Enjoy new music with our classical music chart for this week. Our weekly selections are based on sales numbers and simply what albums we love and think you NEED to hear.
For the complete top 20, tune into Classical Chartz with the New Classical FM’s Mark Wigmore every Saturday from 3-5 p.m.
There’s a bit of shuffling around within the top four of the Classical Chartz this week. The Bridgerton Season 3 sound track is holding on to the top spot against all challengers. But, just below it, Stephan Moccio’s Legends, Myths and Lavender drops from No. 2 to No. 4. Stepping up to take his place, Yuja Wang (The Vienna Recital) rises from No. 3 to No. 2, and Sheku Kanneh-Mason, Nicola Benedetti & Benjamin Grosvenor (Beethoven Triple Concerto) take the No. 3 position.
Skye Consort & Emma Björling and their album Ode & Ballade are the only newcomers to the Top Ten this week, landing at No. 8 from No. 12 last week.
Skye Consort & Emma Björling play and record an unusual mix of music. They call it “trans-Atlantic chamber folk” and that’s as good a description as you’ll find. Specifically, they focus on the traditional music of Scandinavia, Ireland and the British Isles, and French Canada, along with their own original music.
It’s not just the music the ensemble is drawn to: it’s the stories that go along with the melodies. Along with vocals, the group plays fiddle, nyckelharpa, cello, bouzouki, banjo, and percussion.
Vocalist Emma was already well known for her work with groups like the a cappella sensation Kongero and Lyy. The Swedish singer, arranger, and composer met the members of Skye Consort at an international gathering in Montréal in October 2017. When a major storm in Iceland cancelled flights from North America to Europe for a few days, Emma and the Consort spent several days sharing music and jamming. By the time flights were leaving again, they’d formed a band.
The Skye Consort is:
- Seán Dagher (lead voice, Irish bouzouki & banjo) — a versatile artist who’s also sung for Black Flag, and composed music for the Assassin’s Creed video game series;
- Amanda Keesmaat (cello & vocals) — a fixture in Montréal’s early music community, and active recording artist;
- Alex Kehler (fiddle, nyckelharpa & vocals) — one of the leading nyckelharpa players in Canada, and a member of multiple ensembles;
- Simon Alexandre (fiddle, nyckelharpa & vocals) — a member of the Orchestre Philharmonique du Québec, and active chamber musician.
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