The Moon and the Nightspirit
Encyclopedia
The Moon and the Nightspirit is a Hungarian
Pagan folk duo founded in 2003 by Ágnes Tóth und Mihály Szabó. Their songs deal mostly with pagan fairy tales and shamanism
.
. The softly melancholic album has been compared to the music of Ataraxia
and Chandeen
. Live performances with songs from the album included an appearance on Hungarian National Television.
The second album Regõ Rejtem (lit.: I conjure Magic) was released in 2007 and is completely sung in Hungarian. During the supporting tour through much of Europe The Moon and the Nightspirit played on festivals such as Wave-Gotik-Treffen (Germany) and Castle Party (Poland).
In 2009 the band released their third album Ősforrás, a more facetted work that focuses on the "wise elder" and natural mysticism. It has been compared to the Pagan folk of Omnia
but was said to be more transparent for the listener. The Side-Line
magazine called it the band's most diversified and accomplished album so far.
The Moon and the Nightspirit have received favourable ratings by reviewers. Their style has been called slightly oriental as well as a mix of medieval music and Hungarian folk songs, while Ágnes Tóth's singing has been compared to Elisabeth Toriser of Dargaard
. They are also acclaimed for being multi-instrumentalists using such traditional instruments as the Mongolian morin khuur
and the Slovak shepherds pipe fujara
.
Hungary
Hungary , officially the Republic of Hungary , is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is situated in the Carpathian Basin and is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine and Romania to the east, Serbia and Croatia to the south, Slovenia to the southwest and Austria to the west. The...
Pagan folk duo founded in 2003 by Ágnes Tóth und Mihály Szabó. Their songs deal mostly with pagan fairy tales and shamanism
Shamanism
Shamanism is an anthropological term referencing a range of beliefs and practices regarding communication with the spiritual world. To quote Eliade: "A first definition of this complex phenomenon, and perhaps the least hazardous, will be: shamanism = technique of ecstasy." Shamanism encompasses the...
.
History
The lyrics of their debut album Of Dreams Forgotten and Fables Untold were mostly held in English while it also featured two titles in Hungarian languageHungarian language
Hungarian is a Uralic language, part of the Ugric group. With some 14 million speakers, it is one of the most widely spoken non-Indo-European languages in Europe....
. The softly melancholic album has been compared to the music of Ataraxia
Ataraxia (band)
Ataraxia is an Italian neoclassical band who combine modern technology with archaic instrumentation over various media. They describe their music as a cross "between sacred and profane, ethereal and neo-classical, contemporary and early music". They make researches into the European legends...
and Chandeen
Chandeen
Chandeen is a musical project from Frankfurt am Main, founded in 1990 and popular in the darkwave scene in the first half of the 1990s. The band refers to its own style as "Electronic poetry"...
. Live performances with songs from the album included an appearance on Hungarian National Television.
The second album Regõ Rejtem (lit.: I conjure Magic) was released in 2007 and is completely sung in Hungarian. During the supporting tour through much of Europe The Moon and the Nightspirit played on festivals such as Wave-Gotik-Treffen (Germany) and Castle Party (Poland).
In 2009 the band released their third album Ősforrás, a more facetted work that focuses on the "wise elder" and natural mysticism. It has been compared to the Pagan folk of Omnia
Omnia (band)
Omnia is a self-described "neoceltic pagan folk" band based in The Netherlands and whose members over the years have had Irish, Dutch, Cornish, Belgian and Persian backgrounds...
but was said to be more transparent for the listener. The Side-Line
Side-Line
Side-Line is an online music magazine specialising in electronic music, and electro-goth/industrial in particular. It was founded in 1989 as a print publication, and had a circulation of 6,000 in Europe and America...
magazine called it the band's most diversified and accomplished album so far.
The Moon and the Nightspirit have received favourable ratings by reviewers. Their style has been called slightly oriental as well as a mix of medieval music and Hungarian folk songs, while Ágnes Tóth's singing has been compared to Elisabeth Toriser of Dargaard
Dargaard
Dargaard is a neoclassical/ambient band from Austria formed in 1997. Typically in dark and somber moods, the music of Dargaard presents medieval and folk-like melodies, often orchestrated through the use of various instrument patches from a keyboard. The band is still active and has four releases...
. They are also acclaimed for being multi-instrumentalists using such traditional instruments as the Mongolian morin khuur
Morin khuur
The morin khuur is a traditional Mongolian bowed stringed instrument. It is one of the most important musical instruments of the Mongol people, and is considered a symbol of the Mongolian nation. The morin khuur is one of the Masterpieces of the Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity identified...
and the Slovak shepherds pipe fujara
Fujara
The fujara originated in central Slovakia as a large sophisticated folk shepherd's fipple flute of unique design. It is technically a contrabass instrument in the tabor pipe class....
.
Discography
- Of Dreams Forgotten and Fables Untold (2005)
- Regõ Rejtem (2007)
- Ősforrás (2009)
- Mohalepte (2011)
External links
- Official website
- The Moon and the Nightspirit at Myspace