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Vagues et ombres
Collectif9
Alpha Classics 858
Release: May 2022
Immerse yourself in a world of colours and textures with the music of Claude Debussy and Luna Pearl Woolf in Vagues et ombres (Waves and Shadows). The album includes original arrangements of a set of piano works by Debussy as well as his iconic symphonic work, La mer. A sonic evocation of the underwater world of belugas in the St. Lawrence River estuary, Woolf’s Contact addresses an urgent situation affecting the marine ecosystem in Quebec.
Nuages
Duo Cavatine: Noémie Raymond-Friset, cello; Michel-Alexandre Broekaert, piano
KNS Classical KNS A/121
Release: April 22, 2023
Nuages features a collection of exquisite pieces for cello and piano that showcase the duo’s unique and captivating sound. The French word “nuages” translates to “clouds,” which is a fitting title for the album’s atmospheric pieces which stimulate the imagination and deep reflection. The concept of the album is built around the work Constable’s Clouds by Canadian composer David Jaeger, paired with Francis Poulenc’s colourful sonata and A. Schnittke’s sombre sonata, thoughtfully performed by Duo Cavatine to create a unique and cohesive sound.
How Like a Golden Dream
Duo Oriana: Sinéad White, soprano; Jonathan Stuchbery, lute and theorbo
Leaf Music LM264
Release: March 17, 2023
Darkness, mystery, grief, rest, and quiet: nighttime has inspired people to tell stories since before the written word. This music for voice and lute weaves together many perspectives on the night, from the courts and musical spheres of 17th-century England and Italy, to ancient folk melodies from Ireland and new compositions. Recalling the monastic rites of Vespers and Compline, this program seeks to create a beautiful and sacred space to contemplate the darkness through the lens of ancient music.
James Oswald: Airs for the Seasons
Rezonance Baroque Ensemble
Leaf Music LM266
Release: May 5, 2023
Airs for the Seasons is Rezonance Baroque Ensemble’s rendition of James Oswald’s remarkable two sets of 48 Airs for the Seasons, 96 in total. Each air includes two to four separate movements in different time signatures and tempos. Airs for the Seasons showcases Rezonance Baroque Ensemble at their most delicate and subtle, deftly combining Scottish charm and classical elegance in a languidly metaphorical depiction of the countryside’s seasonal bloom.
Around Baermann
Maryse Legault
Leaf Music LM265
Release: June 2, 2023
Around Baermann sees historic clarinet specialist Maryse Legault spotlight the early 19th-century clarinet virtuoso Heinrich Baermann, who was one of the most important yet overlooked clarinetists in the history of the instrument. Born in Potsdam in 1784, Baermann honed his skills under the tutelage of virtuoso clarinetist Josef Beer, who was a key figure in the development of the clarinet and its repertoire. Around Baermann is Legault’s tribute to Baermann; a giant in his field and one of the more important developers of the clarinet’s style, technique, and repertoire.
Canadian Scenes: New Works for Oboe and Piano
Charles Hamann
Leaf Music LM271
Release: June 9, 2023
This is an album 13 years in the making. Comprising five works commissioned between 2009 and 2022, it is a wide-ranging collection of Canadian vignettes expressed through music. One of oboist Chip Hamann’s goals with this project was to capture a broad array of artistic statements from composers of sometimes vastly different backgrounds, all couched under the umbrella of the Canadian milieu. The composers were prompted with two starting points for their compositions: nature and the pandemic. Each composer’s individual experience with both nature and the pandemic is stamped on their respective compositions, resulting in a multifaceted album featuring a plethora of sound and perspective.
Iridescence
Frédéric Lambert, viola, and Ali Kian Yazdanfar, double bass
Leaf Music LM268
Release: June 23, 2023
Iridescence is the variability in the colour of an object with a change in viewing angle—an optical quality that imparts a magical shimmering to the surface of a soap bubble and fills the feathers of a peacock and the wings of a butterfly with brilliant hues. Yet it also hints at the possibility of deeper understanding with a change in perspective, an idea with a broader implication than its original meaning. The works for viola and double bass permit us to see and hear from a different vantage point: two string instruments, often in the shadows of the violin and cello, yet filled with prismatic possibility and potential. From the slow, angular jig of Fisherstreet Duo to Escenas del Sur, the multi-part lament for the families of 1960s South America under tyrannical rule, Iridescence captures a deluge of emotions and textures, inviting listeners to stretch their perspective in novel and expansive directions.
This page is also available in / Cette page est également disponible en:
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