THE FOREST is an orchestral recording in 10 parts.
An unexpected--and to many at the time, off-putting--sidestep from the Brazilian music which had entranced David Byrne for close to a half-decade, 1991's THE FOREST sounds rather like a bid to be seen as a serious composer. Based on the Sumerian epic of Gilgamesh, the earliest known narrative story, THE FOREST is a foray into 19th century Romanticism.
Less a symphony than a tone poem, complete with occasional vocal passages from Byrne and others, THE FOREST combines traditional orchestral arrangements with such relatively odd (for classical-style music) instruments as accordion and zither. Listened to free of the preconceptions aroused by Byrne's other work, THE FOREST is an interesting and occasionally lovely experiment.
