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Leaf Music, Frédéric Lambert and Chloé Dumoulin Present Nouveau lyrisme

(Halifax/Kjipuktuk, NS) Leaf Music, violist Frédéric Lambert and pianist Chloé Dumoulin announce the upcoming release of their new recording Nouveau Lyrisme (New Lyricism) (LM300) in digital format. This celebration of the ever-evolving Quebec music contemporary scene is an ode to inner landscapes, murmurs, and brilliant dialogues between viola and piano, with works composed between 1990 and 2025. 

The album opens with Trois poèmes by Jeanne Landry, a work rooted in the Western tonal tradition, flowing with expressive contrasts that mirror the upheavals of the 21st century. Next is Alain Payette’s Romance pour alto et piano, inspired by his time at Les Choralies in Vaison-la-Romaine. Michel Edward’s Sonate pour alto et piano, Op. 37, is a work exploring a lighter, more playful side of his typically serious compositional style. Alto-Neptune by Denis Gougeon, part of his Six thèmes solaires, offers a contemplative and mournful chant, an invitation to gaze into the universe with infinite tenderness. Alejandra Odgers’ Discusión unfolds as a fierce musical argument between viola and piano, shifting between tension and resolution. The album closes with Julie Thériault’s Nocturne boréal, a meditation on the human experience within vast northern landscapes—solitary, awe-inspiring, and deeply introspective.  

Photo credit: Brenden Friesen

Frédéric Lambert received a doctorate in viola performance at McGill University under the direction of Professor André Roy. During his studies, he became a founding member of the award-winning Lloyd Carr-Harris String Quartet. In 2007, Frédéric joined the Molinari Quartet, an ensemble devoted entirely to twentieth- and twenty-first-century string quartet repertoire. The group’s 2016 recording of the complete György Kurtág quartets received the prestigious Echo Klassik award and a Diapason d’Or. First viola of the Orchestre symphonique de Laval and Orchestre Métropolitain violist, Frédéric is regularly invited to appear with ensembles such as Les Violins du Roy, the Société de musique contemporaine du Québec, and the Orchestre symphonique de Montréal. He teaches at the Schulich School of Music of McGill University as well as the Université du Québec à Montréal. He previously released Iridescence on the Leaf Music label in 2023. 

Named one of CBC’s 30 top musicians under 30, pianist Chloé Dumoulin is recognized for her sensitive touch, refined sense of colour, and artistic depth. She holds a double master’s degree in solo and collaborative piano from the Conservatoire de musique de Montréal, where she also specialized in chamber music. In 2023, she was awarded the Leverhulme Arts Scholarship to pursue an Artist Diploma at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama in London under Ronan O’Hora. Founder of the award-winning Quatuor Vatra, she has performed at the Montréal Chamber Music Festival, Maison symphonique, and Bourgie Hall. She has also appeared as a soloist with the Orchestre symphonique de Montréal and the Orchestre Métropolitain. Her performances span Canada, the U.S., Europe, and China, supported by numerous foundations.  

The album was recorded at Domaine Forget from January 6-8, 2025, with assistance from le Conseil des arts et de lettres du Québec. Listen to Nouveau Lyrisme on your favourite streaming platform.  

Leaf Music is an independent recording label based in Halifax, Nova Scotia and Nashville, Tennessee, making and distributing high-quality classical music recordings by artists and composers from across North America. 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. Leaf is also a provider of professional audio and video production, post-production services and integrated music marketing and distribution in Canada.  


(Halifax/Kjipuktuk, N.-É.) Leaf Music, l’altiste Frédéric Lambert et la pianiste Chloé Dumoulin annoncent la sortie imminente de leur nouvel enregistrement intitulé Nouveau Lyrisme (LM300), qui paraîtra en format numérique. Cette célébration de la scène musicale contemporaine québécoise en constante évolution est une ode aux paysages intérieurs et un hommage à ces murmures et brillants dialogues entre alto et piano que nous livre le répertoire choisi, qui se situe entre 1990 et 2025. 

