Search - Sarah Brightman :: Harem

Incredible CD by an Incredible Artist!!!

Anthony Morelli | Montreal, Canada | 05/29/2003

(5 out of 5 stars)

"I bought Harem Yesterday, when it came out. It's such a beautiful CD. The DVD is unlike any of Sarah's other DVDs. We go so deep into the making of Harem, that I feel at home.I'm going to start, by talking about the CD/DVD packaging. Well, the digipack carton is really nice, but will not take a lot of wear. The ink on the digipack will end up dying your fingers, if it gets wet. Be careful!
There are beautiful pictures inside, and we're treated to so many more pics in Harem compared to any of her other CDs. I'm really happy! Thank you Sarah!
The surface of the CD and DVDs are painted with palm trees and a silver "Harem" at the bottom of each. You can't really tell which is the DVD and which is the CD, but that doesn't matter to me.Alrighty now...Here is my review of Harem, song by song:Harem:.......A gorgeous marriage of Instrumental suspense, mixed with moving electronic techno-dance beats makes this an excellent opening track. I love the suspenseful, dramatic crescendo from the slow, rythmic percussion, to the gradually rising melody, and then turning into a bouncing, looped keyboard riff, which then shifts into high gear with a sensuous, electronic dance beat. I love it!What a wonderful world:.....Sarah has revisited a Classic song (originally by the great Sachimo "Louis Armstrong"). Sarah has re-invented this classic, giving it a pixie-esque finish. The song is unique, and has a lovely melody which only Sarah and Frank can come up with. Lovely!It's a beautiful day:........Pure Euphoria! I love it as much as I love the original "Madame Butterfly or (Un Bel Di vedremo). What a gorgeous soaring mix of Classical with a slower electronic beat. This song can easily fit into the Fly CD material, because it's got that heavenly, off the ground vocal effect on me. This is the only song in which Sarah puts any operatic voice into. Kind of says "thank you", for all the fans who loved her classical music of the recent past.What you never know:.......Lovely! Beautiful accoustic guitar solo, which makes me feel sentimental. And Sarah's ageless "Kate Bush-esque" soprano voice gives it a touch like no other song. This is probably one of Sarah's best love songs yet!The Journey Home:.....Another dramatic melody builder! It starts out really slow, and percussion sets in. The background vocals are to die for, and the violins and orchestrations just glide smoothly.
Then what I love, is Sarah's smooth, crystalline Soprano voice arrives with the first lines of the song. It builds up to another fine electronic dance beat, which soars through the sky like an eagle. I get goose bumps every time this song plays. Ofra Haza's voice is so lovely on it! Free: Sad but beautiful......Sarah sings about wanting to be free, and to move on. This one is another sweet melody, where Sarah's voice opens up into one emotional bliss. How pretty!Mysterious Days:.......Is mysterious, melodical and really pretty. I think it's one of the most "rock-sounding" of all the songs on the CD. This one could really work as a single. I absolutely love the chorus line.The war is over now:.......Very pretty, simple and catchy. Duets aren't my thing, but this one is an exception. Sarah's light, airy voice, and Kadim Al Sahir's voice is brilliant. They go really great together, and I think this proves that they should duet a lot more together in the future. I can't get over the chorus line in this song too, because it's so easy to sing to, and even though it's a bit repetitious, the song has a pleasing melody.Miserere Mei:.......Lovely! Simply Put!Beautiful:.......Simple and melodic. Fits in so well with the theme. Makes me think I'm travelling into the desert, and learning a lot about life and beauty of things.Arabian Nights:.......What a lovely little medley of Arabic songs. It's so pretty that Sarah sings in Hindi. I Love it! Sarah's voice is such an instrument. She can pull her voice in, or bring it out like a slap in the face. I like the versatility of this piece.Stranger in Paradise:........It's just plain OK. Nothing too new, nothing too startling. I've already heard a lot of versions of this piece, and I prefer Sarah's. The original comes from composer Alexander Borodin.Until the end of time:........what else can I say, but this is my 4th favourite on Harem. I love everything about this tear-jerking song. It's something that should be found on any passionately-written CD. Sarah has found my heart when i listen to this track.Tout ce que je sais (french version of "what you never know):
Same feelings about it as I have for the english version.Gueri de toi (french version of Free): Same feelings I have about the english version.Now, the DVD!!!I played the DVD, and I simply love everything about it. The video to Harem is amazing. There are 2 versions of it, and one you get to see the orchestra playing. Sarah looks so beautiful in her video, and she looks so happy. I'm glad she looks so happy, because that's how she makes a lot of her fans feel.The Photo Gallery is amazing too, for the pictures are so rich in color, and they float across the screen horizontally, one by one.I like the way they go deep into the making of the video for Harem. It's fun the way Sarah makes a funny fool out of herself, fooling around in the studio, on playback. It makes me laugh!I went to see Sarah live today (May 28th, 2003), at the signing for Harem. She is such a wonderful person to meet in person. You'll never meet a sweeter lady than her.
After the signing, I went to see her in a live taping of an interview for Harem. She was such an angel, and that made me feel so much closer to her music and to her, period.Well, that's it for my review!Hope it helps you!!!"

