History Music / LoreenaMcKennitt

* SomethingCompletelyDifferent: While musically Loreena's style tends to be all over the map (literally!), most of her songs tend to fall under Celtic or Arabic in mood and motif, and the majority are also arrangements of traditional songs or literature set to music. Some songs, however, break the mold by being original pieces about matters of social concern to her ("Breaking the Silence"), incorporating a verbal recording to contrast with the song's lyrics (see SpokenWordInMusic below), standing out thematically from the rest of the album ("Full Circle"), or genre/style (her Tom Waits-like rendition of "Greensleeves"). And then there's her song in honor of her native Canada and its UsefulNotes/WorldWarOne dead, "The Breaking of the Sword", completely with military band and chamber choir backing her up.

** Her 2018 album is a different example of this trope--a collection of songs which for one reason or another were [[CutSong not included in previous albums]] (or in one case, had only been previously released as a single); the title, ''Lost Souls'', even [[{{Symbolism}} obliquely]] refers to this. This theme also carries throughout a number of the tracks, since they include a song about separated lovers wishing they could be together and relive their past romantic rendezvous ("A Hundred Wishes"), two death-related songs (an old, dying hunter wanting to spend one last moment with his dogs in "The Ballad of the Fox Hunter" and a mother singing about her son who fought and died in UsefulNotes/WorldWarOne in "The Breaking of the Sword"), and the famous Keats poem about a knight seduced and enchanted by a fairy only to dream of all the dead souls she had claimed before him, "La Belle Dame Sans Merci".

** And while the album title for ''Lost Souls'' appears (obviously) in the ending title track, it's also dropped in the very first song on the album, "Spanish Guitars and Night Plazas": "The ocean opens its arms to lost souls..." (This same song ''also'' has an AlbumTitleDrop to ''The Visit'', implying this is the album [[CutSong from which it was originally cut]], although instrumentally and thematically it fits ''The Mask and Mirror'' more.)

** Her 2018 album is a different example of this trope--a collection of songs which for one reason or another were not included in previous albums (or in one case, had only been previously released as a single); the title, ''Lost Souls'', even [[{{Symbolism}} obliquely]] refers to this. This theme also carries throughout a number of the tracks, since they include a song about separated lovers wishing they could be together and relive their past romantic rendezvous ("A Hundred Wishes"), two death-related songs (an old, dying hunter wanting to spend one last moment with his dogs in "The Ballad of the Fox Hunter" and a mother singing about her son who fought and died in UsefulNotes/WorldWarOne in "The Breaking of the Sword"), and the famous Keats poem about a knight seduced and enchanted by a fairy only to dream of all the dead souls she had claimed before him, "La Belle Dame Sans Merci".

* SomethingCompletelyDifferent: While musically Loreena's style tends to be all over the map (literally!), most of her songs tend to fall under Celtic or Arabic in mood and motif, and the majority are also arrangements of traditional songs or literature set to music. Some songs, however, break the mold by being original pieces about matters of social concern to her ("Breaking the Silence"), incorporating a verbal recording to contrast with the song's lyrics (see SpokenWordInMusic below), standing out thematically from the rest of the album ("Full Circle"), or genre/style (her Tom Waits-like rendition of "Greensleeves").

* TitleDrop: "All Souls Night", "The Old Ways", "Caravanserai". The song "Marrakesh Night Market" also has one [[AlbumTitleDrop to the album on which it appears]], ''The Mask and Mirror'': "Would you like my mask? Would you like my mirror?" And while the album title for ''Lost Souls'' appears (obviously) in the ending title track, it's also dropped in the very first song on the album, "Spanish Guitars and Night Plazas": "The ocean opens its arms to lost souls..."

* ConceptAlbum: To some extent, every one of her albums follows the concept of "inspirations received while studying and journeying", but some are more clearly travel-oriented than others (''The Book of Secrets'' and ''An Ancient Muse''). Both the latter and ''The Mask and Mirror'' have the ArabianNightsDays theme.

