  
About the Album:
Chris Spheeris' 20-odd year, 16-recording career is characterized by an incredible diversity within a worldbeat and new-age framework. The best way to begin digging into the vast global texturing of his Higher Octave Music debut Dancing With the Muse is to list the genres mentioned on the CD-insert beneath "File Under: Contemporary, New World, Neo-Classical, Jazz, Trance, Instrumental." It's clear that when the multi-instrumentalist's muse started to dance, he whisked him all over the world with a pot to put his wild musical souvenirs in. There's a gong reverberating behind a hypnotic piano melody and female Indian vocal chants on "The Joy of the Longing." A Dramatic percussive string section introduces the galloping charms of the title track, which builds in intensity with a soaring Middle Eastern flute (the ney) before Spheeris pays homage to his Greek heritage with a bouncy yet graceful ballet between acoustic guitar and synth. "Marionette" begins with a distant vocal call over floating atmospheres, then uses cello and chimes to grow into a film score suspense line, complete with tablas laying a percussion line beneath a soaring oboe melody. The song concludes with a melody led by human whistling that fades out. The genius of Spheeris here is that he's under no time constraints; he allows themes to build and motifs to drift, then recur, and tackle several different melody and harmony lines over the course of one tune. After his last, much more straightforward, flamenco-edged album Eros, this glorious circus of sounds comes as a welcome surprise. ~ Jonathan Widran, All Music Guide
About the Artist:
New age composer/multi-instrumentalist Chris Spheeris began writing songs on his guitar as a teenager. Inspired by the sacred and folk music of his Greek heritage and other world music, classical music, and pop, Spheeris fused these elements together into his own unique musical style. The folk aspects of his music were prominent early in his career as part of a duo with guitarist/composer Paul Voudouris in the '70s and early '80s. After they disbanded, Spheeris began to create a more complex, keyboard-based sound, which he documented on self-produced demo tapes. One of these demos found its way to the A&R department at Columbia Records, with whom Spheeris signed a deal in 1985. The label released his debut album, Desires of the Heart, and Pathways to Surrender before he left in the early '90s to form his own label, Essence, which released most of his solo output and two reunions with Voudouris: Enchantment and Nothing but the Truth. Along with his solo albums, Spheeris has also composed scores for cable and public television documentaries. He released his Higher Octave Records debut, Dancing With the Muse, in early 2000. ~ Heather Phares, All Music Guide
|
