Stille Volk
Encyclopedia
Stille Volk is a folk
band from the Pyrenees
area of France
. The band formed in 1994, and draws inspiration from Celtic
and medieval music.
The members play mostly, sometimes exclusively, traditional instruments (except on the more experimental album Ex-uvies). The lyrics are usually sung in French
, Catalan
or Occitan, and are mostly pagan-themed, evoking nature, myths, magical beings and sorcery.
The band is sometimes associated with the folk metal
genre, probably due to the use of electric guitar
s on the Ex-uvies album. The other albums, however, are not related to this genre in any way. It is notable, though, that the two members of Stille Volk play together in a folk metal band called Hantaoma, highly reminiscent of Stille Volk.
Folk music
Folk music is an English term encompassing both traditional folk music and contemporary folk music. The term originated in the 19th century. Traditional folk music has been defined in several ways: as music transmitted by mouth, as music of the lower classes, and as music with unknown composers....
band from the Pyrenees
Pyrenees
The Pyrenees is a range of mountains in southwest Europe that forms a natural border between France and Spain...
area of France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
. The band formed in 1994, and draws inspiration from Celtic
Celtic music
Celtic music is a term utilised by artists, record companies, music stores and music magazines to describe a broad grouping of musical genres that evolved out of the folk musical traditions of the Celtic people of Western Europe...
and medieval music.
The members play mostly, sometimes exclusively, traditional instruments (except on the more experimental album Ex-uvies). The lyrics are usually sung in French
French language
French is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...
, Catalan
Catalan language
Catalan is a Romance language, the national and only official language of Andorra and a co-official language in the Spanish autonomous communities of Catalonia, the Balearic Islands and Valencian Community, where it is known as Valencian , as well as in the city of Alghero, on the Italian island...
or Occitan, and are mostly pagan-themed, evoking nature, myths, magical beings and sorcery.
The band is sometimes associated with the folk metal
Folk metal
Folk metal is a sub-genre of heavy metal music that developed in Europe during the 1990s. As the name suggests, the genre is a fusion of heavy metal with traditional folk music...
genre, probably due to the use of electric guitar
Electric guitar
An electric guitar is a guitar that uses the principle of direct electromagnetic induction to convert vibrations of its metal strings into electric audio signals. The signal generated by an electric guitar is too weak to drive a loudspeaker, so it is amplified before sending it to a loudspeaker...
s on the Ex-uvies album. The other albums, however, are not related to this genre in any way. It is notable, though, that the two members of Stille Volk play together in a folk metal band called Hantaoma, highly reminiscent of Stille Volk.
Current members
- Patrick Lafforgue - vocals, wind instruments
- Patrice Roques - string instruments, choirs
Instruments
- Hurdy-gurdy
- BouzoukiBouzoukiThe bouzouki , is a musical instrument with Greek origin in the lute family. A mainstay of modern Greek music, the front of the body is flat and is usually heavily inlaid with mother-of-pearl. The instrument is played with a plectrum and has a sharp metallic sound, reminiscent of a mandolin but...
- FluteFluteThe flute is a musical instrument of the woodwind family. Unlike woodwind instruments with reeds, a flute is an aerophone or reedless wind instrument that produces its sound from the flow of air across an opening...
- Arab luteLuteLute can refer generally to any plucked string instrument with a neck and a deep round back, or more specifically to an instrument from the family of European lutes....
- BagpipesBagpipesBagpipes are a class of musical instrument, aerophones, using enclosed reeds fed from a constant reservoir of air in the form of a bag. Though the Scottish Great Highland Bagpipe and Irish uilleann pipes have the greatest international visibility, bagpipes of many different types come from...
- Portable organ
- GuitarGuitarThe guitar is a plucked string instrument, usually played with fingers or a pick. The guitar consists of a body with a rigid neck to which the strings, generally six in number, are attached. Guitars are traditionally constructed of various woods and strung with animal gut or, more recently, with...
- DulcimerAppalachian dulcimerThe Appalachian dulcimer is a fretted string instrument of the zither family, typically with three or four strings. It is native to the Appalachian region of the United States...
- ViolinViolinThe violin is a string instrument, usually with four strings tuned in perfect fifths. It is the smallest, highest-pitched member of the violin family of string instruments, which includes the viola and cello....
- Bombarde
- String tambourineTambourineThe tambourine or marine is a musical instrument of the percussion family consisting of a frame, often of wood or plastic, with pairs of small metal jingles, called "zils". Classically the term tambourine denotes an instrument with a drumhead, though some variants may not have a head at all....
- PsalteryPsalteryA psaltery is a stringed musical instrument of the harp or the zither family. The psaltery of Ancient Greece dates from at least 2800 BC, when it was a harp-like instrument...
- MandolineMandolineA mandoline is a cooking utensil used for slicing and for cutting juliennes; with suitable attachments, it can make crinkle-cuts. It consists of two parallel working surfaces, one of which can be adjusted in height. A food item is slid along the adjustable surface until it reaches a blade mounted...
- GuimbardeMouth harpMouth harp may refer to:* Harmonica* Jew's harp...
- HornHorn (instrument)The horn is a brass instrument consisting of about of tubing wrapped into a coil with a flared bell. A musician who plays the horn is called a horn player ....
- Drum machineDrum machineA drum machine is an electronic musical instrument designed to imitate the sound of drums or other percussion instruments. They are used in a variety of musical genres, not just purely electronic music...
Discography
- Hantaoma - 1997, Holy Records
- Ex-uvies - 1998, Holy Records
- Satyre Cornu - 2001, Holy Records
- Maudat - 2002, Holy Records
- Nueit De Sabbat - 2009, Holy Records
See also
- Hantaoma is a folk metalFolk metalFolk metal is a sub-genre of heavy metal music that developed in Europe during the 1990s. As the name suggests, the genre is a fusion of heavy metal with traditional folk music...
band named after the first Stille Volk album featuring Patrick Lafforgue and Patrice Roques. Their debut album, MalombraMalombraMalombra is a 1917 silent Italian drama film directed by Carmine Gallone. The film was shown as part of the Silent Divas of the Italian Cinema programme at the 38th New York Film Festival in 2000.-Plot:...
, was released in 2005. The lyrics are sung entirely in Occitan.