Relaxation exercises come in many forms: slow breathing, meditation, tai chi, whale song and more but you can add the music of Andy Aquarius to that list. The Berlin-based harpist, multi-instrumentalist, and vocalist manages to imbue his music with the kind of inner peace that would make a Buddhist jealous. According to the Radio Art blog there is scientific research that has shown that listening to harp music can lead to “a decrease in heart rate, blood pressure, and cortisol levels”.
Golla Gorroppu* is Andy Aquarius’ new album and features Andy on Celtic Harp, vocals, lyre and synths and he is joined by Ferdinand Kavall on bowed guitar and hammered dulcimer, Josephine Pia Wild as the choir, Raoul Vignal on steel strung guitar and Semeli Sophia Kostourou on violoncello. Just listing all those lush instruments makes me feel calm.
It’s no surprise that the harp is so often associated with all things heavenly (including the Gary Larson cartoon which has “Welcome to Heaven, here’s your harp” versus “welcome to Hell here’s your accordion”). It has a mesmeric effect on this album, with rolling patterns of notes that easily be attempting to translate into music the way sunlight sparkles on water. This is particularly prevalent on the track ‘Jagten’.
The songs have a mystical quality about them, and the inspiration came from his transformative time spent in the Sardinian Gorropu mountain range which inspired the album’s title, and it says on his Bandcamp page, “‘Golla Gorroppu,’ is a phrase coined by Andy that stems from his meditations on the Sardinian Gorropu mountain range, a territory he explored in between the autumn of 2020 and spring of 2021. His personal translation of the title is “The Throat of the Mountain.”
This is an ethereal bridge between folk and classical music and listening to Andy Aquarius is a way to tap into his appreciation for the magic and beauty of nature and listening through headphones is like having a floatation tank for your senses.
Andy Aquarius socials: Instagram | Facebook | Website
As with his album Chapel this is released by Hush Hush Records who specialise in music that works late at night or early in the morning and especially with headphones.
I have also included this beautiful footage of Andy playing ‘U Lisi’ taken from his 2022 release La Force Aquarienne.
Review by Paul F Cook
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