The Millennium Bell is an attempt by Mike Oldfield to encapsulate 2,000 years of history with 11 slices of world music experimentation.
From the Incan commemorative "Pacha Mama" to "Amber Lights," a celebration of political reform in South Africa, this album attempts to cover immense psychic territory.
At some point, even the staunchest Oldfield supporters could end up questioning this odd and at times pretentious effort.
The music is typical Oldfield: plodding, repetitive new age, sprinkled with some gentle melodic elements and sonic invention.
The sparsely placed talk lines boost the minimal narrative at times, while choirs and orchestral elements add nice support to Oldfield's instruments.
Ambitious to say the least, perhaps the composer is taking himself and his subjects too seriously here.
In fact, The Millennium Bell is certain to come off to some people as obvious and full of itself, but to less cynical listeners and loyal fans it might play like an interesting and unique lesson.
| Title/Composers | Performer | Listen | Time | Size | Size | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Peace on EarthMike Oldfield | Mike Oldfield | Play | 04:10 | 9 MB | 20 MB |
| 2 | Pacha MamaMike Oldfield | Mike Oldfield | Play | 04:05 | 9 MB | 22 MB |
| 3 | Santa MariaMike Oldfield | Mike Oldfield | Play | 02:44 | 6 MB | 14 MB |
| 4 | Sunlight Shining Through CloudMike Oldfield | Mike Oldfield | Play | 04:33 | 10 MB | 26 MB |
| 5 | The Doge's PalaceMike Oldfield | Mike Oldfield | Play | 03:07 | 7 MB | 18 MB |
| 6 | Lake ConstanceMike Oldfield | Mike Oldfield | Play | 05:16 | 12 MB | 28 MB |
| 7 | MastermindMike Oldfield | Mike Oldfield | Play | 03:03 | 7 MB | 18 MB |
| 8 | Broad Sunlit UplandsMike Oldfield | Mike Oldfield | Play | 04:03 | 9 MB | 17 MB |
| 9 | LiberationMike Oldfield | Mike Oldfield | Play | 02:38 | 6 MB | 13 MB |
| 10 | Amber LightMike Oldfield | Mike Oldfield | Play | 03:42 | 8 MB | 25 MB |
| 11 | The Millennium BellMike Oldfield | Mike Oldfield | Play | 07:37 | 17 MB | 53 MB |
| 45 mins | 103 MB | |||||
| 45 mins | 260 MB | |||||
| Artist | Job | |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Ben Darlow | Engineer |
| 2 | Camilla Darlow | Soprano (Vocal) |
| 3 | DJ Pippi | Assistant Arranger, Co-Arranger |
| 4 | Nicola Emmanuel | Vocals |
| 5 | Hjordis Fogelberg | Art Direction |
| 6 | The Grant Gospel Choir | Choir/Chorus |
| 7 | Anita Hegerland | Narrator |
| 8 | Greta Hegerland-Oldfield | Narrator |
| 9 | Hjordis Fogelberg Jensen | Art Direction, Design |
| 10 | Rev. Andrew Johnson | Vocals |
| 11 | Andrew Johnson | Treble (Vocal) |
| 12 | Andrew F. Johnson | Treble (Vocal) |
| 13 | London Handel Choir | Choir/Chorus |
| 14 | London Handel Singers | Choir/Chorus |
| 15 | The London Session Orchestra | Orchestra |
| 16 | Caroline Monk | Personal Assistant |
| 17 | John Newton | Text |
| 18 | Mike Oldfield | Arranger, Composer, Guitar, Primary Artist, Producer |
| 19 | Jeremy Parker | Assistant |
| 20 | Jeremy Parker | Personal Assistant |
| 21 | Pepsi | Vocals |
| 22 | David Serame | Vocals |
| 23 | Robyn Smith | Arranger, Choir/Chorus, Conductor, Strings |
| 24 | Miriam Stockley | Vocals |
| 25 | Gota Yashiki | Drums, Drums (Snare), Percussion |
| Quality | Format | Encoding | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| Standard | MP3 | 320kps 44.1kHz | MP3 is an audio coding format which uses a form of lossy data compression. The highest bitrate of this format is 320kbps (kbit/s). MP3 Digital audio takes less amount of space (up to 90% reduction in size) and the quality is not as good as the original one. |
| CD Quality | FLAC | 16bit 44.1kHz | FLAC is an audio coding format which uses lossless compression. Digital audio in FLAC format has a smaller size and retains the same quality of the original Compact Disc (CD). |