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https://squareandcompasspub.co.uk/what-s-on/1554Following their acclaimed debut album 'Unfurl', Fran & Flora (Francesca Ter-Berg and Flora Curzon) released their 2nd studio album Precious Collection on Hidden Notes Records in April 2024 to critical acclaim, receiving a 4 star review from the Guardian, and ‘Folk Album of the Month’ ("time-travels brilliantly between solid folk origins and avant garde play with a surprise at every corner" - Jude Rogers) and 4 stars in Jazzwise ("impressive musicianship and creative originality" - Tony Benjamin).
The record explodes in myriad directions, exploring the richness of Fran & Flora’s longstanding collaboration. With Klezmer and Yiddish song forming the backbone and inspiration for the record, Precious Collection defies convention, featuring several self-penned tunes and unique arrangements pushing their ground-breaking project beyond their virtuosic string playing. Drummers Ursula Russell (Snapped Ankles, Alabaster DePlume) and Simon Roth (Chris Potter, Alice Zawadzki, Adrian Dunbar) feature on the record on full kit and Ukrainian Poik (marching drum). Throughout the record which was recorded in three different locations - Total Refreshment Centre (London), Big Jelly Studios (Ramsgate) and Great North Sound Society (Maine, USA) - Francesca and Flora experiment with bowed cymbals, extended piano techniques, and samples of found sounds.
Known for their engaging live performances, the duo has performed across the UK and beyond, including Kings Place (Songlines Encounters), Cafe Oto, Hidden Notes, Between the Lines Festival, Shambala, EFG London Jazz Festival, Smugglers Festival, Shtetl Neukolln (Berlin), Ancienne Belgique (Brussels), Casa Del Popolo and KlezKanada (Montreal).
Highlights:
Featured on Songlines Magazine ‘Top Of The World’ CD April 2019.
Nominated for Best Live Act - AIM Independent Music Awards 2020
Nominated for Best Group -Songlines Music Awards 2020
Amazon ‘BestSeller’ In World & Electronic Music
They have been supported by PRS Women Make Music, Help Musicians, BBC Introducing and Arts Council England.
Links:
franandflora.com
instagram.com/franandflora
twitter.com/franandflora
facebook.com/FranandFlora
Press:
"levitating above and around the material world... a string duo bound for glory" ~ Max Reinhardt, BBC Radio 3 Late Junction
"Border-defying...thrills & chills in equal amounts" ~ Mojo
"vibrant, mournfully expressive, and creatively imaginative" ~ Line Of Best Fit
"Indisputable virtuosity and a down-to-earth gleefulness" ~ Songlines Magazine
"An album of beguiling beauty" ~ The Wire
"brave & classy" ~ Robin Denselow, The Guardian
"the kind of quality that you couldn’t fake or acquire in a hurry" ~ Tom Robinson BBC Radio 6 Music
"Organic idyll...Fran & Flora do wordless sorrow especially well" ~ Noel Gardner, The Quietus
"an album of beguiling beauty" ~ Clive Bell, The Wire
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Event Venue & Nearby Stays
Worth Matravers, BH19 3LF Worth Matravers, United Kingdom, Worth Matravers, Swanage, BH19 3, United Kingdom,Swanage, Wareham
