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 enlarge | Artist: Loreena Mckennitt
Label: Verve
Category: Music
List Price: $18.98
Buy New: $9.03
You Save: $9.95 (52%)
New (39) Used (13) from $8.70
Rating:  236 reviews
Sales Rank: 493
Format: Enhanced
Media: Audio CD
Discs: 1
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.1
Dimensions (in): 5.3 x 4.8 x 0.4
MPN: 000792002
UPC: 774213121097
EAN: 0774213121097
ASIN: B000J3EEBY
Release Date: November 21, 2006
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
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| Customer Reviews:
Showing reviews 6-10 of 236
 Still the Loreena we love, despite the wait November 21, 2006
Samurai13 (sitting in front of my computer)
15 out of 18 found this review helpful
I've been a fan of Loreena McKennitt since my high school days (way back in the early 90's). Her music has always been one of my most, if not THE most, powerful inspirations for when I am doing artwork. Time and time again, her music has transported my heart and my soul to another world, and as a Christian (I know that she is not), has made me feel closer to the Devine, by giving me awe inspired gratitude for God's gift of music.
Simply put, Loreena makes magic through her music and voice. Truly she, if I ever had one, is my muse, this side of heaven.
When I heard that she was finally going to be releasing a new album (after nearly ten long years), I practically leapt out of my seat. I was worried though, that like many musicians who have taken such a long hiatus, that her sound would have drastically changed so much that it would be a far cry from the muse that has inspired my heart and imagination to soar to heights I never would have reached otherwise.
Thankfully, blessedly, this latest release, which so many of her fans have been yearning for, is one of her best albums yet. From the moment I began listening to it, I was raptured. So fear not, the magic is still there, alive and pulsating with an ancient beauty. If you're a fan, even only slightly, I am telling you now, buy this album! And if you've never had the pleasure of listening to Loreena McKennitt before, An Ancient Muse is a great place to start.
Winter Escape into Mystery November 26, 2006
Rebecca Johnson (Washington State)
15 out of 18 found this review helpful
The first time I noticed the album cover, I was completely intrigued with the distant snow-capped mountains and invitation into a cozy magical tent, you might just happen upon in a magical forest. The music was worth the wait, with moments that delivers on the promise of mystery. Once you enter the mood, it remains consistent throughout and can create a world in which to relax or escape.
"Pray for their souls who died for love,
For Love shall still be lord of all"
The highlight of this album seemed to be "The English Ladye and the Knight" until I heard "Penelope's Song" that is even more impressive. The lyrics are romantic and dreamy:
"Long as the day in the summer time
Deep as the wine dark sea
I'll keep your heart with mine.
Till you come to me."
This track is followed by a purely instrumental "Kecharitomene" with ancient echoes and Celtic worlds mingling as one in an enchanting fusion. The songs have a sacred quality enhanced greatly by the soft beauty in Loreena McKennitt's voice.
The instrumentation throughout is of rare beauty with "Beneath A Phrygian Sky" capturing the very heart of the muse. The entire album is not only a mesmerizing listening experience; it is an escape into mystery where Loreena McKennitt whispers your soul awake.
~The Rebecca Review
 Imaginary lines. December 4, 2006
Jason Stein (Chula Vista, CA United States)
15 out of 18 found this review helpful
Loreena McKennitt returns after nine years with "An Ancient Muse", replete with all of her world/new age gusto. Similar to Enya, Sarah McLachlan and Dido with a dash of Sarah Brightman, McKennitt can't seem to break new ground with "An Ancient Muse". While the 54 minute experience is well-crafted, it is also sleep-inducing. After a hard day one could easily find solace, comfort and sweet reverie whilst listening to "An Ancient Muse".
As with all McKennitt albums, there are key tracks such as the exquisite "Penelope's Song" or "Sacred Shabbat". I also enjoyed "Never-Ending Road (Amhran Duit)". While I admire everything about McKennitt from her unrelenting artistic vision, to her nomadic musical journeys and finally to doing everything herself in terms of production and distribution, it doesn't change the fact that since 1991's "The Visit" each album has just been a variation on the same theme. At times I'd like to reel McKennitt in and disperse her creativity. All of her albums are high quality ethnomusicological experiements, but she has yet to make a truly diverse piece of work.
If you like McKennitt's music you will probably like "An Ancient Muse", but there must be some fans who want more experiementation and diversity, right?