L’album débute avec Trois poèmes de Jeanne Landry, oeuvre ancrée dans la tradition tonale occidentale et débordante de contrastes expressifs qui reflètent les bouleversements du XXIe siècle. Elle est suivie de la Romance pour alto et piano d’Alain Payette, inspirée de son passage aux Choralies de Vaison-la-Romaine. La Sonate pour alto et piano, op. 37 de Michel Edward explore un côté plus léger et ludique du  style de ce compositeur habituellement grave. « Alto-Neptune » de Denis Gougeon, extrait de ses Six thèmes solaires, offre un chant méditatif et mélancolique, une invitation à contempler l’univers avec une infinie tendresse. Discusión d’Alejandra Odgers se déploie comme un débat musical acharné entre alto et piano, oscillant entre tension et résolution. L’album conclut avec Nocturne boréal de Julie Thériault, une méditation sur l’expérience humaine au cœur des vastes paysages nordiques – solitaire, grandiose et profondément introspective. 

Photo credit: Brenden Friesen

Frédéric Lambert a obtenu un doctorat en interprétation de l’alto à l’Université McGill sous la direction du professeur André Roy. Durant ses études, il est devenu membre fondateur du Quatuor à cordes Lloyd Carr-Harris, lauréat de nombreux prix. En 2007, Frédéric s’est joint au Quatuor Molinari, un ensemble entièrement consacré au répertoire du quatuor à cordes des XXe et XXIe siècles. L’enregistrement de l’intégrale des quatuors de György Kurtág, paru en 2016, a reçu le prestigieux prix Echo Klassik et un Diapason d’Or. Premier alto de l’Orchestre symphonique de Laval et altiste de l’Orchestre Métropolitain, Frédéric est régulièrement invité à se produire avec des ensembles tels que Les Violons du Roy, la Société de musique contemporaine du Québec et l’Orchestre symphonique de Montréal. Il enseigne à l’École de musique Schulich de l’Université McGill ainsi qu’à l’Université du Québec à Montréal. Il a précédemment publié Iridescence sur étiquette Leaf Music en 2023. 

Photo credit: Brenden Friesen

Nommée au palmarès de la CBC parmi les « 30 meilleurs musiciens de moins de 30 ans », la pianiste Chloé Dumoulin est reconnue pour sa sensibilité, son sens raffiné des couleurs et sa profondeur artistique. Elle est titulaire d’une double maîtrise en piano solo et en piano d’accompagnement du Conservatoire de musique de Montréal, où elle s’est également spécialisée en musique de chambre. En 2023, elle a reçu la bourse Leverhulme Arts pour poursuivre un diplôme d’artiste à la Guildhall School of Music and Drama de Londres sous la direction de Ronan O’Hora. Fondatrice du Quatuor Vatra, ensemble primé, elle s’est produite au Festival de musique de chambre de Montréal, à la Maison symphonique et à la salle Bourgie. Elle s’est également produite en soliste avec l’Orchestre symphonique de Montréal et l’Orchestre Métropolitain. Ses concerts se déroulent au Canada, aux États-Unis, en Europe et en Chine, avec le soutien de nombreuses fondations. 

L’album a été enregistré au Domaine Forget entre les 6 et 8 janvier 2025, avec le soutien du Conseil des arts et des lettres du Québec. Écoutez Nouveau Lyrisme sur votre plateforme de streaming préférée. 

Leaf Music est une étiquette indépendante, basée à Halifax, en Nouvelle-Écosse, ainsi qu’à Nashville, au Tennessee. Leaf Music produit et distribue des enregistrements de musique classique de haute qualité où figurent des artistes et compositeurs provenant de toute l’Amérique du Nord. Notre catalogue croissant de musiques solo et orchestrale et de musique de chambre est distribué par Naxos of America auprès des plus grands détaillants internationaux de musique et de fournisseurs de téléchargements et services de streaming. Leaf offre également des services professionnels de production audio et vidéo, de postproduction, ainsi que des services intégrés de marketing et de distribution musicale au Canada. 

