Turlutte acadienne montréalaise

Program Notes:

Imagine in Québec or New Brunswick the dance band taking a well-deserved break, but the dancers insisting on keeping going – that’s what turlutte’s are for, because they are sung! You’ll hear some of our singers stomping to add to the intensity of the beat.

Conductor Notes:

A fun and highly-successful, original vocalise on traditional mouth sounds found in folk music from Quebec. Up tempo in three parts. We have performed it in both the original key and up a semitone. Both work. I haven’t asked Marie-Claire which she prefers! We had four singers stomping for a 40-voice choir, but it could have been two.

Composer / Arranger Notes:

Turlutte acadienne montréalaise is an original melody hailing from the traditional Acadian musical practice of the mouthreel. The composer recognises her Acadian roots, but also the cultural includes of her current hometown, Montréal, in the title. The French-Canadian mouthreel is the art of imitating an instrumental reel or a jig with one’s voice, using a specific set of syllables – not unlike jazz scat singers. Though mouthreels can be found in many other cultures around the globe, a little sound is featured in the Acadian and Québecois mouthreel, which is the “ts” sound, like a mini drum-kit high-hat hit.