Collaboration
COULOIR
Known for being ”…deeply connected to the moment of creation both with their own instruments and each other” Ariel Barnes, 1st Solo Cellist of the Nürnberg Symphony, and Heidi Krutzen, Principal Harp of the Philharmonia Orchestra, form the duo COULOIR. Dedicated to 21st Century Art Music, COULOIR’s passion lies in creating fresh music with today’s leading composers through the magical, kaleidoscopic sound world of their instruments. Both halves of COULOIR have developed international presence as soloists, chamber musicians and orchestral leaders, concertizing regularly in Europe, North America and Asia to critical acclaim. The Duo is a distillation of their artistic personalities, providing a “corridor” for what they love most about music making; story telling.
With a focus on developing original repertoire through collaboration and commissioning, COULOIR has thus far had ten duo works and two double concerti written for them by composers such as Jocelyn Morlock, Jeffrey Ryan and Ana Sokolovic. They have shared these works in concert, touring extensively in North America with performances at festivals including the Ottawa International Chamber Music Festival, Music on Main’s “Modulus Festival” and in live broadcasts for CBC Radio. This year sees COULOIR appearing as concerto soloists with the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra, Sinfonia Varsovia (Warsaw), Czech National Symphony Orchestra (Prague), and the world premiere of James Maxwell’s new double concerto “The Razor Hiss of a Whisper “ with Canada’s Turning Point Ensemble. Having released two studio recordings on PARMA/Ravello Records; "Wine Dark Sea" (2013) and prize winning "MAXWELL, MUHLY & COULOIR" (2016), COULOIR’s newest recording of Kelly-Marie Murphy’s double concerto with Orchestre Classiques de Montrèal will be released this fall on Analekta (2019).
"…exquisite melting pot of sounds and colour…arching luminosity." 4 Stars ~ Winnipeg Free Press
“…the body language of (cellist) Barnes and harpist Heidi Krutzen drew the assemblage into their shared artistic vision so convincingly… many welcome moments of emotional/intellectual bliss.” JWR International Directory of Fine Arts and Film [Ottawa International Chamber Music Festival]
Trio Verlaine
“…..flautist Lorna McGhee, violist David Harding, and harpist Heidi Krutzen worked their Debussian magic, they captured the flow and the feeling that delivers this music as an entity, free of bumps, paragraphs, and all the structural definition and articulation Debussy so wanted to avoid. This was beautiful, fluid, atmospheric and seam-free.
The rest of the programme was drop-dead gorgeous….. – The Herald Scotland
The members of Trio Verlaine are drawn together by friendship and a strong desire to further this beautiful instrumental combination first dreamt of by Debussy. Together they draw on a wealth of experience and imagination. In the words of one critic, “these three showed how good a trio can get when they spend a lot of time together…making music and coming up with truly original programs.” (The Register-Guard, Oregon)
In North America, Trio Verlaine has appeared at leading chamber music festivals and series, including the Oregon Bach Festival, Ottawa International Chamber Music Festival, Seattle Chamber Music Society, Music in the Vineyards (CA), Sitka Summer Music Festival (AK), Strings in the Mountains (CO), Music in the Morning (BC), Festival Vancouver, and World Harp Congress. Their performance can be heard frequently on NPR radio in the USA and CBC radio in Canada. In the UK, they have been featured at the Edinburgh International Festival, performed a live recital for BBC Radio 3 as part of a retrospective on Debussy’s last sonatas, given masterclasses and performed at the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland. In addition to standard repertoire, Trio Verlaine’s exploration includes arrangements of works suited to this rare combination, and the commissioning of entirely new, original works.
Trio Verlaine has released two CDs “ Fin de Siècle, the music of Debussy and Ravel” on Skylark Music and their second CD “Six Departures” on Ravello Records, selected for the first-round ballot of the 57th Annual Grammy Awards.
Trio Verlaine is: Lorna McGhee, Principal Flute Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra, David Harding, Professor of Viola and Chamber Music at Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh, and Heidi Krutzen, Principal Harp of the Philharmonia Orchestra.
“…..exquisitely expressed……highly accomplished and at ease across different styles of music.” – The Scotsman
“Three superb musicians […] ravishing playing.” - Vancouver Sun