Helium Vola
Helium Vola

Release Information 2001
Helium Vola: Helium Vola

Studio-Album

With the single ”Omnis Mundi Creatura” (Chrom/Indigo) released in June, the first herald appeared, signaling a new and truly monstrous production straight from Ernst Horn’s workshop. The title track ”Omnis Mundi Creatura” was received with enthusiasm by the listeners as well as by the press and alternative DJs, and it topped the highest placings of the German Alternative Charts, mutating into the ultimate club hit.

The high expectations caused by the single’s success will surely be more than fulfilled with the upcoming debut album: Ernst Horn (Deine Lakaien), who’s already made a name for himself in the past with successful productions exploring the borderland between medieval, classical and modern electronic music, has delivered an exceptional album brimming with versatility, minus the inhibited esoteric or shallow pleasantness of some other productions of this genre. Current music trends are implemented and put up against the medieval world in tough comparison, without losing sight of the zeitgeist: ”Helium Vola” has much more than just hit material to offer and even allows for contrasts and abrupt changes in style: soft ballads are on equal terms with experimental, futuristic sound spectacles, somber conjurations compete with tender and charmingly beautiful minnesongs, the digital and analog worlds intertwine. ”Helium”, the light and flighty (“Les habitants du soleil“), stands symbolically next to the claustrophobic and catastrophic. Contrasts which shed new light on things.

The lyrics on the ”Helium-Vola” album are based on medieval lyric poetry in the Provençal, Old and Middle High German, French, and Latin languages. - A conceptional background story is formed by a poem from Michel Houllebecq (rough translation: ”The inhabitants of the sun look at us with indifference, we definitely belong on the ground (on earth) – and there we will rot, my unattainable love, - never will our mortal bodies become light”) and two short collages about the ”Kursk” tragedy: starting with samples from the funeral services for the relatives of the victims who drowned at sea, including President Putin speaking from his Crimean vacation (”we’ve got everything under control”), later, once again the mother of one of the victims who accused the military of using the young men for cannon fodder. It’s the introduction to a May song (”Selig”) which is a tribute to being young and the zest for life.

The main vocals of the project, which contains a total of five soloists, belong to Sabine Lutzenberger (“Ensemble for early music“ Augsburg, “Huelgas Ensemble“ Belgium, “Mala Punica“ Italy), one of the currently most reputed singers of medieval music. Other instrumentalists on the fiddle, hurdy-gurdy, harp, shawm and turntables contributed to the studio recordings as well.


Two quotes from the press concerning the pre-single release ”Omnis Mundi Creatura“:

For all friends of Qntal and Deine Lakaien, here is finally a fabulous new project from music craftsman Ernst Horn. … The title track begins with lashing loops, echoing sounds and finely programmed, harsh electronic sounds, joined soon after by the fantastic voice of a very successful medieval vocalist, Sabine Lutzenberger. A symbiosis that will send a shiver down your spine. … Only a musician like Ernst knows how to bring the Middle Ages to the present and send it skillfully into the future as well. Orkus

This just confirms what we’ve been preaching for ages: Ernst Horn, this educated classical musician, is one of the driving forces in this music scene. He’s bubbling with ideas and impressions and a thirst for adventure. The fact that he knows how to make such first-class compositions and productions without getting sloppy, losing his concentration or becoming distracted is simply amazing. Notes


References to sources

1) Funerali - 0:55

Symbolic funeral at sea for the victims of the Kursk catastrophe, word fragments from Vladimir Putin

Music: Ernst Horn

2) Les habitants du soleil - 3:39
Lyrics: Michel Houellebecq, Music: Ernst Horn

3) Omnis mundi creatura - 6:04 Lyrics: trad., Music: Ernst Horn

4) Begirlich in dem hertzen min - 4:41
Lyrics: trad. (anonymous), Music: trad., arranged by Wolfram Oettl, Ernst Horn

5. Je chante par couverture - 5:12
Lyrics: trad. (Christine de Pisan), Music: Ernst Horn

6) Gegen einen Teufel - 3:16
Lyrics: trad. (anonymous, „Against a Devil“ - magic spell), Music: Ernst Horn

7) Fama tuba - 4:34
Lyrics: trad. (”Jonasbeichte“ – Carmina Burana), Music: Ernst Horn

8) Lösespruch - 3:13
Lyrics: trad. (”First Merseburg Spell“), Music: Ernst Horn

9) Sancte sator - 5:25
Lyrics: trad. (”A Song About God“ - Carmina Burana), Music: Ernst Horn

10) Du bist min - 5:05
Lyrics: anonymous, Music: Ernst Horn

11) Do tagte ez - 5:03
Lyrics: trad. (Heinrich von Morungen), Music: Ernst Horn

12) Les habitants du soleil (Reprise) - 4:13
Lyrics: Michel Houellebecq, Music: Wolfram Oettl, Ernst Horn

13) luvenes - 1:10

Speech fragments: The mother of one of the ”Kursk” victims accuses the army of using young men for cannon fodder.

Music: Ernst Horn

14) Selig - 8:17
Lyrics: trad. (Gottfried von Neifen), Music: Ernst Horn

Sabine Lutzenberger Vocals
Ernst Horn Keyboards, production

Additional Singers:
Gerlinde Sämann (Solo on: „Du bist min“) Susan Weiland
Andreas Hirtreiter (Solo on: „Do tagte ez“) Tobias Schlierf (Solo on: „Gegen einen Teufel“)

Jan Harrison Fidel, Zink, Schalmei ( ddle, cornett, shawm) Riccardo Del no Drehleier (hurdy-gurdy)
Uschi Laar Harfe (harp)

All titles composed by Ernst Horn, except „Begirlich in dem hertzen min“
(trad., arranged by Wolfram Oettl, Ernst Horn) and „Iuvenes“ (Wolfram Oettl, Ernst Horn)


Track list:
  • Funerali
  • Les habitants du soleil
  • Omnis mundi creatura
  • Begirlich in dem hertzen min
  • Je chante par couverture
  • Gegen einen Teufel
  • Fama tuba
  • Lösespruch
  • Sancte sator
  • Du bist min
  • Do tagte ez
  • Les habitants du soleil (Reprise)
  • Iuvenes
  • Selig
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