4.5

Release data:

Schiller – Sehnsucht
CD/DVD, Universal Domestic, 2008

Schiller, named after poet Friedrich Schiller, is the musical moniker of German electronical composer and producer Christopher von Deylen.
Von Deylen is inspired by electronic bands like Tangerine Dream, Kraftwerk and Jean-Michel Jarre, and started to create his own universe of new electronic, and overall emotionally charged music somewhere round 1998.

The album “Sehnsucht” (“Desire”) -the one reviewed here is the single cd and dvd-version- is his fifth album, which features a two hour set of inspired and a well-balanced instrumental pieces next to exciting up-tempo trance tracks. For the latter, Schiller invited Kim Sanders, Anna Maria Mühe, Xavier Naidoo, Jette von Roth, and Ben Becker for the vocals and spoken poetry phrases.

Well, listening to the uplifting, highly visionary music (often described as “global pop”) feels like a dream journey, as it creates stunning moods and atmospheres in which honest human emotions freely come to the surface.

There are some great instrumentals such as the expansive spaces of “Wehmut” and the captivating textures of “Sommernacht”.
From the vocal pieces I especially like to mention the astonishing track “Let me love you”, the absolute highlight of the album. After a stunning instrumental intro breathing melancholy through all its veins, the warm, gracious voice of Kim Sanders fills the sound spectrum, leading things to an overwhelming climax.

The additional dvd features several video clips, a documentary of a journey from Berlin to Calcutta with great accompanying music, two live-video clips and an extended 30-minute version of the instrumental piece “Zenit” composed with Klaus Schulze. This track can also be found on the Schiller double-cd “Sehnsucht Live”.

All in all, listening to this expertly produced and mastered album is a very pleasing and thrilling experience.
Highly recommended.

Website: www.schillermusic.com

You can see what reviews I have done of this artist on the Schiller artist page