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Ron Korb - "Celtic Heartlands" | |
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Ron Korb seems to have a desire and more importantly, an ability to do world music. He has released a total of seven CD's ranging from Japanese kabuki to Indonesian flutes to Indian wind instruments. The primary instrument throughout all his explorations has been the flute. In Celtic Heartlands, his eighth CD, Korb successfully examines the Celtic tradition. The entire album consists of originally composed instrumental material performed by Korb, along with some of the best celtic instrumentalists out in the field today.
Korb himself is an offspring of a German father and a Japanese-Canadian mother. From the very start, he has always been interested in investigating different cultures through music. He has been a professional musician for over twenty years , and a graduate of the Royal Conservatory of Music. He is best known for his Japanese traditional music and his work with the flute, regardless of the culture in which it was used in. When asked why the Celtic angle this time, Korb states, "For a long time, I have wanted to experience Celtic culture. It was just a matter of getting the instruments down a bit and, from a technical standpoint, learning the inflections." Well, it is the opinion of this reviewer that Korb certainly got his instruments down and learned the inflection. The fact that he has some of the best Irish and Scottish traditional artists as backup artists only accentuates the quality of this release.
Celtic Heartland is an interesting collection of original tunes that have that special sound.
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They play like ancient music that was composed ages ago and not something done recently: yet Korb's influence is strongly evident.
He effectively adds elements of his prior influences of different music genres. The composition "Oracle" has a very Middle-East sound to it. Mixing Celtic with such diverse traditions might sound odd but it works. Just as an aside, bagpipes were first created in Egypt. The connections are there. Comparisons to Loreena McKennit's music would be justified. He used members of her stage band on this CD.
In reference to the addition of others on the CD; while it is Ron Korb's release, it is as much the guest players on it as it is Korb's. Cellist Caroline Lavelle, uillean piper Steafan Hannigan, and Irish fiddle player Teresa Heanue from the touring group Riverdance and Lord of The Dance all appear on this CD. Hannigan's uillean pipe performance in the song, 'Tribal Lament' is some of the best piping out there. Add Korb's skill with the flute and you have one powerful, emotive song. The talent that surrounds Korb shows the respect that the flute player engenders.
Celtic Heartlands is an excellent Celtic instrumental release. The superb quality of Korb's flute playing and composition skills, in conjunction with the ability of the guests musicians, equal a quality alliance. This CD is exceptional and one that lovers of Celtic music will admire. Korb has shown mastery with other genres of music and here, he has done the same. End result: a job well done.
By Daniel Sanford, CanEHdian.com 2001
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