Editorial Review:

Amazon.com:
A beautifully packaged three-disc set from the Projekt label, The Trilogy represents some of the best work of Belgian ambient composer Vidna Obmana. The albums--Passage in Beauty, Shadowing in Sorrow, and Ending Mirage--were all recorded between 1990 and 1992 and showcase Obmana's more serene, percussionless compositions. Long stretches of ethereal keyboard wax and wane, overlapping one another in smooth succession. Peaceful echoes of distant chimes weave themselves into the mix, adding a touch of melancholy. It's a perfect blend of goth and new age--relaxing yet darkly contemplative. The Trilogy also serves as a kind of stopping point for Obmana, a transition from the postindustrial soundscapes of 1989's Monument of Empty Colours to the tribal rhythms of 1993's Echoing Delight and his later collaborations with ethno-ambient maestro Steve Roach. Three hours of pure, medicative bliss. --Steve Landau

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Disc 1:

1. Shadowing In Sorrow: One Charming Delight
2. Shadowing In Sorrow: Guarding Souls
3. Shadowing In Sorrow: Of Great Constancy
4. Shadowing In Sorrow: Twirling Motion
5. Shadowing In Sorrow: Murmuring
6. Shadowing In Sorrow: Over Angels Grief
7. Shadowing In Sorrow: Distant Awakening

Disc 2:

1. Ending Mirage: Siren
2. Ending Mirage: Mellow At Heart
3. Ending Mirage: Luxurious Fragment (In Two Parts)
4. Ending Mirage: Ending Mirage
5. Ending Mirage: Monumental Dreaming
6. Ending Mirage: Mellow At Heart (Vocal Reprise)

Disc 3:

1. Passage In Beauty: Awaken In Floating Colours-Composition 1 (Opening)
2. Passage In Beauty: Shaped Like Tears
3. Passage In Beauty: Awaken In Floating Colours-Composition 3
4. Passage In Beauty: Mood In Pearls
5. Passage In Beauty: Bright Fall
6. Passage In Beauty: Forever Grown
7. Passage In Beauty: Awaken In Floating Colours-Composition 4
8. Passage In Beauty: Passage In Beauty

Rating: - Swimming Near a Whale
There are moments in these discs when you will feel like I imagine it must be like to be swimming near a whale in the night time. You know: that feeling (a little scary, a little exhilarating) of being beside something huge, something out of your control and yet something essentially calm. Obmana reaches these heights (or should that be depths?) often enough for me to recommend the music without reservation.

Having said that, the combination of light synthetic drones, found sounds and washes of tone really needs more time to spread out. Most of the tracks included in Trilogy are under ten minutes in length, which is a pity because there are times when the music really seems to have more to say. Still, that's certainly better than being too long!

Steve Roach (who has worked with Obmana on a number of projects) has taken this sort of music much further than these discs go, but hey, why not enjoy both?

An intense, beautiful release.