Fierce Hearts
| Fierce Hearts | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Soundtrack album by | ||||
| Released | 28 February 2014 | |||
| Recorded | Sing Sing Studios | |||
| Genre | Rock music, pop, acoustic, folk rock, jazz | |||
| Label | Kin Music Australia / Universal Music Australia | |||
| Katie Noonan chronology | ||||
| ||||
Fierce Hearts, or Fierce Hearts: the Music of Love-Song-Circus, is a soundtrack/studio album by Australian singer songwriter Katie Noonan, produced as the soundtrack to contemporary circus Circa's show Love-Song-Circus.
At the ARIA Music Awards of 2014, the album was nominated for Best Original Soundtrack/Cast/Show Album, but lost to Gurrumul: His Life and Music by Geoffrey Gurrumul Yunupingu.[1]
Background and release[edit]
Love-Song-Circus is based on the stories of Australia’s first convict women. It combines folk instrumentation, string quartet, piano and Noonan’s voice with the three of Circa’s acrobats/aerialists.
Noonan was inspired by an exhibition at the National Museum of Australia called "Love Tokens". This collection contains 307 tokens dating from 1762-1856, most of them fashioned from the 1797 Cartwheel penny. These pennies proved perfect as tokens – they were cheap, made of a soft copper and were quite large – providing plenty of space for inscriptions. Convicts would engrave them with messages and images for the loved ones they had to leave behind.[2][3]
Noonan said, "As a woman and mother I felt deeply compelled to explore these stories. I soon discovered that the lives of the first female convicts is a part of our history that has been explored by few".[4]
Love-Song-Circus premiered at the 2012 Adelaide Cabaret Festival. It played again in Melbourne in 2013 and again in 2014 in Brisbane, Adelaide, Melbourne and Sydney.
Reception[edit]
Ali Burnie of Beat Music gave the album a positive review saying; "Fierce Hearts – The Music of Love-Song-Circus is folk music at its best. Noonan’s sublime vocals, piano and heartfelt songwriting combines seamlessly with The Gossamer String Quartet, ensuring that this album is a joy to listen to. Drawing us in from the very first track, this beautiful, yet at times very sad album is flawless from start to finish" [5]
Track listing[edit]
- "Fierce Hearts Interlude 1" - 3:40
- "Esther" - 4:26
- "Leaden Hearts" - 6:33
- "Fierce Hearts Interlude 2" - 1:33
- "Jane" - 2:43
- "Female Transport" - 4:00
- "Fierce Hearts Interlude 3" - 3:32
- "Janet" - 3:44
- "Space Between Us" - 3:10
- "Fierce Hearts Interlude 4" - 3:36
- "Sweet One" - 4:46
- "Louisa" - 3:55
- "Leaden Hearts Reprise" - 2:03
- "Ellen" - 3:26
- "Mary" - 4:18
- "Finale" - 4:46
Credits[edit]
- Banjo, Acoustic Guitar, Electric Guitar, Resonator Guitar, Mandolin – Benjamin Hauptman
- Cello – Josephine Vains
- Double Bass – Zoe Hauptmann
- Engineer [Assistant] – Aaron Dobos
- Engineer, Mixed By – David Nicholas
- Performer – The Gossamer String Quartet
- Producer, Vocals, Piano – Katie Noonan
- Viola – Caleb Wright
- Violin [1st] – Sarah Curro
- Violin [2nd] – Monica Curro
- Written-By [Strings], Arranged By [Strings] – Stephen Newcomb
Release history[edit]
| Region | Date | Format | Label | Catalogue |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Australia | 28 February 2014 | Kin Music Australia / Universal Music Australia | 3775715 |
References[edit]
- ^ "ARIA Award for Best Original Soundtrack Cast Show Album". www.ariaawards.com.au. Retrieved 25 April 2016.
- ^ "Love Song Circus". katienoonan.com. Retrieved 2 May 2016.
- ^ "Convict women inspire Katie Noonan's Love-Song-Circus". www.smh.com.au. 4 March 2014. Retrieved 2 May 2016.
- ^ "Katie Noonan - Fierce Heart". www.jbhifi.com.au. Retrieved 1 May 2016.
- ^ "Katie Noonan : Fierce Hearts – The Music of Love-Song-Circus". www.beat.com.au. Retrieved 2 May 2016.
- ^ "Katie Noonan - Fierce Heart". www.jbhifi.com.au. Retrieved 1 May 2016.
- ^ "Fierce Hearts Music, Love songs". iTunes Australia. Retrieved 1 May 2016.