Swamp Ward Orchestra

"La soirée de dimanche se prêtait tout à fait aux rythmes proposés par le Swamp Ward Orchestra. Un soleil aux rayons doux et chaleureux accompagnait une musique qui semblait provenir d'une autre époque. Alison Gowan et Laura Murray ont été d'excellentes animatrices qui s'exprimaient fort bien dans la langue de Molière avec une petite touche anglaise qui n'enlevait rien à leur charme. Le trio... chantent de leur belle voix cristalline des complaintes connues de notre proper folkore... on reconnaissait également des airs celtiques et parfois même tzigane." - Le Courant des Hautes-Laurentides

"A great highlight of Cantabile's 15th anniversary season was the opportunity to collaborate with the Swamp Ward Orchestra in a unique programme that celebrated music from the the 'Old World' to the 'New.' It was an incredible evening of entertainment made all the more memorable by the instrumentals and accompaniments performed by the talented Swamp Ward Orchestra. Our choristers and audience were delighted by the wide range of dances and songs they performed, their vitality, musicianship, sensitivity, humour, and captivating stage presence." - Cantabile Choirs, Kingston ON

As a result of the failure of Ordo Sahkna to attend due to visa problems, the group with the most unusual name at the fest, Swamp Ward Orchestra, was parachuted in at the last minute to the delight of the audience. After all, how often do you get to hear a hurdy-gurdy? These three women met in Kingston, Ontario. The Swamp Ward is the equivalent of Winnipeg’s North End – a lower middle-class enclave of immigrants. Each of the three women making up the Swamp Ward Orchestra was conservatory trained and performed in symphony orchestras but, in their off-hours, did what they loved playing an eclectic mix of French, Acadian and East European folk music. I met with Jan Le Clair (accordion, concert pianist), Allison Gowan (hurdy-gurdy, double bass, penny whistle and classical violinist) and Laura Murray (cello, banjo and classical violinist) who advised that they were given two weeks’ notice to appear. They were a joy to hear even if the drone of the hurdy-gurdy was not something the audience might have been used to. - Winnipeg Review July 12 2011

Kingston, Ont. trio The Swamp Ward Orchestra got the evening started with a supper-hour set consisting of French-Canadian and Eastern European-influenced folk-noir songs injected with plenty of ink-black humour. - Winnipeg Free Press July 12 2011

But the Folk Fest made so many more memories than that.

Take the one just after 1:30 p.m., for instance. When clouds rallied for one final assault on the sun, and the field in front of Bur Oak stage rippled with flying feet and rising fists. The movement came courtesy of the madcap fusion between the Swamp Ward Orchestra, Jaune Toujours and Beats Antique -- three eclectic bands that fluidly found a common beat.

When the jam finally whirled to a stop, fans twirled bandannas over their heads and hollered for more. It will be hard to come by. "If you like what you heard, well, you can't get it in stores," quipped workshop host Marco Calliari. - Winnipeg Free Press July 12 2011

Kingston’s Swamp Ward Orchestra rips through three new tracks — download them below! The group is heading to the Calgary Folk Fest and other far-flung shows in the summer of 2011. Alison Gowan is on hurdy gurdy and upright bass, Jan Le Clair plays accordion and cello, Laura Murray plays cello and banjo, and everyone sings, with Alison taking lead vocals on Ta P’tite Flamme, a song by Amélie-les-crayons. La Sansonette is a Schottische by Dominique Forges, and Slippery Slope is an original by Laura Murray. Pete Bowers joins the trio on percussion. Recorded and mixed by Matt Rogalsky. - Apple Crisp Zine

Direct from an area once known as Kingston’s Swamp Ward, this unlikely orchestra boasts Alison Gowan as its leader, with her wicked hurdy-gurdy pump, mean double-bass pluck, sweet whistle touch and expressive voice. Soul-sister Laura Murray plays cello and banjo and sings. Richard Day plays accordion and they switch percussionists. Their repertoire is equally unusual, consisting of pieces by contemporary European hurdy-gurdy composers, traditional Acadian folk songs, a couple of old-time American numbers, a few of Alison’s instrumental compositions, including Guy in the Red Thong.
There are moments of exuberating folly and reposing beauty, dance-floor mania and medieval delicacy. Though this recording falls slightly short of rendering their live show, it’s a good one. The Swamp Ward Orchestra is a must-see band with a refreshing repertoire and unique instrumentation.
By Mary Beth Carty
- Penguin Eggs 38 (summer 2008)