 An income provider for McKennitt but little value for the listener December 25, 2006
Deborah E. Basel
12 out of 25 found this review helpful
I bought this album thinking that it would be on par with her others. It is not. Disappointingly not. If you are a McKennitt fan, I am guessing that you buy her music for her expressive voice and lively music. This had very little of either to offer. The album is predominated with overused Middle Easterm melodies and offer very little voice or are melodies with a few vocal sighs. Some of the "songs" are almost totally this genre and some of the melodies are tired since she has used them exhaustingly before, but with livlier results. The predominance of music and lack of her usual freshness gave me the impression that she was just filling space to make an income on this "new" issue. Don't waste your money.
 Much Like a Career Retrospective... December 16, 2006
Brian P. Kelly (Philadelphia, PA United States)
11 out of 13 found this review helpful
I've been a big fan of Loreena for almost a decade now and for anyone unfamiliar with her sonic territory, be assured you will find just about everything splendid about her in this single CD: her porcelain vocals, fluid composition, Eastern/Mid-Eastern/Celtic instrumentation, and sincere passion for the tales and experiences she channels. Consider An Ancient Muse to be a bona fide coda for Loreena's career. There lies both its greatest strength and its faults.
As others have mentioned, several songs echo of inadvertent or deliberate homage to earlier iterations of her musical ideas, including The Bonny Swans (Beneath a Phrygian Sky), The Old Ways (Caravanserai), The Lady of Shallot (The English Ladye and the Knight), Marco Polo (Kecharitomene), and others. As such, listening to this album gives you a pretty comprehensive feel for where Loreena has been in her 20+ year journey that would be difficult to achieve with any other single CD on its own. However, it goes no further than that and brings old fans no unique experiences we haven't already enjoyed. And quite frankly, her earlier treads were more impressive not only because they were then original but because they were also significantly more sophisticated from a melodic and harmonic standpoint. Loreena relies too much on her arresting voice here (which is without a doubt splendid) and her solid understanding of basic composition. But she rarely goes beyond basic, using simplistic motives and chord progressions that she's recylced several times over. For the untrained harmonic ear, this may not be problematic. But her melodies, soaring as they may be, could benefit from some complexity and certainly some variation. For instance, the strongest and most original melody here is in the verse section of Caravanserai, which is incidentally the album's strongest track. The song's sole flaw is that it fumbles the dynamic upon reaching the (hate to say it) mundane chorus. It doesn't ruin the song as a whole, but merely leaves the listener imagining what a marvel it could have otherwise been had it been fully realized. Similarly, Beneath a Phrygian Sky suffers for want of musical variation. Here, the melody is repeated throughout the entire song without a separate section (no chorus, rise, or bridge) leaving what could have been a career defining track as a mere pleasant sounding glimpse of unfulfilled potential. Some more musical sections, melodic variation, syncopation, alternating chord progressions, or even (gasp) a key change would do wonders here, both on the album as a whole but on this track particularly. Loreena has so much going for her that some attention to musical detail would really round out her work. While her lyrics have sustained a level of high quality, possibly even improved, and her voice is as impeccable as ever, her composition skills have remained stagnant or even slightly devolved.
As others mentioned, the instrumentation here breaks no new ground but gets the job done. Despite boasting an unprecedented diversity of new and exotic instruments (and I do love the guitar in Beneath a Phrygian Sky), the overall sound is nearly identical to that found on The Book of Secrets. The difference is that it's a bit sparser, less uptempo, and oddly enough sounds more homogenous than its predecessor (no conspicuous harp, as in La Serenissima or pan flute as in Skellig). Given that the tracks on her previous album were a bit more dramatic and musically daring, and these new tracks simply retain rather than build upon the prior's style, one might even be initially tempted to believe that the Ancient Muse is a collection of Book of Secrets B-sides, demos, and outtakes. However, a few subsequent listens to Caravanserai, the superbly voiced English Ladye and the Knight, and the unique Sacred Shabbat puts those fears to rest.
Overall, this album contains and represents all of the elements that have come to signify the best of Loreena: esoteric musings, deep introspection and respect for human culture, exotic instrumentation, a gorgeous voice, and a spectacular cast of supporting musicians. However, while it showcases in many ways all of her best features and influences, it is far from her best work and contains no real standout track(s) like her three most popular albums. Thus it serves as a very candid introduction to Loreena McKennitt but longtime fans looking for the next Mystic's Dream, The Old Ways, The Highwayman, The Mummer's Dance, or The Two Trees will be mildly disappointed. Some more innovation and musical audacity would greatly benefit her next project. Nevertheless, An Ancient Muse is good effort overall and a worthwhile addition to any fan's collection and its flaws do not detract from the truth that after nine absent years, it's good to hear from this magnificent woman again. Looking forward to the next journey.
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