Pot Pourri

Long Time Leaving
Christa Couture
Black Hen Music BHCD0079 (christacouture.com)

With the release of her fourth CD, Edmonton-based, eclectic, roots-inspired chanteuse, pianist and gifted composer Christa Couture has recorded a brilliant career-defining project. Featuring all original music, and described by Couture as a “celebration of ordinary heartache,” she has almost cinematically plumbed the depths of her own inspiring journey (teenage cancer, the unimaginable loss of two children and more) and transmuted those experiences into a pan-relatable, uplifting and delightfully quirky project. Recorded in Nashville and skillfully produced by JUNO-winning guitarist/multi-instrumentalist Steve Dawson, the CD includes members of Blackie and The Rodeo Kings, notably Dawson on pedal steel and electric guitars, John Dymond on bass, Gary Craig on drums and venerable Nashville-based fiddler, Fats Kaplin.

There is no wallowing in self-pity here. In fact, the instrumentation, arrangements, compositions and Couture’s lithe, sheer, roots-influenced vocals all underscore the unconquerable human spirit – and make this recording an appropriate listening choice for almost any mood or activity.

Of special note are The Slaughter, with its haunting, almost childlike, echo-infused vocals and a lyric that ponders breakups with both men and women; Michigan Postscript – a melodic travelling song with a lilting vocal and stunning slide work by Dawson; Zookeeper – replete with fine acoustic piano and heavy surf guitar saturating this insightful and witty ode to couples therapy; and Lovely Like You – a sweet stunner featuring the honeyed tones of fiddler Kaplin. Also memorable is the closing track, Aux Oiseaux – a charming, pristine and deliciously melancholy anthem of survival and the art of learning to embrace life again – no matter what has transpired.

KAMP! Songs and Satire from Theresienstadt
Amelia DeMayo; Curt Buckler; Sergei Dreznin
Analekta AN 2 8789

Sephardic Journey
Cavatina Duo
Cedille CDR 90000 163 (cedillerecords.org)

Sephardic Journey is the result of a 20-year exploration taken by the Cavatina Duo – the husband and wife team of Bosnian-born guitarist, Denis Azabagic, and Spanish-born flutist, Eugenia Moliner – into their Sephardic Jewish heritage. In 1996, Azabagic learned that a great aunt of his was a descendant of Sephardic Jews who left Spain at the end of the 15th century. Later, Moliner discovered her own connection: to avoid being expelled, some Jews living in medieval Spain converted to Christianity, taking on last names according to their vocations; a miller, for example, adopted the name “Moliner.”

From this shared background comes a compelling CD of new works commissioned specifically for the Cavatina Duo, all drawing on traditional Sephardic folk tunes – mostly love songs with their often-dramatic, Ladino (Judeo-Spanish) texts – for inspiration.

The recording is infused with gorgeous, evocative melodies, soulful and plaintive laments, lyrical flights of fancy, sultry twists on the tango, startling percussive passages and an exhilarating energy. Azabagic and Moliner are virtuosic, passionate musicians, deftly accompanied by David Cunliffe on cello, Desirée Ruhstrat, violin, and the Avalon String Quartet.

Joseph V. Willams II’s Isabel is the lone flute and guitar duo on the CD; the remaining four works include trios by Alan Thomas and Carlos Rafael Rivera, and sextets by David Leisner and Clarice Assad. I was particularly struck by the third movement of Leisner’s Love Dreams of the Exile, which juxtaposes a jarring, percussive introduction with a generous, heartachingly beautiful quote from the beloved Ladino ballad, Tu madre cuando te parió (Adio Querida).

I wholeheartedly recommend joining the Cavatina Duo on their journey.

So Long Seven
Neil Hendry; William Lamoureux; Ravi Naimpally; Tim Posgate
Independent SLS001 (solongseven.com)