The casual listener who first picks up the album Ancient Star (by cellist Jody Redhage and her ensemble Fire in July) might not know quite what to expect. With a quilted starburst pattern on the front of a paper cover and sparse liner notes limited to credits and lyrics, her album appears to be promising some sort of indie-folk sound. But start playing the album and a door into a very different musical universe opens up.
The Brooklyn Melting Pot: Ancient Star Has Elements of Jazz, Minimalism, Early Music and More
A little bit jazz, a little bit minimalism, a little bit early music and a little bit something else that transcends all these eclectic parts, Jody Redhage's music is a snapshot of the whirling experimental new music center that is Brooklyn.
Ancient Star is also a microcosm of the classical orchestra, with strings, woodwinds, brass and percussion all represented in the Fire in July ensemble. The eclectic styles and chamber-pop sound suggest an urban party where the neighbors' jam session, the resident opera singer's vocal exercises and the city bustle just might come drifting in through the open window.
In addition to playing the cello, Redhage also performs all the vocals on Ancient Star. Her minimal-vibrato voice, celestial in "Ancient Star," Elizabethan in "This November," or playful in "As the Cat," almost makes the listener forget she plays another instrument at all. But to ignore her cello performance would be a mistake, as the opening bars to "Greenpoint Slide" showcase a deep emotional resonance and rich tone on that instrument.
Music and Lyrics by Redhage, Sister Jill and William Carlos Williams
All works on this album are original music by Redhage. She writes nearly all the lyrics as well, and her sister Jill also contributes words for two songs: "Dawning of Day" and "This November." Jody also demonstrates her love for multiple 20th century art forms by setting two poems by William Carlos Williams in "As the Cat" and "This Is Just to Say."
Track Listing
Ancient Star is released by Scarlet Tree Music, a label that specializes in bringing live creative performance art to neighborhood community venues. The album is approximately 1 hour long and contains the following tracks.
- Sometimes There's God So Quickly
- Rum Point
- Ancient Star
- As the Cat
- Dawning of Day
- This November
- This Is Just to Say
- Sister, My Sister
- Calming
- The Boticellian Trees
- Elevation
- I Wonder Why
- Zip
- Greenpoint Slide
Jody Redhage: Cellist, Vocalist, Composer, Advocate
Writing music since the age of 19, Redhage studied composition at the University of California Berkeley and later studied composition under Julia Wolfe, one of the founders of Bang on a Can, a project designed to promote contemporary, unconventional music. She received a master's degree in cello performance from the Manhattan School of Music. For more information on Jody Redhage, please visit her website.
Sarah Canice Funke - Sarah Canice Funke was home-schooled through primary and secondary school in beautiful Colorado. She obtained a Bachelor of Arts degree in ...
