Includes unlimited streaming via the free Bandcamp app, plus high-quality download in MP3, FLAC and more.
Purchasable with gift card
$8USD or more
Special Edition 12" Vinyl
Record/Vinyl + Digital Album
Special Edition includes:
- Orange burst vinyl
- an insert poster with decorative renditions of the handwritten music charts (not shown in above photos)
- an autograph from the artist on the poster (not shown in above photos)
Beautiful album artwork by Grammy-nominated designer, Julian Gross.
The audio was expertly cut for vinyl by renowned mastering engineer Carl Rowatti.
PLEASE NOTE: THE LP PLAYS AT 45 RPM
*The LP is currently out of stock for shipping but will be available again in the coming months
Includes unlimited streaming of 41 Strings
via the free Bandcamp app, plus high-quality download in MP3, FLAC and more.
Sold Out
12" Vinyl
Record/Vinyl + Digital Album
Beautiful album artwork by Grammy-nominated designer, Julian Gross.
The audio was expertly cut for vinyl by renowned mastering engineer Carl Rowatti.
PLEASE NOTE: THE LP PLAYS AT 45 RPM
*The LP is currently out of stock for shipping but will be available again in the coming months
Includes unlimited streaming of 41 Strings
via the free Bandcamp app, plus high-quality download in MP3, FLAC and more.
Guitarist, composer and producer Nick Zinner (Yeah Yeah Yeahs, 13 million year old ghost) and Chaikin Records proudly present 41 Strings, a song cycle for string orchestra, electric guitars and expanded rhythm section. Originally commissioned for a large-scale Earth Day event in 2011, 41 Strings draws inspiration from and pays tribute to the four seasons, each movement corresponding to a respective season. This world-premier concert was held on the 41st anniversary of Earth Day which encouraged the idea for an ensemble consisting of 41 string instruments. Following the latest performance of the piece at NYC’s Rockefeller Plaza in 2019, the inclination arose to formally release 41 Strings as an LP and digital download, resulting in this Chaikin Records album. The music’s core environmentally-centric theme couldn’t be more timely in regards to current issues of climate change.
A distinctive component of the 41 Strings composition is its fusion of ‘classical’ music with rock band, a quality which is reflected in the piece’s instrumentation: violins, violas, cellos, double basses, eight electric guitars, two synthesizers, two electric bassists and three drummers. This dual identity of ‘rock band’ and ‘string ensemble’ is directly linked to Zinner’s multifaceted musical practice as heard in his guitar playing with Yeah Yeah Yeahs and his soundtrack composing for film and television. The music of 41 Strings beautifully leans on these dichotomous ensemble characteristics throughout its depiction of the four seasons - hot and cold, impassioned and calm, joyful and melancholy…
41 Strings performances have had the distinctive honor of including very notable special guests, particularly calling upon the indie rock music scene. The guitar section has featured Lenny Kaye (Patti Smith), Sarah Lipstate (Noveller, Iggy Pop), David Pajo (Slint, Gang of Four), Andrew Wyatt (Miike Snow), Paul Banks (Interpol), Gemma Thompson (Savages), Aku Orraca-Tetteh (Florence & the Machine) and Romy Madley-Croft (The xx) among many more; the rhythm section has maintained a consistent line-up with such accomplished players as Jaleel Bunton (TV on the Radio), Andy Macleod (Royal Trux), Hisham Bharoocha (Boredoms), Brian Chase (Yeah Yeah Yeahs), Ryan Sawyer (Gang Gang Dance) and Ben Vida. All of these musicians impart a sense of independent-art ethos with an exalted reach-for-the-stars morale. Such voices excel at tapping into the sensitivity of the music and bringing its beauty to the surface. Violinist Gillian Rivers, in addition to performing, worked as arranger in adapting Zinner’s compositions for string orchestra; additionally, she coached the string section during rehearsals and conducted them during performance.
Counting the debut performance in NYC in 2011, 41 Strings has only been performed four times. This low number is due to the project being such a massive undertaking. Because of the rarity of performance, each one has been deeply significant. The second performance took place at the Sydney Opera House for the Sydney Festival in 2012; the third took place at London’s Royal Festival Hall for Meltdown Festival in 2014; the fourth took place at Rockefeller Plaza in NYC in the summer of 2019.
The music of 41 Strings is purposefully simple, lyrical and minimal; melodic motifs gradually unfold over time and convey a steady pacing as sections move one from the next. A subtle subjectivity infuses the ‘experience’ of each season as opposed to striving for a more objective ‘picture’: the movements of “Fall” and “Winter” naturally express a temperate majesty and solemn introspection; “Spring” brings the most raucous intensity, aligning itself with the season’s energy of rebirth and adolescent-like freedom; “Summer” expresses an idyllic potential, awash in the warmth and light of the sun...
credits
released July 1, 2022
Guitars: Aku Orraca-Tetteh, David Pajo, Siebren Versteeg, Nick Zinner, Joshua Zucker
Bass: Andy Macleod
Synth: Ben Vida
Drums: Hisham Bharoocha, Brian Chase, Ryan Sawyer
Gillian Rivers String Section
Violins: Rebecca Cherry, Patrick Doane, Yukio Kamakari, Gillian Rivers, Mary Jo Stilp
Viola: Erin Benim, Caleb Burhans, Kyle Armbrust
Cello: Jessie Reagen Mann, Leo Soeda
Upright Bass: Justin Frye
All tracks written by Nick Zinner, Little Vampie / BMG Blue (BMI)
Except Spring written by Nick Zinner, Hisham Bharoocha and Ben Vida, Little Vampie / BMG Blue (BMI), Soft Circle Music (ASCAP) and Bird Show (ASCAP)
Arranged by Gillian Rivers
Recorded May 2011 at Water Music, Hoboken, NJ
Recorded and mixed by Rudyard Lee Cullers at Water Music, NJ and Plantain NYC
Remastered by Chis Coady June 2020
Lacquer cut and mastered for vinyl by Carl Rowatti
Designed by Julian Gross
Thank you: Berrin Noorata and all the musicians around the world who have performed this music with us since its initial conception.
A group that I know only too well, I’ve been with them for nearly 30 years; from their Glaswegian basement origins to their current status as Arena band. My enthusiasm for their later output may have tempered somewhat as the mighty ‘Gwai evolved their sound to avoid pigeonholing, but there is nothing better than when they lay waste to a venue via the sheer euphoria of ‘Helicon 1’. They’re still devastating live and, after all those years, THE authority in Instrumental Rock music. Logen Ninefingers
