Listen & tracks

4 of 15 tracks have a preview · 15 works · 53:40

1 Padam Padam Norbert Glanzberg 4:10
2 Revolving Doors Elena Kats-Chernin 3:15
3 La vie en rose Louis Guglielmi 3:56
4 Ave Maria Franz Schubert 4:24
5 Chacoña Juan Aranés 2:38
6 Italian Ground Anonymous 3:59
7 Hanacpachap cussicuinin Anonymous 3:56
8 Dorick Fantasy No. 1 John Bull 3:20
9 She was beautiful Stanley Myers 4:11
10 Muzette I & II Marin Marais 3:25
11 So ell encina John Paul Jones 4:09
12 Bryd one brere Anonymous 3:58
13 Bryd bouree Anonymous 2:02
14 Låt till Far Pers Erik Olsson 3:42
15 Chattanooga Choo Choo Harry Warren 2:35

Superb arrangements of “She was beautiful” (made famous by Cleo Laine), “Chattanooga Choo Choo” and a Swedish folk fiddle tune sit beside earlier repertoire. Each song is coloured by a different mix of viols, violin, lutes, guitars, harp and percussion.

Jennifer Eriksson formed The Marais Project in 2000 to perform the complete works of Marin Marais, the great 17th-century French master of the viol. By the time of this recording the ensemble was more than 80% through that marathon. Along the way she had also pursued inventive side projects with jazz and world musicians.

In the artist’s words

The idea for Lady Sings the Viol comes from a CD of “covers” that singer, rock producer and guitarist Shane O’Mara completed several years ago with Lisa Miller. Listening to their beautifully arranged songs stimulated me to think about a recording of viola da gamba covers. Classically trained musicians do not have the same pressure to compose and play original material as do our rock and jazz colleagues. We get to virtually only play covers.

Accompanying the human voice is one of my favourite activities, so over several months I asked five singers I had worked with to record one or more songs, the arrangements of which highlighted the natural qualities of each vocalist and the viol family. The music we’ve chosen spans from the 1300s (Bryd one brere) to the late 20th century (Kats-Chernin and John Paul Jones). Some of this material we have performed many times in contexts that vary from cabaret to concert halls across rural and urban venues. The backbone of The Marais Project’s repertoire is the viola da gamba composers of the French baroque, a richly ornamented and refined sound world that is still not widely known in Australia. Yet we enjoy our excursions into other genres and have grown to love these songs in their own right.

As I am an instrumentalist it was inevitable that purely instrumental works would creep onto the track list, including my beloved Marais. By any standard the music we present here is eclectic and probably eccentric, but I would not have it any other way. The alternative is predictable and bland and that would be sad!

— Jennifer Eriksson

Reviews

This CD is a joy to listen to, challenging notions of suitable repertoire for period instruments – highly recommended!

— Anthony Linden Jones, Music Forum Magazine

A triumph of arrangement and a showcase of the talents of its participants, Lady Sings the Viol demonstrates what can be achieved if musicians and performers are willing to challenge stereotypes and push the boundaries of their ‘normal’ performance envelope.

An excellent choice for lovers of world music and the quirky, but equally likely to appeal to lovers of fine voices and baroque instruments, singing and playing beautifully.

— Mark Walker, ClassikON website

Artists

The Marais Project

ensemble

The Marais Project is a celebration of music for the viola da gamba inspired by Marin Marais, the great French virtuoso viola da gamba performer and composer. Formed by Jennifer Eriksson in 2000, the ensemble’s original aim was to perform the complete viola da gamba works of Marais – a monumental task which is more than 85% complete.

Elena Kats-Chernin

composer

Elena Kats-Chernin AO (born 1957) is an Australian composer whose piano rags, chamber miniatures, ballet and stage scores have become central to contemporary Australian repertoire.

Marin Marais

composer

Marin Marais (1656–1728) was a French composer and master of the viola da gamba. His five books of Pièces de viole remain the summit of the French baroque viol repertoire.

Pers Erik Olsson

composer

Pers Erik Olsson (1912–1983) was a Swedish folk musician and member of a famous musical family from the province of Dalarna, north west of Stockholm.

Franz Schubert

composer

Franz Schubert (1797–1828) was an Austrian composer of the late Classical and early Romantic eras. In only thirty-one years he left a vast body of work, including over six hundred Lieder, and remains among the most frequently performed composers.

Juan Aranés

composer

Juan Arañés wrote Spanish baroque tonos humanos and villancicos, issued in Rome in 1624 with guitar accompaniment. His four-voice chaconne A la vida bona is the piece still most often heard.

John Bull

composer

John Bull (1562/63–1628) was an English composer, organist and virginalist of the late Renaissance. He was a renowned keyboard performer, and most of his surviving music is for the virginal and organ.

Norbert Glanzberg

composer

Louis Guglielmi

composer

Louiguy wrote the melody for Édith Piaf’s La Vie en rose and the 1950 tune Cerisier rose et pommier blanc, famous in English as Cherry Pink and Apple Blossom White. He also scored nearly three dozen films.

John Paul Jones

composer

Stanley Myers

composer

Harry Warren

composer

Harry Warren (1893–1981) was an American composer and the first major American songwriter to write primarily for film. Over six decades he wrote more than 800 songs, many of which became lasting standards of the Hollywood musical.

Digital booklet

Digital booklet Notes, texts and credits — read online or download the PDF Download the PDF

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$25.00 AUD

Compact disc

Buywell Music Australian Music Centre

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Also available to download from the iTunes Store.

Performers

The Marais Project · ensemble
Jennifer Eriksson · viola da gamba
Megan Cronin · vocals · track 5
Narelle Evans · vocals · tracks 1 and 15
Mara Kiek · vocals, frame drum · tracks 12, 13 and 15
Belinda Montgomery · vocals · tracks 3–5, 11 and 15
Nicole Thomson · vocals · tracks 7 and 9
Imogen Granwal · viola da gamba · tracks 7–9
Shaun Ng · tenor viol · tracks 7–9
Catherine Upex · viola da gamba, treble viol · tracks 1, 3, 5–11
Daniel Yeadon · viola da gamba · tracks 1, 11 and 15
Fiona Ziegler · baroque violin · tracks 1, 2 and 14
Tommie Andersson · theorbo, classical guitar, renaissance guitar · all except tracks 7–9, 12 and 13
Jess Ciampa · percussion · tracks 7 and 15
Alex Cronin · double harp · tracks 5, 6 and 10
Llew Kiek · gittern · tracks 12 and 13

Technical credits

Producer Llew Kiek
Recording Engineer Chris Doherty
Mastering Engineer Andrew Edgson
Venue EMI Studios 301

Details

List price: $25.00 AUD
Total playing time: 53 minutes 40 seconds
Release date: 1 Feb 2013
Categories: Classical, Early music
Genres: Early Music, Baroque, Vocal & Opera
Catalogue: MCD 481
EAN: 9314574048124

More to explore

Exquisite Harmonies

Exquisite Harmonies features works for viola da gamba and harpsichord, and several harpsichord solos, largely from the French Baroque. The exceptions are Telemann, Abel and Australian composer Troy Russell. A nice treat is an improvised harpsichord fantasia in the style of Telemann.