Les Voix Humaines is a

Canadian Canadians () are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of their being ''C ...

viol The viola da gamba (), or viol, or informally gamba, is a bowed and fretted string instrument that is played (i.e. "on the leg"). It is distinct from the later violin family, violin, or ; and it is any one of the earlier viol family of bow (m ...

ensemble based in Montreal, Quebec. The two principal members are Susie Napper and Margaret Little, two

gambist The viola da gamba (), or viol, or informally gamba, is a bowed and fretted string instrument that is played (i.e. "on the leg"). It is distinct from the later violin, or ; and it is any one of the earlier viol family of bowed, fretted, and s ...

s. The group performs mainly Baroque music, in particular works by French composers."Les Voix Humaines"
''Allmusic'', Biography by Robert Cummings

History

Les Voix Humaines first came together in 1985; they named their group after a viola da gamba composition by

Marin Marais Marin Marais (; 31 May 1656, in Paris – 15 August 1728, in Paris) was a French composer and viol player. He studied composition with Jean-Baptiste Lully, often conducting his operas, and with master of the bass viol Monsieur de Sainte-Colombe ...

. The duo have made several recordings for the Canadian

ATMA Classique ATMA Classique is an independent classical record label based in Montreal, and welcomes artists from Quebec, across Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territorie ...

label, including ''The Spirite of Musicke'' with soprano

Suzie LeBlanc Suzie LeBlanc (born 27 October 1961) is a Canadian soprano and early music specialist. She taught at McGill University from 2016 to 2020 and became the Artistic and Executive Director of Early Music Vancouver in 2021. She was named a member of t ...

, featuring the viol music of Alfonso Ferrabosco,

Tobias Hume Tobias Hume (possibly 1579 – 16 April 1645) was a Scottish composer, viol player and soldier. Little is known of his life. Some have suggested that he was born in 1579 because he was admitted to the London Charterhouse in 1629, a prerequisite ...

, John Jenkins and Christopher Simpson in 2001. In 2009 the group recorded an album, ''Fanstasies'', using six eighteenth century instruments from the collection of the University of Toronto. The instruments had to be restored to playing condition before the group could use them. Two other recordings are ''Sainte Colombe: Concertos for bass viol/Les Voix Humaines'' and ''Sainte-Colombe Concerts a deux Violes Esgales'', which study and perform the works of two composers who were father and son. In 2013 the group released an album, ''Bach: L'Art de la fugue''."Les Voix Humaines’ magical take on Bach’s The Art of the Fugue: album review"
''Toronto Star'', May 20, 2013

References

External links

Les Voix Humaines
Official website {{DEFAULTSORT:Voix humaines Early music groups