Rapture (Bradley Joseph album)

Last updated
Rapture
Rapturebj1.jpg
Studio album by Bradley Joseph
Released March 11, 1997 (1997-03-11)
Genre New-age
Length55:05
Label Narada
Producer Bradley Joseph
Bradley Joseph chronology
Hear the Masses
(1994)		Rapture
(1997)		 Solo Journey
(1999)

Rapture is the second album by Bradley Joseph, and his debut album on the Narada label, released in March 1997. This is an instrumental album in which Joseph wrote and conducted all of the scores. In addition to incorporating a core band including violinist Charlie Bisharat and drummer Charlie Adams, he used a 50-piece orchestra. It is an "expression of a life's work and dreams", featuring intimate piano pieces, quartets and full orchestrations, [1] "combining smooth jazz with contemporary instrumental themes". [2] It reached New Age Voice (NAV)'s "Airwaves Top 30" at No. 15 in July 1997. [3]

Bradley Joseph Composer, pianist, keyboardist, arranger, producer, recording artist

Bradley Joseph is an American composer, arranger, and producer of contemporary instrumental music. His compositions include works for orchestra, quartet, and solo piano, while his musical style ranges from "quietly pensive mood music to a rich orchestration of classical depth and breadth".

Narada Productions

Narada is a record label formed in 1983 as an independent New-age music label and distributed by MCA. A fully owned subsidiary of Universal Music Group and distributed by Capitol Music Group's Blue Note Records, the label evolved through an expansion of formats to include world music, jazz, Celtic music, new flamenco, acoustic guitar, and piano genre releases.

Charlie Bisharat is an American violinist who was a member of the band Shadowfax. He won the Best New Age Performance Grammy Award with Shadowfax in 1988 for the album Folksongs for a Nuclear Village. He has toured with Yanni during the Reflections of Passion, Revolution in Sound, Dare to Dream and Yanni Live, The Symphony Concerts 1993 concert tours. He is also featured on John Tesh's live concert video Live at Red Rocks. Bisharat accompanied Tesh in live shows as co-writer and co-producer.

Contents

History

During his years of worldwide concert tours as keyboardist with Yanni and Sheena Easton, Bradley Joseph released his debut album, Hear the Masses in 1994. Subsequently, Joseph attracted the attention of Narada Productions via the World Wide Web. A representative for Narada came across Joseph's website and downloaded some music. This sparked their interest and resulted in signing Joseph to a multi-record deal. [4]

Yanni Greek pianist, keyboardist, composer, and music producer

Yiannis Chryssomallis, known professionally as Yanni, is a Greek composer, keyboardist, pianist, and music producer who has resided in the United States during his adult life.

Sheena Easton Scottish singer and songwriter

Sheena Shirley Easton is a Scottish singer and songwriter. She has a dual British-American nationality. Easton first came into the public eye as the focus of an episode in the first British musical reality television programme The Big Time: Pop Singer, which recorded her attempts to gain a record contract and her eventual signing with EMI Records.

<i>Hear the Masses</i> 1994 studio album by Bradley Joseph

Hear the Masses is the debut album by Bradley Joseph,, a self-produced and self-published release consisting of 10 original instrumental compositions ranging from upbeat piano to orchestral ballads.

The outcome was Rapture, Joseph's second album, which was recorded at a number of different studios including Captain and Tennille's studio in Los Angeles [5] and Pachyderm Studio in Cannon Falls, Minnesota. [6]

Cannon Falls, Minnesota City in Minnesota, United States

Cannon Falls is a city in Goodhue County, Minnesota, United States. The population was 4,083 at the 2010 census. Located along U.S. Route 52 to the southeast of the Twin Cities, Cannon Falls may be best known as the home of Pachyderm Studio, where many famous musicians have recorded their music. Nirvana is probably the best known band to use the site. The group recorded In Utero at the studio.

In addition to using a core band including Charlie Adams on percussion, Charlie Bisharat on violin and Steven Trochlil on clarinet, Joseph brought in a 50-piece orchestra and conducted and wrote all the scores. [5] Michael Debbage of Wind and Wire magazine recalls, "It was the year 1997 and New Age music had already peaked commercially as the interest and exposure seemed to lag. The genres main labels – Narada, Windham Music, and Higher Octave – were beginning to explore worldly themes versus the warm, earthly, acoustic themes that prior artists had established. It appeared that the abundance of new artists was becoming a dying breed. An exception to the rule was Bradley Joseph, who released his first mainstream album Rapture to glorious reviews, and to this day it remains his tour de force." [2]

Charlie Adams (drummer) musician, drummer, percussionist

Charlie Adams is an American drummer, best known for playing in Yanni's touring band, after having played with Yanni in the early 1980s rock band Chameleon. Adams was born in Joliet, Illinois.