"I am dreaming a dream or this is Paradise and...

Clarissa | Ontario, California | 07/13/2003

(5 out of 5 stars)

"the Abode of Peace!" ~ Arabian Nights I've been a fan of Sarah Brightman since the release of 'Eden' back in 99 and have since then acquired many of her albums and concert DVDs and, imho, this is by far her best work to date (although many will disagree because it's so experimental). She's a true angel of music and 'Harem' (forbidden places) explores the exotic with beautiful, crystalline singing and ethereal, wordly-pop meets middle eastern beats that will keep you entranced until the very end (and then you'll probably start it again because world music can be very addicting if it's done the right way and if you've got the ear/taste for it). This album is hypnotic and enchanting and very different from her successful predecessor 'La Luna' but it definitely rises above anything she's ever done before and it showcases her love of varied styles. Operatic singing is pretty much nonexistent here but she still incorporates her old roots with a well-trained classical voice on "A Stranger In Paradise" and a great adaption of Puccini's "Un Bel Di" (It's a Beautiful Day). Frank Peterson continues to guide Sarah's career in the right direction by producing the sweeping, dance-infused "Harem" (the title being a song in which she wrote herself) while bringing in some new faces to spice the mix up, like keyboardist Jaz Coleman (ex-Killing Joke who also worked on the highly praised New Zealand project, Oceania) to breathe life into the soaring string orchestrations. 'Harem' also features a lot of guest artists, such as the passionate Iraqi vocalist Kadim Al Sahir on "The War Is Over" and classical violinist Nigel Kennedy who recently worked with crossover star Josh Groban. The late Ofra Haza appears on "Mysterious Days" while Natacha Atlas lends additional background vocals on "Arabian Nights" (the theme for this record) which, lyrically, is separated into five different parts that fuse together seamlessly. Since the entire album is absolutely stunning, it's nearly impossible to choose favorites here but "What You Never Know", "The Journey Home", "Free", "The War Is Over", and her breathtaking remake of Mandalay's "Beautiful" seem to standout the best with me. The Asian-influenced, U.S. bonus track "You Take My Breath Away" is another notable mention but it's hardly new to me. It was originally released on her import album "Fly", which would probably be the best of her previous albums to compare this to as it was her first real venture into the pop-rock genre. Sarah may be singing simpler tunes on 'Harem' but she's never sounded better. As for the limited edition DVD, that is a very nice inclusion for fans like me who can't get enough of this goddess in motion. She's such a fun person to watch and you can really see that she loves what she's doing. On the making of Harem you get to experience several behind the scene features, such as the recording of the orchestra, the backing vocals, many instrumental sessions and, of course, Sarah at Nemo Studios with boyfriend/producer Frank Peterson. The DVD also consists of a Marrakech photo shoot, a trip around Morocco with Sarah, the original and alternate music video for "Harem", a slow moving photo gallery, a discography of her recent albums (excluding the less popular "Dive" and "Fly", for some reason), and a very interesting biography."

"Harem" Is One Fabulous CD! Beautiful and Moving!

Tim Fowler | Baltimore, MD USA | 07/11/2003

(5 out of 5 stars)

"The first time I heard Sarah Brightman was when she sang the song "Deliver Me", from the movie sound track of "Broke Down Palace". I was immediately drawn to her voice and melodic style of singing. Soon after, I came across her CD, "La Luna". I loved the mix of different styles; from classic pop to opera, all with a melodic, ethereal "new age" type of sound with orchestral arrangements (a BIG sound). I came to discover that she performed a lot of straight ahead opera (which can be hard for me to take). Some of her older CDs I just couldn't listen to. So, when the new CD, "Harem" came out, I wasn't sure what to expect. I was hoping it would be in the same vein as "La Luna". Well, I bought it and my wish came true. If you like "La Luna", you will love "Harem"! The production (Frank Peterson) and mastering (Bob Ludwig) are awesome! Most (not all) of the songs have an middle eastern influence because of the instruments and orchestration used, but it's not overbearing. The melodies, the orchestral arrangements, the ethereal moods, and of course Sarah's voice are all there. You can sit back, close your eyes and be taken to a far away eastern world unlike any other. I really hope that Sarah Brightman continues in the style and sound of this and her previous CD. Two things, however, are bit different than her last CD (1) the use of "dance club" type beats and (2) there is very little in the way her usual opera style. I personally could do with out the "dance" beats, but they are not overdone, and do work in the context of the tunes. To give you and idea of how some of the songs sound, while listening to track #3, my wife and daughter thought they were listening to something from the "Moulin Rouge" soundtrack. It did sound something like that.
There is very little new music out there that moves me the way Sarah's latest efforts have. I almost forgot! If you get this CD, get the one that has the bonus DVD included. The DVD has a nice video of the title track, "Harem", along with some behind the scenes of the making of the CD, which is very interesting. An unbelievable amount of time and work went into making the music on this CD. Many different studios and talented musicians were used. Simply put, this CD is fabulous!"