Secret garden

Secret Garden is an award-winning Irish—Norwegian duo playing new instrumental music, also sometimes erroneously known asNeo-classical music. Secret Garden features the Irish violinist Fionnuala Sherry and the Norwegian composer/pianist Rolf Løvland.

The duo has sold over 3 million albums and won the Eurovision Song Contest for Norway's second time in 1995, with the composition «Nocturne». It was the first and only time to date that a predominantly instrumental piece has won the Eurovision Song Contest, although a few Norwegian lyrics, written by screenwriter Petter Skavlan, were included to ensure that the entry adhered to the contest's rules. Norwegian singer Gunnhild Tvinnereim sang the song in the Eurovision Song Contest and Swedish nyckelharpist Åsa Jinder also guested on the occasion, although neither are regular members of the group. Ten years earlier, Rolf Løvland also co-wrote the song «La det swinge» (Let it swing) that secured Norway its first Eurovision Song Contest victory in 1985.

History

Songs from a Secret Garden

Their success at Eurovision spearheaded the success of their first album Songs from a Secret Garden. It sold a million copies around the world going platinum in Norway and Korea, gold in Ireland, Hong Kong and New Zealand and spending two years in the BillboardNew Age charts in 1996 and 1997. Barbra Streisand adapted "Heartstrings" from this album as the song «I've Dreamed of You» on herA Love Like Ours album. She also used «Heartstrings» in her wedding to James Brolin.

[edit]White Stones

The album White Stones followed in 1997 also making the top ten on Billboard New Age charts. Dawn of a New Century, again with lyrics by Norway's Petter Skavlan, in 1999,Dreamcatcher in 2001 and Once in a Red Moon also enjoyed success around the world including reaching top ten on the Billboard.

Their most famous song "You Raise Me Up", performed by Brian Kennedy, has been recorded by more than a hundred other artists including Josh Groban, Russell Watson,Westlife, Sissel Kyrkjebø, Becky Taylor, Celtic Woman, Lena Park, Robert Tremlett, Il Divo, Rhydian, and Sergio Dalma.

Secret Garden has released a Dreamcatcher: Best Of album for its tour through Australia and New Zealand in 2004. It reached the top of the Australian New Age charts and the ARIA top 50 album charts.

Their piece "Adagio", with a cor anglais solo, was used in the Wong Kar-wai film 2046 released in 2004.[3]

In 2010, Fionnuala Sherry released her solo debut entitled Songs From Before.

Discography

Studio albums

•           Songs from a Secret Garden (1996)

•           White Stones (1997)

•           Dawn of a New Century (1999)

•           Once in a Red Moon (2002)

•           Earthsongs (2005)

•           Inside I'm Singing (2007)

•           Winter Poem (2011)[4][5]

Compilation albums

•           Fairytales - Higlights from Secret Garden (1998)

•           Dreamcatcher: Best of Secret Garden (2001)

•           The Ultimate Secret Garden (2004, Asia)

•           Dreamcatcher: Best of Secret Garden, Australian tour edition) (2004, Australia) 

                                                 secret garden songs from a secret garden

  

                                                            secret garden white stones

                                                      secret garden dawn of a new century

                                                         secret garde oncen in a red moon

                                                             secret garden earthsongs

 

 secret garden inside i'm singing

 

secret garden white poem