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Five Sacred Trees

Williams, J. (Artist) Format: Audio CD
4.2 out of 5 stars 14 ratings
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Audio CD, Classical, 23 May 1997
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Track Listings

1 The Five Sacred Trees: I. Eo Mugna
2 The Five Sacred Trees: II. Tortan
3 The Five Sacred Trees: III. Eo Rossa
4 The Five Sacred Trees: IV. Craeb Uisnig
5 The Five Sacred Trees: V. Dathi
6 Tree Line
7 Sym No.2, Op.132 'Mysterious Mountain': Andante con moto
8 Sym No.2, Op.132 'Mysterious Mountain': Double Fuge
9 Sym No.2, Op.132 'Mysterious Mountain': Andante Espressivo
10 Old And Lost Rivers

Product description

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Product details

  • Is discontinued by manufacturer ‏ : ‎ No
  • Product Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 14.27 x 12.5 x 0.84 cm; 108.86 g
  • Manufacturer ‏ : ‎ Sony Classics
  • Label ‏ : ‎ Sony Classics
  • ASIN ‏ : ‎ B0000029TZ
  • Number of discs ‏ : ‎ 1
  • Customer reviews:
    4.2 out of 5 stars 14 ratings

Customer reviews

4.2 out of 5 stars
14 global ratings

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Top reviews from United Kingdom

  • Michael Richards
    5.0 out of 5 stars Ages like a fine wine
    Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 11 July 2023
    I bought this as a lifelong fan of Williams' work for TV and film back in the 90's. So glad I did. Not only did it solidify Williams' reputation as the complete composer in my mind, but also introduced me to Alan Hovaness. Still listen to it today and it's still as fresh. An utterly sublime composition and a superb recording.
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  • Larry L. Looney
    5.0 out of 5 stars MODERN MUSIC OF BEATHTAKING BEAUTY
    Reviewed in the United States on 22 April 2004
    Verified Purchase
    This disc contains great performances of some of the finest examples of sheer beauty in 20th century music that I've heard in some time - in a recording of exceptional quality. It's a wonderful opportunity for those who equate `20th century music' with `cacophony' and `discord' to experience how incredibly beautiful it can be. I discovered it while browsing - the Ansel Adams cover photography caught my eye, which then widened when I saw the bassoon reference prominently displayed (one of my favorite instruments).
    The title piece, a concerto for bassoon and orchestra by John Williams, takes up roughly half the disc. The five-movement composition is an homage to the majestic and sacred qualities of trees. Williams says he wrote the concerto with the bassoon in mind, believing it to be `haunted' by `the spirit of the tree from which it is made'. Utilizing Celtic imagery and titles, each of the five movements evokes one of the legendary trees featured in the mythology of that ancient culture. The mood and tone of each section reflects the characteristics attributed to those trees: the sturdiness of the oak; Tortan, the mythical tree associated with witchcraft; the yew, symbol of destruction and creation; the ash, symbolic of strife; and Dathi, the tree-muse of poets and the last tree to fall in the mythological Celtic forest, appropriately placed at the end of the program. Williams translates his reverence for the forest into his music skillfully and with great feeling, and the performance by Judith LeClair and the LSO complement his vision perfectly, bringing the `personality' of each of the movements to life with sensitivity and passion.
    Toru Takemitsu has long been one of my favourite modern composers - I discovered his work back in the 1970s, and I soon learned that I could count on the intelligence and quality his music. It has never failed to both challenge and reward me. Listening to the work included here, `Tree line', I'm amazed at the complexity and delicacy represented in this short (under ten minutes) example of his work - I've often compared his compositions to the work of traditional Japanese brush artists, whose works achieve so much with apparently so few strokes. The beauty of the haiku form of poetry also comes to mind. Takemitsu was a master at combining the ancient spirituality and traditions of Japan with modern classical music.
    I haven't heard much by Alan Hovhaness - an oversight I plan to correct. The piece which represents this composer here, his Symphony no. 2 (`Mysterious mountain') is, I'm told by a friend who is well-schooled in classical music, one of his most widely appreciated. An American composer who pioneered the `fusion' of western and eastern ideas and traditions, his writing as showcased here is breathtakingly beautiful - I was especially taken with the layers-upon-layers sound of the strings. The notes here indicate that this piece was intended to pay homage to the great American landscape painters of the 19th century Hudson River School - and it evokes the images they captured on canvas beautifully.
    The last piece on the CD is `Old and lost rivers' by Tobias Picker - another composer with whose work I am sadly unfamiliar. The shortest work on the album (under five minutes), it's a masterful exercise in tranquility and beauty. It certainly makes me want to seek out more compositions by Picker.
    The four pieces presented here go together perfectly in theme and mood - and the recording is of stellar quality, made crystal clear through the full digital recording process, which utilizes the 20-bit technology. The notes are informative and well-written, and the graphics are appropriate and lovely. It's a wonderful package for multiple senses.
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  • 番長
    2.0 out of 5 stars 自作自演
    Reviewed in Japan on 28 February 2013
    Verified Purchase
    作曲者自ら指揮をしている・・・はずなのに、演奏はかなりいい加減です（笑）
    自作自演とは所詮、そういうものなのかも知れませんが、スコアを見ながら聴いていると
    「え？」というポイントがたくさんあります。

