Songbooks – Vol. 1
Ligeti Quartet // Music by Christian Mason and Tanya Tagaq
Out on Friday 9 Oct 2020
Songbooks is a series composed by Christian Mason and inspired by traditional forms of overtone (or throat-singing) from around the world. Performed by Ligeti Quartet, the first album features two projects, taking as their inspirations the Tuvan vocal tradition of Khöömii and the practice of the Tenores in Sardinia.
Overtone, or throat-singing, involves the manipulation of the resonances created in the vocal tract, producing additional overtones above the primary note being sung.
Born out of a long-standing collaboration between Ligeti Quartet and Mason, Songbooks explores the way in which the acoustic properties of the string quartet emulate the human voice through Mason’s use of extended techniques and unique sound-worlds. The result is an album of thrillingly direct and toe-tappingly exciting music which is profoundly influenced by the traditional songs of Tuva and Sardinia.
“Seeing the Tenores sing spontaneously at 2am in the main square of Sant'Anna Arresi after we had shared a concert is forever etched in our memories. Songbooks has seen us 'grow' as a quartet, and now represents our ethos – fitting for our debut album in our 10th year together!” – Ligeti Quartet
Check out the music video for ‘Dyngylday’ , animation by Dan W Jacobs.
Meet the artists
Ligeti Quartet
Mandhira de Saram – violin 1 Patrick Dawkins – violin 2 Richard Jones – viola Val Welbanks – cello
The Ligeti Quartet has established a reputation as one of the UK’s leading ensembles, breaking new ground through innovative programming, supporting emerging composers and taking new music to diverse audiences. 2020 marks 10 years since their formation, and this is their debut album on the nonclassical label.
Christian Mason
British composer Christian Mason’s most recent premieres encompass works commissioned by the Arditti Quartet, Ensemble Recherche, Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra, and Philharmonia/Music of Today. Future projects include collaborations with Birmingham Contemporary Music Group and Neue Vocalsolisten Stuttgart (setting TREE by Paul Griffiths), Konzerthausorchester Berlin and Christoph Eschenbach, and further Songbooks for Ligeti Quartet. Christian will be composer-in-residence with Orchestre d’Auvergne (2020 - 22).
In 2015 Christian Mason was awarded an Ernst von Siemens Musikstiftung Composer Prize, and has held residencies at Civitella Ranieri, the Internationales Künstlerhaus Villa Concordia, and SWR Experimental Studio in Freiburg. A keen exponent of the theremin, he is also a founding co-Artistic Director of the Octandre Ensemble. His works are published by Breitkopf & Härtel.
Tanya Tagaq
Tanya Tagaq is an improvisational singer, composer and bestselling novelist from Iqaluktuutiaq (Cambridge Bay) in Nunavut. A member of the Order of Canada, Polaris Music Prize and JUNO Award winner, Giller Prize Long Listed author and recipient of multiple honorary doctorates, Tagaq is one of the country’s most original and celebrated artists. Her work also includes numerous collaborations, original avant-garde classical compositions (Kronos Quartet, The Toronto Symphony Orchestra), commissions and more.
Tracklisting
1. Sai Ma (Racing Horses)
Tuvan Songbook
2. Dyngylday (Good-for-nothing)
3. Eki Attar (The Best Steeds)
4. Kuda Yry (Wedding Song)
5. Ezir-Kara (‘Black Eagle’)
Sardinian Songbook
6. S'iscravamentu (Deposition of Christ)
7. Ballate a Ballu Tundu (Dance a Circle Dance)
8. Satiras (Satire)
9. Muttos (Motets)
10. Sivunittinni (The Future Ones) by Tanya Tagaq
Recorded 25-28 August 2018 at Lightship 95 (Soup Studio), London
Producer – Leo Abrahams
Engineers – Giles Barrett and David Holmes
Production assistant – Tom Green
Tuvan Songbook was commissioned thanks to the generous support of the Britten-Pears Foundation, the RVW Trust, and St John’s Smith Square and was premiered at St John’s Smith Square on 10 May 2016. Tuvan Songbookwas shortlisted for a British Composer Award in 2017.
Sardinian Songbookwas commissioned with the generous support of the Britten-Pears Foundation and the City Music Foundation, receiving its premiere performance on 24 April 2018 at Firth Hall, University of Sheffield.