Cédric Dind-Lavoie - Archives

 

 

I discovered composer and multi-instrumentalist Cédric Dind-Lavoie through the Preserved Sound label in 2018. Amongst their many great ambient and modern classical releases, PS released Cédric's 88. One of the hallmarks of 88 was the closely miked sound ephemera of various instruments, this attention to detail also inhabits the music of Archives.

Released on the Canadian Corne du Brume label, Archives, sees Cédric and guests augment archive recordings of Quebecois folk from the late 40's - 60's. The accompanying music features piano, harmonium, contrabass, guitar, synthesizer, autoharp and ukelele, amongst other instruments. The songs were selected by Cédric through research and connecting with folklorists and ethnomusicologists within the Quebecois musical community - Archives is a work of great dedication. The accompanying music enhances the original recordings with faithfulness and subtlety. I liken it to finding an old framed print with foxed patches, in general disrepair, being reframed, therefore enhancing and increasing its longevity and appreciation for generations to come. 

Much of the music played by Cédric and co has a melancholic gravitas to it, which perhaps, surprisingly, doesn't bring the music down, Le Voyage de M. Larade is a great example of this. The podorhyhmic tapping, and the singing of Benoit Benoit on Benoit loop Benoit, features an instrumental motif that repeats and expands building to a peak, before dissipating briefly and returning for a final flurry - it's a standout track. Examples of podorhythm, a Quebecois traditional musical accompaniment (and means of keeping time?) created through the tapping of the musician's foot, feature throughout the songs on Archive, played by the original artists and Cédric himself. 

Another favourite is Par un dimanche au soir, or, On A Sunday Evening. The archive recording is of 42 year old Mme.Georges Légère, recorded in 1956. Her song relates the story of someone remembering the song of a (beautiful?) bargirl as she collects glasses,bottles and flasks from the tables. Cédric's accompaniment to the plaintive vocal features baritone ukelele to begin, laying a quote, carpet, of pattering, filigree strings before a gentle harmonium drone develops into a gentle peak in company with a brief accordion flurry. This swelling accompaniment, no sooner lending a degree of drama to the song disappears leaving us once more, fleetingly, with Mme. Légère's song. The musical accompaniment by Cédric is beautifully sympathetic.

76 year old Edouard Sanschagrin, recorded in 1946, sings Ami, verse le vin - Friend, Pour the Wine, this archive recording features a smattering of static, enhance the sound palette just so. Initially opening with a haloing harmonium, Cédric, as he does, then develops another sensitive and enhancing musical passage with the entry of a sombre, rich and warm lower register solo piano and contrabass. The contrabass part has an occasional lilting quality, again, signifying a considered approach to sympathetic composition. 

These songs are a few among many, I enjoyed on Archives. If I were an artist, or a folklorist, and I was to be remembered in a manner of such care and dedication, I would be truly honoured. To convey the legacy of musical traditions, potentially lost to the times, with an adept, contemporary flourish, (informed and anchored by these traditions), is a work of great sensitivity.

While this music will undoubtedly appeal to fans of folk traditions, particularly archive recordings, I suggest that fans of Ben McElroy, Peter Broderick and even the likes of Nils Frahm will find this music appealing too.

If you enjoy this, you'll undoubtedly enjoy Archives B-Sides