    きっと作曲者のアタマの中には、すでに完成した音楽が鳴っているので
    目の前の演奏など気にしないんだと思います。
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  • bass_oon
    4.0 out of 5 stars Accessible Contemporary
    Reviewed in the United States on 12 October 2009
    Verified Purchase
    After the third listen, this album is becoming a favorite. Though just short of audiophile quality, the production is still easy on the ears. This would be a perfect 5 if the overall sound was a bit warmer. The performance is inspiring and the compositions are gems of modern accessible sonic pleasure. If you are a John Williams fan and a bassoon player, this album is a must-have. For the rest of you, the album provides plenty of sublime orchestral coloring and a wide variety of compositional emotions.

    As for the Hovhaness, It was interesting to compare this recording to the 2003 Telarc recording with Gerard Schwartz conducting. The production has that added warmth (possibly due to 7 years of advancement in digital recording). As for the performance, Schwartz conducts with more stately tempos which evoke the title of the work. Williams' style is marked by some interesting dynamic interpretations, especially in the second movement.

    Over all,this is a truly remarkable album. Highly recommended.
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  • Leif Thorsted
    5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent Williams and Takemitsu Works
    Reviewed in the United States on 31 August 2008
    Verified Purchase
    I've been exploring "modern classical" music during the last few years after digesting much of what has come before. The Five Sacred Trees, or Bassoon Concerto, is among my favorite. John Williams is naturally expressive and infinitely talented as a composer. His legendary soundtracks transport the listener deep within themselves and/or to places they've never been. Williams has achieved this yet again by seeming to "score" the aspects of the five different trees discussed in the liner notes. From the ancient, noble and wise-sounding first movement, to playful, mischievious second, to the quiet third, to the restless fourth and finally to the tender-then-exalting fifth, Williams has triumphed again. Yes, you can sometimes hear some familiar passages from his many soundtracks in his non-sountrack music, as you do here (in the Five Sacred Trees I noticed some cues from his Eiger Sanction soundtrack, and in his other great Tree Song, I caught some Jaws). The great composers often borrowed from themselves, so why can't John Williams?
    Treeline was an excellent introduction for me to the music of Takemitsu. I intend to buy more of his cds. Anyone who wants to sound like Debussy is wonderful in my book. His homage to Debussy is of course, more modern, more Japanese, and more moody. But still unmistakenly Debussy-esque.
    For me, the other recordings on this disc are incongruous with the Williams and Takemitsu. They are straight-forward, linear works that are unremarkable in comparison. However, the Williams and Takemitsu make this cd well worth the price.
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  • J. R. Lewis
    2.0 out of 5 stars Not so Mysterious Mountain...
    Reviewed in the United States on 7 October 2011
    Verified Purchase
    I've always enjoyed John Williams film music, so I was curious about his interpretation of Hovhaness' best-known piece; however, his rendition seems flat, lacking in energy, and devoid of any interpretive nuance. Compared to the well-known Reiner recording, it sounds like no more than a run-through.

    I was similarly curious about Williams' Bassoon Concerto, as I enjoy hearing that instrument featured by other composers, but again I was disappointed. To me it had a disjointed singsong quality and went nowhere. It seemed neither beautiful, nor dramatic, nor atmospheric.

    I won't comment on the other compositions, as I didn't get this disk to hear them; other reviewers have covered them sufficiently. A final note: the recording quality as regards imaging and soundstaging is mediocre, which seems inexcusable from a major label.
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