Enya Patricia Brennan is an Irish singer, songwriter and musician, known for pioneering modern Celtic and New-age music. Regarded as the "Queen of New Age", Enya is the best-selling Irish solo artist in history, and second-best-selling overall behind U2. Born into a musical family and raised in the Irish-speaking area of Gweedore, County Donegal, Enya began her music career when she joined her family's Celtic folk band Clannad in 1980 on keyboards and backing vocals. She left the group in 1982 with their manager and producer Nicky Ryan to pursue a solo career, with Ryan's wife Roma Ryan as her lyricist. Enya developed her sound over the following four years with multitracked vocals and keyboards with elements of new age, Celtic, classical, church, world, pop, and Irish folk. Thus far, she has sung in ten languages, most notably English, Irish Gaelic (Gaeilge), Latin, and Welsh.
Clannad is an Irish band formed in 1970 in Gweedore, County Donegal by siblings Ciarán, Pól, and Moya Brennan and their twin uncles Noel and Pádraig Duggan. They have adopted various musical styles throughout their history, including folk, folk rock, traditional Irish, Celtic and new-age music, often incorporating elements of smooth jazz and Gregorian chant.
A Day Without Rain is the fifth studio album by the Irish singer, songwriter and musician Enya, released on 20 November 2000 by WEA. Following a promotional tour in support of her compilation album Paint the Sky with Stars (1997), Enya took a short break before she resumed writing and recording a new album in 1998 with her usual recording partners, producer and arranger Nicky Ryan and his wife, lyricist Roma Ryan. In a musical departure from her previous albums, Enya incorporates a string section on the record.
Watermark is the second studio album by Irish singer, songwriter and musician Enya, released on 19 September 1988 by WEA. After the release of her previous album Enya (1987), she secured a recording contract with Warner after a chance meeting with chairman Rob Dickins, who had become a fan of her music. Her contract allowed her considerable artistic and creative freedom, with minimal interference from the label and no deadlines to have albums finished. Enya recorded Watermark in ten months with her longtime collaborators, manager, producer and arranger Nicky Ryan and his wife, lyricist Roma Ryan. It was initially recorded in Ireland in demo form before production relocated to London to re-record, mix, and master it digitally. Watermark features music in different styles, displaying Enya's sound of multi-tracked vocals with keyboards, percussion instruments, and elements of Celtic, ambient, and New-age music, though Enya believes her music does not belong in the latter genre.
Shepherd Moons is the third studio album by Irish singer, songwriter and musician Enya, released on 4 November 1991 by WEA. After the unexpected critical and commercial success of her previous album Watermark (1988), Enya embarked on a worldwide promotional tour to support it. At its conclusion, she wrote and rehearsed new material for her next album with her long time recording partners, manager, arranger and producer Nicky Ryan and his wife, lyricist Roma Ryan. The album was recorded in Ireland and London and continued to display Enya's sound of multi-tracked vocals with keyboards and elements of Celtic and new-age music.
The Memory of Trees is the fourth studio album by the Irish singer, songwriter, and musician Enya, released on 20 November 1995 by WEA. After travelling worldwide to promote her previous album Shepherd Moons (1991), and contributing to film soundtracks, Enya took a short break before she started writing and recording a new album in 1993 with her longtime recording partners, arranger and producer Nicky Ryan and his wife, lyricist Roma Ryan. The album is Enya's first to be recorded entirely in Ireland, and covers themes that include Irish and Druid mythology, the idea of one's home, journeys, religion, dreams, and love. Enya continues to display her sound of multi-tracked vocals with keyboards and elements of Celtic and new age music, though Enya does not consider her music to be in the latter genre. She sings in English, Irish, Latin, and Spanish.
Paint the Sky with Stars: The Best of Enya is the first greatest hits album by Irish singer, songwriter and musician Enya, released on 1997 by WEA. Following her worldwide promotional tour in support of her previous album The Memory of Trees (1995), Enya began selecting tracks for a compilation album in early 1997, as her recording contract with WEA permitted her to do so. The album contains songs from her debut album Enya (1987) to The Memory of Trees (1995) and two new tracks, "Paint the Sky with Stars" and "Only If...".
Enya is the debut studio album by Irish singer, songwriter, and musician Enya, released in March 1987 by BBC Records in the United Kingdom and by Atlantic Records in the United States. It was renamed as The Celts for the 1992 international re-release of the album by WEA Records in Europe and by Reprise Records in the United States. The album is a selection of music she recorded for the soundtrack to the BBC television series The Celts, aired in 1987. Four years into her largely unnoticed solo career, Enya landed her first major project in 1985 when producer Tony McAuley asked her to contribute a song to the soundtrack. After its director David Richardson liked her demo, Enya accepted his offer to compose the entire score with her longtime recording partners, producer and arranger Nicky Ryan and his wife, lyricist Roma Ryan.
"Only If..." is a song by Irish singer Enya. It was released from first greatest hits compilation, Paint the Sky with Stars (1997), on 10 November 1997. The song charted in several countries, and its video was noted for its creative direction. Enya promoted the song with interviews and performances on The Rosie O'Donnell Show, Late Show with David Letterman and Royal Variety Performance.
