About these albums

Two collaborative albums, recorded in 2001 & 2003 respectively, in the medieval village of Clisson

Produced by Frederic Chaplain, co-owner-manager of Prikosnovenie

Both involving Francesco Banchini (Gor), Frederic Chaplain (Lys) & Louisa John-Krol

Other participants in each volume, such as Spyros Giasafakis (Daemonia Nymphe), are named in Credits.

I am going to stand against him now, though his hands are like flame,

though his hands are like flame, and his heart like the shining of iron.

The Iliad of Homer, Book XX, 371, translated by Lattimore

Tracks & Lyrics

Inspirations

I am a lover, skilled in the arts of madness;

I have drunk deeply of culture and learning

Rumi

Ogni attimo vi porta nuove fronde

e il suo sbigottimento avanza ogni altra

gioia fugace; viene a impetuose onde

la vita a questo estremo angolo d’orto.

Lo sguardo ora vi cade su le zolle;

una risacca di memorie giunge

al vostro cuore e quasi lo sommerge.

Eugenio Montale, from Crisalide

English translation of the above lines:

Each instant fetches you fresh leaves

and each new tremor of joy is overwhelmed

by your surprise: life in surging waves

whelms this farthest garden corner.

Now your gaze falls to the ground;

your heart, lapped by memories

washing back, almost drowns.

Eugenio Montale, from Chrysalis

We’ve crossed… cultures, joining together our hearts and feelings to give you this little jewel, hopeful that it will touch your heart

Francesco Banchini

Blending our cultures through music is a gift given to us. To enjoy our differences we must try to keep our civilizations alive.

Spyros Giasafakis

Credits

Label

Love Sessions – both volumes recorded by Frederic Chaplain in France

Released on French label Prikosnovenie, respectively in 2002 and 2005

Artwork

Design: Sabine-Adelaide

Calligraphy: Robinson Deschamps

Production

Recorded, programmed, mixed & mastered by Frederic Chaplain at Prikosnovenie in Clisson, France

Video: Arno Pellerin, France

Thanks

Francesco, Frederic, Mandragora, Sabine, Arno, the ghosts and faeries of Clisson, our families and everyone else who made this dream possible.

Reviews

“Louisa’s voice is wonderful. I don’t know any other singer with such casual control. Her songwriting is literate and lovely. I first came across her on Love Sessions I and Love Sessions II, a sort-of jam session of artists on a French label. Try to get those if you can, as well as Louisa’s solo work.”

News from the Other Grovem posted at www.cdbaby.com/cd/louisa, USA

Love Sessions Volume 1

“Superb… fairy pop music… medieval, folk, Middle-East, Balkanic influences. The magnificent voice of Louisa John-Krol supported by dreamy melodies of the talented and multi-instrumentalist Francesco Banchini and the ancient Greek instruments of Daemonia Nymphe… electronic experimentations by Lys… A very beautiful album, with warm Mediterranean atmospheres and folk sensuality. Excellent!”

Heimdallr 2003, www.heimdallr.ch

“In un episodio di Sandman, Neil Gaiman ipotizzò che William Shakespeare potesse aver stipulato un patto con il Signore dei Sogni, il quale gli avrebbe fornito l’ispirazione per le proprie opere: in cambio, tra le altre cose, gli sarebbe stata richiesta la rappresentazione di una delle sue commedie (Sogno di una notte di mezza estate) davanti a Oberon, Titania e al popolo di Faerie. Qualcosa di molto simile deve aver fatto Frédéric Chaplain, titolare della Prikosnovénie, data l’elevatissima qualità delle sue produzioni in… musica eterea, che fanno della sua etichetta una garanzia di assoluta qualità. Il disco in questione non fa che sottolineare una volta di più quanto detto sopra; è bene sottolineare da subito che non si tratta di una semplice compilation, bensì di una collaborazione tra lo stesso Chaplain, Francesco Banchini (GOR, Ataraxia), Louisa John-Krol, Spiros Giasafakis (Daemonia Nymphe) e Marlène Etrillard, supportati in alcuni brani da altri ottimi musicisti (tra cui Sergio Panarella della rivelazione Ashram)… Insieme hanno creato un disco splendido sotto ogni aspetto, ricco di delicate suggestioni che mescolano culture diverse: dalle reminescenze celtiche sottolineate dalla dolcissima voce della cantante australiana alle splendide atmosfere create dal genio inesauribile e vulcanico di Francesco Banchini; dalle atmosfere create dai campionatori di Chaplain alla malinconia mediterranea del suono di Giasafakis. Impossibile trovare una caduta di tono, un solo brano che non spinga ad urlare al capolavoro, un istante che non sia pieno di cultura ed ispirazione; altrettanto impossibile scegliere uno o più brani: sarebbe un’offesa nei confronti di tutti gli altri. Non posso far altro che fermarmi qui, a malincuore, con una domanda che continua a girarmi nella testa: a quando un festival Prikosnovénie in un bosco, davanti alle folte schiere di fate e folletti?”

