Folk Songs

Luciano Berio is probably the most important figure in contemporary Italian music. He composed the cycle Folk Songs in 1964 for his wife, American soprano Cathy Berberian. This remarkable fusion of popular and classical music is a kind of anthology of eleven folk songs of different origins that the composer had found on old records or in printed collections, or heard directly from friends. Albane Carrère and Ensemble21 under the direction of Marc Collet approach these two collections with infinite tenderness and subtle evocative artistry. The mezzo-soprano voice of Albane Carrère makes the connection and travels imperceptibly back and forth between these two worlds.