Joseph used the Yamaha and Bösendorfer pianos for this album. He often references the past when he names his songs and his music is frequently reminiscent of his rural Minnesota roots. His company, Robbins Island Music, [and song] is named after a city park in Willmar, says Anne Polta of the West Central Tribune. [7]

Bösendorfer is an Austrian piano manufacturer and, since 2008, a wholly owned subsidiary of Yamaha. Bösendorfer is unusual in that it produces 97- and 92-key models in addition to instruments with standard 88-key keyboards, and in its use of 3 strings-per-hammer model of construction.

Critical reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
Allmusic Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svg [8]

Ken Moore of the Naples Daily News cites, "Joseph's music is backed by 15 talented musicians, some playing three or more different instruments that make up a symphony of sounds ranging from quietly pensive mood music to a rich orchestration of classical depth and breadth." [9] It contains "...heavy flowing strings and emotion-filled keyboard melodies, as on 'A Lover's Return'", states the Johnson County Sun, [10] while Ross Boissoneau of Allmusic contradicts saying, "...Joseph has a good ear for melody, but he pretty much refrains from Yanni's trademark sweeping, whooshing synth swells." [8]

A review of Rapture from New Age Voice states, "Joseph is smooth, painting romantic pictures in sound with voices and instruments that escalate from quiet, intimate passages to big, energetic movements. The arrangements are structured so that the trumpet can lead a line out on 'Be Still' signaling an introspective sort of mood. Yet the strings swell on 'The Passage', engulfing the listener in an ocean of sound. Even cuts that start quiet, such as 'Healing the Hollow Man' or 'Blue Rock Road' ebb and flow between quiet moments and crescendos." [11]

John Blake of The Atlanta Journal notes that often New Age music sounds as if it should be played in a supermarket. The songs can sound like musical cotton candy — soft, airy and ultimately uninteresting. "For the most part, Bradley's music doesn't make that mistake." [12] "The music is cinematic, filled with introspective piano solos, swelling violins, and a hypnotic song pacing that allows the listener to daydream." [12]

Track listing

  1. "A Lover's Return" – 4:08
  2. "Feel" – 4:32
  3. "Jewel" – 4:26
  4. "Healing the Hollow Man" – 4:12
  5. "Blue Rock Road" – 3:13
  6. "Robbins Island" – 3:54
  7. "Stray" – 6:05
  8. "A Stolen Kiss" – 4:08
  9. "The Gallery" – 4:30
  10. "Be Still" – 2:52
  11. "Coastal Highway" – 3:14
  12. "Storyteller" – 4:56
  13. "The Passage" – 4:18

Personnel

"Special thanks to the St. Olaf Players."

Production

Additional recording at:

Related Research Articles

<i>Everybody Loves a Happy Ending</i> 2004 studio album by Tears for Fears

Everybody Loves a Happy Ending is the sixth studio album by the British pop-rock band Tears for Fears, released on 14 September 2004 in the US, and 7 March 2005 in the UK and Europe. It was released some nine years after the previous Tears for Fears studio album, Raoul and the Kings of Spain (1995), and was the first album featuring Curt Smith since 1989's The Seeds of Love.

Pachyderm Studios

Pachyderm Recording Studio, is a residential music recording studio located in rural Cannon Falls, Minnesota, United States, 35.8 mi (57.6 km) southeast of the Minneapolis-Saint Paul International Airport. It is located in a secluded old-growth forest with a vibrant trout stream.

<i>Return of the Frog Queen</i> 1996 studio album by Jeremy Enigk

Return of the Frog Queen is a solo album recorded by Jeremy Enigk while on hiatus from his post as singer of Sunny Day Real Estate. It was recorded with a 21-piece orchestra and released in 1996. It has a slower and quieter sound than Sunny Day Real Estate's often-bombastic albums.

<i>Solo Journey</i> 1999 studio album by Bradley Joseph

Solo Journey is Bradley Joseph's third album and first album on his own record label, Robbins Island Music.

<i>The Journey Continues</i> (Bradley Joseph album) 2003 studio album by Bradley Joseph

The Journey Continues is Bradley Joseph's sixth album. A sequel to Solo Journey, this album was written after sound checks during Yanni's Ethnicity World Tour. "Soft piano to calm, compose, and renew".

<i>In My Time</i> 1993 studio album by Yanni

In My Time is the ninth studio album by Yanni, released on the Private Music label in 1993. This album is a gentler collection of piano-focused pieces. The album attained Platinum status and was the second Grammy nomination for Yanni. It peaked at #1 on "Billboard's "Top New Age Albums" chart and at #24 on the "Billboard 200" chart in the same year.

<i>Reflections of Passion</i> 1990 studio album by Yanni

Reflections of Passion is the sixth studio album by Greek keyboardist and composer Yanni, released on the Private Music label in 1990. The album peaked at #1 on "Billboard's "Top New Age Albums" chart, and at #29 on the "Billboard 200" chart during the same year.