Ver Sacrum, www.versacrum.com, Italy

“A particular project… remembered me what 4AD created with This Mortal Coil: label’s mate who… record together a bunch of songs, sharing thoughts and emotions… For Love Sessions: Francesco Banchini (Gor & Ataraxia), Spyros Giasafakis (Daemonia Nymphe), Louisa John-Krol, Marléne Etrillard and Frédéric Chaplain (Lys) plus guests… first three of the list (plus Frédéric Chaplain for ‘Sacrum II’ and ‘Les Cloches De Clisson’ with Spyros) wrote the music and played… various instruments such as: violin, percussions, table harp, guitar, flute cymbal, pandourida… recordings took place in medieval city of Clisson on 2001 and 2002 and Fred Chaplain took care of mixing, engineering… songs respect solo works of the people who wrote the songs… balanced situation… emphasized by the voice of Louisa, by Spyros’ Greek ancient sounds enriched by LYS’ samples. Each track has got his own fascination and I appreciated… particularly: ‘Dante O’ Doré’, ‘Etheros’ and ‘Over The Border’. For sure the lovers of fairy and folk sounds will appreciate this CD.”

Maurizio Pustianaz, Chain D.L.K. id#653, Italy

“Not even in your wildest dreams can you imagine this journey… you will be embraced by millions of sweet melodies and enchanting voices that will lead your mind into places never seen before… A piece of art that speaks straight to your heart. A trip that has no boundaries. You can consider me as a romantic fool, and maybe I am. On other occasions I might be completely seduced by the beauty of this recording.”

John Zikos, Moonshadows magazine (no longer publishing), Greece

Love Sessions Volume 2

“… l’amitié… l’écho, cela éveille les Love Sessions: talents multiples parlant d’une seule voix. Cette seconde rencontre effectuée au sein du studio de Prikosnovénie (label basé à Clisson, près de Nantes) fusionne la créativité de Louisa John-Krol, de Francesco Banchini (GOR) et de LYS. Australie, Italie et France enfantent une culture multi-facettes dont la qualité n’a d’égale que la sensibilité de ses défenseurs… ce projet équilibre l’attention portée aux sons (‘Shofar’), libère le timbre de chaque voix (‘Quando la notte arrivera’) et hypnotise par un aveu mélodique souvent perceptible (‘La battaglia degli elfi’). Si la fée Louisa sait toujours nous émouvoir, c’est grâce à des morceaux scintillants (‘Alexandria’, le sublime ‘Emeraude’, ‘The Lily and the rose’), à sa faculté à rendre silencieux notre stress. Love Sessions se transforme parfois en murmures (‘Rivière de Lys’), en ‘Un souffle d’or’, version instrumentale énigmatique. La guitare acoustique est aussi mise en avant (‘Dendrophori’) pour caresser notre attention, sous le charme de ‘L’ultimo tramonto’ mystique. Ce conte sonore s’orientalise sous les traits de ‘Yahil’ faisant se répondre les cordes vocales de Francesco et de Louisa, le tout sur un rythme endiablé. Mais pour feindre la fin d’un rêve, rien de tel qu’un dernier écho de sobriété, une façon de rire de l’éphémère moment de liberté (‘Samsara’). Une oeuvre conçue par trois âmes guidant leur regard vers le même horizon: celui de l’émotion; une ode à la beauté…”

by David D’Halleine, www.felinea.com, France

”…Samen klinken ze als een modern wereldmuziekensemble, waar klassieke instrumenten teder gekust worden door moderne elektronica… Love Sessions 2… Louisa’s inbreng bestaat uit haar prachtig ijle stem en instrumenten als gitaar, mandoline en klokkenspel. Francesco brengt naast zijn donkere zang ook Tibetaanse fluit, (Cubaanse) gitaar, klokkenspel, klarinet, udu (Nigeriaans drumvat), duduk (Armeens blaasinstrument), chalumeaux (Middeleeuws blaasinstrument)  en diverse percussie instrumenten. Fred voorziet het geheel van samples en speelt onder meer djembe en derbouka. Het is wereldse mix geworden van Middeleeuws getinte muziek, ambient en folkinvloeden uit Italië, (Noord) Afrika en Armenië. Ze doen naast hun eigen projecten dikwijls denken aan Dead Can Dance en qua zang soms aan Loreena McKennitt. Maar door de brede inzet van de diverse genres creëren ze een eigen geluid dat wonderschoon is.”

by Jan Willem Broek, /Senzor/Radio100/Subjectivisten/OOR Popencyclopedie, The Netherlands

