Follow the lightPosted on March 21, 2011 by sloucher

Dustin O’Halloran – Lumiere

Stream – ‘We move lightly’

There’s a certain air of reflection, magic and fear of the unknown in this place. If we could only have a chanceto express our deepest fears. I need a message of hope, just to know that everything will be alright.

Feelings fill the air I breathe while Dustin O’Halloran’s music goes round and round into my ears. I mustadmit he’s the owner of an out-of-this-world skill to convey the message just right, to get you in the landscapehe has built.

There’s magic in tempos, completion and direction of chords, showing transitions with a piano forte like thesound of heavy wind that would mark the end of our time. I’m talking about the first track from O’Halloran‘sLumiere album, ‘A great divide.’

Music has really found its way to evolve to contemporaneous times based on classic instruments by excellencesuch as violins, cellos, piano, and it really makes me reaffirm the belief that this art is a language: it’s alive andchanging at the same rate as our minds. This alternative comes with flexible rules, irregular structures and theintervention of instruments that would cause on listeners a spontaneous and flowing sensation coming from

Do not adjust your opinion

every opus, inventing or bringing up to the conversation new elements and paths to let ourselves loose.

After the quiet introduction of the first track I can describe the second, ‘Opus 44’, as stepping for the secondtime into a cold river, a soliloquy achieved through the chords of piano, who pronounces a sad and nostalgicstatement, a nostalgia that would give away through its transitions a feeling of memories flowing like slides inour mind. The second structure of the melody would continue with this slide show being the happy of thismoment, giving a good Andante several and practical uses, then offering a new path for exploring emotionsjust to fade away.

‘We Move Lightly’, the sound of wind through empty spaces. A highlight of this opus is the new resources itintegrates to the composition, which turn out to be digital sounds marching with piano and chords; the pianois the basis, a constant line that is met by incidental violins that, as the opus unfolds, couple with thestatement of the piano and the conversation becomes a chorus that evokes the physical charge of a past –present focused scenario, like coming back to our parents’ home and see every corner carefully. We realize thenevery wall contains a bit of the essence making our very own memories.

‘Quarter No. 2’ finally leaves the pod and takes off. As the name would suggest, it’s an ensemble of chords of themost classic style. The motif is an immediate question that triggers a faint light over our previous cloudylandscape. An exploration through two ideas interlaced like the flight of two birds ascending to the sky, andthen coming back to the home key.

The previous opus was our sky, and ‘Opus 43’ is our Earth in this parallel universe. It’s again the piano, astrong metal structure, yet a more passionate ascending / descending mixture and is later complemented bythe sky the author gives to his listeners: chords. The cello marks the solemnity of this piece. A part II isintroduced by a doubtful piano, like questioning the answers the sky provided before, an explanation landedthrough a firm and nostalgic cello comes forth and melts for seconds. Violins come again and provide theexpected and momentary takeoff from these ruins. As the dream is over, we return to the initial and lonelyphrase of the piano to close this opus.

‘Quintett No. 2’ is a perfect display and memory of the Baroque times of music going downwards, where theriver gives a steady flow when the piano talks over its self-secure answer to the violin. Again, this earth –heaven combo. The evolution of this one is quite interesting: now the piano and chords melt without arguingand form a female – male voice, and the female voice finishes the sentence this time.

‘Fragile No. 4’ gives now a merry note, as if the previous track was the start of a second chance: new eyes, newvoice, and this time the voice is sharper and chords provide an approval tone to the piano. I love thecomposition here; I would name it the sunrise of this Lumiere, as the rainbow we all expect after hardship.

At this point we have earth, the sky, light, then water. The piano continues with its flowing sentence ofhappiness and now gives an inspirational turn; it becomes the flowing idea we all experience when our musesdecide it is time to give us a break and stop the writers’ block. Circumstances are explained in the second partof this opus, then a phrase to support the idea. A single note will be the preposition that will make of thisphrase a sentence. A darker third part is not there this time to evoke a sad memory, but to represent wisdomto refrain the spirit that was just reborn. It fills the last minutes of this world, which almost completes thenatural elements gathered in sounds.

The storyteller waives goodbye with ‘Snow and Light’, which turns into a quiet farewell, almost like stealth. Thepiano takes the lead and the background is a set of obscure sounds, then again chords will illuminate the darkroom of our minds. A hint of hope that turns its head discretely and progressively, until it completely shows in

Spread the gospel: 2 2Like

Like Be the first to like this post.

front of the gloomy mood of the piano, transmitting such light into it, filling the atmosphere with a crescendoto symbolize the final determination to leave the complete dark part of the forest. It’s not about completelydark or lightened, it’s just a balance we learn to distinguish in our lifetime, and then the rain.

This is indeed a clear story for me: Dustin O’Halloran becomes a contemporaneous storyteller that speaksthrough classic sounds and compositions and would even include a moral to his story. His music becomes abridge that brings the best of yesterday and covers as far as the present; a struggle between the dark and thelight in our worlds that will eventually fill our souls with the balance we forget to practice and look forward toin our own lives.

Words: Tonan.

Links

Website. Facebook. Myspace. Spotify. Soundcloud. Last.fm. Twitter.

This entry was posted in rant and tagged Classical, Dustin O'Halloran, Fat Cat Records, Lumiere. Bookmark the permalink.

Theme: Twenty Ten Blog at WordPress.com.