<i>In Celebration of Life</i> 1991 studio album by Yanni

In Celebration of Life is the seventh studio album by Greek keyboardist and composer Yanni, released on the Private Music label in 1991. The album peaked at #3 on Billboard's "Top New Age Albums" chart and at #60 on the "Billboard 200" in the same year.

<i>Dare to Dream</i> (Yanni album) 1992 studio album by Yanni

Dare to Dream is the eighth studio album by Greek keyboardist and composer Yanni, released in March 1992 on Private Music. The album peaked at No. 2 on Billboard's Top New Age Albums chart and at No. 32 on the Billboard 200 chart in the same year. It went gold within two months of its release and was nominated for a Grammy.

Ofer Ben-Amots is an Israeli-American composer and teacher of music composition and theory at Colorado College. His music is inspired by Jewish folklore of Eastern-European Yiddish and Judeo-Spanish Ladino traditions. The interweaving of folk elements with contemporary textures creates the dynamic tension that permeates and defines Ben-Amots' musical language.

<i>The Private Years</i> 1999 box set by Yanni

The Private Years is a box set released by Private Music in 1999. It features five of Yanni's albums for Private Music: Reflections of Passion, In Celebration of Life, Dare to Dream, In My Time, and Live at the Acropolis, as well as the DVD of his concert film, Live at the Acropolis.

<i>Blue Virgin Isles</i> 1978 studio album by Ted Gärdestad

Blue Virgin Isles is the fifth studio album and international debut album by Swedish singer-songwriter Ted Gärdestad, released on November 1978 by Epic Records in the UK and Polar Music in Scandinavia.

Don Kay (composer) Tasmanian Composer

Donald Henry Kay AM is an Australian classical composer.

David Jason Snow is an American composer. Snow studied composition with Samuel Adler, Warren Benson, and Joseph Schwantner at the Eastman School of Music, Jacob Druckman at the Yale School of Music, and Arthur Berger and Martin Boykan at Brandeis University. At the Eastman School, Snow was awarded the Sernoffsky, McCurdy, and Howard Hanson prizes in composition; Yale awarded him a Bradley-Keeler Memorial Scholarship and the Frances E. Osborne-Kellogg Prize in composition. Snow has been the recipient of awards, fellowships, residencies and commissions from BMI, the National Association of Composers/USA, the National Federation of Music Clubs, the Annapolis Fine Arts Foundation, the ASCAP Foundation, the College Band Directors Association, the National Endowment for the Arts, Res Musica Baltimore, the Maryland State Arts Council, the Renée B. Fisher Foundation, Trio Indiana, SoundMoves, Pastiche, the Arts Council of Montgomery County (Maryland), Yaddo, and the Millay Colony for the Arts.

<i>The Art of the Song</i> 1999 studio album by Charlie Haden

The Art of the Song is an album by American jazz bassist Charlie Haden and his Quartet West, released in 1999. It reached number ten on the Billboard Top Jazz Albums chart.

Rebecca Saunders is a London-born composer who lives and works freelance in Berlin.

Janet Maguire American composer

Janet Maguire is an American composer residing in Venice, Italy.

Will Gay Bottje was an American composer known for his contributions to electronic music.

References

  1. ↑ Rapture (CD liner). Bradley Joseph. Narada Equinox. 1997. ND-63038.
  2. 1 2 Debbage, Michael. "Review of The Journey Continues". Wind and Wire. Archived from the original on 2012-02-05. Retrieved 2006-12-21.
  3. ↑ "Airwaves Top 30 – July 1997". New Age Voice. 1997-07-25.
  4. ↑ Spellman, Peter (2002). The Musician's Internet: On-line Strategies for Success in the Music Industry. Hal Leonard Corporation. p. 86. ISBN   978-0-634-03586-9 . Retrieved 2007-06-05.
  5. 1 2 Wheeler, Fred (2002). "Interview with Bradley Joseph". Indie Journal. Archived from the original on 2004-11-01. Retrieved 2006-12-21.
  6. ↑ "Rapture at Pachyderm". Billboard. 1997. Archived from the original on 1997-05-30. Retrieved 2006-12-21.
  7. 1 2 Polta, Anne (2007-02-08). "Continuing Journey: Bradley Joseph sustains music career with songwriting, recording". West Central Tribune. Retrieved 2007-02-18.
  8. 1 2 Boissoneau, Ross. "Rapture – Bradley Joseph". AllMusic. Retrieved 7 September 2017.
  9. ↑ Moore, Ken (1997-04-25). "Rapture – Bradley Joseph". Naples Daily News.
  10. ↑ "Bradley Joseph Rapture". Johnson County Sun. 1997-05-02.
  11. 1 2 3 4 "New Age Voice review of Rapture". New Age Voice. 1997-07-25.
  12. 1 2 Blake, John (1997-07-19). "Joseph's solo debut has range" (fee required). The Atlanta Journal-Constitution . Retrieved 2008-01-18.


This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.