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Reviews and Comments

Albert Sanz

(Guitar Experience radio program, Radio Ona De Sants, Barcelona)

"What can I tell you about "Live the music"? It's PERFECT. Amazing, emotional and virtuoso. The voice, the tapping style, the lyrics, the mix and the production, the musicians... it's all perfect. A real masterpiece that I haven't heard in too many years. To listen to "Live the music" is to do a mystical voyage of feelings and emotions. All tracks are magical. The only negative (for me) detail is that I would like to listen to some more instrumental songs. Probably on the next CD. But these 13 songs are... incredible."

Arthur Durkee

Stick player

(CD review for Stickwire)

" This CD proves what is possible nowadays, as it is a true international collaboration, recorded in Israel, Russia, and Spain, often via Internet. International collaborations are becoming more and more common now, thanks to the power of home-based digital recording; I've contributed to a couple of worldwide projects myself. I mention this primarily to point out that Irene Orleansky's debut Stick album is coherent, cohesive, and effective. Irene's Stick playing, singing, and composing abilities are showcased here to great effect.
The CD is truly an album, a unified whole rather than a collection of fragments; there's nothing scattered about it at all. There are points in the lyrics where multiple languages are going on at the same time, Hebrew, Russian, French, Italian, English, and much more, and all the threads are woven into a tapestry that shimmers and throbs.
I should also mention at this point that Kirill Mahalov, who contributes the majority of beats to this music, as well as vocals and sound design, is a genuine discovery. And Guillermo Cides provides depth and beauty wherever he appears on this CD. I'm impressed with the convergence of wild talents here that synergize into a true collaboration. Part of the unity expressed in this music is a journey of emotion and spirit."

John Edmonds

Stick player, composer, StickNews CD review writer

(CD review for the StickNews online digest)

" What would happen if Tony Levin and Basia got together for a late-night rendezvous in Tel Aviv or Moscow? Or if Sting picked up Caroline Lavelle for a binge of swirling, thumping rhythm? Or how about if Don Schiff and Kate Bush absconded into modal midnight, or if Robert Fripp took Linda Cushma out for some enchanted evening?
If you've ever been both a progger and a connoisseur of a particular pop, maybe you've come up with some interesting ideas of what a really hot date might be like. It gets complicated (of course) because your wild and varied sensibilities are not so easily catered to in the company of just one flame.
If you're a red-blooded American bloke, perhaps you imagine a fanciful fling with, oh, let's just say all of the fair ladies mentioned above. What a feast of companionship, a profound and complex blend of passion, grace, and intellect.
Or you could simply put on a new CD, "Live the Music," and spend an intoxicating 53 minutes and 53 seconds with Irene Oleansky: one woman, one voice, one Chapman Stick, a small but flavorful supporting cast, and a baker's dozen tracks served up fresher than a real dozen doughnuts. It's all so sweet that you won't even mind missing your goodnight smooch at the end of the affair. "

Emmett Chapman

The Stick inventor

"Listening to Irene's incredible arrangement of Don Schiff's "Deep" and loving its sheer magic from somewhere across the ether. (Who knew this song had such morphing potential?)
Kirill has a rough Russian voice (yes I mistook him for Don), a perfect foil for Irene's ethereal phrasing, then a third time through in unison - nicely conceived. And what a smooth production, with those gliding Euro/techno rhythms.
The "chemistry" is all there in right proportion, not just between male and female vocalists but also by way of Guillermo's "SoundScape" styled accompaniment, Irene's Jewish and French lyrics, the cleanly resonant Stick string sounds, and of course those "club" techno rhythms - a unique but integral album concept, and with Stick as a central part."

Don Schiff

NS/Stick player, singer, composer

(On the cover of his song Deep Within My Soul)

" Dear Irene,
You've done me proud!!! I couldn't be happier. The singing, playing and production are top notch. You really captured the feel and emotion of the lyrics as well as handled the melody superbly, both of you. Very impressive.
I look forward to hearing the whole CD...
EXCELLENT and thank you for such a wonderfully glorious rendition of "Deep Within My Soul" that's just where it got me.
Don"

Arthur Durkee

Stick player

(To Stickwire on the song Meditation)

"What a lovely piece of music! I am sitting in an internet cafe in Taos, NM. Right next to me is a Japanese-style water fountain, with a bamboo rod out of which waters pours into a perfectly round stone bowl, all placed in front of a bamboo screen. It's a sunlit, mellow afternoon, particularly calm after last night's first frost of the season. There's a small seated Buddha statue next to the fountain. As I listened to your piece, something happened that happens to me from time to time when I experience a particularly powerful piece of art: your consciousness shifts, suddenly your eyesgith comes into tack-sharp focus, and your ears also become transparent; you can hear and track every sound going on around you with total clarity, form every direction. And you find yourself paying total attention to the moment. The third section, where the bansuri comes in briefly, was particularly spine-chilling. Thanks for the experience that your music prompted today. The title is very apt."

Emmett Chapman

The Stick inventor

"Just hooking my computer up to my stereo set. What a beautiful solo Stick sound and mood from Irene today. Toward the end there's a flirtation with the Phrygian mode. What a nice touch. Looking forward to her album. Many thanks Irene!"

Guitarra Actual Magazine

(On the song Ala Ya Uma)

" ...It is interesting to listen to the bass line of the Stick played between the sounds of tablas and drums, giving it special rythmic sonority... "

Chuck Reynolds

Snakehead Taskforce Stick player

(To Stickwire on the song Meditation)

"...Thank you again for this gorgeous piece of art. What fantastic tone and arrangement... your work has brightened my day."

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