Editing The Memory of Trees (section)

==Recording and production==
After travelling worldwide since late 1991 to promote her previous album ''[[Shepherd Moons]]'' (1991), and working for the soundtrack to the romantic adventure drama film ''[[Far and Away]]'' (1992), the 31-year-old Enya took a break from music that lasted for approximately one year. She spent most of the time with her family, trying "to unwind", and visiting different places around the world to provide further inspiration for her songwriting.<ref>{{cite interview|url=http://enyabookofdays.com/articles/tmot-1.htm|last=Brennan|first=Enya|subject-link=Enya|interviewer=[[Eamonn Holmes]]|title=An Interview with Enya|work=[[List of GMTV programmes#GMTV|GMTV]]|publisher=[[ITV (TV network)|ITV]]|location=London|date=17 November 1995}}</ref> She returned to work in 1993 when she felt it was the right time to start writing and recording a new studio album with her longtime recording partners, arranger and producer [[Nicky Ryan]] and his wife, lyricist [[Roma Ryan]].<ref name=KSCA1996/><ref name=gavin1996/> Enya received further soundtrack offers during the recording of ''The Memory of Trees'', but turned them down as she wished to concentrate solely on the album.<ref name=gavin1996/>

[[File:Maxfield Parrish - The Young King of the Black Isles (1906).jpg|thumb|right|upright|The album's cover is based on ''The Young King of the Black Isles'' (1906) by [[Maxfield Parrish]].]]
During Enya's break from music, the Ryans moved home from [[Artane, Dublin|Artane]], a northern suburb of [[Dublin]], to [[Killiney]], [[County Dublin]], which involved the relocation of Aigle Studio, their home recording facility where Enya had recorded her previous three albums, ''[[Enya (album)|Enya]]'' (1987), ''[[Watermark (Enya album)|Watermark]]'' (1988), and ''Shepherd Moons''. Prior to the move, Enya and Nicky would start to record in Artane but were required to finish albums in London as Aigle lacked the right equipment to do so, which Enya found difficult as working in the city was met with frequent distractions and high studio rental costs, compared to the "very intimate and personal" setting at home.<ref name=gavin1996/><ref name=latimes1996/> Aigle was rebuilt as a separate building on the grounds and upgraded with new equipment designed and built according to their specifications, thus making ''The Memory of Trees'' Enya's first to be recorded entirely in Ireland.<ref name=gavin1996/> She described the two-storey studio: "It's very peaceful and quiet. Upstairs we have this long room with two big arc windows at either end with a piano looking out over the [[Wicklow Mountains]]".<ref name=gavin1996>{{Cite journal|url=http://www.enyabookofdays.com/articles/tmot-22.htm|title=Enya & the Memory of Trees|first=Keith|last=Zimmerman|date=25 January 1996|journal=Gavin|issue=2089|accessdate=22 June 2016}}</ref>

Enya's pace and hours of working in the studio increased during the last eight months of recording, waking up at seven or eight in the morning and working until late in order to "give as much as I could" on the album. Enya later said she "gave 100 per cent" on it.<ref name=irishtimes1995/> When recording finished the album was mastered by Arun Chakraverty, who had also worked on the 1992 reissue of ''Enya'', ''The Celts''.<ref name=promotionalbox/><ref name=theceltssleeve>{{cite AV media notes|title=The Celts|others=Enya|year=1992|publisher=Warner Music|id=4509-91167-2}}</ref> Nicky was pleased to have the album complete due to the length of time it took to record. He reasoned this down to the three being "the worst enemies in deciding when a piece is finished ... listener fatigue sets in and we're unable to judge whether the work's ready."<ref name=latimes1996/>

The album's sleeve design was arranged to a layout by Sooky Choi who, like Chakraverty, had worked on ''The Celts''.<ref name=promotionalbox/><ref name=theceltssleeve/> Its front is an adaptation of ''The Young King of the Black Isles'', a painting by American artist [[Maxfield Parrish]] from 1906, itself based on the story of the same name from the collection of folktales, ''[[One Thousand and One Nights]]''.<ref>{{cite AV media|url=http://live.huffingtonpost.com/r/segment/enya-dark-sky-island-album-interview/56b8fef26f753a30670000eb|title=Singer-Songwriter Enya|date=14 March 2016|publisher=HuffPost Live|time=21:25–21:48|accessdate=21 March 2016}}</ref> Enya is depicted as the crying young king sitting on his throne in a costume designed by English fashion designer [[Elizabeth Emanuel]].<ref name=promotionalbox/> Live action footage of Enya in the costume and pose is used in the music video to "[[Anywhere Is]]".<ref name=verybest2009>{{cite AV media notes|url=https://www.discogs.com/Enya-The-Memory-Of-Trees/release/5924388|title=The Very Best of Enya – Limited Edition|publisher=Warner Music|id=825646850051|date=2009}}</ref>