Recorded, arranged and produced in direct collaboration with renowned vocalist and composer Meredith Monk, Phaedra Ensemble's Realms is a triumph of creative teamwork. The album collects, for the first time on an official recording, Monk’s only string quartet (Stringsongs), together with one of her rarely performed instrumental works for small ensemble (Backlight), and the multi-layered Realm Variations, scored for six voices and mixed ensemble. “I’ve never done an album like this that’s almost completely instrumental, except for Piano Songs,” Monk explains in the liner notes, “but that was just for one instrument. And in Realm Variations, while there are voices, I think of them as instruments, and the instruments as voices. So my instrumental writing — that concept runs through the whole album.”

For his part, Phaedra’s founding artistic director and violinist Phillip Granell embraced the challenge of capturing the emotional breadth and sonic landscape of each work, with co-director Jamie Hamilton guiding the production. “Meeting Meredith in person was something of a revelation,” Granell recalls. “I remember being struck immediately by the humour in her eyes, the sincerity in her voice. This set the tone for our interactions, which have continued in much the same spirit ever since.”