“…El artista italiano y la cantante australiana, tras acabar su tour… decidieron hacer una.. parada en los estudios de Prikosnovénie y, bajo la dirección de…Frederic Chaplain y acompañados por la arpista francesa Mandragora, revivir la experiencia iniciada con la primera parte de estas Love Sessions… Es inigualable este encuentro entre dos grandes músicos de nuestra era; dos artistas veteranos dentro del panorama del neofolk, las heavenly voices o la música medieval. John-Krol, que ya es todo un clásico dentro del sello francés, a lo largo de sus 5 discos siempre nos ha demostrado que el pop y el folk forman una perfecta pareja. Banchini… se ha convertido en uno de los pilares del neofolk y la música antigua proveniente del sur de Europa gracias a su prolífico proyecto en solitario, Gor, y a sus colaboraciones con bandas de la talla de Ataraxia. En esta interesante velada los dos artistas dejan que la magia fluya a través de sus instrumentos y sus voces convirtiendo el evento en una sublime muestra de su potencial y calidad. Hay temas originales de John-Krol, algunos de Banchini y otros especialmente compuestos para la ocasión. Un ejemplo es el estupendo ‘Quando La Notte Arriverà’, un dulce canto romántico a dos voces, cantado en italiano y con esencias mediterráneas, todo ello guiado por un suave clarinete. La canción que sigue a esta última tampoco tiene desperdicio: algo más intensa, ‘La Battaglia Degli Elfi’ es un tema épico de cánticos celestiales y murmullos adornados con los sonidos de una sangrienta batalla. Otro tema destacable es ‘Emeraude’, un excelente tema folk pop de voz femenina… También la mágica ‘Riviere De Lys’, en la que las dos voces se unen en cantos hipnóticos, sutilmente arropados por el arpa. Louisa John-Krol se reconoce la bonita ‘Alexandria’… ‘The Lily And The Rose’, basada en un poema del siglo XVI. Cabe destacar el remix de ‘Shofar’… con cánticos árabes y guitarras acústicas y… una de las mejores canciones del disco, ‘Dendrophori’, cantada por John-Krol con Banchini en segundo plano, acompañados por el clarinete y la guitarra. La verdad es que todas las canciones son dignas de mención, ‘Yahil’, ‘Sea Nights Of Napoli’, en fin, todas valen la pena en esta impresionante grabación. Como extra, y por si el disco en sí fuera suficiente, el CD incluye una pista de video… donde se incluyen momentos de esa gira del 2002, alguna entrevista a los músicos, así como escenas de la grabación… Un bonus que acaba de completar un trabajo excepcional. En definitiva, un concierto acústico de folk mediterráneo con esencias orientales, lleno de sugerentes voces y instrumentos antiguos, que resulta una experiencia única… Love Sessions 2 es una obra altamente recomendada que no defraudará a nadie.”

by Mentenebre, www.mentenebre.com/articulos.php?op=verarticle&artid=72, Italy / Spain

“After the first Love Session, with… Daemonia Nymphe, Lys and their European tour 2002, Louisa John-Krol and Francesco Banchini (GOR) recorded in France in Prikosnovenie Studio this second volume… in medieval city of Clisson: 16 tracks directed again by Lys (Frederic Chaplain)… atmosphere is heavenly with… Louisa’s exquisite voices and Francesco Banchini’s mystical instrumentations. Another time the music lambs Mediterranean, Provencal and Celtic lands in remote ages. The French harp of Mandragora added to the melancholic clarinet, mandolin, percussion and drums give… a touch of middle East… another great album from this French label. Like bonus on the cd there are 20 minutes of video includes live concert of the 2002 Love Sessions tour, scenes of the recording of Love Sessions 2, an interview with Louisa and Francesco. The multimedia element… includes full credits and lyrics.”

Sir Logia, Chain D.L.K., id#2723, Italy or France

“My wife and I we are in the fairies kingdom when we are listening your music!”

Olivier Marchand, from Paris, Myspace, 10 February 2008, France

“I’m always in tune with your music. Baci dall’Italia!” (after hosting LJK/Gor show in Arceto)

Elisabeth, LaRoseNoir, Myspace, 20 June 2008, Italy

“It was funny watching you talking on the little multi-media track (Love Sessions 2). Very cool.” (after meeting after the show at La Loco)

Stephane Leguay of Paris, email, 7 June 2006, France

“Hello Louisa… i love your voice, your ethereal and wonderful music.”

Ombeline, Myspace, 30 August 2008, France

“We love your heavenly voice!”

Mirabilis, Myspace, 9 October 2006, USA

“Exquisite one minute, haunting the next… I have always thought of music as …. ‘the life force’; contained in these compositions are beauty, fun, sadness, joy, yearning, finding, wonder.”

Ian Walker, emails / letters circa 2005 – 2008, UK