Beautiful traditional and original tunes from Helen Bell and Ed Pritchard.
Always attracts critical acclaim in the folk and celtic magazines.
Cat. LACR CD 1 £8.49 (inc.p&p)
[more info]
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Audierne [Audio album from Little Acorn] Beautiful traditional and original tunes from Helen Bell and Ed Pritchard. Always attracts critical acclaim in the folk and celtic magazines. Cat. LACR CD 1 £8.49 (inc.p&p) [more info] |
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Track List Click on the 'Play' buttons [  ] for a sample in MP3 formatThese tracks are about 236k each 1. Audierne (Bell) 2. Annie's Farewell (Bell) 3. Desdemona / The Other One (Pritchard / trad. arr. Bell) 4. Dance of the Geeks (Bell) 5. Iffley Lock (Pritchard-Bell) 6. Swedish Dance (trad. arr. Bell) 7. Martin's Dream (Pritchard-Bell) 8. Foxcombe Woods (Bell) 9. Last July (Bell) 10. Temptation Tango (Pritchard) 11. Belladonna (Pritchard) 12. Andro (trad. arr. Clarke, Bell, Pritchard)* 13. Stone Steps / Threeways Rock (Bell) 14. Whitehorse Hill / Godfrey the Amoeba (Bell)
Helen Bell: viola,violin, electric five string violin, whistles, recorder Ed Pritchard: acoustic and electric guitars, bouzouki, mandolin, fretless bass Tim Clarke: melodeon (on track 12) * |
Audierne is produced in association with Larkrise Music. |
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From The Green Man Review www.greenmanreview.com Audierne is a charming record of traditional and contemporary instrumental music with a Celtic flair. Helen Bell plays viola -- an instrument you don't hear every day, much less in Celtic music -- as well as violin, recorder and whistles, with backing from Ed Pritchard on guitars, mandolin and bouzouki. Bell and Pritchard, who also play together in the Morris band Cry Havoc, share the writing credits for all the tracks except for three traditional works. The highlight of this collection of 14 tunes and medleys is the title track, named for a town in Brittany. It must be a lovely town, because this is a truly beautiful little tune that lets the voila's mellow voice shine. Bell plays the viola in a very fluid and graceful manner, with tasteful accents on recorder. Another track that stands out is "Iffley Lock," which juxtaposes a traditional sounding melody on recorder with a jazzy, dissonant guitar accompaniment and unexpected chord changes. Bell also penned "Annie's Farewell" and "Foxcombe Woods," two beguiling airs in waltz time. Audierne isn't all Celtic tunes, though. The addition of several other genres, including the traditional "Swedish Dance," "Temptation Tango," a French dance hall tune titled "Andro" with melodeon by Tim Clarke, and the wild Gypsy-style "Stone Steps" give the record plenty of variety. These disparate elements help overcome a tendency toward New Age stylings and overproduction on a few tracks, particularly "Last July," and "Belladonna." The tunes are generally more interesting when allowed to breathe, rather than multi-tracked with all the instruments at the two musicians' disposal. Things are wrapped up nicely on the final track with a contrasting medley. "Whitehorse Hill," a Celtic-informed air, gives way to the folk rock "Godfrey the Amoeba," a lively jig with Bell on violin, backed by Pritchard banging out jangly chords on the electric guitar. All in all, Audierne is a very pleasing set of tunes, played with wit, heart and class. Fans of contemporary Celtic instrumental music should check it out. You can learn more and listen to samples at the Little Acorn.
Gary Whitehouse - The Green Man Review |
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From Traditional Music Maker www.tradmusic.net Inconspicuous in its arrival, but unforgettable in its departure was Helen Bell's first release, Audierne, and by the sound of it, it deserves not to be her last. In the classic traditional Celtic mould comes wistfully emotive instrumental performances, primarily by the gifted Helen on the viola, violin, electric violin, whistles and recorder with welcome guitar and bass support by Ed Pritchard. With Audierne the listener is undoubtedly lifted into a world powered by the enthusiasm of youth and the skill of age. Upbeat tempos and rapid changes in form within Audierne and Swedish Dance (Helen's personal favourite) perfectly counterpoise more yearning and searching pieces such as Foxcombe Woods and Ed Pritchard's Belladonna which evoke landscapes without equal. However Iffley Lock sees some clash between Helen and Ed, the marvellously dramatic Martin's Dream more than makes up for it. Also worthy of note is the passion behind the Temptation Tango (perhaps a little to Andalucian for inclusion!), the 'mysterious melodeon' of Andro and the welcome harking back to Renaissance tones and themes in Stone Steps and Desdemona. The best is saved for last with Whitehorse Hill/Godfrey the Amoeba, a track that should be set to a patriotic love scene in Scotland - Northern film-makers take note! Helen herself notes that "...unfamiliar places always inspire me" and she seems to have the knack of composing in the most abstract of locales. If a music company could sponsor her for some travel expenses, there would seem to be no limit to her talents. Bravo. And long live Godfrey!
David Baluch - Traditional Music Maker - July 2000 |
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From Fiddle On www.fiddleon.co.uk Helen, a member of Oxfordshire band 'Spire' got together with fellow member, Ed Pritchard, to produce this polished CD consisting of mainly self penned tracks, all of which sit well among the traditional tunes. Helen plays viola, fiddle, and five string electric fiddle as well as some whistle and recorder. Backing is supplied by Ed on acoustic and electric guitar, bouzouki, mandolin and bass guitar. The result is a well put together and sensitively played CD, with a hint of classical feel to some of the tracks, which is no bad thing. From the opening jaunty track 'Audierne', through to the last track, the beautifully haunting 'Whitehorse Hill' the music will take you through a variety of moods and leaves you feeling mellow. In all, a very enjoyable CD.
Jed Mugford - Fiddle On - Summer/Autumn 2000 |