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MEDIA CONTACT: 

For more information/photos or to arrange interviews, please contact Peggy Walt,  peggy@leaf-music.ca 

(902) 422-5403 (office) or (902) 476-1096 (cell).

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Leaf Music, Tim Brady, and Warhol Dervish String Quartet Present “The Possibility of a New Work for String Quartet.”

(Halifax/Kjipuktuk, NS) Leaf Music, composer Tim Brady and the Warhol Dervish String Quartet announce the upcoming release of their new recording The Possibility of a New Work for String Quartet (LM293) in digital format. 

Composer Tim Brady and the enigmatic Montreal-based Warhol Dervish String Quartet present Tim Brady: String Quartet Nos. 3- 5 – The Possibility of a New Work for String Quartet. Stemming from Brady’s compositional challenge—”so many string quartets have been written, there’s literally nothing left to do with the medium”—these works push the boundaries of the genre, treating composition not as a written score but as an ever-evolving process of music making.   

The album opens with Quartet No. 3, an instruction-based score that invites performers to “compose” their own quartet. Quartet No. 4 unfolds as a slow, meditative work, marked by its sparseness, transparency, and expansive melodic line. Next, Quartet No. 5 is a five-movement piece that challenges the musicians’ rhythmic agility and ensemble acuity, bringing the album to a dynamic close.   

Founded in 2007, the Warhol Dervish (Facebook Page) brings together some of Canada’s most innovative musicians. Known for their adventurous programming, they have performed at major festivals, including the Ottawa Chamber Music Festival, Toronto Summer Music Festival, and Festival International de Lanaudière. Their projects span a wide musical spectrum, from Morton Feldman’s Piano Quintet to collaborations with Lukas Ligeti and Sarah Pagé. Recent highlights include a national tour with Basia Bulat, a five-concert Beethoven series exploring the last five Beethoven string quartets (The Late Quartets), and a Maisons de la culture tour exploring Yiddish music with Socalled. The members are Alexander Read (violin), Chloé Chabanole (violin), Pemi Paull (viola), and Jean-Christophe Lizotte (cello). 

Composer and guitarist Tim Brady has pushed musical boundaries, seamlessly blending classical, jazz, and rock influences. A virtuosic electric guitarist and prolific composer, he has toured internationally as a soloist and with his groups Bradyworks and Instruments of Happiness. His works span operas, symphonies, and concertos, with commissions from major orchestras, including the Orchestre symphonique de Montréal and Symphony Nova Scotia. A recipient of multiple Opus Prizes and a JUNO nominee, his recordings have earned critical acclaim, including praise from The New York Times. His music, defined by rhythmic intensity and bold textures, continues to captivate audiences worldwide.  

The album was recorded in St. Augustin Church in Montreal from February 4 – 7, 2023, with assistance from the Canada Council for the Arts. Listen on your favourite streaming platforms. 

Leaf Music is an independent recording label based in Halifax, Nova Scotia and Nashville, Tennessee, making and distributing high-quality classical music recordings by artists and composers from across North America. 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. Leaf is also a provider of professional audio and video production, post-production services and integrated music marketing and distribution in Canada. 

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MEDIA CONTACT: 

For more information/photos or to arrange interviews, please contact Peggy Walt,  peggy@leaf-music.ca 

(902) 422-5403 (office) or (902) 476-1096 (cell).

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Leaf Music and Bela String Quartet present their latest EP 

(Halifax/Kjipuktuk, NS) Leaf Music and Bela String Quartet announce the March 28 release of their new EP (LM2047). 

Sharing with its release title, Bela String Quartet presents a collection of Nordic folk melodies reimagined through the lens of classical and folk traditions. Inspired by the Danish String Quartet’s celebrated collections Wood Works and Last Leaf, this EP captures the joy, camaraderie, and timeless beauty of traditional Nordic tunes. They recorded three beloved arrangements by the Danish String Quartet: Waltz after Lasse in Lyby, Stædelil, and Sønderho Bridal Trilogy, Pt. 2 at the St. George’s Round Church, a National Historic Site built in 1812.

