Leaf Music

Recurrence

Recurrence is an album that explores repetition through five bold and probing new compositions by Canadian composers. Repetition ripples through every aspect of the universe—in physics, psychology, philosophy, economics—and it evokes curiosity, perplexity, and awe. Each composer on this album was tasked to dig deep into an aspect of repetition and find ways to express its manifestations musically. Some took to ecology, some to politics, and others to mathematics. The result is five exceptional artistic works, each unique in its aesthetics and sonic landscape, which internalize the very notion of repetition in their forms and overall structures. The composer collective and art organization ICOT, now twelve years old, came up with the idea of exploring repetition in the human experience right at the beginning of the pandemic, when it seemed like the ever-moving rhythm of life had come to a halt. Almost serendipitously, every aspect of the project came together quickly. Two of Canada’s top composers, Nicole Lizée and Jordan Nobles, agreed to contribute their compositions to the album, members of the ICOT chamber orchestra were assembled, the New Orford String Quartet came on board, and from there one esteemed musician after another joined the impressive roster of this project. For this recording, the ICOT chamber orchestra is made up of a string quintet, flute, clarinet, bass clarinet, upright and electric bass, piano, and two percussion players. Album Booklet [funder_logos]

Ispiciwin

Ispiciwin, meaning “Journey,” embarks on an unprecedented musical exploration, bridging cultures and perspectives. Winnipeg and Cree composer Andrew Balfour describes it as a dream collaboration, one that deepens the understanding of truth and storytelling from an Indigenous standpoint. With the powerful voices of Luminous Voices, alongside artists Jessica McMann and Walter MacDonald White Bear, Ispiciwin is an evocative testament to the transformative power of music and a small, but important step toward reconciliation. Luminous Voices, Calgary’s professional chamber choir, was founded in 2012 by conductor and Artistic Director Timothy Shantz. Uniting local, national, and international artists and organizations to illuminate choral music of the past and present, spanning cultures and traditions, we engage audiences in Calgary and beyond through exceptional sonic experiences encompassing live and virtual performances, recordings, workshops, new commissions by contemporary composers, and community education and development. Luminous Voices comprises some of the best ensemble singers in the Calgary area, collaborating with singers and musicians from across North America. Album Booklet

Ovation

Ovation: Celebrating Everyday Heroes is a large-scale multimedia project whose various components include a newly commissioned work by emerging Canadian composer Jaelem Bhate eponymously titled Ovation. Along with excerpts from Manuel de Falla’s Three-Cornered Hat, Ovation is performed on this recording by Tutta Musica Orchestra (TMO), an initiative of the New Brunswick Youth Orchestra (NBYO), conducted by Antonio Delgado. The project celebrates the courage, resilience and sense of community shown during the COVID–19 pandemic. Its aim is to bring live music back to New Brunswickers after the lifting of public gathering restrictions. Ovation’s three appropriately titled movements, “Courage,” “Resilience” and “Community” are mirrored in a video montage in three identically titled parts, viewed simultaneously with the music during live performances across the province. An additional montage as well as a live filming of NB artist Nate Guimond creating a work of art were also featured. The final product includes video inserts of TMO playing live at the Imperial Theatre in Saint John, New Brunswick, with audio recorded by Leaf Music at Convocation Hall, Mount Allison University, in January 2023. In total, there were 6 live performances of Ovation across New Brunswick. Integral to the performances are the pandemic stories of “everyday heroes” curated by Moncton poet laureates Jean-Philippe Raiche and Kayla Geitzler and presented live by francophone and anglophone local artists and prominent New Brunswickers. The readings captured francophone, anglophone, First Nations and new Canadians’ experiences. Additional writings were composed by dramatist Marshall Button. Album Booklet

