Track Comments To 'the Visit' Lyrics - Loreena Mckennitt

"All Soul's Night" 

This piece was inspired by the imagery of a Japanese 

tradition which celebrate the souls of the 

departed by sending candle-lit lanterns out on 

waterways leading to the ocean, sometimes in 

little boats; along with imagery of the Celtic 

All Souls Night celebrations, at which time huge 

bonfires were lit not only to mark the new year, 

but to warm the souls of the departed. - L.M. 

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"Bonny Portmore" 

The destruction of old growth forests has become an 

important conservation issue in recent years, but it 

is not a new phenomenon. Over the centuries many 

of Ireland's old oak forests were leveled for military 

and shipbuilding purposes. Only recently has there 

been an effort to reestablish these great hardwoods. 

The Great Oak of Portmore stood on the property 

of Portmore Castle on the shore of Lough Beg. - L.M. 

"Greensleeves" 

I always wondered how Tom Waits would 

sing Greensleeves. When preparing my 

previous recording Parallel Dreams, 

while waiting to do something else, we 

accidentally and spontaneously recorded 

this track in one take without ever intending 

to release it. However, here is, Tom. - L.M. 

Photos 

"Tango to Evora" 

This piece was originally conceived and recorded for the National Film 

Board of Canada's The Burning Times, directed by Donna Reid. - L.M. 

"Courtyard Lullaby" 

The photographs which appear in this booklet were 

taken at a 16th century hunting lodge in Portugal, 

where Elisabeth Feryn and I stayed for a week. Within 

the lodge was a courtyard, marked at each corner by 

orange trees. The feel of the place reminded me of 

the Unicorn tapestries which hang in The Cloisters 

in New York City. The tapestries and the lodge are 

both rich with earthy, pre-Christian iconography - 

depicting the mysterious life and death cycle of the 

seasons. It was in this courtyard that this piece was 

conceived. - L.M. 

"The Old Ways" 

I spent a most haunting New Year's Eve in Doolin, 

County Clare, Ireland some years ago, and was moved 

by the antiquity of the some of the celebrations. Yet 

I was met by deep reminders that they may be the 

remnants of the old world meeting the "new". - L.M. 

"Cymbeline" 

Here are William Shakespeare's thoughts 

on this earthly visit. this song occurs 

towards the end of his romance play 

Cymbeline, which was written near the 

end of the author's life. The play is set 

in ancient Britain when the Romans were 

invading the last remaining outpost of 

the old Celtic order. - L.M.