|

All Music Composed,
Arranged, Performed and Produced By:
Sean Mulligan and
Michael Dawson
(except tracks 1, 5, 8
& 10 - Arranged By Michael Dawson)
All Music © 1998 Echelon Entertainment
Executive Producer: Ross Murchison (for Laughing Sage Creative Services)
Digitally Recorded, Mixed
and Edited By: Michael Dawson at
Dark Tower, Redondo Beach, California
Album processed using the
Avatar™ Panospheric
Enhancement System
Art Direction, Photography,
and Graphic Design: Victoria May
Digital Mastering and
additional editing By: Bryan Shaw on the
Sonic System Mastering Workstation
at Digital Brothers, Costa Mesa, CA
DDD



Composed
By: Sean Mulligan and Michael Dawson
Arranged
By: Michael Dawson
This
clamorous overture forcefully evokes a sweeping, if not apocalyptic
vision of some
war-torn landscape. Harbinger marshals the full symphonic power of the orchestra to
introduce its broad, melancholic themes. This brooding piece is largely characterized by
weighty, undulating phrases
for brass underpinned by a slow, driving beat that appears
to
herald some impending doom on the horizon.


Composed
and Arranged By: Sean Mulligan and Michael Dawson
This
colorful and exotic piece evokes images of the ancient Middle-Eastern
city of Istanbul.
Richly imbued with ethnic melodies and hypnotic rhythms,
The Golden Veil seems to hearken
back to a time when Istanbul was known
as Constantinople. This piece captures the allure
and mystery of the
Middle East, while maintaining an almost mystical air throughout the
song.


Composed
and Arranged By: Sean Mulligan and Michael Dawson
This
fast-paced and vigorous song takes the listener on a chase
or race full of twists and
turns. This progressive and modern piece
seems to create a setting for nearly any
land-based or
waterborne adventure; whether in the jungles of South America,
or somewhere
off the coast of Florida.

Composed
and Arranged By: Sean Mulligan and Michael Dawson
Mare
Imbrium carries the listener on a voyage to the stars.
Highlighted by an impassioned
melody from an ambient electric guitar,
the voyage is transformed into a triumphant march
accented by ghostly choirs and atmospheric textures.


Composed By: Sean
Mulligan and Michael Dawson
Arranged
By: Michael Dawson
This
introspective piece appears to serve as a vigil to the passage of time
by acknowledging
the endless ebb and flow of oceans, rivers and streams.
Time And Tide seems to convey a
subtle elegiac and unearthly spirituality
with its delicate mixture of South American and
Middle-Eastern influences.

Composed
By: Sean Mulligan and Michael Dawson
Arranged
By: Michael Dawson
This
stately processional is reminiscent of some ornate 16th or early 17th Century masquerade
that could be held in the court of a noble.
Elements of sadness or tragedy seem to underlie the song,
indicating that all may not be well in the land.


Composed and
Arranged By: Sean Mulligan and Michael Dawson
This
up-beat, synth-rock song utilizes a variety of electronic
and contemporary sounds to
generate a swaying, rhythmic feel.
Silvertongues contains a provocative blend of dynamic
sounds
and progressive musical stylings full of atmosphere and energy;
rounded off with a
lush saxophone solo at the song's finish.


Composed By: Sean
Mulligan and Michael Dawson
Arranged
By: Michael Dawson
This haunting piece tells
the story of a lonely and empty room
that may have once belonged to a little boy who is
now gone,
claimed by some tragic twist of fate. The room remains just as he left it,
with
his toys still laying about, seemingly lamenting their loss.
The eerie piano and string
passages somehow suggest
the lingering presence of the little boy;
but only as a vague
phantom or shadow.


Composed
and Arranged By: Sean Mulligan and Michael Dawson
This
contemporary blues-rock piece paints a gloomy picture
of tough luck, hard times and lost
love somewhere within
a seedy, smoke-filled bar or club. The song's edgy, improvised
feel
is driven by the forlorn strains of the lead guitar,
and supported by jazzy piano and
saxophone motifs.


Composed
By: Sean Mulligan and Michael Dawson
Arranged
By: Michael Dawson
This
majestic suite unmistakably proclaims the glories and
splendor of a past age; an age of
chivalry and the quest
for the Holy Grail. Montségurs warm strings, dramatic horns,
and thunderous percussion create an epic backdrop of exaltation
and heroism which are the
stuff of legends.


Composed
and Arranged By: Sean Mulligan and Michael Dawson
This piece
was inspired by ancient Chinese and Tibetan cosmology,
and the mythology surrounding the
fabled Kunlun Mountains.
Combining the East and the West, and the ancient with the modern,
The Mountains Of Heaven incorporates instruments and sounds
indigenous to Chinese, Tibetan
and East Indian music,
placing them within a modernized, Western context. The main theme
is defined as a simple yet sublime passage of atmospheric chords
that is later joined by a
single Kawala pipe
during the final moments of the song.

Composed
and Arranged By: Sean Mulligan and Michael Dawson
This energetic and
renascent endeavor into "space-rock" music
presents a uniquely resounding
epilogue for Arcana.
Regenerations soaring electric guitar motifs and
powerful sound epitomize its namesake.

These
images are now available as a free screensaver!
Download it here. (1.39 MB ZIP)
(Windows only)
Be
sure to check out the Sound Room
for full-length Arcana tracks
as well as preview clips from the upcoming release Portents
and other unreleased tracks!

Order Arcana Now |