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------------------------------------------  February 2000 -------

CD Review: Kirk Kupensky... "The Eternal Dreamer" by Kennedy O'Brien

Since I spoke with Kirk about his upcoming CD last December, I have anxiously been awaiting it's arrival. I have never listened to an entire work performed on a solo harp before, let alone one that has QSound enhancement!

In the liner notes, Kirk writes; "It became my desire to use classics of the harp and piano literature in such a way as to promote healing, meditation, and dreaming in you, the listener. I decided to accomplish this by giving the most heartfelt performances that I could manage and present them in a spacious, ambient setting."

My opinion... this goal has been accomplished in spades! This is a very delightful piece of work. For those of you, who like myself, are unfamiliar with solo harp pieces, you are in for a real treat with this fine example. I must admit to being somewhat biased on this issue, but the QSound enhancements are wonderful. Gary Boggess is the recording engineer responsible for this work, and as with his other undertakings, his meticulous attention to detail is the icing on the cake! Gary chose to leave the fundamentals of the instrument largely untouched, adding QSound primarily to the reflections and harmonics of Kirk's harp. The result is a very luscious and rich harp texture, which excites the room and listener both.

Especially noticeable with a solo piece of music, if well played, there can be a very charged symbiosis between the person and the musical instrument. From the beginning to the end of the CD, Kirk's playing is magnificent, fluidly dynamic, and charged with emotion. During certain moments of this CD, quiet and slow, gentle notes lulled me into a feeling of warmth and comfort, reminiscent of springtime in a sunny mountain meadow. At other moments, the playing is more of a contrast to the aforementioned...more like an attack on the harp, the player trying to wrestle as much music out of the instrument as possible. In this case, the player wins!

This is a great piece of work, and it receives five stars from me. I encourage you all to drop by Kirk's web site and have a listen.

Written by: Kennedy O'Brien

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