Trio Mediæval tour the US.
The celebrated Norwegian/Swedish vocal group Trio Mediæval is currently out on an extensive tour of the US performing material from their most recent record “Folk Songs.”
Since coming together as a trio in 1997 the three sopranos Anna Maria Friman, Linn Andrea Fuglseth and Torunn Østrem Ossum have enjoyed international success of the utmost kind. In Europe, and not least in America their music -of such depth and beauty that words always seem inadequate- has been embraced by critics and audiences alike. Also in the form of record sales: Their first CD, Words of the Angel (2001) immediately entered The Billboard Top 10 Bestseller list of classical music.
Their latest album, Folk Songs, released by ECM records this year, features the three female voices accompanied by hushed drumming and a Jews harp. The voices are heaven-bound, while the drum and the Jews harp grounded. This creates great energy and also an extensive scope of sonority and emotion.
From ECM’s notes:
Here the singers, “precise and on fire”, in Paul Griffiths’s description, investigate their Scandinavian roots, with a powerful and compelling account of Norwegian folk songs. On several selections they are joined by percussionist Birger Mistereggen, specialist in the rare Norwegian folk-drum tradition. This is a disc that will communicate across categories, to a broad listenership. For the sources that Trio Mediaeval explore here are the same sources that have inspired many Nordic jazz improvisers...
Headlines:
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