From left to right: Catherine Little (cello), Anna Wedlock (violin), Carrie VanSlyke (viola), Anthony Rissesco (violin) 

For over a decade, the Bela String Quartet has delighted audiences across Canada’s East Coast. They blend their diverse musical backgrounds to create heartfelt and refined performances. 

Anna Wedlock is a fiddler and violinist. She’s collaborated with many pop and folk artists, including India Gailey, Cassie Josephine, and The Big Country Ramblers. As the leader of the Bela String Quartet, Anna has arranged and performed work with Terra Spencer, Jenn Grant, and Gianna Lauren. She lives in Halifax with her partner and dog.  

Anthony Rissesco is a versatile violin player and teacher who tours regularly with award-winning singer-songwriter Lennie Gallant and with roots-rock band Pogey. As a member of the neo-traditional trio Papilio, Anthony has garnered ECMA and Nova Scotia Music Awards nominations. He is also a member of the popular Halifax band The Gig Dogs. Anthony has played with Symphony Nova Scotia, Anne Murray, and Peggy Seeger. 

Carrie VanSlyke is a classical violist who has performed worldwide, from the Sydney Opera House to Aspen and Banff Music Festivals. A regular with Symphony Nova Scotia since 2014, she has collaborated with Rod Stewart, Nelly Furtado, and Weezer. She relocated to Nashville after over a decade in Nova Scotia. Carrie holds Viola Performance degrees from the College-Conservatory of Music in Cincinnati and McGill University. 

Nova Scotia-born cellist Catherine Little is dedicated to bridging classical music with diverse audiences. She has performed with Nouvel Ensemble Moderne, Symphony Nova Scotia, and the Orquesta Sinfónica Nacional de Colombia. As part of Trio KLM, she engages her audiences by performing arrangements of classical greats, as well as well-loved pop and rock. Catherine’s discography includes two albums with pianist Gregory Myra – the 2022 Nova Scotia Music Award-winning “Taking Five” (2021) and “Light & Dark” (2024). Catherine holds an Honours Bachelor of Music degree from Wilfrid Laurier University (2007) and a Master’s in Music Performance from the Université de Montréal (2010). 

Leaf Music is an independent recording label based in Halifax, Nova Scotia and Nashville, Tennessee, making and distributing high-quality classical music recordings by artists and composers across North America. 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. Leaf is also a provider of professional audio and video production, post-production services and integrated music marketing and distribution in Canada. 

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MEDIA CONTACT: 

For more information/photos or to arrange interviews, please contact Peggy Walt,   

peggy@leaf-music.ca 

(902) 422-5403 (office) or (902) 476-1096 (cell). 

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Leaf Music Distributes Drew Jurecka & Maurice Ravel: String Quartet

“Captivating…breathtaking tour de force… The Venuti String Quartet plays with joie de vivre!” – The Whole Note

(Halifax/Kjipuktuk, NS) Leaf Music and the Venuti String Quartet announce the distribution of their new recording Drew Jurecka & Maurice Ravel: String Quartets (VSQ202401).

Drew Jurecka & Maurice Ravel: String Quartets celebrates Ravel’s 150th birthday but begins with member and co-founder Drew Jurecka’s string quartet, a composition that explores and blends classical and jazz influences. This is followed by Ravel’s only string quartet in F Major, composed during this student years at the Paris Conservatory. The album concludes with The Spider, a collaborative piece at breakneck speed by Jurecka and Jay Danley, paying tribute to Carl Stalling, who wrote music for Looney Toons and Merry Melodies cartoons.

The Venuti String Quartet brings together four of the most in-demand musicians in Toronto’s vibrant music scene (Rebekah Wolkstein and Drew Jurecka, violins; Shannon Knights, viola and Amahl Arulanandam, cello), hailing from esteemed Toronto ensembles including the Canadian Opera Company Orchestra, Payadora Ensemble, Schmaltz & Pepper and VC2. Founded with genre-flexibility in mind, the group is equally at home in recording studios or onstage playing alongside a range of artists in almost any genre (e.g. Alessia Cara, Laila Biali, Jill Barber and her recent release, Encore, Donovan Woods) as they are performing the great classics and original compositions and arrangements. In concert, the Quartet enjoys pairing nonclassical music with works of the great composers, as they have done with their debut album, combining the original composition of Grammy-nominated multi-instrumentalist, producer, arranger and composer Drew Jurecka with one of his great inspirations, the beautiful and dynamic Quartet by Maurice Ravel.