* TheFairFolk: Appearing in, and taking, the titular "Stolen Child".

* LiteraryAllusionTitle: Aside from the songs which are directly taken from poems that reference literature ("The Lady of Shalott", "Cymbeline", "The Dark Night of the Soul", "The Two Trees", "Prospero's Speech", "The Highwayman", "The English Ladye and the Knight", and more), two songs also have more oblique allusions: "Dante's Prayer" references the fact she was reading the ''Inferno'' while riding a train through Siberia and contrasted the text with what she saw out the window; and "Penelope's Song" is written as a lament from [[Literature/TheOdyssey Odysseus's]] wife waiting for him to come home.

** "The Dark Night of the Soul" ''could'' be taken as this depending on one's interpretation -- a girl running off in the middle of the night to meet her lover. But it's actually intended to be a spiritual allegory; the lyrics were taken from a poem by St. John of the Cross.

* TitleDrop: "All Souls Night", "The Old Ways", "Caravanserai". The song "Marrakesh Night Market" also has one [[AlbumTitleDrop to the album on which it appears]], ''The Mask and Mirror'': "Would you like my mask? Would you like my mirror?"

Loreena Isabelle Irene [=McKennitt=], CM, OM (born February 17, 1957) is a [[CanadianMusic Canadian singer and multi-instrumentalist (piano, accordion and harp)]]. Her songs have a distinct Celtic and Middle Eastern tone (she's of Scottish descent), but are sometimes described as NewAge. Her songs are often ballads, and are characterized by her high, echoing soprano voice. She found her calling to music after trying to be a veterinarian (and a brief stop-over with Ontario's renowned Shakespeare Festival), and has since then sold more than 13 million copies of her albums. She's often compared to Music/{{Enya}} as they both have Celt roots and use Gaelic in their music, but Loreena's music is more inspired by works of literature (most often Alfred Lord Tennyson, William Blake and William Butler Yeats) and is considered to be more grounded. Many of her songs have roots in English or Celtic folk songs, but more recently her music has been inspired by Arabian/Turkish lore. She is also an honorary Colonel in the Royal Canadian Air Force. In October 2019, she announced that her current tour would be her last for the forseeable future, and that she will be "taking an indefinite period of time away from my music."

* AnonymousBand: Averted. While few of her band's members are known to the general public outside of her work, and they only act as the background musicians to her FaceOfTheBand, all of their names are always listed and credited in every album, and at concerts she makes an effort to give them all spotlight moments and even introductions. Among those singled out are Brian Hughes (most guitar work, including ethnic and Celtic types), Caroline Lavelle (cello), and especially Hugh Marsh (violin).
* ArabianNightsDays: A heavy theme in both ''The Mask and the Mirror'' and ''An Ancient Muse''.

* CharityMotivationSong: "Breaking the Silence", written for Amnesty International. A bit forced, but SomeAnvilsNeedToBeDropped.

* ConceptAlbum: To some extent, every one of her albums follows the concept of "inspirations received while studying and journeying", but some are more clearly travel-oriented than others (''The Book of Secrets'' and ''An Ancient Muse''). Both the latter and ''The Mask and the Mirror'' have the ArabianNightsDays theme.

* GreenAesop: "Bonny Portmore", complete with RealitySubtext. A bit of a ProtestSong too.

* {{Motifs}}: Aside from her love of tragic ballads, a thread which begins in ''The Visit'' and weaves its way more fully into ''The Mask and the Mirror'' is that of the {{Unicorn}}. It first appears in "Courtyard Lullaby" (which [[ShownTheirWork also references]] the pomegranate tree, the fruit of which was often depicted in medieval times as the end of a unicorn's tail to represent the fecundity that was the unicorn's opposite), but images from [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Hunt_of_the_Unicorn the Unicorn Tapestries]] are used on the cover and liner sheets from ''The Mask and the Mirror'', and in the music video for "Bonny Swans" both the characters of the song and Loreena herself are shown literally becoming part of the tapestries.

