“A few years back, I went through a period when I really struggled with asking for, and receiving help,” said violinist Gina Burgess (she/they). “The realization was that many people struggle with asking for help. That I am not alone. ‘S.O.S’ musically reflects my feelings around feeling stuck and asking for assistance – it’s in a minor key and repeats itself over and over.”
After writing “S.O.S,” Burgess headed to the Wise Living Yoga Ashram where she received her yoga teachers training. It was in this state that she wrote “Something New.”
“While I was practicing and learning yoga at the ashram, something in me softened,” she said. “I landed more fully into myself with a deep level of compassion. ‘Something New’ is a sister piece to ‘S.O.S.’ Both pieces have the same cross string bowing technique.’S.O.S’ is in Dminor while ‘Something New’ is in Dmajor, reflecting the movement from being stuck to being free.
Both songs hail from Burgess’ new album Isnow (07/21). Recorded at Joel Plaskett’s Fang Recording in Dartmouth, Isnow was produced by Jace Lasek at Breakglass studio in Montreal.
“This album is a collection of pieces that came to me over a five year span while I was performing and teaching throughout the Arctic,” Burgess said. “Some pieces I more thoroughly crafted. Others, like ‘Kingsburg Blues,’ came to me as a complete gift from the natural and unseen world.”
Described as “innovative” and “northern inspired,” Burgess’ music is ethereal, genre-bending, and filled with spirit. Her music mixes classical music with Celtic folk and incorporates contemporary Inuit throat singing with elements of jazz.
“The title Isnow is a play on words,” she said. “It is now and always is now. It can also be read as ‘I snow,’ giving a nod to the Arctic landscape and people who inspired the majority of these pieces. I wrote almost all of them in Nunavut, and all but two songs include contemporary Inuit throat singing, recorded by Cynthia Pitsiulak from Sila and Rise. Like traditional Inuit throat songs, these pieces are all inspired by the sounds of nature; wind, birds, the ocean, and ice.”