Drew Jurecka’s string quartet was completed over a ten-year period from 2010-2020. An accomplished jazz and classical violinist, Jurecka’s composition explores his diverse musical experiences through the rich vocabulary of the string quartet. Each movement takes its inspiration from a different style of music, seen through the lens of classic string quartet form and composition, including impressionism, jazz improvision and tango techniques. In 1903, Maurice Ravel composed his only string quartet at the age of 28; the work is considered one of the greatest masterworks of the string quartet repertoire.

Leaf Music is an independent recording label based in Halifax, Nova Scotia and Nashville, Tennessee, making 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. Leaf is also a provider of professional audio and video production, post-production services and integrated music marketing and distribution in Canada.

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MEDIA CONTACT: 

For more information/photos or to arrange interviews, please contact Peggy Walt,  peggy@leaf-music.ca 

(902) 422-5403 (office) or (902) 476-1096 (cell).

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Leaf Music Distributes Unbroken: Music from Ukraine

“Music should show how fragile our civilization is with all its power.” – Valentin Silvestrov, composer.

(Halifax/Kjipuktuk, NS) Leaf Music and Ukrainian Canadian violinist Viktoria Grynenko announce the February 28 distribution of the new recording Unbroken:  Music from Ukraine (VG2025).

Unbroken:  Music from Ukraine features works for violin by contemporary Ukrainian composers, including Zoltan Almashi, Boris Loginov, Valentin Silvestrov and Oleg Bezborodko, with a piece by Ukrainian Canadian Anna Pidgorna rounding out the new album. Other musicians on the recording are Roger Admiral (piano), Fabiola Amorim (viola), Amy Nicholson (cello), Vladimir Rufino (violin) and Guillaume Tardif (violin).

Viktoria Grynenko describes the recording (which she produced) as her “reaction to the full-scale war in Ukraine,” and a way to “amplify Ukrainian voices for audiences around the world.” The works are about resilience and the generosity of the Ukrainian spirit. Pidgorna’s score is presented visually inscribed on an antique door with a jagged hole created by a hatchet, in turn inspiring the dramatic conception of the piece and some of the musical gestures. Almashi’s Duo for Two Violins, No.1 is melodious and expressive, a sincere and passionate plea for the end of the war, while Loginov’s sleep during insomnia depicts the shock of February 2022. Silvestrov’s Melodies of the Moments, Cycle I quietly echoes memories of formerly peaceful lives and finally, Bezborodko’s victorious Concert Fantasy on Cossack Beyond the Danube recalls the perseverance of the Ukrainian people.

Viktoria Grynenko is a Ukrainian-born, multifaceted artist based in Edmonton. In addition to violin performance, she focuses on research and educational projects involving rarely performed works for violin. Giving back to her community, she has taught with El Sistema programs across Canada for over a decade. She is currently co-chair for Arts Habitat Edmonton and was a founder of Job Hub Ukraine, a platform assisting Ukrainian refugees with their job searches in Canada. She obtained a D. Mus. from the University of Alberta, exploring relationships between violin and dance performance in her thesis. She previously obtained a Master of Music degree from the University of Ottawa, where her studies were funded by the prestigious KUN scholarship. Her debut album Violin in Movement showcased works related to ballet and dance. She studied with Liudmyla Skorokhod and Leonid Shukhman in Ukraine, and with Oleg Pokhanovski, Yehonatan Berick and Guillaume Tardif in Canada. In this recording, Viktoria performs on a Hermann Janzen violin with a bow by Herbert Wanka.

Unbroken:  Music from Ukraine was recorded in April and May of 2024 at the Edmonton Alberta Convocation Hall, University of Alberta, and was produced with assistance from the Alberta Foundation for the Arts. Listen to Unbroken on your favourite streaming platform.  For more information, please visit: https://viktoriagrynenko.com.

