Lucie

From Charlie Parker to Piazzolla: the recorder as you've never heard it before! Lucie Horsch's new album 'Origins' is a collection of music rooted in folk cultures from all around the world, personally sourced and curated by Lucie, presented here in newly commissioned arrangements and transcriptions for the recorder. The tracks feature a variety of supporting musicians, including the trailblazing genre-bending collective Fuse Ensemble, a quintet from the GRAMMY Award-winning Dutch orchestra LUDWIG; acclaimed Scottish guitarist Sean Shibe; bandoneonist Carel Kraayenhof and Kora player Bao Sissoko.

The recorder played a huge part in 18th-century European music, so it’s strange that this beautiful instrument doesn’t command the attention it deserves today. Enter Dutch player Lucie Horsch with a Baroque feast of thrilling arrangements and wonderful, original works for recorder. Dive into the magical, virtuosic worlds of Castello, Naudot, and Sammartini—whose Concerto in F Majoris a sparkling discovery—and relive famous pieces that shine anew. The voice flute used for “Erbarme dich” from Bach’s St. Matthew Passion has a breathtaking vocal quality, while Horsch joins fellow recorder player Charlotte Barbour-Condini for a joyful, energizing performance of Handel’s “The Arrival of the Queen of Sheba.” Utterly inspiring.

"Whispering Leaves" is a new project from violoncellist Lucie Stepanova and pianist Ksenia Kouzmenko, featuring Czech music for cello and piano.

The French language has an elegant way of making the most complex things seems natural and carefree, not to mention the most general things appear chewable (did I say that?) and alluring. Autour de Lucie, the indie pop outfit from Paris, taps into such imagery while experimenting with three-dimensional soundscapes for an ethereal beauty on the their third release, Faux Mouvement. The overall composition delicately plays into heavy instrumentation, specifically on album opener "Je Reviens."