The Whole Music Experience

Marina Rossell Clàssics Catalans… Gran Teatre del Liceu de Barcelona World Village Only an accomplished vocalist/folkloric interpreter could open a concert with a fragile love song sung a cappella ( Touch Me ) and nearly bring the house down. However, Mariana Rossell, a Catalan folkloric specialist delivers a commanding performance ripe with heartfelt emotions. On her CD,  Gran Teatre Del Liceu  from the concert released in 2009 on World Village, I could already hear Rossell’s immaculate phrasing, and felt amazed at the life she breathed into 100 year old songs. The DVD concert offers an hour and half of sheer pleasure as the collection of songs reflecting about love, death, patriotism for Catalonia, and defiance. And if that’s not enough, Rossell treats each story as if they’re her own and she’s a consummate storyteller too. The DVD, Clàssics Catalans provides the entire sold-out concert along with a 30 minute documentary about a handful of the songs Rossell perfo...

Maria del Mar Bonet Raixa World Village I am quite pleased that labels such as World Village have been releasing and distributing traditional Spanish music recordings in North America. I recently reviewed albums by Uxia from Galicia and Marina Rossell from Barcelona as well as, penning an article on Galician music for World Music Central . I also have a personal connection to Spain which flows in my blood and seeps through my temperament. When we preserve traditional music, we also preserve dances, languages, instruments, poetry and history. We honor our ancestors when we listen to this old music and we find our roots too that help us feel secure in an unstable world. I have listened to the music of my ancestors on both sides of my family and have been enriched by the experience, though I have not heard much traditional Filipino music during my lifetime, I have delved into Finnish, Spanish, and Puerto Rican musical traditions. I find these quests healing and enlivening. ...

Marina Rossell Gran Teatre Del Liceu De Barcelona Classic Catalan Songs World Village Catalan/Spanish vocalist and songwriter Marina Rossell marries Lorca-like poetry, with traditional Spanish instruments and heartfelt vocals on this live recording. This delicious collection of songs, (23 in all), combines the taste of the sea, with sensual images and longing. And similar to other international vocalists, Mariana Montalvo, Tania Libertad, Arja and Claudia Bombardella, Rossell's repertoire on Classic Catalan Songs , travels the gamut from cabaret-style to spiritual and national hymns, to love songs that would cause troubadours to blush. These songs come to us from a September 11, 2008 (a Catalonian holiday), performance at Gran Teatre Del Liceu De Barcelona (Grand Theatre of Licea of Barcelona), and judging from the photographs that pepper the cover and liner notes, this performance was a grand event. The entire theatre with its many tiers was filled to the brim. Th...