Product DescriptionThis spare and atmospheric album is a journey through the musical landscapes of Eastern Europe. The haunting voice of singer Lily Storm interprets ancient folk songs with fragile honesty and practiced skill. The pieces flow together like a series of dreams, opening with a fragmentary Ukrainian lullaby, continuing with wistful Hungarian melodies, angular Greek dance rhythms, passionate Russian and Bulgarian laments, and a fiery Romanian mountain tune, and closing with a tender Czech ode to the rising sun. The result transcends cultural boundaries and offers fresh awareness of centuries-old musical traditions. Includes 20-page booklet with notes and complete lyrics, with English translations.
Artist Biography
Lily Storm is a virtuosa singer specializing in traditional music, with a particular affinity for Eastern European styles. Lily has performed with several ensembles in the San Francisco Bay Area, including the women's vocal ensemble Kitka. As part of Kitka, she recorded as a soloist (The Vine, Wintersongs), collaborated in concert with ensembles including Le Mystère des Voix Bulgares, Ensemble Alcatraz, Linda Tillery and the Cultural Heritage Choir, Davka, and Mariana Sadovska, and appeared on Garrison Keillor's Prairie Home Companion and NPR's Performance Today. "If I Had a Key to the Dawn" is her first solo album.