Tibet

They Say...

Review by Bob Gottlieb, All Music Guide

With Paul Horn you never know where a new disc will lead you, however, you always know it will be a high quality musical excursion that will always repay the listener for their time and energy. This disc is the musical record of the journey to fulfill his vision and complete the Inside Trilogy, which began in 1968 at the Taj Mahal in India. This was followed by the recording in the Great Pyramid of Gizeh, Egypt, in 1976. Now we have the story of the adventure and all that it entailed leading up to a forthcoming disc of recordings (Spring 2001) in the Potala in Lhasa, Tibet, the former home of the Dali Lama. Sometimes when hearing a disc or reading a book that is filled with evocative and interesting perceptions one may want to know where they came from, what brought them to the light of day. Here we have the record of a synchronistic winding road that leads up to the fulfillment of the trilogy. This disc stands on its own merits as a musical adventure in Tibet. To be allowed to record and film in this now Chinese ruled territory is highly unusual, to be allowed to record in the Potala is unheard of. Leave it to Paul Horn to dream this dream, and then to actually have it realized. On this disc he has been recorded with Tibetan Nuns in Nepal, with workers who were repairing the Norbulingka, the summer palace of the Dali Lama, and with various other Tibetan and Nepalese musicians. He was allowed to play during certain ceremonies at various monasteries and we are fortunate and enriched by having the results of these recordings. Paul Horn takes the listener on a journey to the roof of the world with this melding of traditional Tibetan music and ritual with his own improvisations. We have Horn playing with some outstanding musicians, as well as the Monks who were chanting, drumming, and playing the big Tibetan horns in the Lamaseries. A true revelation of art and ritual. This is a disc that is more than a pleasure to the ears; it is also a treasure for the mind and the dreams that can be manifest. Don't miss this stunning journey.