We’ve been fans of flutist/singer/composer Nathalie Joachim for ages, but it just so happens that our first collaboration materialized for a project in which she is investigating her Haitian heritage in the most breathtaking way. Through a network of poignant interviews, field recordings, and nimble new arrangements of original songs, Nathalie assembles a mesmerizing sonic exhibition of the (largely) unheralded female singers of Haiti. With her grandmother’s voice as the leaping-off point, Fanm d’Ayiti (“Women of Haiti”) celebrates powerful women – in revolution, on stage, or in the home – blending electronics, recorded sound, a live string quartet (hi!), and Nathalie’s own voice in an irrepressible and captivating melange.
Looking for a way to get acquainted with this project? How about Krista Tippett’s interview with Nathalie on the NPR-syndicated On Being broadcast…
Fanm d’Ayiti is much more than a collection of fantastic tunes. It is a rare peek inside a composer’s sense of place, of self. We’ve had our eyes opened in extraordinary ways by the stories burning bright within this music, and those that manage to get their hands on tickets to this album release show are in for an unforgettable night of deeply personal, and deeply invigorating music.
FROM THE TEXAS PERFORMING ARTS WEBSITE
Nominated for a Grammy Award for Best World Music Album, Fanm d’Ayiti (Women of Haiti) is an evening-length work for voice, flute, string quartet, and electronics created by composer/performer Nathalie Joachim. Fanm d’Ayiti celebrates some of Haiti’s most iconic female artists and explores Joachim’s Haitian heritage. Singing in kreyòl (Haitian Creole), Joachim weaves her own luminous voice with those of her grandmother, a girls choir from her family’s hometown, and interviews with activist women performers who fought for social justice in the world’s first free Black republic. Folk songs blend seamlessly with chamber strings and electronic soundscapes in Joachim’s deft—and highly personal—musical journey.
Spektral Quartet – Clara Lyon, violin; Maeve Feinberg, violin; Dolye Armbrust, viola; Russell Rolen, cello – is known for creating seamless connections across centuries, drawing in the listener with charismatic deliveries, interactive concert formats, an up-close atmosphere, and bold, inquisitive programming.
No more joyous chamber-music collection has arrived this year than Fanm d’Ayiti.
– The New Yorker
PROGRAM
Fanm d’Ayiti (2018) – Nathalie Joachim
VENUE COVID GUIDELINES
Masks are strongly recommended indoors regardless of vaccination status.