Kingston-based The Swamp Ward Orchestra celebrate the release of their debut album, Donkey Boy, and play two shows in our area, 8 p.m., Saturday, July 28 at the Island Grill, Wolfe Island and 8 p.m., Sunday, July 29 at the Acoustic Grill in Picton. Local Brian Flynn will also take the stage.
Swamp Ward Orchestra’s new album is a playful and charismatic collection of light-hearted and dark songs, both originals and covers, based in a traditional French dance setting.
This unique band hosts an interesting and unusual collection of instruments that include accordion, hurdy gurdy, cello, banjo, and various percussion and singing in two or three-part harmony. Members include Richard Day (accordion); Alison Gowan (hurdy gurdy, bass, whistles, vocals); Laura Murray (cello, banjo, vocals); and for their current tour Andy Love, from Pico De Gallo, on percussion.
The Swamp Ward Orchestra play mostly traditional French songs or songs written by well-known European folk musicians. Gowan has also composed a few of the pieces.
Murray and Gowan love to sing old Québecois songs and they look around for those not well known.
The orchestra members met at a neighbourhood musical soiree and discovered their matching musical tastes. Gowan calls their sound, “a groovin’ euro-folk fusion, a little medieval, a little square dance, a little funky, a very lively modal and that can sound a little spooky. These old songs often have odd inexplicable twists that we love.”
The group gets support from the Kingston and area music scene according to Murray.
“We have a loyal following and our music appeals to all ages. There are many great musicians hiding in the weeds and we especially love the number of talented amateur musicians.
We like playing with friends at parties. Elderly people are thrilled to hear the old French songs they knew as kids.”
The orchestra loves playing for dancers and teaching dances. They dream of a summer of playing music festivals.
The Swamp Ward Orchestra has played in the Skeleton Park Music Festival, the Buskers Rendezvous, and the Feast of Fields. Out of town gigs have included the traditional French music festival, Chants de Veilles near Montréal and the Mill Race Festival of Traditional Music in Cambridge, Ontario.
Donkey Boy, recorded by Zane Whitfield, will be available for purchase at the release. - Kingston This Week

What does hunger mean? For Alison Gowan, her response varies. As a musician: "I think my music is meant to mirror the emotional state of hunger, the state of emptiness and desire," she said. As a community member: "We have a lot of people who are struggling to feed themselves now."
As one of the performers in a collaborative theatre piece, she sees hunger as the need to create.
"I think as artists we all have that certain hunger ... to create with others," she said.
This new project, A Moveable Feast, will allow audiences to sample different local artists' interpretations of the theme of hunger through music, dance, poetry, monologues, film and other media.
It's a show spread over six consecutive nights starting Monday at the Grand Theatre. Some of the artists taking part include Lin Bennett, Annie Briggs, Kaylee Brooks, Sarah Bruckschweiger, Ryan Clement, Sue Donaldson, Matthew Donovan, Lisa Figge, Elizabeth Greene, Amanda Hamilton, Anne Hardcastle, Donnalee Iffla, Tara Kainer, Bruce Kauffman, Clarke Mackey, Kristen Martin, Christine Overall, Joanne Page, Chantal Rousseau, Jennifer Verardi and Adam Wray.
Some works deal with the political side of hunger by linking it to poverty, while others play with abstract concepts of hunger as passion and longing.
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She and her bandmates also play the accordion, cello, banjo and double bass.
They will be improvising some of their material for A Moveable Feast, Gowan said.
"It's something that might be able to shift and change from night to night," she said.
Although the band will provide what Gowan calls "incidental music" for the show, their involvement has caused them to start looking at the theme of hunger in their own music.
"One of the pieces we (are doing now) is a sad Klezmer lament that comes out of the strife of the Jewish people in a difficult period," she said of the Polish song,Sapozhkalkh.
The Quebecois tuneLa Courte Paillelooks at cannibalism, she said.
"It's about sailors being lost at sea for years and having to eat one of the crew." - Kingston Whig Standard

Profile of Alison Gowan. Selection:
Gowan heard the hurdy-gurdy being played by a band from Quebec called Ad Vielle Que Pourra, which was the only group playing traditional French music at the time. A few years later, she moved to England and happened to join a band that featured a hurdy-gurdy player, who showed Gowan the ropes and ended up giving her that instrument. Now Gowan is playing hurdy gurdy with the best of them - as she did at a hurdy-gurdy and dance festival in St. Charter in France a few weeks ago.
Though Gowan might love the hurdy-gurdy, it's a lonely relationship. There are only a few hurdy-gurdy players in Eastern Canada, and Gowan is probably the only one in the city. The numbers are likely kept down by the skill and attention required to play the instrument.
"It's extremely complicated - there's lots of strings, so lots of tuning, and it's not acclimatized to Canadian winters. It takes constant care and attention," Gowan said.
The Swamp Ward Orchestra came together out of Gowan's love of the hurdy-gurdy: she was looking for someone with whom she could play the traditional French folk music the instrument was made for.
"I primarily wanted to get a dance-band going," said Gowan, whose band formed two years ago this fall. "That's very popular in France and all over Europe, but not so much in Canada - except Quebec."
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The Orchestra also does traditional songs of the genre, which are found through Gowan and Murray's research into old Quebecois and French songs, looking for unusual or interesting stories.
"I think for both Laura and I, singing is storytelling and even if you're telling someone a story in a different language, the way you sing it is very evocative of what's going on," Gowan said.
As well as its regular show, Swamp Ward Orchestra does children's performances. In June, at the Skeleton Park Music Festival, they lead the children's parade around the park. The band's show tonight at the Island Grill on Wolfe Island will be a release party for their first album, titled Donkey Boy. Recorded in Kingston with Betablokka's Zane Whitfield at his North of Princess studios, the album is a mix of vocal and instrumental tracks.
The songs are mainly traditional folk, along with a few of Gowan's original tunes, one of which provided the inspiration for the name of the album. - Kingston Whig Standard