* TitleDrop: "All Souls Night", "The Old Ways", "Caravanserai". The song "Marrakesh Night Market" also has one [[AlbumTitleDrop to the album on which it appears]], ''The Mask and the Mirror'': "Would you like my mask? Would you like my mirror?"

Loreena Isabelle Irene [=McKennitt=], CM, OM (born February 17, 1957) is a [[CanadianMusic Canadian singer and multi-instrumentalist (piano, accordion and harp)]]. Her songs have a distinct Celtic and Middle Eastern tone (she's of Scottish descent), but are sometimes described as NewAge. Her songs are often ballads, and are characterized by her high, echoing soprano voice. She found her calling to music after trying to be a veterinarian (and a brief stop-over with Ontario's renowned Shakespeare Festival), and has since then sold more than 13 million copies of her albums. She's often compared to Music/{{Enya}} as they both have Celt roots and use Gaelic in their music, but Loreena's music is more inspired by works of literature (most often Alfred Lord Tennyson, William Blake and William Butler Yeats) and is considered to be more grounded. Many of her songs have roots in English or Celtic folk songs, but more recently her music has been inspired by Arabian/Turkish lore. She is also an honorary Colonel in the Royal Canadian Air Force. In October 2019, she announced that her current tour would be her last and that she will be "taking an indefinite period of time away from my music."

She currently has 10 albums, including two winter-themed albums:

* ''To Drive The Cold Winter Away'' (1987)

* ''The Mask And The Mirror'' (1994)
* ''A Winter Garden'' (1995)

Loreena Isabelle Irene [=McKennitt=], CM, OM (born February 17, 1957) is a [[CanadianMusic Canadian singer and multi-instrumentalist (piano, accordion and harp)]]. Her songs have a distinct Celtic and Middle Eastern tone (she's of Scottish descent), but are sometimes described as NewAge. Her songs are often ballads, and are characterized by her high, echoing soprano voice. She found her calling to music after trying to be a veterinarian (and a brief stop-over with Ontario's renowned Shakespeare Festival), and has since then sold more than 13 million copies of her albums. She's often compared to Music/{{Enya}} as they both have Celt roots and use Gaelic in their music, but Loreena's music is more inspired by works of literature (most often Alfred Lord Tennyson, William Blake and William Butler Yeats) and is considered to be more grounded. Many of her songs have roots in English or Celtic folk songs, but more recently her music has been inspired by Arabian/Turkish lore. She is also an honorary Colonel in the Royal Canadian Air Force.

* HarpOfFemininity: The harp is Loreena's signature instrument (along with the accordian).

* GenreShift: As implied by [[ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin its title]], the "Huron Beltane Fire Dance" starts off as a very tribal, Native American-sounding chant, then shifts into a Celtic-Irish string piece. Lampshaded in her documentary about her musical influences, where the first part accompanies a giant bonfire and the second half is set to StockFootage of Irish step-dancers.

* HarpOfFemininity: The harp is Loreena's signature instrument(along with the accordian).

* LongRunnerLineup: Loreena usually picks a number of musicians proficient in instruments related to each album to record with, but several core members have been with her for years or decades; the longest tenured are guitarist Brian Hughes & percussionist Rick Lazar(both 1989), and violinist Hugh Marsh(1991). Cellist Caroline Lavelle & keyboardist/percussionist Donald Quan joined in 1995.
* LyricalDissonance: "The Bonny Swans" has a very upbeat melody (especially in the live version) but the lyrics are about a young woman being murdered by her older sister and her body being turned into a harp!

* {{Sampling}}: "The Two Trees" includes as its introduction "Cé Hé Mise Le Ulaingt?", a pipework song by Patrick Hutchinson. "Dante's Prayer" begins with a portion of "Alleluia, Behold the Bridegroom" as sung by the St. Petersburg Chamber Choir. The track "Revolution" from Highlander 3 score by Peter Robinson includes a portion of "The Two Trees", sampled pipework and all, and Loreena's version of "Bonny Portmore" is used in the film as well.

