Born to a Japanese father and a Polish mother, Yumi Ito is a young jazz vocalist, songwriter and composer based in Basel, Switzerland. As a classically trained pianist, the singer is also an accomplished bandleader who has already performed extensively on the European jazz circuit. Featuring eight new songs composed over a ... [Continue Reading]
voice
Félicia Atkinson: The Flower and the Vessel
When I record voice, I open to pages randomly, whether from books I’ve written or books written by others. I only do one or two takes with voice, picking words from those books like I would to make a spontaneous, wild bouquet of flowers […] I use a lot of cut-ups in that way. Playing with found language allows me to isolate ... [Continue Reading]
Olivier Bogé: When Ghosts Were Young
This is a recording that can be heard as on ode to the innocence of childhood […] that manages to reconnect with the ghosts […] we once were and with which, as adults, we sometimes fleetingly come into contact again. Vincent Bessières - CD liner notes Born in Toulon in the south of France, Olivier Bogé is a young ... [Continue Reading]
The Gloaming: Live at the NCH
Following in the footsteps of The Chieftains, Planxty, the Bothy Band and more recently Altan or Lúnasa, The Gloaming is one of the rare traditional Irish music bands to enjoy a commercial and critical success both a home and abroad while at the same time making a significant impact on the contemporary musical landscape. Since ... [Continue Reading]
Trio Da Kali and Kronos Quartet: Ladilikan
Opening the record, Trio Da Kali’s balafon (a wooden xylophone), bass ngoni (a traditional lute) and vocals clearly transport the listener to West Africa. But the introduction of Kronos Quartet’s classical strings a minute into “Tita” triggers an unexpected yet uplifting musical shift, thus unveiling an extraordinary fusion ... [Continue Reading]
Trio Mediæval & Arve Henriksen: Rímur
Based and formed in Oslo in 1997, Trio Mediæval is a Norwegian/Swedish vocal ensemble whose repertoire features a wide range of medieval music from France, England or Italy, traditional Folk songs and ballads from the Nordic countries as well as contemporary music written for the trio by Gavin Bryars, the New-York-based ... [Continue Reading]