Monk Music

When the druids return from the dead to reclaim the earth as theirs, Meredith Monk's, "Dolmen Music," will be their battle cry; and after listening we'll probably just hand the earth right over. I never thought twenty four minutes of incoherent chanting be so effective but Ms. Monk has made the Gregorian chant hip again. The ability to convey raw emotion without words is something jazz players do all the time. The ability to convey raw emotion that really moves the listener without words, using only the human voice, is an entirely different feat. Ambient and very minimal flute and cello occasionally intertwine with the six part vocal tapestry that dominates the piece, ranging from hypnotic chanting to high pitched shrills that fade in and out, putting the attentive listener into a trance like state. Despite the drawn out length of this ode to the ancients and the hordes of East Village bohemians, I found myself actually wanting more. The abrupt end of the piece left me slightly uneasy, almost as if the druids didn't really like what the saw and decided to turn back last minute.