ECCLESIASTES The Song of Solomon

The language of the King James Bible has a special weight and dignity. George Vafiadis brings an appropriate seriousness to the task. Each word comes through crisply, and his delivery of Ecclesiastes is fine indeed. Vafiadis captures the cadences of Ecclesiastes, letting its beautiful parallel structures roll from his lips, then pauses to let readers absorb the book's wisdom. However, he delivers Song of Solomon the same way, and he is less successful there. Whether Song of Solomon is discussing passion of the body, as the imagery suggests, or a more spiritual passion, as some interpreters suggest, that core passion must be there, and it isn't in this reading. G.T.B. (c) AudioFile 2003, Portland, Maine [Published: FEB / MAR 03]