Novus Magnificat

Novus Magnificat: Through the Stargate (1986) is an album by American musician Constance Demby, with additional sonic textures by composer Michael Stearns. The album sold over 200,000 copies worldwide and made Demby one of the most successful new-age artists of the time. It was voted in 2002 one of "The 25 Most Influential Ambient Albums of All Time".

History

Creation

The title Novus Magnificat is Latin for "New Magnificat". Inspired by Western classical and sacred music, Novus Magnificat was self-defined as "A Magnificat and Exaltate for digital orchestra, choral voices, and special electronic images" and "Dedicated to the Infinite One..."

The music was performed using the Emulator II, one of the first digital sampling synthesizers available: this provided and combined the sound of real symphonic instruments and choirs under a single keyboard, hooked to a Roland Juno 60 "for arpeggiated effects and enhanced sounds".

Nothing being written down or scored in advance, the album was directly composed and recorded in 1985 by Demby at the keyboard. The music was further enhanced with electronic textures by composer Michael Stearns and refined with record co-producer and label co-founder Anna Turner. The result was termed, "Music conjured by the future, rooted in the Western sacred tradition."