Skye Consort & Emma Björling
WHEN
Thursday October 8 • 7:00 PM
WHERE
Chandler Center for the Arts, 71 N Main Street, Randolph, Vermont 05060
TICKETS
Pay What You Can $20-$40, Students $10, 12 & Under Free
MORE INFO
2025 New World Festival Favorites return to Chandler for a special fall program:
Skye Consort & Emma Björling perform whirling polskas, groovy reels, passionate love songs and breathtaking hymns all found in or inspired by music from Scandinavia, The British Isles, French Canada and the New World. Their trans-Atlantic arrangements and original compositions spring from an extraordinary collaboration consisting of voices, fiddle, nyckelharpa, cello, bouzouki, banjo, and percussion. Each musician brings their individual passion to both traditional practices and inventive music-making.
Skye Consort was formed in 1999, has performed and toured extensively, and has 8 full-length albums. In late 2018, Skye Consort, in collaboration with Emma Björling, created a new repertoire grown from Scandinavian, Québecois and Celtic roots. The recording was released on LEAF Music in May 2019 and is distributed worldwide on Naxos. Their self-titled debut album, Skye Consort & Emma Björling, won the OPUS (QC, Canada) award for best world music album 2020.
The second collaborative recording between Skye Consort and Emma Björling, entitled Ode & Ballade, features Emma Björling (lead voice, percussion), Seán Dagher (lead voice, Irish bouzouki, banjo), Amanda Keesmaat (cello, voice), Simon Alexandre (nyckelharpa, violin,
voice), and Alex Kehler (nyckelharpa, violin, voice) on the album, also composing and arranging. The musicians sing in three languages (Swedish, French, English), and the words “ode” and “ballade” resonate with meaning in all three: poem, song, tale, sonnet, folly, chant, and dance. The music of this album combines elements from world music and classical traditions to offer audiences thoughtful arrangements and creative compositions: a Swedish Polska accompanied by Québec foot percussion and 18th-century Scottish-style chords, a French song with Norwegian-sounding interludes between the verses, a Purcell/Playford-style dance tune with Swedish texts and accompanied on the banjo. About half of the repertoire is original compositions by the members of Skye Consort & Emma Björling and all are original arrangements for this formation.
The touring configuration of the band presents 4 musicians from the Ode & Ballade recording, Sean Dagher, Emma Björling, Amanda Keesmaat and Alex Kehler (on nyckelharpa, fiddle, and voice).
The genre, dubbed "trans-Atlantic Chamber Folk" by Lyra Magazine (Sweden), creates a sound that is unique among folk artists and classical chamber ensembles. Through the group’s love of different folk traditions and baroque styles, they uncover and present many haunting texts and sonic elements from different worlds that take audiences on an unforgettable journey.