Starbound [Import]

Entrancing! "StarBound" is classified as New Age, but don't let that put you off. There are no gongs, whistles or weird noises on this CD, just beautiful, peaceful, almost balletic textures that are melodious without being actual melodies. The orchestral arrangements have a delicate purity and an ability to evoke emotions without overstimulation; children could handle this without being nervous or bored.

"Journey to the Stars" has a magical string quality, deepened by French horn accents.

"An Impressionistic Interlude" is a quieter oboe/piano blend, without the melancholy effect oboes usually produce.

"Moonlight Dance" builds to a quiet intensity without blasting or overpowering. And I'm a pushover for pizzicato.

"Planetary Voyager" begins with a cool space-travel effect (caused by the female choir), then drifts into a dreamy waltz.

"Ever True" is rather sentimental (I don't mean that disparagingly). Someone should use this as background music on a commercial for cologne or wedding rings or coffee or dog food or some other evocative product.

"Variations on a Theme by Johann Pachelbel" is exactly that...a series of variations on Pachelbel's Canon. I'm not a big fan of Pachelbel's Canon (the original), but I like the creativity in these variations, especially the second or third variation, about 1:15 into the song.

"Dances with Moonbeams" swirls with arpeggios and fairy choirs; it's the most ethereal of the selections. I can hear a definite Debussy influence here (hence neo-Impressionistic as a genre, maybe a reference to Clair de Lune in the title?).

"Next Stop, Saturn" is a short fairy waltz, more of an interlude.

My favorite piece is "A Time to Remember." It's poignant without being saccharine. Just when you think it's about to get overblown, the arrangement pulls peacefully back. Almost a classical decorum, almost as if Apollo wrote a love song. Now that's something rare these days.

"A New Song" brings Ravel to mind in its texture.

"A Celestial Celebration" interweaves 12-string guitar and orchestra in a sensuous spiral.

"In Dreams" provides a quiet, meditative end to the celestial journey. It has a sparse, sinuous almost Japanese feel to it.

You can listen to the whole CD and lose track of time. It's a powerful escape.

I can't wait for Fred Lykes to bring us another album!

The previous poster is spot on. I wouldn't ever really consider myself a "New Age" music fan but the instrumental arrangements of Lykes are awesome. Perfect backgroun music for programming, reading, relaxing, etc. This disc is kind of hard to find so I'm glad Amazon has it!

There's something about this CD that makes me just relax. Every track is soothing and catchy, and I find myself 'happily' humming the melodies for hours afterwards. Thankyou Pandora for introducing me to this!

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