I've enjoyed some of Karl Jenkins's work, but this is fairly unbearable: based on texts from "peacemakers", it ends up as an all-encompassing assemblage of white-hatted do-gooders rather than a coherent piece.
Gandhi, the Dalai Lama, Martin Luther King, fine; but Anne Frank? Mother Theresa? Shelley? The lack of development is crippling – one section simply features the word "peace" in 20 tongues. Jenkins blends in multi-cultural flavours alongside the orchestra and 1000-voice choir; but while the interplay of violin and soprano sax on "He Had a Dream" recalls Astral Weeks, elsewhere the sax tends more towards Kenny G territory, a characteristic more likely to infuriate than pacify.
DOWNLOAD THIS He Had A Dream; Intermezzo – Solitude
Subscribe to Independent Premium to bookmark this article
Want to bookmark your favourite articles and stories to read or reference later? Start your Independent Premium subscription today.
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies