Alexina Louie, born in 1950 in Vancouver of second-generation Chinese parents, has become a name to be reckoned with in Canadian music. She studied at the University of British Columbia and then at the University of California, San Diego, returning to Canada in 1980 to take up residence in Toronto. She gained national prominence with O Magnum Mysterium: In Memoriam Glenn Gould, a work she says that was “ripped from my soul” after the great pianist’s death in October 1982. William Littler of the Toronto Star said: “This is one of those special pieces able to cast a spell over its listener.” Alexina Louie has been casting aural spells ever since. She was named Composer of the Year in 1986 by the Canadian Music Council.

            Songs of Paradise was written in 1983 for the Thunder Bay Symphony. The composer wrote the following note to accompany the recording of this work by the CBC. “For some time now, I have been preoccupied with the conflict between the art of creation and its fragile existence in an often hostile external world. Songs of Paradise was written as an expression of the mysteries and the wonder of nature and art, and as a celebration of the creative spirit. Besides the more obvious programmatic elements (the music, colourful depiction of the beauty and mystery of nature through shimmering percussion effects, fluttering in the strings, and the predominance of the winds, with their bird-calls and tremulous warblings), the composition is a glimpse into the beauty of the creative spirit, a paradise of the soul. After a mysterious opening, the brass summons the full orchestra, solo violin, then solo piano to reveal their songs. A hymn to the universe in the brass introduces the final segment, where the various musical elements are recalled.”

            We have long come to recognize Alexina Louie’s unique voice: orchestration that is brilliant but not harsh, musical ideas that are suffused with warmth, impressionistic sounds that conjure up a mysterious other world. This spiritual, quasi-oriental soundscape in her music and its rich aural textures makes her music very accessible. It is atmospheric and seems to connect this world with some other spiritual space. She has achieved this by blending Asian and Western musical influences. The result is distinctly her voice – an invitation to inspect a world of the spirit via an embrace of tonality, modality and dissonance.

©  David Gardner

The Emergency Relief Fund of the Musicians’ Association of Local 180 (Ottawa-Gatineau) supports local musicians affected by the Covid-19 Pandemic.

To help, go to: ma180.org