Generous night, redeem
Reviewed By Janet Mawdesley September 6, 2019
Artist – Ryan Marvel
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Solo pianist Ryan Marvel has collaborated with his mother, poet Betti Bernardi, to create a beautiful album full of soul and reflection, the music woven throughout the poem which is presented on the back cover of the wrap-around.
The fourteen tracks have names selected from lines of the poetry with the introductory piece Lunar Melody, delivering a light, clear and fanciful song, soft, gentle and yet full of longing, perhaps dreaming of being away from earths mortal coil to become the ‘man in the moon’.
Crying heart of sleepless dawn visits a place everyone has been at some time in their lives; tired, restless and facing the dawn, a time of refection, introspection and weariness, to begin a new day but both the words and the music encourage taking a stand against life’s issues. Moving on, towards acceptance, eventually leads to Overwhelm, which in the words of the poem is, ‘misery’s companion’, setting the scene for a rather sombre and measured piece, gentle and yet melancholic, but in that same melancholy there is a thing of rare beauty, hidden deep inside.
The title song Generous night, redeem is once again a measured, gentle song offering understanding, allowing time for a quiet thought, clarity still to arrive, but with acceptance more than a consideration. Evenings benediction brings with it an uplifting moment, lighter, more positive as ‘the windows of time’ are used as a sign and evidence that transformation will and does eventually take place.
A fresh breeze beckons in Breath of the vagabond as a new beginning is just a little further down the pathway, beckoning, tempting and calling out to be heard. Come join me, it almost seems to say, I am fresh, alive, new, come join me. A delightful little song full of hope and joy.
The final song Glance the stars says in the simplest of melodies, that even in the midst of despair, there is a fresh new beginning to be discovered, by simply pausing for moment, glancing at the stars, millions of years old, forming in their galaxies once again offering a fresh way forward.
Both blend of music and poetry make a beautiful journey of enlightenment and at the very least a delightful moment of time out reading inspirational words couched in delicately presented music. Read the poetry, listen to the music then combine the two and a visionary journey is there to be enjoyed.