just phenomenal...
Undoubtedly the best Hildegard recording I've ever heard. I have other Hildegard discs that get played once, but this has been my constant companion for 13 or 14 years. The best yet.

Simply Essential
This is probably the most influential release ever, featuring the works of Hildegard. It started it all, in my opinion; the renewed interest in Chant, hybrids of Chant & dance, Chant of Tibetan Monks and other cultures, and of course, interest in the profound and gracious Hildegard of Bingen herself. If the term "Medieval Music" conjures up visions of dull, dusty performances, having nothing to do with 21st Century life, PLEASE think outside the box! This CD should be essential listening for anyone considering the vast "treasure-trove" of fine recordings of Medieval or "Early" Music. I still remember picking this up in 1982, playing it (on a record player!) and hearing Emma Kirkby for the first time, I was immediately drawn in to another World. Hear it once, and you simply will be changed, by the work of this incredibly gifted Master, and a true Heroine of her time. Nothing more I could say will describe this; simply give this a listen...

Hyponotic music from an early great composer
The Abbess Hildegard of Bingen wrote hypnotic, haunting music a thousand years ago (she lived from 1098-1179). The notes from this CD state that: "This recording draws upon Hildegard's large collection of music and poetry. . .which she continued to enlarge and enrich throughout her life. It contains some of the finest songs ever written in the Middle Ages. . . . The songs are conceived on a large--sometimes a massive--scale; it is in superabundance that Hildegard found herself both as poetess and composer." Hers is a very different style of music from what we are used to today. And the voices of Emma Kirkby and "Gothic Voices" (a group) appear to capture the spirit and soul of this music well.

Kirkby has a crystalline clear and clean voice. In "Columba aspexit," Kirkby and supporting voices paint a musical tapestry that is hypnotic (a common phrase that can be used across the songs). In "Ave, generosa," Kirkby sings the hymn solo and without any instrumental backing. An enchanting piece. Three tenors from "A Gothic Voice" essay "O ignis spiritus." Their voices meld together well and their take on this has a spiritual element. A final example (no need to mention each of the cuts on the CD). . . . "O Jerusalem" features both Kirkby and some members of "A Gothic Voice." The voices play off one another well. Another nicely done work.

This is a good introduction to ancient but interesting music. Kirkby once again shows her skills off to good effect, with an assist from "A Gothic Voice."

One of my favorite albums of all time.
This is the best Hildegard von Bingen recording I have heard. It features the marvelous English soprano, Emma Kirkby.

This is an older recording. I first bought the album on vinyl. I bought it again on CD. Now it is in heavy rotation on my ipod. This is simply one of the best pieces of vocal music ever recorded, any age, any genre.

Enjoy.

Luminous
Landmark recording of the early Kirkby glorying in this beautiful music. Ears that can do East and West may like to sample 'Shruti' by Sangeeta Bandyopadhyay - a similarly evocative and remarkable recording.