Leaf Music is an independent recording label based in Halifax, Nova Scotia and Nashville, Tennessee, making 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. Leaf is also a provider of professional audio and video production, post-production services and integrated music marketing and distribution in Canada.

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MEDIA CONTACT: 

For more information/photos or to arrange interviews, please contact Peggy Walt,  peggy@leaf-music.ca 

(902) 422-5403 (office) or (902) 476-1096 (cell).

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Leaf Music Distributes “Music for Strings… and Winds” with John Robertson

(Halifax/Kjipuktuk, NS) Leaf Music announces the distribution of new digital release in late September, John Robertson – Music for Strings…And Winds

John Robertson (johnrobertsoncomposer.com) is a New Zealand born Canadian composer of concert music and an Associate Composer of the Canadian Music Centre, whose works have been heard in Canada, the US, Mexico, the UK, and many countries in continental Europe. Also of note, the Sofia Philharmonic performed one of his pieces on their twelve-city tour of China.

His new album (available in digital version only) presents an intriguing blend of his early and mature compositional voice. Music for Strings…and Winds features three distinctive pieces: one for string orchestra, string quartet and harp, another for string sextet and one for six winds and string bass. The music is performed by members of the Budapest Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Anthony Armoré. With a style rooted in extended diatonicism and enriched by memorable melodies, this album offers a fresh and engaging listening experience for both connoisseurs and new listeners.  

Listen to Music for Strings…And Winds on your favourite streaming platforms now! leaf-music.lnk.to/jr2024

About Leaf Music:  Leaf Music is an independent recording label based in Halifax, Nova Scotia, making 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. Leaf is also a provider of professional audio and video production, post-production services and integrated music marketing and distribution in Canada.

We acknowledge that Leaf Music’s work spans many Territories and Treaty areas, and that our home is in Mi’kma’ki, the ancestral and unceded territory of the Mi’kmaq People.

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MEDIA CONTACT: 

For more information/photos or to arrange interviews, please contact Peggy Walt,  peggy@leaf-music.ca (902) 422-5403 (office) or (902) 476-1096 (cell).

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Leaf Music Distributes Light & Dark with Catherine Little & Greg Myra

(Halifax/Kjipuktuk, NS) Leaf Music announces the distribution of a new digital recording, Light & Dark (CG2024) with cellist Catherine Little and pianist Greg Myra.

Light & Dark is an impassioned and energetic interpretation of historic music for modern listeners. Cellist Catherine Little and pianist Gregory Myra’s performance of Mendelssohn’s joyful D major and Shostakovich’s angsty D minor cello sonatas is a storytelling of the wonder and adversities of life. The album is a follow-up to the duo’s 2021 release, Taking Five, which won the 2022 Nova Scotia Music Award for Classical Album of the Year, and was praised by La Scena magazine for “…eloquently balancing graceful repetition and magical moments.” Visit catherlinelittle.com to learn more. 

Listen to Light & Dark wherever you stream your music: https://leaf-music.lnk.to/cg2024

Listen to Taking Five on your favourite streaming platform: https://leaf-music.lnk.to/CL2021b

Leaf Music is an independent recording label based in Halifax, Nova Scotia, making 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. Leaf is also a provider of professional audio and video production, post-production services and integrated music marketing and distribution in Canada.

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MEDIA CONTACT: 

For more information/photos or to arrange interviews, please contact Peggy Walt,  peggy@leaf-music.ca (902) 422-5403 (office) or (902) 476-1096 (cell).

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Leaf Music and Skye Consort with Emma Björling Present “Ode & Ballade”

(Halifax/Kjipuktuk, NS) Leaf Music and trans-Atlantic chamber folk ensemble Skye Consort & Emma Björling announce the launch of Ode & Ballade (LM287), available May 17 in both digital and physical versions. Ode & Ballade by Skye Consort & Emma Björling presents stories of medieval saints and sacred wells, fair maidens outsmarting presumptuous knights, beautiful or boisterous drinking songs, thieves meeting their fate, heartbreaking love songs, groovy dance tunes, and celebrations of the return of Spring. The album combines elements from world music and classical traditions to narrate poems, tales, legends, and sonnets from Sweden, Ireland, Scotland, France and more. 

