental pieces offer a blend of keyboards, flutes, piano, guitar and subtle drum beats. It's an album that travels the world, interweaving elements from different musical cultures, while maintaining a smooth, blended sound. For example, "Bedouin Sunrise" has a subtle Turkish flair, noted through the use of breathy flutes and shimmering lute strumming, or "Dharamsala," which is rooted in the sounds of the Far East. From English country gardens to the plains of Africa, Amberfern is both exotic and soothing.
Clive Brooks, also known as Amberfern, produces meditative and healing new age music. He lives in England's New Forest National Park, and you can hear the natural influences in his music that have no doubt been absorbed from his surroundings. This CD can be categorized as World Music as you can hear the influences from a variety of world cultures in his compositions. Clive uses drums, vibes, synths and more to create a sound palette that interweaves music that at heart contains elements of ambient, new age and electronica. Clive has skillfully woven these various textures together to create an introspective sound stage that takes the listener on a sonic adventure through these different realms. It is peaceful, mood setting and sometimes intentionally brooding. These are wonderful compositions with which to create a quiet and thoughtful setting that will allow the listener to relax and unwind. My preferred songs off this CD are Light on Water, a somber piece, which tantalizes the listener with a slight oriental flavor. This song can be very intense but it is essentially contemplative in nature. Bedouin Sunrise captures the Middle Eastern feel extremely well. This is a melodic and very fascinating composition. Seagulls, a jazzy beat and an almost West Coast feel comes across in Clear Skies. I love the vibes and flute combination. But my favorite is the opening track on this album called Misty Harbor. Water, ethereal "fog" and an electronic keyboard blend in a very appropriately titled song. This is an impressive CD that presents the work of Amberfern aka Clive Brooks who is a very talented musician and does not disappoint. The overall feeling of the album is very ambient, very electronica, and quite wonderful to listen to.
Quiescence: A World At Peace is the Real Music debut by Amberfern, a composer of meditative healing music who lives and works in the heart of England’s New Forest National Park. A professional musician since 1978, Amberfern plays and composes for a wide variety of instruments including guitars, bass, piano, keyboards, synthesizers, drums, percussion, ethnic flutes, hang drums, and a growing collection of unusual and evocative world instruments. Nature sounds and human voices are also a part of the mix, giving Amberfern a rich musical palette of many, many colors. The composer explains: “The music is always intended to function as aural dream-texts and visions of possible worlds with which to bridge time and geographical location, trigger distant memories or connections and become a healing tonic for the soul.” The eleven original tracks reflect an eclectic blend of cultures, moods, and experiences, creating a bit more than an hour of relaxing, dreamy music to escape to whenever a little respite is desired. Quiescence begins with “Misty Harbor,” a soft and gentle keyboard/synth piece. It drifts slowly on tranquil water, feeling very much like a comfortable, peaceful dream. “Magharibi” picks up the tempo with a catchy rhythm, flowing melody line, and the sound of crickets. I really like this one! “Undercurrents” is much more ambient and hypnotic, with the sounds of splashing and flowing water running through it. “Lights on Water” is darkly mysterious with flutes, drums, voices, and atmospheric sounds drawing you in. “Flowers In the Air” is very ambient and weightless. Keyboard sounds suggest vast open space, blending with ethereal voices, piano, and a silky-smooth sax(?) sound - a combination that mesmerizes. “Bedouin Sunrise” is an exotic bit of musical enchantment, as is “Dharmasala.” “Ayuba Aye” transports us to Africa for chanting voices and a gently-swaying instrumental background that comes to the foreground when the voices stop. “Art of Serenity” begins with a gong and choral voices, followed by very spare keyboard sounds. As the piece evolves, it becomes “bigger,” but always stays very slow and peaceful. Amberfern’s is a very interesting new musical voice from the Real Music label. Quiescence is available from Real Music, Amazon, and iTunes. Check it out!
There sheer amount of time that Amberfern gives the different tracks on Quiescence is intriguing; with a number of the album’s cuts clocking in at the six or seven minute mark, one wonders before the CD begins whether listeners’ interests can be sated. It may take a few minutes of the album’s first track, “Misty Harbor,” but listeners will rapidly understand the unique and mature compositions as they truly are. During the aforementioned “Misty Harbor,” a panoply of different styles and influences issue out. Nothing in the way of vocals are needed; there is a deep and detailed sound that is cultivated through “Misty Harbor,” which in turn keeps things fresh and new for “Magharibi,” the album’s second track. While there are some currents established during “Magharibi” that both touch upon and build off of the sound first crafted during “Misty Harbor,” each of Quiescence’s next ten tracks provide listeners with an unquenchable vitality. “Lights on Water” is a sea change for Quiescence, as the Native American-tinged compositions that open up the track gradually give ground to an electronic-meets-woodwind sound. Taking a wider look, one will be able to tell that Amberfern creates a composition that is at least as varied as the human experience. Quiescence ends just as strong as it begins, with a triumvirate of tracks (“Clear Skies,” “Ayuba Aye,” and “Art of Serenity”) that act as a perfect ending for the album. More so, I feel that these tracks provide listeners with a few hints to what Amberfern will wish to establish with any further releases or recordings. Check Quiescence out today; I believe the album expands upon what listeners should expect from instrumental and world music. Top Tracks: Misty Harbor, Lights on Water Rating: 8.6 out of 10
Listening to the music of Amberfern is like traveling the world visiting secret gardens and enchanting forests. It evokes a feeling of intrigue and magic. Instruments from around the world, including hang drum, ethnic flute, keyboards and various percussion and string instruments, create full, rich compositions for relaxation and inspiration.