Sóc Poeta

This album from Alba Asensi, from Alicante, Spain, is her second release, following 2019's Semillas. She also founded Feminarum Aures, a musical project based on her interest in female composers from the Middle Ages. Now, with Sóc Poeta (I Am a Poet) she has composed songs (in a Catalan dialect from Valencia) from poems by contemporary Spanish poets to the accompaniment of her harp, as well as two songs (‘Sóc’ and ‘Sóc Poeta’) written by Asensi herself. The result is a melodic and diverse collection, some rousing and spirited, others reflective and pensive. This range is also helped by her use of several different types of harp (including Gothic and baroque as well as a kora) blended with backing vocals and instrumentation including cello, flute, double bass, guitar and ukulele. And, in short, it is a beautiful mix; Asensi's clear, sonorous voice intricately interwoven with the orchestrated ensemble.

In ‘Voldria Ser Una Flor’, the pounding bass and echoing chorus create a resonance that soars with measured energy. While ‘Arcilla y Pan’, with its wispy flute and gentle harp chords, evokes a dreamy mood characteristic of much of the album. Sóc Poeta is an enchanting and yes, poetic, compilation.