Search - Ralph Towner :: Ana

Passion and Profound Introspection

Scott68 | Columbus, Ohio United States | 01/13/2002

(5 out of 5 stars)

"If you are looking for some emotional acoustic guitar music that is original and fresh I doubt you could find a better CD then this.It is clear to me Mr Towner spent a long time composing these great works as you will note there was a significant period of time between this release and the one prior. Towner's stunning chord viocings and melodic phrases translate into a deeply emotional statement. It is clear he must have done some real soul searching for such an emotional output, I can only imagine the trials and tribulations of his life that have inspired these works.The chords and progressions are fresh and modern and the music is never obtrusive, but soothing and relaxing. His effective use of space and time stirs one's imagination.If you are hesitating to buy this CD, you are missing out. I must give this recording my absolute highest recommendation along with the following CDs by Mr Towner: Solo Concert, Open Letter, and A Closer View.Thank you Mr Towner for such an intense piece of beauty and artistry, may you always be remembered for your creativity, originality, and emotional offerings. BRAVO!"

Superbly Focused

06/29/2001

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Many of Ralph's albums tend to seem like 2 or 3 fragments of albums sort of jammed together incongruously (e.g., City of Eyes, Open Letter, Lost and Found). There also seems to be an awkward tension in those recordings between the melodic and careflly-crafted songs, and the more experimental, improvisatory pieces. This recording has neither of these distracting characteristics. This is a solid set of some of Ralph's most melodic compositions, performed beautifully on the classical guitar, followed by a small, interesting set of more improvisatory pieces performed on 12-string. The fact that it is all solo guitar narrows the gap between the composed and the improvised. This record makes an interesting contrast to his earlier "Solo Concert", where the roles of the 2 types of guitar sounds are reversed. Fortunately, we are free to own all of Ralph's wonderful recordings if we choose. But if we were only allowed to own a few, this one should certainly be among them."

Curiously Unaffecting

Stephen Silberman | SF, CA USA | 09/25/2000

(3 out of 5 stars)

"I wish I loved this record. I've been a Towner fan for more than 20 years; I adore his most intimate recordings, such as the mind-blowing "Solo Concert" and the sublime "Diary." There are some wonderful compositions on this record, such as the exquisitely moody "The Reluctant Bride." Normally, Heaven on Earth is Towner and a guitar -- why is this disc less than the sum of its parts? Perhaps because a couple of the tunes (such as "Bride" and "Saverio's Tune") have recorded more movingly elsewhere (especially on the great, difficult-to-find Towner soundtrack import "Un Altra Vita"); there's an odd coldness to the music here, though it's technically brilliant and full of interesting ideas. I may come around, though I've tried several times to get into this record, for a couple of years now. For now, I have to admit, "Ana" is one of my least favorite of Towner's albums."