Last month, on a very cold Friday night, we were treated to a very warm evening of hot new music from Québec’s lighthouse Trad band, Le Vent Du Nord.
The band was presenting its hot-off-the-press new CD, Voisinages. The title loosely translates as neighbourhoods, and indeed, neighbours do play a huge part in the song selections here.
Nicolas Boulerice, the band’s principal composer, pianist and player of the wonderful string instrument called the vielle à roue, said that the name Voisinages “emerged as a rich way to talk about all the neighbourhoods on this album. Musical or political neighbourhoods, neighbourhoods of minds or ideas, as well as the everyday neighbourhoods of our neighbours in life.”
On this album, we have old tunes and new. “Par-Dessus Le Pont” is a story song inspired by an 18th century quarrel between two neighbours. “Bienvenue,” a suite of three new compositions by fiddler Olivier Demers, gives tribute to the venerated fiddler Claude Méthé, belatedly welcomes fiddler André Brunet to the band, and celebrates a couple who gave the band a great tune from L’Isle-aux-coudres. Olivier also contributes another suite: “Du Nord Au Sud,” combining a tune called “La Petit Menteuse” from the traditional repertoire of M. Harry Poitras from Baie St. Paul, with two of Olo’s new compositions. “La Suite des Choses” and “Après la Dérive” are both tunes which borrow from the folk traditions of Canada’s neighbour south of the border.
New music from a new band member
There are also new songs from Nicolas Boulerice on this recording. One is about Jeanne Mance, one of the founders of Montréal, who espoused the idea that we must fight for the dignity of the weak and look after our neighbours. Another tackles the subject of Acadie, a borderless but inspiring nation of French speaking people, that stretches from Québec, through the Canadian maritime provinces, to Louisiana in the southern USA. In “Fleuve,” Nico also writes and sings about the St. Lawrence River. What might the river want to tell us if it had status entrenched in law?
Le Vent Du Nord’s newest member is André (Dédé) Gagné, who joined recently when Simon Beaudry retired from the band. To this recording, Dédé brought a song “La Lettre,” he gleaned from the repertoire of his great-grandfather, Wellie Lepage. It’s a haunting melody beautifully and powerfully sung by Dédé.
There’s a wonderful piece here too, from the pen and brain of the recently departed Jean-Claude Mirandette, another venerated member of the Québecois folk and trad music community. “Une Nuit Dans Les Auberges” regales the listener with tales of sailors, wine, whiskey, and a beautiful, irresistible girl.
Another historic song, “Carillon,” is about the Battle of Carillon which took place in New York State at the south end of Lake Champlain. This star-shaped fort, now known as Fort Ticonderoga, was strategically located and was of great importance during both the 18th Century British-French conflicts over the territories of Canada, but also during the American Revolutionary War. There was a 1758 battle where 4,000 French defenders were able to repel an attack by 16,000 British troops, but sadly for the French, the British returned to conquer the fort the following year. The song “Carillon” poetically describes the trouble the French were in, knowing that Montcalm, the leader of the British forces was not as stupid as he might have appeared.
An ode to Rejeans
Voisinages would be totally incomplete without the sound of Réjean Brunet’s accordion. In the suite “Salut Réjean,” two tunes by two other Réjeans (Lizotte and Simard) are combined into a rocking medley. Fiddles, feet, piano and guitar join the accordion in a lively kitchen party.
The final cut on the recording is a new composition by fiddler André Brunet, “Fleur Radieuse,” which he wrote for his wife Evelyne. The world of Québecois folk music has been enriched hugely by André’s romantic melodies written over the years for the ladies in his life, and here is one more that is sure to join session repertoires around the country.
There are stories of neighbours here, songs and tunes old and new, and songs borrowed from neighbour musicians. Says Nicolas, “Le Vent Du Nord music is the result of all those Voisinages.”
This CD is truly a celebration of the power of community in making music through generations, and that power came through in spades during the live performance we saw.
Catch their terrific Voisinages concert while you can! There are lots of dates upcoming.
