In so many ways, we are all the product of everything that came before us. That's certainly applicable in regards to our own family make-up and the various combinations of backgrounds and cultures many of us find ourselves representing.
My grandmother came to London in the 1950s from a small village in Cyprus called Pendayia. She left her husband and two young children and ventured out alone to find work and a home before she would ultimately send for them to join her. Unable to speak any English, she went looking for work as a seamstress but after being turned away from every factory she went to, frustration kicked in and she forcibly sat herself down at an unoccupied sewing machine and began to work, refusing to leave. Realising he couldn't get rid of her - and seeing she was competent in her work - the manager ended up hiring her. She sent for her family soon afterwards and in her career would run two North London clothing factories.
Considering the depth of stories and achievements that Emma Pilgaard delves into throughout 'A Woman's Voice', the above is quite possibly tame in comparison but it's a story that always moved me and demonstrated the power of determination. For Danish vocalist and composer Pilgaard - now celebrating her inaugural release through April Records - it's the realisation that we are all standing on the shoulders of giants that serves as the greatest inspiration for this, her third album overall.
Across the album's nine songs, Pilgaard allots each track to the indelible achievements of Danish women heralding the efforts of painter Anna Ancher, electronic musician Else Marie Pade, writer and social critic Thit Jensen, geophysicist Inge Lehmann, actress and stunt performer Emilie Sannom, baker Karen Volf and sculptor Anne Marie Carl-Nielsen. There is also a notably moving story of Carla Hansine Petersen who underwent considerable injustice in the early 1900s as part of Denmark's eugenics policies.
'A Woman's Voice' is a remarkable collection of stories exquisitely presented and conceived by Pilgaard who has become renowned for the level of sensitivity she brings to each of her projects. A keen performer and collaborator, Pilgaard's exceptional vocal prowess has consistently found itself amidst fine company - as a member of the jazz-inspired folk ensemble Nordlyd Trio, the children's-themed project The Tadpoles or the Brazilian music aesthetic of The Jorge Degas Quartet, Pilgaard manages to soar within each setting recontextualising her music each time.
'A Woman's Voice' finds Pilgaard offering up new perspectives that find the album's aforementioned narratives interwoven through sublime soul stylings and intimate noir jazz compositions. Backed by some sensational support, Pilgaard teams with long-time collaborator in trumpeter Ida Brinch (band leader for The Tadpoles), April Records labelmates in drummer Patrycja Wybrańczyk from the quartet O.N.E. (please check out their excellent 'Well, Actually...' album) and vibraphonist Viktoria Søndergaard whose 'Music of Secrets' serves as another fantastic listen. Bassist Hilda Nordkvist and pianist Rachel Taits round out the all-female ensemble injecting the album with scintillating life and energy.
Perhaps the greatest achievement of 'A Woman's Voice' is the way that Emma Pilgaard reminds us that history isn't simply something that belongs in books or museums; it lives on in the people who carry those stories forward. These are women whose determination, creativity and resilience helped shape the world around them, just as the women in our own families quietly shape the people we strive to become.
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