Loreena McKennitt

Loreena McKennitt (2012)

Loreena Isabel Irene McKennitt , CM , OM (born February 17, 1957 in Morden , Manitoba ) is a Canadian musician and composer . She has lived in Stratford (Ontario) since 1981 .

biography

Loreena McKennitt was born in Morden, Manitoba on February 17, 1957 , and has Irish and Scottish ancestry. Her mother Irene was a nurse and her father Jack was a cattle dealer. Loreena wanted to be a vet as a child. But as she herself says, "it wasn't she who came to music, but music to her."

Loreena moved to Stratford, Ontario , in 1981 , where she still lives. She released her first album Elemental in 1985 . She gained worldwide attention with the albums The Visit (1991), The Mask and Mirror (1994) and The Book of Secrets (1997). All albums are produced by herself and released by her own record label Quinlan Road .

In 1998 her fiancé Ronald Rees and two other good friends were killed in a boat accident. After this personal tragedy Loreena McKennitt built in the same year the Foundation Cook-Rees Memorial Fund for Water Search and Safety . The proceeds from the sale of the double album Live in Paris and Toronto went to the foundation.

In July 2004 she was awarded membership in the Order of Canada by Governor General Adrienne Clarkson , the highest civil honor in Canada.

After a lengthy absence from the stage, Loreena McKennitt performed on December 7, 2004 in the Cirque Royal in Brussels at a concert of the Yehudi Menuhin Foundation . In addition to traveling and working on her albums, she is also an actress, singer and composer at the Stratford Festival of Canada , a renowned Canadian Shakespeare festival. In September 2006 she gave three concerts in the Alhambra in Granada . The concerts were recorded by the American television station Public Broadcasting Service and broadcast in March 2007. A concert recording was released on DVD .

On November 17, 2006, the album An Ancient Muse was released. In preparation for this album, she went on research trips to Turkey , Greece , China and Mongolia . The concerts of their European tour of the same name in spring 2007 were sold out in many places.

At the opening ceremony of the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver, she made a brief appearance in the music program.

In November 2010 the album The Wind That Shakes the Barley, a collection of Irish folk songs, was released. This album is also the focus of the two European tours in spring and summer 2012.

On October 29, 2019 McKennitt announced that with the end of the "Lost Souls" tour, she would be suspending her musical activities for an indefinite period in order to devote more time to her family. She also wants to work to fight global climate change. She also criticized the effects of modern technology on societies, families and individuals. In particular, the erosion of democracies, the spread of fake news and the loss of privacy are a result of the misuse of personal data and surveillance capitalism .

McKennitt v Ash Trial, 2005-2007

In 2005 McKennitt took legal action in the UK against her former colleague Niema Ash, who had written a book in which she wanted to publish highly personal information from McKennitt's personal life. McKennitt, who saw her personal rights violated and invoked Article 8 paragraph 1 of the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR) , obtained a publication ban. Ash was sentenced to a fine of £ 5,000 and part of the court costs. The publication ban was confirmed. However, around 300 copies of the book were already on the market. For her part, Ash exercised her right to freedom of expression under Article 10 of the ECHR and unsuccessfully pursued all legal remedies . In 2007, the British House of Lords was the last resort to dismiss Ash's appeal against the ruling, which became final. The ruling has been cited as a landmark in protecting the privacy of prominent people and a significant precedent for the implementation of Article 8 of the European Convention on Human Rights in the UK.

music

Loreena McKennitt's songs are characterized by mystically influenced lyrics in the newer albums, paired with the music of traditional instruments. Traditional Irish or Celtic and oriental motifs are dominant . With her album A Midwinter Night's Dream , Loreena McKennitt confesses to religious roots by interpreting Christian texts and hymns. McKennitt also uses traditional and classical themes in her music. So she set z. B. Works like "The Lady Of Shalott" by Alfred Tennyson , The dark night of the Soul of John of the Cross and "The Highwayman" by Alfred Noyes as well as several texts by William Shakespeare .

In her music, Loreena McKennitt uses stylistic elements such as modal keys , quint-parallel voices or drone tones as well as typical rhythms and instruments, especially from the "celtic folk" : with this she achieves an archaic effect. On the albums The Mask and Mirror, The Book of Secrets and An Ancient Muse there are more influences from Spanish and oriental music (especially Sufism ). Loreena McKennitt plays several instruments, including a. also piano , harp and accordion .

Discography

Studio albums

year	title	Top ranking, total weeks, awardChart placementsChart placements (Year, title, rankings, weeks, awards, notes)					Remarks
		DE	AT	CH	US	CA
1994	The Mask and Mirror	DE18 (14 weeks) DE	-	-	US143 gold (11 weeks)US	CA- × 3 Triple platinum CA	First published: March 15, 1994
1997	The Book of Secrets	DE7th gold (35 weeks)DE	-	CH30 (5 weeks) CH	US17th × 2 Double platinum (61 weeks)US	CA3 × 4 Quadruple platinum (8 weeks)CA	First published: September 30, 1997
2006	An Ancient Muse	DE15 (13 weeks) DE	AT59 (3 weeks) AT	CH45 (7 weeks) CH	US83 (13 weeks) US	CA9 platinum (3 weeks)CA	First published: November 21, 2006
2008	A midwinter night's dream	DE27 (12 weeks) DE	AT75 (1 week) AT	CH63 (4 weeks) CH	US140 (6 weeks) US	CA12 (4 weeks) CA	First published: October 28, 2008
2010	The Wind That Shakes the Barley	DE28 (8 weeks) DE	AT30 (3 weeks) AT	CH43 (5 weeks) CH	US141 (1 week) US	CA13 (2 weeks) CA	First published: November 12, 2010
2018	Lost Souls	DE5 (11 weeks) DE	AT13 (3 weeks) AT	CH11 (6 weeks) CH	US164 (1 week) US	CA14 (2 weeks) CA	First published: May 11, 2018

