Celtic Treasure

For Hayley Westenra fans, this CD might be not be quite up to your elevated expectations but buy it anyway. I've rated two tracks 5 stars on my RealPlayer, Summer Rain and le Notte del Silencio. The latter is unforgettable, worth the price of the CD all by itself! I gave eight tracks four stars and only two tracks three stars. Of course I have the import version (Treasure) which I highly recommend. So while not quite as good as Odyssey in which I rated eight songs as worthy of five stars, her angelic voice and expert phrasing will still move your heart and make you feel glad to be alive!

Truly the voice of an angel - every so often a beautiful voice like Hayley's comes along and brings magic to the ears of those lucky enough to be listening.

How often do you buy an album that has maybe only one or two songs on it that you care to listen to? But not this album. It starts out with a hauntingly bueatiful celtic melody that really grabs you, and ends with a pure rendition of Abide With Me. The arrangements keep the background music from overwhelming her voice, so her voice is always the prominent theme. I like this album better than Hayley's fist album, Pure, as this album is less focused on her New Zealand roots. I have been playing this once or twice a day now for weeks, and never tire of it. So even though this is not purely a celtic album, it is a great find for this celtic fan.

I ordered Hayley's Celtic Treasure from UK because it had a specific track in it that was not in the US release (which I had already acquired). Her selection of songs, her voice and accompaniment makes it an outstanding CD to add to my collection. I have watched this beautiful young lady from New Zealand as she has grown both physically and musically, and I forsee great things ahead for her, as evidenced by her involvement with Celtic Woman. Highly recommend the CD to all.

Hayley Westenra has one of the most beautiful natural voices I have ever heard. To see her sing with such effortless control is truly awe inspiring. I enjoyed listening to her attempt at exploring her Celtic roots. I would like to hear her try more traditional Irish ballads with the power and passion she sang with on her CD "Pure". She has the voice, now she needs to trust her heart and let it be Celtic.

Allen Schweiger