As Britain prepares to depart the European Union and enter an uncertain future virtuoso musician Will Pound – one of the biggest names in UK folk music – has decided to let the music do the talking.
The harmonica wizard and melodeon maestro spent last summer travelling across Europe to meet musicians who will inform or be part of his forthcoming album A Day Will Come, due to be released and toured in May 2020.
Warwickshire-based Will, nominated three times for the coveted Musician of the Year title at the BBC Radio 2 Folk Awards says: “This was never a pro-Remain or pro-Leave project – it’s about identity, music and the subject of home.”
“The idea was to discover and celebrate the traditional music of the countries that make up the European Union. It’s been an absolute privilege to learn about the diverse folk music traditions and compose or arrange tunes influenced by them. Although I am familiar with the music of some of the countries I particularly wanted to learn about the music of Bulgaria, Croatia, Latvia and Malta.”
Watch the video trailer for the album premiering below which opens with Scottish musician (2019 Scots Trad Music Awards Musician of the Year) Jenn Butterworth on guitar, one of a new ensemble on the album which includes multi-instrumentalist Jude Rees (Jim Moray, RSC, Pilgrims’ Way) and stand-out fiddle player Patsy Reid, the former Breabach member who has been described as ‘the most in-demand traditional fiddle player in the UK’. Special guests also include Scotland’s Dame Evelyn Glennie (‘the world’s premier solo percussionist’).
Polish performance poet Bohdan Piasecki follows Jenn’s opening with a reading of ‘A Day Will Come’ (the words for which we’ve included below). Bohdan is Poland’s first Slam poet, he is now based in Birmingham and the poetry on the album will be inspired by interviews with EU nationals that have made the UK their home.
The name of the album is taken from a speech made by French writer Victor Hugo in 1849 in which he spoke of a united Europe and the ‘disappearance of frontiers from maps and of prejudices from hearts’.
While this album takes a non-political stance by focussing on “identity, music and the subject of home”, listening to music from 27 member states of the EU across 14 tracks is sure to also make it one of the most poignant and pivotal releases of 2020 and valuable reminder of the importance music plays in continuing to cross borders defined by politicians.
A DAY WILL COME
Some days the sun sets early on the canal
dark orange water
under a dark orange sky,
impossible to distinguish
through half closed-eyes.
You almost want to
breathe in the water
and dive into the air.
And look: these days where you live
you share with a crowd of others
predictable hours after
predictable hours
you tell yourself yours are
as different from theirs
as waves and wind
separate, distinct
But a day will come when you step back
half close your eyes and watch
the edges get blurred
filled with the urge
to breathe their air
and dive into their lives.
The ensemble will tour venues in May 2020 followed by summer festivals. Audiences can expect a whistlestop tour of the music of a continent – from lively Swedish polskas to upbeat Italian tarantellas, swirling Irish jigs, buoyant French bourrées, relentless rachenistas from Bulgaria and sizzling Spanish jotas.
WILL POUND – A DAY WILL COME TOUR
Tue 5 May – The Silver Street Sessions, Wiveliscombe, Somerset – www.silverstreetsessions.co.uk/contact.html /01984 623308
Wed 6 May – Stanley Halls, Croydon – 0208 251 0184
Thu 7 May – Theatre Royal Wakefield – 01924 211 311
Fri 8 May – Settle Victoria Hall – www.settlevictoriahall.org.uk/eventsandshows/will-pound-080519
Sat 9 May – North Wall Arts Centre, Oxford – www.thenorthwall.com/whats-on/will-pound-a-day-will-come/
Tue 12 May – The Apex, Bury St Edmunds –www.theapex.co.uk/whats-on/details.cfm?id=524747&ins=694990
Thu 14 May – University of Sheffield – https://concerts.sheffield.ac.uk/whats-on/will-pound-a-day-will-come
Sun 31 May – Warwick Arts Centre –https://www.warwickartscentre.co.uk/whats-on/2020/will-pounds-a-day-will-come#unit-production-dates-and-times
More here: http://willpound.com/
Read our earlier post about the album here.
In other Will Pound related news: He will play the harmonica in all 10 episodes of the upcoming Sky comedy-drama Breeders which marks Martin Freeman’s return to comedy – it’s a no holds barred looks at the challenges of parenthood! His music will be heard during the episodes but he also plays the theme tune at the end of the show on one episode.