- Edvard Grieg Norge, Op. 58, No. 2: Til Norge
- Peter Facer Roskilde
- Wilhelm Stenhammar 4 Dikter Av Verner von Heidenstam Op.37, No.1: Jutta kommer till Folkungarna
- Peter Facer The Skagerrak
- Agathe Backer Grøndahl Sange ved Havet, Op.17, No.7: Sildig
- Peter Facer Gudbrandsdalen
- Edvard Grieg Haugtussa, Op.67, No.4: Møte
- Peter Facer Sognefjellet
- Agathe Backer Grøndahl 3 Sange, Op.1, No.3: Til mit Hjertes Dronning
- Peter Facer Hallingdal
- Agathe Backer Grøndahl Mor Synger, Op.52, No.6: Skjærer
- Peter Facer Telemark Forests
- Edvard Grieg 6 Digte af Holger Drachmann, Op.49, No.6: Foraarsregn
- Peter Facer Fredrikstad
- Edvard Grieg Elegiske dikt, Op.59, No.2: På Norges nøgne fjelde
- Peter Facer Strömstad
- Wilhelm Stenhammar Visor och Stämningar, Op.26, No.4: Jungfru Blond och jungfru Brunett
- Peter Facer Göta Canal
- Laura Netzel Säg mig, du lilla fogel
- Peter Facer Norrland
- Helena Munktell Fjerran på enslig stig
- Peter Facer Stockholm
- Wilhelm Stenhammar 5 sånger till dikter af Bo Bergman, Op.20, No.2: Vid fönstret
- Peter Facer Åland Islands
- Jean Sibelius 6 sånger, Op.90, No.1: Norden
- Peter Facer Finnish Forests
- Jean Sibelius 6 sånger, Op.72, No.4: Kaiutar
- Peter Facer Farewell
- Edvard Grieg Haugtussa, Op.67, No.8: Ved Gjætle-Bekken
Letters from Scandinavia
This is a debut album with a difference. Mezzo soprano Joanna Harries weaves together Swedish, Norwegian & Finnish songs with new text, music & soundscape inspired by 19th century travel writing, which was created with composer Peter Facer and recording engineer Bobby Williams.
Joanna writes:
‘Letters from Scandinavia has grown into something between a song recital and an historical audio travel guide, I suppose; a weaving together of music and text as it follows in the footsteps of womenjourneying to nineteenth-century Nordic countries for the first time. The music is drawn from a rich vein of song by composers including Agathe Backer Grøndahl, Edvard Grieg, Helena Munktell, Laura Netzel, Jean Sibelius and Wilhelm Stenhammar, and interwoven between the songs are new texts inspired by colourful and evocative nineteenth-century travel writing. I’ve had the huge pleasure of working with composer Peter Facer to bring these texts to life with new music to underscore the spoken word.
This period is truly a golden age of Scandinavian song, with a repertoire full of (often undeservedly neglected) gems that are hugely rewarding to perform for both singer and pianist. I’m grateful that my fellow traveller is pianist Sholto Kynoch, who first introduced me to Backer Grøndahl’s works a few years ago, and who plays this repertoire so beautifully.
Letters from Scandinavia is above all a love letter to all things Nordic. I very much hope you enjoy it. (Best served with a cinnamon bun…)’
| Reviews | 'Joanna is now a fervent evangelist for Scandinavian song; it really shines through in these performances... vivid storytelling'
'meticulously researched' and 'brilliantly executed'.
– Hannah French, BBC Radio 3 Record Review 'Harries knows how to project with an intimate expressiveness, while Kynoch emphasizes the richness of harmonic colour...The evocative and intimate album is of interest both for its interpretation and for its contribution to culture: it recovers forgotten composers, presents little-recorded repertoire and frames it within a coherent historical narrative.' – Marçal Borotau, Sonograma Magazine 'This is an unusual and enchanting thing – not just an album but an embracing narrative experience…” – Andrew Mellor, Gramophone |
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