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"Festival
Of The Heart"
Our
all-time favorite Christmas record! Every interpretation of the
classic Christmas carols is both fresh and beautiful. This record
exudes Christmas spirit like no other: Quiet, introspective and
heartfelt, "Festival Of The Heart" is truly magical.
If you were to buy one Christmas CD in our collection, this should
be the one. "Festival Of The Heart" was recorded and
mixed by Brian Keane and Ron Bach at the Carriage House Recording
Studio in Connecticut, and was a huge commercial success, and
continues to sell well every year.
Track
List:
1.
O Come All Ye Faithful
2. What Child Is This? (Greensleeves)
3. God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen
4. O Come, O Come Emmanuel
5. Angels We Have Heard On High
6. Hark! The Herald Angels Sing
7. Festival Of The Heart
8. The First Noel
9. It Came Upon A Midnight Clear
10. Little Drummer Boy
11. Oh Holy Night
12. Away In A Manger
13. Coventry Carol
14. Fugue - (from "The Messiah," G.F. Handel)
15. Silent Night
16. Eastern Star
Release
Date: October 1, 1997
Label: Hearts Of Space
Reviews:
CD Review Magazine: "Five stars! John Boswell has a subtle
piano technique that soothes. His sound is warm and comfortable,
but not sweet or overly sentimental. He actually brings a renewed
spirit to these often-played carols. Collaborating with producer
Brian Keane, the arrangements are refreshing rather that derivative
because they avoid the trappings of holiday cliches. Instead,
Boswell crafts atmospheres that are quietly reflective, intelligent,
and entertaining.
'Little Drummer Boy', one of the most over-recorded and cloying
Christmas songs, has been revitalized by Keane's arrangement and
Boswell's touch. With the addition of percussion, ney, and tambourine,
the song has a jaunting, Middle Eastern feel. When Boswell and
flautist Joanie Madden duet on 'O Come, O Come, Emmanuel', they
expertly capture the song's essence of longing and anticipation.
Revered warhorses such as 'O Holy Night' and 'Silent Night' stand
out because they feature the lovely melody lines, rather than
rely on overbearing arrangements.
Throughout these sixteen tracks, Boswell proves that less is often
more by focusing on the mood of the carols, he displays their
inner core and brings out the beauty in each. Like the songs it
represents, 'Festival Of The Heart' should become a holiday tradition."
-- Lou Waryncia
The Music Paper: "The hands down winner in the instrumental
category of Christmas releases is 'Festival Of The Heart' by John
Boswell on Hearts Of Space records. It's extremely hard to come
up with new arrangements of old favorites - and without destroying
the essence that made each song a classic to begin with. I think
it's Boswell's own originality that marks these tracks clearly;
he allows us to hear fresh interpretations thorough new ears.
Credit must also go to fellow musician/producer/co-arranger Brian
Keane, who set Boswell's ideas perfectly. This is an inspiring,
touching recording, perhaps the best of the season." -- Jennifer
Shields
Amazon.com: 
"Largely piano driven, Festival of the Heart showcases John
Boswell's delicately warm tones on an hour's worth of seasonal
hymns and carols. All but the title cut and the album's closer,
'Eastern Star' (both composed by Boswell), are traditionals and
classics, many dating back to the 17th century. Mendelssohn's
'Hark! The Harold Angels Sing' resounds beautifully in a duet
of piano and bells. Other standouts are Handel's English-horn-adorned
'Fugue' from the Messiah and a reverent take on 'Coventry Carol',
the collection's oldest hymn, which dates to 16th-century England.
For those for whom Christmas is more enchanted and holy than commercial,
'Festival of the Heart' is true blue." --Paige La Grone
"In
my fervor to find new Christmas music early one Yuletide season
several years ago, I stumbled across this album and bought it
simply because I liked the cover art. Little did I know as I went
thru the check-out that I was purchasing what was one of the most
fabulous Christmas albums ever produced! Boswell has taken a turn
at creating a Chip Davis-like Christmas album but instead of total
synths he use a wide array of unusual old world instruments. There
are no vocals. His arrangements are phenomenal and he even throws
in 2 original compositions which are quite nice. His treatment
of 'The Little Drummer Boy' is out of this world. If you love
Christmas music you will love 'Festival'."
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