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Chants d'Auvergne: Joseph Canteloube

Regular Price: $17.98

Released: November 1, 2002
Product ID: 5224

“How may one again praise la belle Gauvin? There's no room to count the ways, but suffice it to note her vocal opulence has somehow improved on excellence, with her compelling urgency and potent characterization better than ever.” ( Geoff Chapman, The Toronto Star )

Karina Gauvin continues to amaze audiences and critics alike. This CD marks the third occasion that ‘la belle Gauvin’ has recorded for CBC Records and it too will amaze and titillate your aural senses. For this disc, Karina turns to the music of French composer, Marie-Joseph Canteloube de Malaret, or Joseph Canteloube, as he is more commonly called, specifically his Chants d’Auvergne. This collection of folksong arrangements was based upon his passion and love for the Auvergne and its language. Folksongs and popular traditional songs have long fascinated and inspired so-called classical composers, who have used them as the basis for a varied array of original vocal works, including Beethoven, Brahms, Rimsky-Korsakov, Kodaly, Bartók, Britten, Copland, Prokofiev and Shostakovich. But perhaps no composer devoted as much of his life to, and certainly no composer is as celebrated for his folksongs arrangements as Cantaloube.

Canteloube, whose father was from the Auvergne, treated all the songs not only with an obvious affection, but also with a deep respect for the people and music of the mountainous and fiercely independent region. Karina Gauvin has chosen songs from all five volumes of the Chants d’Auvergne which pointedly illustrate the myriad facets and range of expression of Canteloube’s art. They also evoke the major themes of these folksongs; shepherd’s songs that recreate a pastoral setting, songs of love and unrequited love and the joyous labouring songs and dances.

Accompanying Ms. Gauvin on this recording, is the CANADIAN CHAMBER ENSEMBLE as conducted by RAFFI ARMENIAN. Cantaloube’s original scoring for the songs calls for a large orchestra, but in this recording, Maestro Armenian has arranged the music for the 16 members of the CCE. The results are intimate and strikingly beautiful.