Au Coeur de l’Aube

The Québécois trio of fiddler Pascal Gemme, guitarist Yann Falquet and relative newcomer flautist/accordion player Nicholas Willams deliver their eleventh album 21 years after their debut, La Galarneau. French, Irish, Scottish, Breton and Maritime traditions all feed into the culturally rich mix of their music. On Au Coeur de l’Aube (The Heart of Dawn/Dawn Chorus), the 12 tracks are a mix of fiery instrumental pieces and songs like the traditional ‘Ruban Rose’, with its circling melody and part-singing. Across the set, the combined currents of accordion, guitar, violin, voice, flute and foot percussion come together to raise the fire or lull the senses, as on the rousing, mid-tempo surges of melody and rhythm on ‘Old Yamaska’. The dawn chorus of the title spreads its wings across this album with its focus on things avian, its songs and tunes acting as a perch for a multitude of flying things – with songs about the lark, at home among seafarers as much as it is among lovers in the fields; as well as the blackbird, quail and partridge. Beautiful enough to charm the birds from the trees is traditional tune ‘Cardeuse et Lachance’, also warm enough to melt the winter snows even of Québec.