India Gailey – Butterfly Lightning Shakes the Earth (Top Albums of 2024)

India is a cellist based in Halifax. A fixture in the world of contemporary indie music, often in solo format, her career takes a more substantial turn with this very impressive concerto for cello and orchestra entitled Butterfly Lightning Shakes the Earth. This is a large-scale work, carried along by a highly inspired breath. In three movements entitled Sky, Golden and Joining, India Gailey invites us to plunge with her into a shimmering world inspired by Tibetan Buddhist philosophy and symbolism. The gentle, febrile music reminds me of Rautavaaraa (Cantus Arcticus), Pärt (Symphony No. 3) and Gorecki (Symphony of Sorrowful Songs). I’d also bet on a touch of spectralism here and there, as well as references to ancient East Asian court music. In short, it’s totally spellbinding, and I hope that orchestral artistic directors elsewhere in Canada will take note and programme this delightful work again and again!

The Symphony Nova Scotia is resplendent, conducted by Karl Hirzer.

The album is completed by three miniatures for solo cello, each barely a minute long. These pieces are like fragile wisps of sound that disappear as soon as they are mentioned. Like musical haikus whose meaning is as touching as it is brief.

Warmest recommendation.