Uplifting New Age
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The bright, major-key, emotionally soaring wing of new age: warm swelling synths, grand piano, orchestral strings and wordless or choral voices building toward hopeful, triumphant climaxes rather than staying flat and beatless. Tempos are gentle but there is often a clear pulse and forward motion, and melodies are memorable and heart-on-sleeve. The intended feeling is inspiration, optimism and emotional release — new age at its most anthemic and life-affirming.
History
Uplifting new age took shape as the genre crossed into adult-contemporary and classical-crossover in the late 1980s and 1990s. Yanni's soaring instrumental anthems, culminating in the multi-platinum Live at the Acropolis (1994), and Enya's luminous multi-tracked productions set the tone, while Norway's Secret Garden and Karl Jenkins's Adiemus brought choral grandeur to the charts. Narada pianist David Lanz's Cristofori's Dream (1988) topped new-age radio with its bright lyricism. The style thrived in inspirational, wedding and gift markets and endures on "beautiful/uplifting instrumental" streaming playlists.
Defining artists
Essential listening
Sources
- AllMusic artist biography: Yanni
- Wikipedia article: Adiemus (song)
- Narada label history