On Dream Traveller I have woven a story of a musical journey in a dream through wondrous lands.
Enter the dream, through the Earth portal, through a rainforest, talking to a companion by starlight, then up on a high mountain pass, find peace beside a great river, hearing an Irish tune from your companion, before talking a walkway to the sky, and into another dream.
Many tracks were recorded at the same time as the Zen Sky album and were originally intended for it. However I decided Zen Sky should be a more meditative album with no rhythm.
Several tracks have world music influences and I thought they would make a great journey through the different sound regions. Also recorded under pandemic lockdown restrictions, the idea of a magical journey beyond the usual 4 walls appealed. The gentle rhythms on several of the tracks create the sense of travelling with the still tracks acting like pauses in the journey.
So then I wove the story around the tracks as I've done on a few albums now.
After the meditation focus of Zen Sky, Dream Traveller felt a very freeing experience to make. I chose a lot of my favourite combinations of instruments and ha
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A dream journey through wondrous lands.
1. Enter The Dream
You close your eyes. You hear a whistle tune. The tune draws you into the dream.
Chris Conway - tin whistle, keyboards, low whistle, theremin, effects
Mo Coulson - Celtic harp
2. Through The Earth Portal
You pass through the Earth Portal to the dream lands. The outer gates lead to a tunnel which grows more colourful the further you go into it. Suddenly you reach the inner gates and your dream journey has begun.
Chris Conway - tin & low Irish whistles, piano, keyboards, voice, percussion.
3. Rainforest Path
You reach a land of tropical rainforest. The rain eases as you go deeper into it and you make good progress and you enjoy seeing the wonders of the forest. The rain begins again and there is a thunderstorm as you leave the forest.
Chris Conway - low & tin Irish whistles, kalimba, keyboards, bodhran, percussion, field recordings.
4. Companions Under The Stars
You meet a companion along the way and you get along right away. Night falls and you have to spend the night under the stars. Late night tired talk slowly peters out as sleep comes.
Chris Conway - low Irish whistle, piano
5. The High Mountain Pass
After a long morning climb you reach a high mountain pass. You stop a while. The sound of distant goat bells are all around, but all is magically still. Then you continue walking towards the valley.
Chris Conway - tin & low Irish whistles, kantele, bells, chimes, cowbell, temple bells, finger cymbals, keyboards.
6. Peace By The Great River
You reach a huge river, which reminds you of The Ganges. You sit at the riverbank and watch the slow water go by. Time stops and you feel a deep peace and contentment.
Chris Conway - piano, kantele, sampled tanpura.
7. The Flower Of Magherally
It is time for you and your companion to go your separate ways. Before departing the companion sits and plays you a tune from their native Ireland. Then you take your path and they take theirs.
Chris Conway - low Irish whistle, keyboards
8. Pathway To The Sky
You reach a path which seemingly seems to rise up and up. A gentle incline gets steeper, and then there are steps to climb. You lose track of time as you rise higher until you reach a high plateau and you see a shining portal...
Chris Conway - piano, keyboards, acoustic & electric 9 string guitars, zither, low whistle, theremin, voice, chimes, effects, drum loops
9. Sky Portal To The Next Dream
You pass through the Sky Portal and you slowly rise through levels of dream sleep. You hear a distant whistle tune get nearer. But it does not take you to wakefulness, but towards another dream.
Chris Conway - piano, theremin, low whistle, voice, electric 9 string guitar, effects
Mo Coulson - Celtic harp
all
music composed and produced by Chris Conway
except The Flower Of Magherally trad. Ireland arr Chris Conway
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