Rites of Spring: 5 Songs of Strings For Spring

This week's songs are from Whitney Johnson, Lia Kohl & Macie Stewart, Jake Xerxes Fussell, Catrin Finch & Seckou Keita, Rosenau & Sanborn, and Max Richter

I’m sticking with the Spring theme, it seems, for the month of April. Although, that’s not necessarily by design. I made a connection across two new releases I’ve really enjoyed, a new discovery, and a song I’ve been looking to include somewhere somehow. It was out wandering, looking for a home. The theme then emerged organically, up from the ground like a perennial in April that you’re happy to see survived the winter.

Spring can be a meditative season, but also a frustrating one. You spend 5 months waiting for it to arrive and once it does, you can’t wait for it to be over. So it’s about finding small joys. Having patience. Seeding hope. That’s where some instrumental music will serve you.

Here are 5 songs, with string instruments, suited for spring.

“We're relying on the trust between the three of us and listening, with whatever space that we're in as the instrument, to inform how we're going to play together as a unit.” - Macie Stewart

Whitney Johnson, Lia Kohl, & Macie Stewart - “dawn | pulse”

A friend recommended I see Whitney Johnson, Lia Kohl, & Macie Stewart at last year’s Sound & Gravity festival. I’ve already forgotten what I had prioritized on the schedule over them, but know that I wasn’t into it and made the move to catch most of their set. It was transfixing; their music shifted the energy of the room—a heightened sense where you can feel the audience locking into something with the musicians. It’s that feeling you chase at every concert, but come to find it’s rare.

Johnson, Kohl, and Stewart are an improvisational string trio that uses loop pedals and some barely noticeable vocals. To my ear, they are out there together trying to catch a vibration and see where it takes them. A few of their pieces make me think of Johnny Greenwood’s film scores (“Never Cursed” from Phantom Thread, in particular) in that they seem to stretch time. BODY SOUND, released just this month is slow music—a quietly intense listen, and a start-to-finish experience. “dawn | pulse,” the first track on the album is a strong point of entry, and there’s a subtle warmth that suits spring weather.

Music creates certain feelings and conjures up memories. It’s hard to articulate because I know it is one of the most potent forces for me, and it always has been. It’s not intellectual at all.” - Jake Xerxes Fussell

Jake Xerxes Fussell - “Frolic”

Jake Xerxes Fussell makes unassuming, evocative folk music. His vocal range is somewhat limited, but hardly limiting in its resonance and appeal. But its his bright finger style guitar playing is the real draw. The mostly instrumental “Frolic” includes James Elkington (Eleventh Dream Day), Bonnie ‘Prince’ Billy, and Joe Westerlund (Bon Iver, Sylvan Esso, Megafaun, Helado Negro), with Elkington producing. It’s one of those instrumental that delivers on the image offered by its title—it compels you to go outside, take a walk somewhere, and breath a little more slowly, and feel the breeze flow around you.

“Humans are slowly forgetting how to listen and how to absorb ourselves in music…It is only when we let music completely absorb us, that it has emotional power and effect.” - Catrin Finch

Catrin Finch & Seckou Keita - “Future Strings”

I’ve been taking recommendations from Walter Martin for a good long while now. His “French Fridays” Instagram Live sessions took shape as Walter Martin Radio Hour, and now he sends out playlists every Sunday that are eclectic and provide some really great finds. Catrin Finch & Seckou Keita’s Clychau Dibon is one of them. The duo is a Welsh harpist and Senegalese kora player, and Clychau Dibon is the first of three releases. The instruments make for an incredible pairing. The music is fluid and calming without being boring; there’s a pace to it. It’s music that makes me want to be outside.

Rosenau & Sanborn - “Harm”

After a few improvised projects together, Chris Rosenau (Volcano Choir, Collections of Colonies of Bees) and Nick Sanborn (Sylvan Esso, Megafaun) put out a collaborative instrumental album recently (Two). It’s an obvious melding of their individual trademarks: Rosenau’s liquid guitar lines that thread a path and leave open wide spaces, and Sanborn’s textured, glitchy soundscapes that suggest a tempo and rhythm. I don’t want to relegate anything to background music, but there’s plenty of space within this to let your mind wander. “Harm” sets in with that space, and then Sanborn’s synths build a pulse that will send you off with purpose. I also highly recommend “Kay” as a showcase for Rosenau’s knotty and silken guitar work.

Max Richter - “On the Nature of Daylight”

I’m pretty sure I’ve shared a Max Richter recording from a piece of Stravinsky’s “Rite of Spring” before. I know very little about classical music, but I have to say it was pretty fun to find out some classical artists have official music videos. Anyway, having that piece in my library compelled me to dive into some of Richter’s original work and “On the Nature of Daylight” is tremendous. It’s also a little bit melodramatic, but that maybe necessary in classical music to really push the listener into feeling something. As with a few of the other songs shared here, this one is able to extend time a bit, encourage pause, and at least for me, I feel a bit different while listening and a little bit more different afterwards. If I need to give some definition to what I want out of instrumental music, that’s a pretty good one.

Thanks for reading. Enjoy the listening.