** "The Highwayman". Set in 18th century New England, the poem tells the story of the titular highwayman who is in love with Bess, a landlord's daughter. After being betrayed to the authorities, the highwayman escapes ambush when Bess sacrifices herself to warn him. Learning of her death, he dies in a futile attempt at revenge, shot down on the highway. In the final stanza, the ghosts of the lovers meet again on winter nights.

** "The Dark Night of the Soul" ''sounds'' like it's all about this -- a girl running off into the middle of the night to meet her lover. It's actually intended to be a spiritual allegory; the lyrics were taken from a poem by St. John of the Cross.

* TeenageDeathSongs: Played with in "Standing Stones". The male lover dies young, but his lady lives on for years, lonely and tragic, before finally dying and joining him.

'''Loreena Isabelle Irene [=McKennitt=], CM, OM''' (born February 17, 1957) is a [[CanadianMusic Canadian singer and multi-instrumentalist (piano, accordion and harp)]]. Her songs have a distinct Celtic and Middle Eastern tone (she's of Scottish descent), but are sometimes described as NewAge. Her songs are often ballads, and are characterized by her high, echoing soprano voice. She found her calling to music after trying to be a veterinarian (and a brief stop-over with Ontario's renowned Shakespeare Festival), and has since then sold more than 13 million copies of her albums. She's often compared to Music/{{Enya}} as they both have Celt roots and use Gaelic in their music, but Loreena's music is more inspired by works of literature (most often Alfred Lord Tennyson, William Blake and William Butler Yeats) and is considered to be more grounded. Many of her songs have roots in English or Celtic folk songs, but more recently her music has been inspired by Arabian/Turkish lore. She is also an honorary Colonel in the Royal Canadian Air Force.

'''Loreena Isabelle Irene [=McKennitt=], CM, OM''' (born February 17, 1957)is a [[CanadianMusic Canadian singer and multi-instrumentalist (piano, accordion and harp)]]. Her songs have a distinct Celtic and Middle Eastern tone (she's of Scottish descent), but are sometimes described as NewAge. Her songs are often ballads, and are characterized by her high, echoing soprano voice. She found her calling to music after trying to be a veterinarian (and a brief stop-over with Ontario's renowned Shakespeare Festival), and has since then sold more than 13 million copies of her albums. She's often compared to Music/{{Enya}} as they both have Celt roots and use Gaelic in their music, but Loreena's music is more inspired by works of literature (most often Alfred Lord Tennyson, William Blake and William Butler Yeats) and is considered to be more grounded. Many of her songs have roots in English or Celtic folk songs, but more recently her music has been inspired by Arabian/Turkish lore. She is also an honorary Colonel in the Royal Canadian Air Force.

Loreena [=McKennitt=] is a [[CanadianMusic Canadian singer and multi-instrumentalist (piano, accordion and harp)]]. Her songs have a distinct Celtic and Middle Eastern tone (she's of Scottish descent), but are sometimes described as NewAge. Her songs are often ballads, and are characterized by her high, echoing soprano voice. She found her calling to music after trying to be a veterinarian (and a brief stop-over with Ontario's renowned Shakespeare Festival), and has since then sold more than 13 million copies of her albums. She's often compared to Music/{{Enya}} as they both have Celt roots and use Gaelic in their music, but Loreena's music is more inspired by works of literature (most often Alfred Lord Tennyson, William Blake and William Butler Yeats) and is considered to be more grounded. Many of her songs have roots in English or Celtic folk songs, but more recently her music has been inspired by Arabian/Turkish lore.

* DespairEventHorizon: [=McKennitt=] seems to have hit this when her fiancee died in 1998. Soon after, she dropped almost completely off the map and released no new albums for 8 years.

* EverythingsLouderWithBagpipes: Justified, since she ''is'' a Celtic-inspired musician. To be specific, Loreena uses Uilleann pipes, which are a less-well known Irish variant.

