Over 35 years and 80+ albums into one of new age, electronic and ambient music’s most storied and inspirational careers, David Arkenstone still has to power to engage, fascinate and surprise with his soulful, transcendent musical storytelling and captivating, richly orchestrated melodies. More than simply providing the proverbial soundtrack of our lives, the continuously inventive, wildly adventurous composer, keyboardist and multi-instrumentalist has given us the soundtrack to our imagination with a nonstop flow of epic recordings fusing new age, orchestral and world music.
Just prior to the release of his latest epic album, the provocatively titled Quest For the Runestone – whose drop date, interestingly, coincided with his birthday – Arkenstone previewed his latest work for a private audience at the Dolby Screening Room in Hollywood, the perfect sonic setting to experience the full glory of his magic in Dolby Atmos. With exciting visual illustrations on title cards illuminating specific points in the musical story, he took us on a dynamic aural journey full of beautiful, alternately elegant and soaring melodies, explosive world music rhythms, powerful orchestral grandeur and exotic voices. It was a stunning way to introduce and experience a recording that the composer boldly calls some of his best work.
“I think it reflects how much better I am at conceiving and orchestrating pieces in a powerful manner,” Arkenstone says. “As my skills have further developed and continue to develop, I am now better able to transfer conceptual ideas into concrete musical thoughts to share with others. At this point of my career, I wanted to do something epic and in the spirit of my earlier concept albums that were met with great enjoyment by listeners.”
The event was also an unforgettable invitation to go home, open the elaborate packaging, unpack its array of goodies and dig into the enclosed booklet to read the captivating accompanying mythological story penned by Arkenstone’s son Dashiell. In a time where musical art is consumed much differently than when the composer was releasing his early music on Narada Records music (late 80s and 90s), perhaps the most unique aspect to the project is the fascinating prose and elaborate, souvenir filled packaging. (NO SPOILERS – you’ll have to get the package to see what’s inside!)
While mixing and mastering in Dolby Atmos® immersive sound is a way for fans to grasp the clarity and detail of the songs on a deeper level, creating a multi-media experience as Arkenstone has done throughout his career was equally important. “I have a devoted legion of fans,” he says. “When I decided that we were going to include a booklet in the package, I realized there was some room for more goodies. It soon became sort of a gift from me to fans who like to follow my adventures, a way to let them know that I cared about their support of my music through the decades. It helped make Quest for the Runestone a truly immersive all-around experience – and it was just fun!”
The concept for the project came from Arkenstone’s viewing of a fascinating BBC piece about runestones in Scandinavia, which inspired him to imagine that a related musical tale could be lurking in his future. As he explains, traditional runestones are records or histories of a people, deeds, families and heroes etched into stone, originally in Scandinavian locations. He liked the idea that the protagonist Réann's "quest” could be a powerful metaphor for one’s own journey of joy and challenges, facing and overcoming obstacles, inner identity struggles and self-doubt and ultimately experiencing personal growth and triumph in the midst of the journey.
Arkenstone only had the album title and some minimal musical sketches when he asked Dashiell to write a story. The colorful characters, settings, magical elements and plot full of challenges to overcome before final triumph and redemption were illuminating and richly expressed, inspiring Arkenstone to create a masterful 13-track, one hour arc that flows like a score to a movie yet to be filmed. The story is about Réann, a young girl who discovers she is the one chosen to protect her village and homeland from a series of natural catastrophes with the help of an ancient form of magic and the support of her lyre-playing friend Grisha and her bird Tove.
Along the way, she receives guidance about how to work with the magic from a soothsayer, who tells her “Follow the star without light/Up through the path of the mountain’s bones. . .to ignite the crescent of the Runestone.” Conquering the dangerous frost giant known as the Arbos, she returns to the Runestone and breathes life into it again, assured that the mountains would no longer weep from the whispers of the sleepless giant. Restoring magic to the painted sky, she assumes her new designation as Réann of Dowe, Keeper of the Flame.
Arkenstone uses several compositions to paint a sonic picture of the mood and atmosphere of the story, starting with the percussive, high energy, male chant filled “Prophecy” and including the mystical yet wild and celebratory, Celtic dance flavored “Ancient Magic Awakens,” which features exciting Irish instrumentation (including Luanne Homzy’s Hardanger fiddle) swirling over booming drums and chants. Other scene setting pieces include the haunting, ominous and mysterious “Oceans of Ice” and dreamy, lyrical, tension filled drama “The Keeper of the Flame.”
One of the most prominent character themed songs is the Celtic tinged, romp “The Soothsayer Speaks,” whose mix of celebratory excitement, heavy drums and exotic chants reflect both the magic she speaks of and the arduous, multi-faceted mission Réann will embark on. “Réann” too has an Irish tinge but it’s in service of a reflective, thoughtful (and quite beautiful with Eric Rigler's Uilleann pipes) ballad whose solemness taps into the seriousness of her life saving mission. The corollary to this composition is the bonus track “Réann Reawakened,” which rather than speak to her triumph, is a graceful, violin-driven ballad that reflects harmony restored and the beauty that will follow.
The third major character song is “The Arbos Stirs,” which begins as a moody, mysterious and ambient piece and evolves into a dramatic drum and chant filled excursion that illustrates the quiet intensity of the frost giant, followed by the rumblings that happen in the surrounding region when he begins to stir. Beyond the main characters, two essential pieces representing the literal quest for the runestone are the fanciful, booming and jig-like adventure “Path Of The Mountain’s Bones” and the initially ominous and mysterious, then explosive and soaring, chant fired revelation of the “Secrets of the Runestone.”
The detailed instrumentation bears special mention. In addition Arkenstone, who plays guitar, cittern, saz, flute, whistle, melodica, drums and percussion, handpan, bass and keyboards (in addition to providing vocals), the project features Luanne Homzy (violin, Hardanger fiddle), Eric Rigler (Uilleann pipes), Kimberly Zaleski (flute, piccolo, bass flute), Carlyn Kessler (cello), Clara Sorace (vocals), Sergio Gonzalez Prats (hurdy gurdy), Dov (violin, viola) and Giulia Colantonio (vocals).
Speaking of the experience of creating Quest for the Runestone, Arkenstone says, “Beyond exploring the music, which is always a fun adventure for me, I think deciding on the items to include and different elements of putting the packaging together was also a favorite and unusual part. I hope Dash and I will collaborate like this more in the future. People are already asking for part II of Réann’s adventure.”
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