Skye Consort & Emma Björling (skyeconsort.org) was formed in 1999 to bring an art-music aesthetic to the folk music of different world traditions. The ensemble performs music from Scandinavia, Ireland and the British Isles, French Canada, and tunes of their own devising. They find enchanting stories and melodies, bringing them into the 21st century with worldly chamber-folk settings. The band has performed and toured extensively with various collaborators and released seven full-length albums. In November and December of 2018, in collaboration with Emma Björling, Skye Consort created a new repertoire sourced from Scandinavian, Québecois, and Celtic roots. Skye Consort & Emma Björling won the OPUS award for Best World Music Album 2019.  

Ode & Ballade features Emma Björling (lead voice, percussion), Seán Dagher (lead voice, Irish bouzouki, banjo), Amanda Keesmaat (cello, voice), Alex Kehler (nyckelharpa, violin, voice) and Simon Alexandre (nyckelharpa, violin, voice). 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. 

The album was recorded in July and August of 2023 at Alchemist Studio in Montreal, with recording, editing, and mixing by Stratsimir Dimitrov and Jeremy VanSlyke as Executive Producer. The recording was produced with assistance from the Canada Council for the Arts.

Leaf Music is an independent recording label based in Halifax, Nova Scotia, making 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. Leaf is also a provider of professional audio and video production, post-production services and integrated music marketing and distribution in Canada.

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MEDIA CONTACT: 

For more information/photos or to arrange interviews, please contact Peggy Walt,  peggy@leaf-music.ca (902) 422-5403 (office) or (902) 476-1096 (cell).

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Leaf Music Distributes Six Degrees: Music for Violin and Strings – Mayumi Seiler and friends

(Halifax/Kjipuktuk, NS) Leaf Music announces the distribution of a new digital recording: Six Degrees: Music for Violin and Strings (MS001) by acclaimed Canadian violinist Mayumi Seiler, being released on March 29. Drawing on inspiration from life’s connections and relationships, the violinist is joined by colleagues from her illustrious career’s past and present to produce five works written for violin and strings. Top Canadian string players along with formerly mentored students form the ensemble, while the repertoire is composed by longtime collaborators and composers who inspired them. Six Degrees is a celebration of the relationships that keep us interconnected.  

Joining Mayumi Seiler on this recording are cellist Rachel Mercer, bassist Joe Phillips, violist Ryan Davis, violinists Hee-Soo Yoon and Isabel Lago, as well as harpist Ben Albertson. The recording was produced by Denise Ball with Pouya Hamidi as recording engineer.

Featured composers include Franz Schubert, Montreal-based composer Michael Oesterle, Massenet (Meditation, transcribed for violin, strings and harp), and Métis composer Alyssa Delbaere-Sawchuk, whose A Search for Resonance beautifully melds with the virtuosic elegance of classical elements. Saskatchewan composer Ryan Davis created a duet for violin and viola for the album, Lavender Jump, inspired by the fields of purple flowers in his native province.

Mayumi Seiler (mayumi-seiler.com) is renowned for her exciting performances of concerto, recital, and collaborative works both live and on disc. She has appeared as soloist with major symphonies in international venues such as Carnegie Hall, Concertgebouw, Musikverein, Barbican, Royal Festival Hall, and collaborated with such noted conductors as Kent Nagano, Sir Neville Marriner, Sandor Vegh, Maxim Vengerov, Christopher Hogwood, Hugh Wolff, Peter Oundjian, and Richard Hickox. Among her extensive list of recordings are the Beethoven and Mendelssohn Concertos, the three Haydn Concertos with the City of London Sinfonia and Richard Hickox conducting on the Virgin Classics label, and Stravinsky’s Le Baiser de la Fée with the Hong Kong Philharmonic under David Atherton (Virgin Classics). Her many recordings of chamber music, include works of Schumann, Dohnanyi, Boccherini and Mozart (Hyperion and Capriccio labels.)

