A Song For Friday: Nathalie Joachim
The composer and performer gives us a new song ahead of her next album
While I’m far from done chronicling the many musical achievements of 2023, it’s never to soon to start talking about what’s new in 2024!
Nathalie Joachim first sailed onto my radar almost a decade ago, playing Valerie Coleman’s Danza de la Mariposa for solo flute and facing “down the many challenges of the piece with aplomb.” A few years later, she released the Grammy-nominated Fanm d’Ayiti, exploring her Haitian heritage through compositions for voice, flute, string quartet, and electronics. In 2020, she was the Artist-In-Residence of the Kaufman Music Center’s Special Music School, helping 10th graders create “a brief oasis full of bright colors and sonic adventure” on the album Transformation.
Now, a new album is on the way and it promises to be one of the delights of the year. Ki moun ou ye, which roughly translates from Haitian Creole to “Who are you” or “Which person are you,” continues her quest to tell the stories of her heritage, family, and experiences of love and loss. Listen to the title track, or even better, watch the video, which was filmed in her ancestral lands of Dantan, Haiti. Through music and visuals, we can continue getting to know this protean artist even as she is engaged in her own journey of self-discovery.
Propelled by the restless percussion of Sō Percussion’s Jason Treuting, electronic counterpoint weaves together with the violin and viola of Yvonne Lam and Joachim’s vocals and flute for a track that skips gracefully through genres. I’m looking forward to hearing more when the album arrives on February 16th. Let me know if you agree!
Also of note:
Yvonne Lam’s Watch Over Us, an excellent album I missed from 2023, which is named after a pensive Joachim piece for violin and electronics.
From the archives:
Record Roundup: Fall Classics, Vol. 1
Valerie Coleman’s Utopia