Review by Daniel Deprè & Staff & Staff
“A Quiet Walk in The Snow” is a heart-achingly beautiful string piece that is filled to the brim with emotion. The imagery inspired by this music is one of snow falling and peaceful quiet enrapturing the streets late at night.
There is such a strong sense of magic in the way it was written but it is so delightfully subtle. This isn’t the kind of magic that you see in a fantasy movie, it’s the kind of magic that exists in our world. How beautiful our world can be when you pay attention to it, and Pauline Frechette gracefully underscores this sensation.
The melodic content on display here is really breathtaking. While primarily a string piece, the melody in the beginning is highlighted up high with Clarinet and Flute. Woodwinds are always so incredibly warm and airy, and the arrangement has them perfectly balanced with the strings. Once the melody passes to the strings the woodwinds become a coloration for the arrangement going mostly undetected. The sense of movement in the strings is amazing as there is hardly a still moment, yet the piece never feels busy or messy. All the instruments are conversating with one another, allowing each one a chance to express themselves.
There is an impressionistic vibe here that calls to mind the composing stylings of Debussy and Ravel. The harmony is beautiful and dances in between evoking the sensations of being pensive while also being overwhelmed by beauty. The emotional energy is so strong it could work under many different kinds of scenes in a movie. The atmosphere is very cinematic.
“A Quiet Walk in The Snow” is one of the most expressive and heartfelt pieces of music I’ve heard in a long time - it’s a pleasure to experience it.
Stream on Spotify
About Pauline Frechette PaulineFrechette started her musical career at age 5 singing on her father’s radio show. A couple years later found her playing violin in youth symphonies and winning awards in piano competitions. This expanded into a full career as a composer/performer. Not surprising since her Great-grandfather, Josef Vezina, founded the Quebec Symphony and her father, Frigon Louis Frechette, was a renowned organist. Fans and critics response to her music: “pure magic” “haunting” “poetry” “captivating beyond words.” Pauline’s compositions are gems that spark the 21st century need for private inspiration, sensual beauty or glowing romanticisim - the essence of romantic beauty and aesthetic in a short span of time. A Frechette romantic miniature fills the need for warm flow, deeper meaning or emotional lift to a higher plane in the time it took to prepare and consume an espresso. Her albums, Colors of My Heart and An Intimate Story debuted in the Billboard Top Ten in Classical and Jazz. Her current album “A Winter’s Tale” is receiving rave reviews: “… songs on this title express the silent beauty found in nature this time of year. Frechette gives voice to that quiet splendor with taste and truth.”~ Old Town Crier. And, her music is now played in over 150 countries to billions of listeners. Her compositions have been performed by the Baltimore Symphony, The Hollywood Bowl Orchestra, New West Symphony, National Symphony at the Kennedy Center Concert Hall, Cincinnati Symphony and at Disney Concert Hall. Her solo piano album “An Intimate Story” was an official 2021 Grammy Entry and her song “Jewel Box won the WAM Award for “Best Instrumental” in 2020. In Dec. 2020, Pauline was awarded the title “Ambassador for World Peace to NIgeria” by YELI (Youth Education and Leadership Initiative) for her musical influence in that country.
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