While nurturing a busy schedule as a soloist and chamber musician throughout Europe, Japan and the Americas, Ms. Seiler founded Toronto’s Via Salzburg – acclaimed as “One of the best roads to our musical hearts” (Toronto Star). In Via Salzburg she led a string orchestra in regular performances at the Glenn Gould Studio for sold out audiences. Through fourteen seasons she curated programs with internationally renowned artists, combining varied art forms such as dance, pantomime, and painting with music.

An active and passionate teacher, Mayumi Seiler serves on the faculty at The Glenn Gould School in Toronto. She’s held a professorship at the University Mozarteum in Salzburg, given masterclasses worldwide and adjudicated at numerous international violin competitions.

She began her musical upbringing in Osaka, Japan, where she was born of Japanese/German parentage. Wedded to the violin from the age of three, Mayumi received her musical education at the renowned Mozarteum during her formative years in Salzburg. She performs on a JB Guadagnini of 1740.

Listen to Six Degrees wherever you stream your music: https://leaf-music.lnk.to/ms001 

Leaf Music is an independent recording label based in Halifax, Nova Scotia, making 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. Leaf is also a provider of professional audio and video production, post-production services and integrated music marketing and distribution in Canada.

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MEDIA CONTACT: 

For more information/photos or to arrange interviews, please contact Peggy Walt,  peggy@leaf-music.ca (902) 422-5403 (office) or (902) 476-1096 (cell).

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Leaf Music Distribution Presents Emily Carr String Quartet and Portraits

(Halifax/Kjipuktuk, NS) Leaf Music announces the distribution of a new digital recording Portraits from the Emily Carr String Quartet. This new recording is being released on January 26.

Portraits (CD02), by the Emily Carr String Quartet (ECSQ), features works by Tobin Stokes, Jocelyn Morlock, Jared Miller, and Iman Habibi. The album was produced by Karen Wilson and co-produced and engineered by Paul Luchkow. The compositions are inspired by the writing and paintings of Emily Carr, who was herself inspired by the landscape and Indigenous people of the West Coast of Canada. Marion Newman, mezzo-soprano of Kwagiulth and Stó:lō First Nations, joins the Quartet in singing Canoe from Stokes’ Stories from Klee Wyck.  Another movement of this work, Friends, references a version of the 1951 publication of Klee Wyck in which sections of the original story (where Carr described a Parson’s attempt to persuade her to help remove children from their home and send them to residential school) were edited out.

Formed in 2006 by members of the Victoria Symphony, the Emily Carr String Quartet (emilycarrstringquartet.com) has established itself as one of British Columbia’s finest chamber music ensembles, renowned for its passionate and inspiring performances. They’ve participated in residencies at Stanford University and the Banff Centre and collaborated and recorded with artists such as the Lafayette String Quartet, Lorraine Min, Marion Newman, Jamie Parker, and Arthur Rowe. The quartet has been presented by concert events such as the International Society for Contemporary Music’s 2017 World Music Days, Music in the Morning and Music on Main concert series in Vancouver, the Ankara Music Festival in Turkey, Hornby Festival, and the Victoria Summer Music Festival. The ECSQ was featured on CBC radio’s “North by Northwest” and their debut CD Hidden Treasure was nominated for the 2012 Classical Recording of the Year at the Western Canadian Music Awards. Quartet members are Müge Büyükçelen (Violin 1), Cory Balzer (Violin 2), Mieka Michaux (Viola) and Alasdair Money (Cello).

Listen to Portraits wherever you stream your music: https://leaf-music.lnk.to/cd02.

Leaf Music is an independent recording label based in Halifax, Nova Scotia, making 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. Leaf is also a provider of professional audio and video production, post-production services and integrated music marketing and distribution in Canada.

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MEDIA CONTACT:  

For more information/photos or to arrange interviews, please contact Peggy Walt, peggy@leaf-music.ca (902) 422-5403 (office) or (902) 476-1096 (cell).