More albums

year	title	Top ranking, total weeks, awardChart placementsChart placements (Year, title, rankings, weeks, awards, notes)					Remarks
		DE	AT	CH	US	CA
1999	Live in Paris and Toronto	DE65 (3 weeks) DE	-	-	-	-	First release: September 22nd, 1999 live album
2007	Nights from the Alhambra	DE11 platinum (18 weeks)DE	AT44 (3 weeks) AT	CH63 (4 weeks) CH	US190 (1 week) US	-	First release: August 21, 2007 live album
2008	The Journey Begins	DE100 (2 weeks) DE	-	-	-	-	First published: June 20, 2008 compilation
2009	A Mediterranean Odyssey	DE-DE	-	-	-	CA11 (1 week) CA	First release: October 20th, 2009 live album
2012	Troubadours On the Rhine	DE32 (2 weeks) DE	-	CH61 (1 week) CH	-	CA14 (2 weeks) CA	First release: March 2nd, 2012 live album
2014	The Journey So Far - The Best of	DE20 (3 weeks) DE	AT58 (1 week) AT	CH48 (2 weeks) CH	-	CA13 (2 weeks) CA	First published: March 3rd, 2014 compilation
2019	Live at the Royal Albert Hall	DE76 (2 weeks) DE	-	-	-	-	First release: November 1st, 2019 live album

more publishments

• 1985: Elemental
• 1987: To Drive the Cold Winter Away
• 1989: Parallel Dreams
• 1991: The Visit (USgold; CA:× 4Quadruple platinum )
• 1995: A Winter Garden: Five Songs for the Season (CA:gold)
• 1995: Live in San Francisco at the Palace of Fine Arts
• 2004: No Journey's End
• 2008: A Moveable Musical Feast
• 2009: The Olive and The Cedar
• 2009: A Mummers' Dance Through Ireland

Singles

year	Title album	Top ranking, total weeks, awardChartsChart placements (Year, title, album , rankings, weeks, awards, notes)	Remarks
		US
1997	The Mummers' Dance The Book of Secrets	US18 (20 weeks) US	First published: September 1997

more publishments

• 1994: The Bonny Swans
• 1995: Live in San Francisco (EP)
• 1997: Words and Music (EP)
• 1997: Marco Polo
• 2017: Breaking of the Sword

Awards

• 1992: Juno Award Best Roots / Traditional Album for The Visit
• 1994: Juno Award Best Roots / Traditional Album for The Mask And Mirror
• 1997: Billboard International Achievement Award
• 2002: Honorary doctorate from Wilfrid Laurier University
• 2003: Order of Manitoba
• 2004: Member of the Order of Canada
• 2005: Honorary Doctorate from the University of Manitoba
• 2005: Appointment as Hans Christian Andersen 2005 ambassador
• 2005: Honorary Doctorate in Law from Queen's University (Kingston)
• 2006: Appointment as Honorary Colonel of the 435 Transport and Rescue Squadron of the RCAF
• 2008: Nomination for a GRAMMY® for the album "An Ancient Muse" in the category "Best contemporary world music album"
• 2008: Folk Alliance Award for the album "An Ancient Muse" in the category "World Music Album of the Year"
• 2012: The public observatory in Drebach (Ore Mountains) names the planetoid 2004, discovered on September 16, 2004, SE20 after Loreena McKennitt. He now bears the official name (157301) Loreena .
• 2013: Nomination for a GRAMMY® for the album "Troubadours on the Rhine" in the New Age category

swell

1. ↑ cookreesfund.com
2. ^ Loreena McKennitt: Putting The Music Business On Hold. In: loreenamckennitt.com. October 29, 2019, accessed October 30, 2019 . 
3. ^ Canadian singer's case could set precedent in UK privacy law. CBC / Radio-Canada , November 23, 2006, accessed October 30, 2019 . 
4. ^ Singer McKennitt wins privacy ruling in UK court. CBC / Radio-Canada, December 14, 2006, accessed October 30, 2019 . 
5. ^ Court ruling ends plans for Loreena McKennitt tell-all book. CBC / Radio-Canada, October 5, 2007, accessed October 30, 2019 . 
6. ↑ Lords decline to hear McKennitt privacy case. Pinsent Masons , March 30, 2007, accessed October 30, 2019 . 
7. ↑ ^{a b c} Chart sources: DE AT CH US / CA
8. ↑ Awards for Music Sales: DE US CA
9. ↑ Honorary Doctorate from the University of Manitoba
10. ↑ Honorary doctorate from Queen's University (PDF; 3.7 MB)
11. ^ Honorary Colonel of 435 Transport and Rescue Squadron
12. ↑ Loreena wins Folk Alliance award for An Ancient Muse - February 21, 2008

Web links

Wikiquote: Loreena McKennitt  - Quotes

Commons : Loreena McKennitt  - album with pictures, videos and audio files

• Website of Loreena McKennitt and her label Quinlan Road
• Loreena McKennitt in the Internet Movie Database (English)
• McKennitt at Discogs (English)