"Only Time" is a song by Irish musician Enya. It was released in November 2000 as the lead single from her fifth studio album, A Day Without Rain (2000). The song reached number one in Canada, Germany, Poland and Switzerland, number two in Austria, and became Enya's only top-10 single as a solo artist in the United States, peaking at number 10 on the Billboard Hot 100.
"May It Be" is a song by Irish recording artist Enya. It was composed by Enya and Roma Ryan for Peter Jackson's 2001 film The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring. The song entered the German Singles Chart at number one in 2002 and was performed by Enya at the 74th Academy Awards. "May It Be" was acclaimed by music critics and received nominations for the Academy Award for Best Original Song, the Golden Globe Award for Best Original Song, and the Grammy Award for Best Song Written for Visual Media.
The discography of Enya, an Irish singer-songwriter, consists of eight studio albums, three compilation albums, twenty-one singles and a number of other appearances. Enya achieved a breakthrough in her career in 1988 with the album Watermark, containing the hit song "Orinoco Flow" which topped the charts in the United Kingdom and reached number 2 in Germany. Three years later, Shepherd Moons followed. In 1992, a re-mastered version of the 1987 Enya album was released as The Celts. Four years after Shepherd Moons, she released The Memory of Trees (1995), another top five success in both the UK and Germany, as well as her first top 10 album in the US. Singles released from the album were "Anywhere Is" and "On My Way Home". In 1997, Enya released her greatest hits collection, Paint the Sky with Stars: The Best of Enya, again a top five album in the UK and Germany, which featured two new songs: "Paint the Sky with Stars" and "Only If...". Following a five-year break, Enya released the album A Day Without Rain in 2000. The album is Enya's most successful to date, peaking at No. 2 on the US Billboard 200 albums chart. The first single, "Only Time", was used in the film Sweet November and peaked at No. 10 on the US Hot 100 and number 1 in Germany.
Amarantine is the sixth studio album by Irish singer-songwriter and musician Enya, released on 21 November 2005 by Warner Bros. Records internationally and by Reprise Records in the United States the next day. Following the release of her 2002 compilation box set Only Time – The Collection, Enya took a short break before she started work on a new album in September 2003, her first since A Day Without Rain (2000). Amarantine was recorded in Ireland with her longtime recording partners, arranger and producer Nicky Ryan and his wife, lyricist Roma Ryan. It is Enya's first album not to include a song in Irish and her first to include songs sung in Japanese and Loxian, a fictional language created by Roma.
Roma Shane Ryan is an Irish writer, poet, and lyricist, currently living in Killiney, Ireland, with her husband Nicky Ryan. Ryan is the primary lyricist for the singer Enya, who has stated that the importance of the Ryans' contributions are such that without them, "Enya" would not exist.
Titanic: Music from the Motion Picture is the soundtrack to the film of the same name composed, orchestrated, and conducted by James Horner. The soundtrack was released by Sony Classical/Sony Music Soundtrax on November 18, 1997.
Calmi Cuori Appassionati is a 2001 Japanese movie directed by Isamu Nakae, starring Yutaka Takenouchi and Kelly Chen. It is a love story about two students who met at an art college in Japan. The film is based on a 1999 novel which was a best seller in Japan. Calmi Cuori Appassionati was a hit, becoming the 8th highest-grossing film in Japan of 2001.
A Box of Dreams is a limited edition 3-disc box set by Irish singer, songwriter and musician Enya, released on 1 December 1997 by WEA Records. The set was a companion release to her first compilation album Paint the Sky with Stars – The Best of Enya, released the previous month. A Box of Dreams contains 46 tracks from her 1987 debut album Enya to Paint the Sky with Stars across three discs, each thematically arranged: "Oceans" contains Enya's upbeat tracks, "Clouds" is a collection of her piano instrumentals, and "Stars" contains slow ballads and more atmospheric tracks. Four B-sides are included: "Oriel Window", "Morning Glory", "Willows on the Water" and "Eclipse". The calligraphy and design were done by Brody Neuenschwander.
"Book of Days" is a song released in two versions, both composed and recorded by Irish musician Enya. The original version, included on the 1991 album Shepherd Moons, was sung in Irish Gaelic. The subsequent 1992 single version was bilingual, with new English lyrics; this version was recorded for Ron Howard's film Far and Away, and scenes from the film feature in the video. The bilingual English-Irish version (2:56) replaced the original pure Gaelic version (2:34) on subsequent pressings of Shepherd Moons from mid-1992 onwards, making the original recording relatively rare.
The Very Best of Enya is the second greatest hits album by the Irish singer, songwriter and musician Enya, released on 23 November 2009 by Warner Music. After promoting her previous studio album And Winter Came... (2008), Warner Music asked Enya to release a new compilation of her favourite songs of her career, and chose a selection with her longtime collaborators, producer and arranger Nicky Ryan and his wife, lyricist Roma Ryan.
Dark Sky Island is the eighth studio album by Irish singer, songwriter, and musician Enya, released on 20 November 2015 by Warner Bros. Records. After the release of her previous album, And Winter Came... (2008), Enya was unsure of her next career move so she decided to take a break from music, which lasted three years. In the spring of 2012 she started to write and record new material for a new album with her longtime collaborators, producer and arranger Nicky Ryan and his wife, lyricist Roma Ryan. Enya gained inspiration for the title track and the album from the 2011 designation of Sark in the Channel Islands as a dark-sky preserve and a collection of Roma Ryan's poems on islands.
