I bought this CD primarily for tracks 2 - 9 on disc two, a collection of pieces called the Adnan Songbook. These songs are the poems of Etel Adnan, a poet born and raised in Beirut Lebanon, born to a Muslim Syrian father and a Christian Greek mother. British composer and musician Gavin Bryars set these 9 poems of hers to music. The words are sung by British lyric soprano Valerie Anderson. I heard these tracks in February 2009 on WGBH, Boston public radio and I was immediately mesmerized by the beauty of the music and the wonderfully clear, pure voice of Valerie Anderson. The works are haunting, beautiful, otherworldly and powerful. I recommend this disc, purely for those tracks, alone, with the highest praise I can give. Buy it!