* {{Sampling}}: "The Two Trees" includes as its introduction "Cé Hé Mise Le Ulaingt?", a pipework song by Patrick Hutchinson. "Dante's Prayer" begins with a portion of "Alleluia, Behold the Bridegroom" as sung by the St. Petersburg Chamber Choir.
** To take it to the next level, the track "Revolution" from Highlander 3 score by Peter Robinson includes a portion of "The Two Trees", sampled pipework and all.

* TitleDrop: "All Souls Night", "The Old Ways", "Caravanserai". The song "Marrakesh Night Market" also has one to the album on which it appears, ''The Mask and the Mirror'': "Would you like my mask? Would you like my mirror?"

* RevisitingTheRoots: Loreena started off singing traditional Celtic songs and slowly expanded to include other cultures, becoming more of a World musician. In 2010, she released an album composed of traditional Celtic songs.

* NotableOriginalMusic: Wrote the soundtrack for the made-for-TV documentary "Goddess Remembered". One song from this, "Ancient Pines", appears on ''Parallel Dreams''.

* EvilDetectingDog: Suggested by her rendition of Yeats' "Stolen Child", which begins and ends with a chorus of barking hunting dogs that have detected the poem's sinister faerie child thieves.

* RecycledSoundtrack[=/=]RecycledTrailerMusic: "The Mystic's Dream" was used in the soundtrack for ''TheMistsOfAvalon''; "The Mummers' Dance" appeared in trailers for ''Film/EverAfter''; "Night Ride Across the Caucasus" appeared in the soundtrack of the Kurt Russell film ''Film/{{Soldier}}''.

* RecycledSoundtrack[=/=]RecycledTrailerMusic: "The Mystic's Dream" was used in the soundtrack for ''TheMistsOfAvalon''; "The Mummers' Dance" appeared in trailers for ''Film/EverAfter''; "Night Ride Across the Caucasus" appeared in the soundtrack of the Kurt Russell film ''Soldier''.

* RecycledSoundtrack[=/=]RecycledTrailerMusic: "The Mystic's Dream" was used in the soundtrack for ''TheMistsOfAvalon''; "The Mummers' Dance" appeared in trailers for ''Film/EverAfter''.

* RecycledSoundtrack[=/=]RecycledTrailerMusic: "The Mystic's Dream" was used in the soundtrack for ''TheMistsOfAvalon''; "The Mummers' Dance" appeared in trailers for ''EverAfter''.

Loreena [=McKennitt=] is a [[CanadianMusic Canadian singer and multi-instrumentalist (piano, accordion and harp)]]. Her songs have a distinct Celtic and Middle Eastern tone (she's of Scottish descent), but are sometimes described as NewAge. Her songs are often ballads, and are characterized by her high, echoing soprano voice. She found her calling to music after trying to be a veterinarian(and a brief stop-over with Ontario's renowned Shakespeare Festival), and has since then sold more than 13 million copies of her albums. She's often compared to Music/{{Enya}} as they both have Celt roots and use Gaelic in their music, but Loreena's music is more inspired by works of literature (most often Alfred Lord Tennyson, William Blake and William Butler Yeats) and is considered to be more grounded. Many of her songs have roots in English or Celtic folk songs, but more recently her music has been inspired by Arabian/Turkish lore.

Loreena [=McKennitt=] is a [[CanadianMusic Canadian singer and multi-instrumentalist(piano, accordian & harp)]]. Her songs have a distinct Celtic and Middle Eastern tone (she's of Scottish descent), but are sometimes described as NewAge. Her songs are often ballads, and are characterized by her high, echoing soprano voice. She found her calling to music after trying to be a veterinarian(and a brief stop-over with Ontario's renowned Shakespeare Festival), and has since then sold more than 13 million copies of her albums. She's often compared to Music/{{Enya}} as they both have Celt roots and use Gaelic in their music, but Loreena's music is more inspired by works of literature (most often Alfred Lord Tennyson, William Blake and William Butler Yeats) and is considered to be more grounded. Many of her songs have roots in English or Celtic folk songs, but more recently her music has been inspired by Arabian/Turkish lore.

!!This singer provides examples of: