Cynara

If you love Anonymous 4, if you love ambient music, you'll love the beautiful a cappella sound of Anuna and the album's range from early music to traditional Irish and Spanish songs to otherworldly contemporary harmonies. The album title is from their performance of a modern setting of Ernest Dowson's poem "Non sum qualis eram bonae sub regno Cynarae" with its still-familiar refrain: "I have been faithful to thee, Cynara! in my fashion" and another phrase we all know now: "...gone with the wind." After a couple of years and dozens of hearings it's still one of my favorites.

If there is music in heaven, this is what it must sound like. The only reason why the Cynara album gets 4 stars is because their earlier release "Invocation" is Anuna's Pet Sounds/Sargent Pepper disc, so naturally that one gets 5 stars.I own all of the discs by this group with the exception of Winter Songs (which is on order)and they are all gorgeous. This incredible Irish vocal group sounds like no other that I know of. Their choice of material and ethereal vocal colors set them apart from all of the other vocal groups, Cambridge Singers, Canticleer etc. Christus 2000 is haunting and Ocean will take you to another place in time. Cynara is a welcome addition to Anuna's stunning catalog of works.

"Cynara" is the latest US-available offering from the Dublin-based group, Anuna, and unlike its predecessors (where an Irish flavour permeats most every track), inches closer to the "contemporary choral" side of the musical spectrum. Not that there aren't any Irish tracks to be found here-10 of the 15 tracks derive from ancient Irish texts from as far back as the 6th century, and,as on other Anuna CD's, feature the innovative compositions and arrangements of compose/director Michael McGlynn. The remaining 5 are most interesting, and are my personal favourites: *Riu, Riu-A 16th century Castillian anthem *I Dreamt that I Dwelt in Marble Halls-a marvelous ballad *Pie Jesu-An original "McGlynn" that rivals Mozart's "Ave Verum Corpus" in its tenderness and sheer musicality. *Ocean-a meditative piece evocative of its title ***Cynara-the title track--from a poem by Ernest Dowson-- a tragic story of the folly of a fickle heart and the regrets that ensue.....(It's a great arangement!)As mentioned previously, this is the latest offering by Anuna that's available in the US. Two new CD's are currently available in Ireland only--since the group's label, Danu, is distributed by Universal, I can only hope that these titles will be picked up by Amazon.com someday soon :-) There is a website address located inside the CD jacket that will lead you to more Anuna music!Enjoy!

I think according to Michael McGlynn (director/producer/writer guy), the first release of this album was the ugliest cover art they ever produced. I think the "green forest" theme is the newer, more beautiful release, but the music is exactly the same, so it doesn't matter which one you end up with. This is one of my favorite Anuna albums because I'm a choir nerd and it's heavy on the choral singing. It consists of a lot of their sacred music sung in Latin, and some of their more chamber-sounding Irish tunes. My absolute favorite track is "Victimae," because the singing is very unique and their harmonies slide around, instead of typical choral jumping from note to note. I'm sure there's a technical word for it. In any rate, this album reminds me of all the early music I'm so fond of, both early-Irish and Latin-chanty-type-stuff.

I absolutely adore Anuna, and "Cynara" is a beautiful experience overall. My only complaints about this album are the totally uninspired rendition of "Riu, Riu, Chiu" and a rather predictable version of the classic "I Dreamt I Dwelt in Marble Halls." Other than those two tracks, the sopranos soar with an angelic tone and the men alternate between their forceful druidic chant and lyricism so soft you just want to melt.It's definitely worth the buy. I've owned it for almost 2 years and play it often. Be sure to go to Anuna's website ... for albums you can't get here in the USA!

I purchased Cynara after buying almost all the previous Anuna albums. It is one of the best of their recordings so far in sound quality and instrumentation, and the re-arrangement of Christus 2000 is especially powerful. The album "Omnis", because of its lush vocals, and the specially ordered orchestrated "Behind the Closed Eye" are my personal Anuna favorites, but this album shows just how beautiful the group sounds. They can perform in many different styles, songs written or arranged by the leader M. McGlynn, ranging in period from the 12th century all the way to the twenty-first.

Anuna is truly producing wonderful music. However, can anyone tell me where to get the lyrics for their albums? As a writer, I feel words are important. I'd appreciate any help in this matter and would gladly pay to have a lyrics sheet. But for those who just like sounds, it's astounding stuff.

Not quite aa good as their first one, but still beautiful.

I like this cd!

Eine eher verhaltene CD. Viele Stücke kommen sehr langsam und getragen daher. Dafür sind sie aber- wie nicht anders von Anuna zu erwarten- perfekt interpretiert.Mir persönlich ist die CD etwas zu ruhig- Normalerweise finden sich als Gegengewicht bei diesem Chor immer noch eine Reihe von lebendigeren Chorälen oder rhythmische gälische Lieder. Diesmal ist nur ein etwas muntereres Stück enthalten. Der Rest ist- wie schon gesagt- in ganz ruhigem Fahrwasser angesiedelt.Eher eine CD zur Besinnung.Trotzdem schön. Und oft sehr romantisch.Das Booklet enthält alle Texte!Inhalt:Igitur ServusAn OicheRio RiuIncantationsWhen the war is overI dreamt that I dwelt in marble hallsArmarque cum scutoMiserereCynaraBuachaill on eirneFuigfidh misen baile seoVictimaeChristus ResurgensPie JesuOcean

Non c'è bisogno di dettagliare tutti i cd degli Anuna sono per chi li ama imprenscindibili. Sono sempre una conferma.

このアルバムはANUNAの現在の最新アルバムのようですが、相変わらずハーモニーの美しさは絶品です！特に私が感動したのは、14世紀のアイルランドの聖歌をアレンジした「Victimae」と12世紀のアイルランドの聖歌のアレンジ「Christus2000」です！聖歌でありながら、何とも言えない妖しさに満ちています。青い月光の下、目深く頭巾を被って聖堂へと集う修道士たち。橙色の蝋燭の炎の揺らめき。金銀の香炉から立ち上る香の煙。密やかに執り行われる、魔術めいた儀式ー。そんな半ばオカルティックな光景すら、想像されました。・・と言いましても決して、マニアックなアルバムではありません（汗）「Pie Jesu」やラストの「Ocean」などは、正に究極の癒しの音楽！特に、清澄で何処か切ない響きのハープとバイオリンの伴奏とANUNAのハーモニーとが絶妙に溶け合った「Ocean」は美しいの一言につきます。雄大な大海に優しく包まれながら、ゆったりと漂っているような気持ちになれます。