pureambient.com the MIDI page
here are some of the very finest MIDI files found on the web. they
represent a broad cross-section of musical genres, from classical to ambient, from pop to
progressive rock. the original composer of each piece is noted below, and we hope this
will encourage you to seek out some new composers and artists with whom you may or may not
be familiar...
the incredibly mournful "Adagio" from Italian composer Tomaso Giovanni
Albinoni (1671-1750) is one of the finest adagios ever written. stately, sombre yet
somehow still joyful...the beautiful Adagio In G Minor For Organ
And Strings. and to provide a stunning contrast, we've also included a piece by one of
Albinoni's contemporaries, the German-born Johann Pachelbel (1653-1706). his Canon In D Major is a far more familiar piece, with it's melodic
and harmonic purity.
a near contemporary of Dowland's, King Henry VIII (although in a slightly different
state of employment to Dowland!) also composed some delightful pieces, two of which we've
included here: Consort VI and the more familiar Pastime With Good Company.
Britain's premiere female artist, the incredibly talented Kate Bush, began her career
at the age of 19. from her third album, 1980's "Never For Ever" we present the
lovely and lilting Army Dreamers. from her classic fourth
album, 1985's "Hounds Of Love" we've included a short section of side two, the
string-driven Under Ice. Kate is an accomplished pianist
and keyboardist, has a beautiful singing voice, and could arguably be said to be one of
the finest musicians around today.
another premiere British musician, veteran drummer Bill Bruford, has worked with Yes,
Genesis, U.K., Roy Harper, his own jazz ensemble Earthworks, and is currently a member of
the remarkable King Crimson. we present here the title track from 1977's Feels Good To Me. . this MIDI does an excellent job of
emulating the remarkable quartet on the original version, consisting of Bruford (drums),
Allan Holdsworth (guitar), Jeff Berlin (bass) and Dave Stewart (keyboards). the album also
features Annette Peacock on spoken word/vocals...this is an amazing jazz record!
progressive rock group Camel were formed in the early seventies, and still perform
today under the leadership of guitarist/composer Andy Latimer. although it's hard to
select from their vast catalog of melodic material, we've included some very different
Camel tunes for your enjoyment. First, a solo piano rendition of Fritha a single song from "The Snow Goose". then,
from the 1979 album "I Can See Your House From Here" we have a solo piano
version of their masterpiece Ice. finally, a much more
upbeat and challenging piece, from 1991's "Dust And Dreams" the remarkable Hopeless Anger. for more on Camel check out the
official Camel website.
here is a fine track from Peter Gabriel's third self-titled album, the nearly ambient Lead A Normal Life. Gabriel was the leader of the prog rock
band Genesis, and has gone on to a hugely successful solo career. his first three albums
contain some of his finest work, and should not be missed.
for the more progressive minded, we present here a stunning MIDI arrangement of one of
the most musically complex and fascinating groups from the prog rock genre, Cogs In Cogs by the remarkable Gentle Giant. the original appears
on their classic 1974 album "The Power And The Glory". for more on information
on this incredible group of musicians, you may want to visit the Gentle
Giant home page.
another composer who is often overlooked is the remarkable Jean Michel-Jarre. while he
acheived a fair amount of fame with early works such as "Oxygene", later
masterpieces such as Revolutions (Overture) from the album
of the same name are also excellent and well worth checking out.
one of the masters of the prog rock genre, the amazing Mike Oldfield composed his
famous Tubular Bells when he was 18 years old. this
excellent MIDI rendition of the entire first side gives a good hint of this composer's
ability.
our own dave stafford has created three MIDI files especially for
pureambient.com. Landwards is a long, meditative piece.
Seawards, sombre and peaceful, was the next to appear. the
final member of this special "pureambient" trio, Skywards
has a more mobile, uplifting air, but fits in with the stately themes of all
three tracks. these exclusive pieces were created extemporaneously on november 8 1997.
piano virtuoso Rick Wakeman, most visible as the keyboardist for the prog rock group
Yes, also created his own tribute to Henry VIII. from the 1973 album "The Six Wives
Of Henry VII" we present Catherine Parr.
and on into the world of pop, the amazing XTC. starting out as a quirky, punkish band,
they have evolved over the years into pop songwriters and musicians of a quality perhaps
approaching that of the Beatles. first is an ambient piece entitled Frost Circus which was originally a B-side from 1983, but was
later included on the CD release of the album "Mummer". then, for something
ultra funky, the quintessential Melt The Guns from the
1982 album "English Settlement". and finally, the delightful, classically
oriented Rook which appeared on 1992's "Nonsuch"
album. if you are interested in learning more about XTC, you might want to check out
Chalkhills one of the most thorough and excellent
sources of infomation about this group.
and last and perhaps most remarkable, the late, great Frank Zappa. many people don't
realize that Zappa was a composer first and foremost, and the piece we've included here, Peaches En Regalia gives a tiny inkling of what this man could
do. Zappa is one of the most prolific of modern artists, and has an enormous catalog of
fascinating material ranging from classical to jazz to burning lead guitar.
check out the official Frank Zappa
site for more info.
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