the essential
Araëlle, a duo composed of Emmanuelle and Sarah, will perform in concert at the Castelnaudary media library (Aude), on January 25 from 7 p.m. FREE ENTRANCE.
Who is behind Araëlle?
We are two sisters, and we come from Ariège. We formed our Celtic music duo thanks to this passion that we share, stemming from childhood. Our parents listened to this music a lot, when traveling or at home. By chance it was this universe, and here we are doing this job that we didn’t even dare to imagine, but that we were able to achieve.
When did you officially become Araëlle?
In March 2018! Initially, we formed a trio with a pianist, and his father advised us to try something. This is Philippe Massimi, known in the world of music in Ariège, and who died in 2020. We miss him greatly. The trio transformed into a duo, with Celtic art instruments, the guitar, the Irish flute, and the bodhran, the Irish drum.
Did you learn to play these instruments on your own?
For most of these instruments, yes. Emmanuelle took violin lessons, and I took harp lessons.
What does Araëlle mean?
It is the merger of our two first names, Sarah and Emmanuelle.
-You sing in English, but also in Old French, Old English, as well as Elvish…
It comes a lot from the Lord of the Rings universe, with the elvish songs based on Tolkien’s poems. It’s truly magnificent music that we really enjoy performing. Old English is in relation to the Middle Ages: we all love these medieval, fantastic worlds since childhood. The Middle Ages also gave us a lot of inspiration for Old French.
How did you learn Old French, Old English and Elvish?
Listening (Laughs). There is also Gaelic, we really like these songs. We listen to it, but don’t speak it. It’s so beautiful. We reproduce as faithfully as possible the sound we hear.
You will perform at the media library on January 25. What will you interpret?
It turns out that it will be the medieval repertoire, film music: Lord of the Rings, the Hobbit trilogy… We are also exploring the world of Tim Burton, with Edward Scissorhands and Alice in Wonderland. There is also the film “Gladiator”, and other surprises to discover.
You interpret, but also compose…
We also compose! These worlds inspired us a lot. We compose either on already written texts from the 19th century, or our own texts.
