Traumgarten - Garden of Dreams

“I had the privilege of growing up in a very inspiring environment. Quite early in life, I became aware of music’s potential and of the fact that it cannot be reduced to its mere entertaining aspects; it is not just acoustic decoration, but rather a very powerful means of communication. Working on this second release of ‘Traumgarten’ was a very special experience for me, all the more so because my parents both passed away some years ago. I strongly realized that through my music, they are both still very present in my life. Therefore, it is only natural for me to dedicate this album to my mother and father. 
My father lived almost entirely in the world of music. As wonderful as this may have been for his art, it wasn't always so easy for the people around him. I used to hope so much he would take me on a bicycle tour or go fishing with me in order to connect to my world one way or another, but he just couldn’t.
Still, I was totally fascinated by this tall, charismatic man with his wild hairstyle whom everybody treated so respectfully. And I really wanted to get to know him. So, over time, I found ways to communicate with him: quite simply by playing music together, sometimes improvising for hours, just the two of us. I think we probably got much closer to each other than we would ever have if there hadn’t been the music.
Besides being very musical, the people in my family were great storytellers by tradition. It was mainly my mother Margaretha who introduced me to the art of creating imaginary worlds. As a result, I began to associate a hidden story with all my compositions. It was this combination that gave my music a particularly visualizing and narrative dimension.
In 1978, after several years in which my father and I hadn’t played together, these recordings continued the tradition of our musical dialogues. I can’t imagine where my own work would be today or whether I would ever have embarked on my musical voyage if it hadn’t been for these many uninhibited hours of making music together – from my earliest childhood. This experience also taught me that improvised music is a great gift which enables us to get in contact with our innermost self. And once we’ve opened to this process, something wonderful happens: the instrument begins to play almost ‘of its own accord’, and a mystical plane may even begin to resonate, leading us from an intellectual, technical, stylistic and constructed interpretation to the music of the heart.”

Andreas Vollenweider, 1998

The songs and the collaborators

1. Jakobs Traum - Jacobs Dream

(Hans Vollenweider/Andreas Vollenweider); free improvisation
Andreas; Afghan sheppherds shawn

2. Tanz der Wesen auf den gläsernen Lichtbergen

(Hans Vollenweider/Andreas Vollenweider); free improvisation
Andreas; Indian bamboo flute

3. Der Mond und die Wolkenreiter

(Hans Vollenweider/Andreas Vollenweider); thematic improvisation
Andreas; pedal harp

4. Der Fischer und seine Frau auf dem gelben Fluss - The fisher man & his wife on the Yangtse River

(Hans Vollenweider/Andreas Vollenweider); free improvisation
Andreas; Gu-Cheng (Chinese harp)
Torwards the end; cymbal star (special register of the organ)

5. Elegie

(Hans Vollenweider); free solo improvisation

6. Phoenix

(Hans Vollenweider/Andreas Vollenweider)
Freie Improvisation, free improvisation
AV; pedal harp

7. The Metaphors***

(Andreas Vollenweider); thematic improvisation
Andreas; pedal harp with MIDI sound extensions

8. Die Vogelpredigt - The Sermon of the Birds

(Hans Vollenweider/Andreas Vollenweider); free improvisation
Andreas; Indian bamboo flute

9. Ein Liebeslied - A Love Song

(Andreas Vollenweider); free improvisation
Andreas; Gu-Cheng (Chinese harp)

10. Spaziergang mit Vater - A Walk with my Father

(Hans Vollenweider/Andreas Vollenweider); free improvisation
Andreas; ocarina (italienische Hirtenflöte aus Ton, Italian clay flute)

11. Sommerregen - Summer Rain

(Andreas Vollenweider)
Hans Vollenweider; organ 
Andreas Vollenweider; guitar, ocarina 
Walter Keiser; drums 
Philippe Kienholz; piano
Peter Keiser; bass 
Max Lässer; slide guitar 

12. Farbenspiele

(Hans Vollenweider); free solo improvisation

13. Hommage

(Andreas Vollenweider); free solo-improvisation
Andreas; Piano solo

14. May Green be the Grass…

(Andreas Vollenweider); Excerpt from the album KRYPTOS
Andreas; steam organ (recorded at the mill river at Kroandal forest)

15. Das Geheimnis und die Lampe - The Secret & the Candle

(Hans Vollenweider/Andreas Vollenweider); thematic improvisation
Andreas; pedal harp

16. Vesperglocke des Grossmünsters (Vesper's Bell)

17. Abschied am grossen Tor - Farewell at the Great Gate

(Hans Vollenweider/Andreas Vollenweider); free improvisation
Andreas; Ocarina (Italian clay flute, played by the sheppherds)

Credits:

Hans Vollenweider plays the organ of the Grossmünster church in Zurich, Switzerland
Andreas Vollenweider plays his modified pedal harp, Gu-Cheng (Chinese harp) and ethno wind instruments
Cover Artwork; painting of Andreas' grandfather, Hans Vollenweider senior (1888 - 1954)
Recording; Robert Lattmann, Hanspeter Ehrsam, Rolf Jauch, Andreas Brüll, Andreas Vollenweider 
Mixing; Andreas Vollenweider, Hanspeter Ehrsam, Eric Merz
Mastering; Andreas Vollenweider (with special assistance from Tarmo Simola & Francesco Mattuzzi)
Produced by Andreas Vollenweider for AVAF MUSC, Switzerland
Andreas Vollenweider is a member of SUISA and GEMA
Production-Management; Impact Music - Hanswalter Huggler, Sylvie Rossi

Our very special thanks to Margaretha & Beata Vollenweider, who never lost their patience, despite many personal sacrifices, understanding and believing in our music. Many thanks also to Chung Liang Al Huang for years of inspirative friendship, as well as all the many friends, who have contributed to this project with their enthusiasm and support.