LAND OF WHISPERS (7:50)
by Eterman
-the final version-
remix for TiS Fantasy Compo
(the first version released)
This song was originally composed even in 1995 and then tracked
in 1997-98. What I did to the early version now was mostly re-tuning and
some further instrument adjustments. Of course I also had to add more
instruments and change volume levels, adjust pannings and even change
some melody structures, but chords and the main structure of the original
version were, nevertheless, not altered.
I still had a lot of work before I was happy with the result. Now
the sound is quite as smooth as I wanted it to be and some patterns that
formerly contained some errors are now fixed with great pains and a lot
of effort.
It's much harder to adjust a song than to start all over, but
making a whole new, fresh mix might have resulted in losing some of the
original ispiration, which I so delightfully still recognize when
listening to this all time favourite of mine. (a strong expression, but
anything less powerful would not have been sufficient, since this very
piece stands out amoung my other works and has special meaning for me,
not only as tracked music, but also as a composition)
In these chords here, there is something rather unique. And
the sound offers something I'd perhaps not be able to rewrite. I really
love the atmosphere. It does not only take my mind to a very distant
place both in time and space, where ease south wind softly bends the
grasslands and where dewy groves welcome the first refreshing glances of
morning sun, but it also sets my thoughts towards my own musica history
and those elementary influences, in which the seed for my creativiness
was so gently planted.
What is the Land of Whispers?
The explanation is pretty hard to deliver. Naming it 'Dorian', some think
about it as a place of great wealth and treasury, whereas others,
unwilling to confuse it for old, unreliable, oral folk tales, consider it
an area of great historical importance, having enough knowledge to
connect it with the great war of Harmathia.
However, a scant number of wise men appear to hold precise
knowledge of any of the ancient events related to the Harmathian
incident. No-one seems to know, where exactly Harmathia was or what that
land (also an ethnic sphere of influence) had to do with "Dorian", which
is the most common name for the lost land, although many find it
unorthodox to mix up the two tales: the tale of Dorian and the tale of
Semeroth, which seems to have older roots. It is also argued, that the
Dorian myth never originally contained any indications to "whispers" or
to grave, which is the meaning for an ancient word "sem".
There are some people, that are searching for the Land of
Whispers in the hope of finding a treasury. Despite the fact, that no
such treasure-hunter has ever been known to succeed in finding the land,
rare are those few not believing the renowned land exists, or ever has
existed.
However, there are also people searching for the Land of Whispers
without much hope for finding any treasury what comes to wordly
possession or wealth. Some few know what the name Semeroth really means
and that those "whispers" really do mean the spirits of the deceased
(that the word is not only figurative in that context).
Nowadays, in Inbor and other northern areas as well as in southern
kingdoms, Land of Whispers is no more as popular an issue as some decades
before, but quite a lot of people, however, still keep the myth alive
either in songs or in actual tales, which quite often seem also to
contain the Dorian myth. It may be that people usually have more interest
in stories with treasuries or otherwise great amounts of wealth, and fail
to find essential tales of sad and grievous historical events
captivating enough. This might be the main explanation for why the
supposedly strong myth of Semeroth (Or the older and wider Harmathian
Legend) so briefly faded and got mixed up with other folk tales, which
resulted in practically all details getting lost.
There are, of course, people with precise knowledge. Knowing
better, those people either have good intentions and try to avoid
Semeroth being revealed, or have selfish intentions and want to reach the
place in order to gain possession of ancient powers ready to be released.
And behind all this, there is the long and noble history of
Harmathia containing periods of both war and peace, both struggle and
rest, both grief and delight, weakness and might, bleakness and light.
From the dust of Harmathia, arose the time of Semeroth,
beneath the mighty vow,
in which no man could act low.
Alack, the walls of sorrows are rent,
sullen minds, even evil, not to ment,
now freely set their wander,
amoungst the wise and gander.
Thus areth thou to repair,
keep the vow and always dare.
It is given, still,
not to be driven ill,
to rashly train towards the cache -
but to suffer and bear ponderous fash.
-Harri Kivisto
eterman@writeme.com