Kevin Lau: Under a Veil of Stars

Step into a realm where intimacy and cosmic grandeur intertwine, where the universal finds its voice within the particular. The St. John – Mercer – Park Trio proudly presents Kevin Lau: Under A Veil of Stars, an extraordinary album that delves into the depths of musical expression and transcends the boundaries of the ordinary. Embark on a journey that celebrates the sacred energy of music itself, as it takes you through realms of escapism, surreality, and temporality. Under A Veil of Stars invites you to explore the spectrum of human emotions and experiences. Across nine captivating tracks, each brimming with its own distinct mood and theme, you are invited to interpret their profound meaning through the prism of your own unique perspective. Yet, the pinnacle of this musical odyssey lies in the album’s centerpiece—a magnum opus comprised of three movements, aptly titled “Under a Veil of Stars.” In this awe-inspiring composition, Lau weaves a tapestry that chronicles life’s three overarching stages—childhood, adulthood, and old age. Album Booklet

Chinatown

Step into the evocative world of 'Chinatown,' an extraordinary opera that weaves the gripping narratives of early Chinese newcomers in search of a brighter future. This groundbreaking production, blending Hoisanese and English, pays homage to their resilience and the challenges they faced. Composed by Alice Ping Yee Ho, with librettist Madeleine Thien and translator Paul Yee, 'Chinatown' is a moving musical journey through history. Experience the power of their stories in this heartfelt opera. Album Booklet

Wanderlust

Wanderlust is a collection of folk-inspired pieces that trace their heritage back through several global folk music traditions. Conceived in the heart of the pandemic, Flutist Lara Deutsch and guitarist Adam Cicchillitti have compiled seven luscious pieces, each naturally suited to the flute and guitar, to transport the listener on a survey of folk-inspired tunes. Join flautist Lara Deutsch and guitarist Adam Cicchillitti as they explore classical music through the lens of folk traditions from around the world. From the coasts of Japan to Newfoundland’s Celtic roots, Wanderlust stokes the fires of far-flung adventure that reside in all of us. Album Booklet

Lovers and Mourners: Variations and Sonatas from 17th-Century Germany

Lovers and Mourners: Variations and Sonatas from 17th-century Germany, offers a comprehensive glimpse into the lives of virtuoso composer-performers Johann Jakob Walther, Heinrich Biber, and Johann Georg Pisendel. The Composers featured on Lovers and Mourners drew upon the “stylus phantasticus,” a 17th-century Italian idiom whose features were marked by jagged shifts of affect and intended to display the player’s technical command and expressive abilities. Violinist Dorian Komanoff Bandy nimbly guides the listener through a labyrinth of variation sets and themes, simultaneously reproducing faithful interpretations of the music while injecting his own unique touch. Lovers and Mourners boasts a brief, yet intense survey of one of the richest chapters in the history of the virtuoso composer-performer. Album Booklet

Iridescence

Iridescence is the variability in the colour of an object with a change in viewing angle, an optical quality that imparts a magical shimmering to the surface of a soap bubble and fills the feathers of a peacock and the wings of a butterfly with brilliant hues. The works for viola and double bass in Iridescence permit us to see and hear from a different vantage point: two string instruments, often in the shadows of the violin and cello, yet filled with prismatic possibility and potential. Album Booklet

Canadian Scenes

Canadian Scenes: New Works for Oboe and Piano is an album 13 years in the making. Comprising five works commissioned between 2009 and 2022, it is a wide-ranging collection of Canadian vignettes expressed through music. One of Oboist Chip Hamann’s goals with this project was to capture a broad array of artistic statements from composers of sometimes vastly different backgrounds, all couched under the umbrella of the Canadian milieu. The composers were prompted with two starting points for their compositions. The first prompt, nature, was intended to serve as a call for the composers to meditate on the role nature plays in their life. The second turned out to be the pandemic, which casts the compositions into a different light. Each composer’s individual experience with both nature and the pandemic is stamped on their respective compositions, resulting in a multi-faceted album featuring a plethora of sound and perspective. Album Booklet

