The Celtic harp is not only an instrument but also a concentration of technique, history and literature. Its sound, agile and clear, is synonymous with popular music and dance, a charm barely scratched by a new age drift that has relegated it to an instrument of embellishment and background.
For the German musician Andy Aquarius the Celtic harp is synonymous with ancient powers, stories and myths that have a strong spiritual identity. His approach is that of an explorer in search of traces of the past on which to build a contemporary identity. “Golla Gorroppu” is the result of a long period of meditation that the musician spent in the Gorropu gorge, one of the deepest canyons in Europe, a gorge more than one and a half meters long, as well as one of the most popular tourist destinations in the Sardinia, a natural place where wild and natural beauty predominates.
With a few chords that echo and expand, hypnotic melodies that induce a mystical emotional relaxation, and a skilful contamination of contemporary music, Andy Aquarius restores dignity to a Celtic folk tradition, nourishing its ecstatic magic with faint hints of synthesizers and a set of guests which offers “Golla Gorroppu” a decidedly singular identity.
Ferdinand Kavall (bowed guitar, percussion dulcimer), Josephine Pia Wild (backing vocals), Raoul Vignal (guitar) and Semeli Sophia Kostourou (cello) escort the German musician on this elegant and meditative sound journey, whose intensity is skilfully contained of the scant three minutes of “Jagten”. The four long compositions that complete the project are full of lively and crystalline nuances, the grace of the song that anticipated the release of the album “Waters Above, Waters Below” intercepts the poetics of Robin Williamson and Nick Drake, equally the The pastoral and sparse atmospheres of “Gorroppu” refer to the sound inlays of Benoit Pioulard, consolidating that ancient and modern charm that distinguishes it from similar works.
01/11/2024
Antonio Santini for SANREMO.FM
