Photo by Martyn Goddard
Singer, songwriter and composer Jacqueline Kroft is England-born but spent much of her upbringing in Canada. It was here that she first fell in love with the piano and went on to study further at college and the Toronto Royal Conservatory. At this time, her career in composition, alongside the likes of Sony and Warner, began to take off, giving her opportunities to work with Terry Draper, Bryn Terfel, John Gliblin and Stuart Elliott (Simple Minds, Kate Bush), and release an extensive discography. Now gracing the Cathedrals of England with her original music, Jacqueline harnesses the power of the instrument she first played at age ten.
Her latest track is ‘The First Blossoms’, a sweet single that encapsulates the moments when flowers rise from the chill of winter, a time-lapse capsule of the first blooms of spring. This is achieved first through moments of intensity, allowing long-held bass tones and consistent, driving chords to set the scene.
The arrival of a top-line melody is forlorn and melancholic, holding back a ferocity within its elegance. It balances against the directness of the supporting elements, forging its own path.
As we progress, more is revealed from this delicate and detailed melody. It is tentative, with moments of strength and defiance. Finishing as something beautiful, powerful and complete.
The composer explains, “I wrote ‘The First Blossoms’ like the first steps into spring where there’s this music developing under the ground from the sleeping fauna. We can’t see anything but we feel the energy of the plants waking from slumber and feel a freshness in the air. I really like this time in spring, it’s an awakening and then we get the explosion of life and colour. I played the piano in this way.”
Listen to ‘The First Blossoms’ here…
