The Ambassador’s Wife And Other Stories
Navona, 2021
9/10
Listen to The Ambassador’s Wife And Other Stories
The composer George Kieffer aligns himself with the City of Prague Philharmonic Orchestra here, where inspiration from the songs stems from Kieffer’s life, including dreams and literature, and he evens pens a tune for the Olympians, too.
“From Here” starts the listen with intimate and warm strings before graceful keys enter the flowing climate, and “The Wonder Of All Things” follows with soothing keys that emit much beauty as a sublime cinematic quality unfolds.
Further down the line, “The Clown Elegy” quickly builds into an upbeat and energetic display of strings, winds and percussion, while “Saturday” emits a soaring and glowing spirit of rich melodies. “Christmas In Manhattan/Her Manhattan”, one of the album’s best, then illustrates much timeless song craft, where the instruments blend together with charming precision.
“Forgiveness” and “C’est La Vie” exit the listen, as the former presents emotive strings and twinkling keys, and the latter pairs piano with accordion for the lush and creative finish that later on fuses strings into the textured formula.
Kieffer’s stories are nothing short of luminous, and with the City of Prague Philharmonic Orchestra’s classical, orchestral and chamber influenced skills present, it makes for a captivating listening experience.
Travels well with: Jan Järvlepp- High Voltage Chamber Music; Bruce Crossman- Heaven To Earth Border House