Around Baermann

Around Baermann sees historic clarinet specialist Maryse Legault spotlight the early 19th century clarinet virtuoso Heinrich Baermann, who was one of the most important yet overlooked clarinetists in the history of the instrument. Born in Potsdam in 1784, Heinrich Baermann honed his skills under the tutelage of virtuoso clarinetist Josef Beer, who was a key figure in the development of the clarinet and its repertoire. B Baermann went on to tour extensively and significantly impacted the clarinet’s role in classical music, particularly in France. Around Baermann is Legault’s tribute to Baermann; a giant in his field and one of the more important developers of the clarinet’s style, technique, and repertoire. Album Booklet

Leaf Music is an independent recording label based in Halifax, Nova Scotia, that specializes in producing and distributing high-quality classical music recordings by artists and composers from across Canada. Our growing catalogue of solo, orchestral, and chamber music is distributed by Naxos of America to the world’s most important music retailers, download providers, and streaming services. We are also a leading provider of professional audio and video production, post-production services, and integrated music marketing and distribution in Canada.

We offer a comprehensive range of audio and video production services, including live concert, studio, and location recording, as well as editing, mastering, and audio restoration. We also offer professional video production and post-production services, which include capturing footage, video editing, colour grading and closed-captioning. Our Integrated music marketing and distribution services are designed to help our clients promote and sell their music through effective marketing campaigns and distribution plans.

Our team is composed of experienced professionals with a passion for classical music and a commitment to delivering high-quality results. We are dedicated to working closely with our clients to understand their needs and exceed their expectations. Our services aim to provide a complete package of audio and video production, post-production, music distribution and marketing support to help our clients succeed in the music industry. Contact us for more information about our services and team.

Headphones with score

Leaf Music est une maison de disques indépendante dont le siège se trouve à Halifax, en Nouvelle-Écosse. Elle se spécialise dans la production et la diffusion d’enregistrements de musique classique de grande qualité réalisés par des artistes et des compositeurs des différentes régions du Canada. Notre catalogue de plus en plus diversifié comprend des enregistrements de solistes, d’ensembles de musique de chambre et d’orchestres. Sa distribution est assurée par l’entreprise Naxos of America et nos disques se retrouvent ainsi chez les grands détaillants dans le monde et sur les plateformes numériques de diffusion en continu à la demande et de vente en téléchargement. Notre maison est également un chef de file des services professionnels de production d’enregistrements audio et vidéo et de postproduction et des services intégrés de distribution et de marketing d’œuvres musicales au Canada.

Nous offrons un éventail complet de services de production d’enregistrements audio et vidéo, avec notamment des services d’enregistrement de spectacles, d’enregistrement en studio et d’enregistrement dans des locaux choisis, ainsi que des services de montage et de matriçage et des services de restauration d’enregistrements audio. Par ailleurs, nous offrons des services professionnels de production et de postproduction d’enregistrements vidéo : tournage, montage, étalonnage colorimétrique et sous-titrage. Nos services intégrés de distribution et de marketing d’œuvres musicales sont conçus en vue d’aider nos clients à assurer la promotion et la vente de leur musique, au moyen de campagnes de marketing et de plans de distribution efficaces.

Notre équipe se compose de spécialistes professionnels expérimentés qui se passionnent pour la musique classique et qui sont attachés à l’offre de services de grande qualité. Nous nous efforçons de travailler en collaboration étroite avec nos clients afin de bien comprendre leurs besoins et d’aller au-delà de leurs attentes. Notre approche se fixe pour objectif d’offrir un ensemble complet de services de production audio et vidéo, de postproduction, de distribution et de marketing de la musique, afin d’aider nos clients à connaître la réussite dans l’industrie de la musique. N’hésitez pas à communiquer avec nous pour vous informer sur notre équipe et nos services.

Infusion Baroque In Session

Infusion Baroque, Mirabel, Québec

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