Helen Rivero and Ian Blake

Helen Rivero and Ian Blake - CD
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cd cover Helen Rivero and Ian Blake
Luminous
$17.99

Australian singer Rivero and multi-instrumentalist Blake have created a unique art-music recording, using, as they say, 'night music, dreams and charms from around the world.' They draw on a dozen cultures, present the songs in as many languages, but this is not a 'trad:arr' project. They are creative, occasionally even avant garde, in their approach to the old songs, and the results are surprising at every turn.

Helen Rivero - vocals and pixiphone
Ian Blake - woodwinds, keyboards, strings
with Peter Kennard (percussion) and Julian Thompson (cello)

Listen:
O Tula (Zulu)
Plum Paum (Finnish)
Gleam (instrumental)

The excellent production is pure and clean, very reminiscent of Blake’s production work on Andrew Cronshaw’s award winning release Ochre from last year. It is a joy just to listen to the sound of this recording, with each vocal and instrument cleanly presented with a “whole” sound … open and clear. The material seems to be a mixture of traditional and composed music from, literally, all over the world. It’s both a tribute to the artistry of the duo that the material works together and that each piece stands up independently of the whole. I wish there was more background about the material provided. In the end, though, this is music that stands on its own. I don’t want to mistakenly make it seem like this is any kind of folkloric work, but if you’re open to a cool jazzy take on tradition from true musical masters, this is a beautiful recording well worth the effort to find.” - Sing Out!

The artists say:
Lullabies serve to sooth us, to comfort us with sweet familiarity and hope for the future, but also to help us deal with our fears. Some of this music can be unsettling in the way of the logic of dreams: images and characters arise briefly before us, and fade and change as we cross the threshold into sleep. For us, this music can reflect states of mind which we experience during waking, sleeping and the places in between. We play with text sound and language through lullabies from around the world, with improvisations vocal, instrumental and computeral.

Full track list:

1. 0 Tula (Zulu)

2. Nani nani (Sephardic)

3. Gleam

4. Rozinkes mit mandlen (Yiddish)

5. Le chat a Jeanette/Cola {French)

6. Pium paum (Finnish)

7. Akh ty nochenka (Russian)

8. Dust

9. Ela ypne (Greek)

10. La rivyer Tanier (Creole)

11. Sofou unga astin min (Icelandic)

12. Naa ska’en liten (Norwegian)

13. Ba ba (Micmac)

14. Flicker

15. Fi la nanae mi bel fiol (Italian)

16. Suo gan (Welsh)

17. Om Tare (Tibetan mantra, melody by Helen)

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