Neo 6.54

Sylvan is a German neo-prog band with an emphasis on the vocals and a powerful sound driven by keys and guitar. With their debut album "Deliverance", the German band from Hamburg open the door to this hidden world for all of us. The music takes you onto a journey full of miracles, dreams, love, passion and fortune. The dominant style of Sylvan is a mix of Symphonic Progressive Rock, neo Progressive and Classical Rock including touchs of the Progressive Metal, blended together in a new and interesting way, decorated with lot of intricate keyboards and guitars sounds and grandiose musical passages in all songs. Frequently compared to group like Marillion or IQ, Sylvan successfully adds a new facet to Nineties neo Progressive.

Fabuleux Destin d'Amelie Poulen (known to Western audiences simply as "Amelie") was a magic realist romantic comedy by French auteur Jean Pierre-Jeunet which introduced French composer Yann Tiersen to listeners worldwide. Tiersen's whimsical, deceptively simple instrumental music was equally influenced by composers like Chopin and Satie, as well as contemporaries such as Michael Nyman and Philip Glass, and emerged as an enjoyable blend of European classical music and French folk. Playing a variety of instruments from piano and violin to accordion and xylophone, Tiersen composed a number of delicate, charming pieces which suited the somewhat magical mood of the film very well and deservedly made him a star in his own right.

Quidam's debut album remains as impressive as it was 10 years ago. Rarely have I heard a progressive rock band made such an impact as Quidam did with their first release. Although the sound of the album is at times slightly metallic the production sounded incredibly professional. This was something to be expected since the producer and mixing engineer of the album were no others than Szadkowski and Palczewski (both of Collage fame and currently active with their new band Satellite).

Heitor Villa-Lobos - Complete String Quartets - Cuarteto Latinoamericano (2004) {6 CD Brilliant Classsics 6634 rec 1994-2000}
EAC rip (secure mode) | FLAC (tracks)+CUE+LOG -> 1.92 Gb | MP3 @320 -> 914 Mb
Full Artwork @ 300 dpi (png) -> 135 Mb | 5% repair rar
© 1994-2000, 2004 Brilliant Classsics | 6634
Classical / Early 20th Century / Contemporary Classical / Chamber Music / String Quartet

These fine performances constitute the only complete cycle currently available of the 17 string quartets that pepper Villa-Lobos' entire career. The suite-like, five-movement No. 1, with its adorable "like a jumping bean" finale, is deceptive. Most of these are resoundingly neo-classical works full of acerbic harmonies and typically busy counterpoint, with few overtly nationalistic elements. Of course they sound just like Villa-Lobos, who was himself something of a "nationalistic element" when you come right down to it. The series reaches its culmination in the large works composed around the time of the Second World War, Nos. 7-11, which really do constitute landmark 20th century contributions to the form on a par with those of Shostakovich and Bartók.