Venus Rising

Album review

It’s the story of a friendship: the one that unites French-Canadian singer Kyrie Kristmanson and the percussionists of the Trio SR9: Alexandre Esperet, Nicolas Cousin, and Paul Changariner. After a few isolated collaborations revolving around the melodies of Fauré, whose beautiful “Les Berceaux” appeared on a previous SR9 album, Ravel Influence(s), the four musicians were itching to record an album together. It’s also the story of the unfortunate centuries-old erasure of female composers. All too often remembered as “spouse, sister, or daughter of,” the examples abound: Fanny Hensel, Clara Schumann, Anna Maria Mozart… “I would venture to guess that Anon, who wrote so many poems without signing them, was often a woman,” Virginia Woolf once said, as journalist Aliette de Laleu cites in the accompanying liner notes. Ultimately, it’s the story of a rehabilitation spanning centuries and repertoires: from Barbara Strozzi to Lili Boulanger; or Hildegarde von Bingen and Harriet Abrams. With Venus Rising, we are granted 12 vibrant and powerful melodies, which resurrect these women’s creations, including their highly sensitive lyrics touching upon timeless, universal topics: the absence of a loved one (“Hai Luli” - Pauline Viardot), the mysteries of the night (“June Twilight” - Rebecca Clark), the inability to express oneself (“Talk” - Kyrie Kristmanson)... Yet above all, it’s the story of musical craftsmanship, and, at its core, it’s an immense and magnificent esthetic shock. With their ramshackle instrumentation based on a prepared piano, clashing strings, and glasses of water tuned to specific keys, the unpredictable boys of the Trio SR9 and Kyrie Kristmanson, with her bewitching, feline voice, take us on a journey to a faraway land from which we never want to return. It’s true that some may find it grating and bothersome. It's also true that Grégoire Letouvet’s sophisticated arrangements may throw some people off, but what is undeniably present is a true freedom of voice, creating music that is fully alive and perfectly suited to the present time. © Pierre Lamy/Qobuz