‘Sapphire Oak’ new album by Sharon Fendrich at Peaceful Radio Internet Station
12 June 2022 Artists
Click on photo for Sharon’s website.
Composer Sharon Fendrich says she writes vividly
thematic music. This might be one of the greatest
understatements ever by a composer when
describing their own music. Fendrich’s music defies
easy categorization, and speaks confidently in a
free-flowing, truly distinctive musical vocabulary.
Her latest album, Sapphire Oak, is a revelation. Her
music transports the listener with richly-orchestrated
adventures that feel familiar and also take them to
unexpected places. And just wait until you hear
Sharon sing!
Sharon was born and raised in Oregon. When you
hear her music, you immediately feel the powerful
influence of the gorgeous landscapes of the Pacific
Northwest. A graduate of Tufts University, she
established herself as a multifaceted artist with her
award-winning debut 2019 album, Red Sky Prairie.
This new release is confident, with new musical
subtleties and complex orchestral textures that
showcase her trademark thematic gifts.
Sharon’s process of composition is to improvise on a musical idea at the piano until it begins
to take a shape under her hands. Like a master ceramist, Fendrich uses her keen instincts to
manipulate the clay—the melodies, harmonies and countermelodies inhabiting her
work—before committing it to the “kiln” (i.e.: recording) that delivers the song into the world.
Just as many of the great classical composers of the past, she sees no difference between
improvisation and formal composition, and the result is music that is at once unconventional
yet relatable. There is a freshness and authenticity to her work which distinguishes Fendrich
as a unique musical voice.
The naturalist John Muir wrote: “and into the forest I go, to lose my mind and find my soul.” It
appears that Sharon Fendrich has followed in Muir’s footsteps. By giving freely from her
heart, she has created a sparkling jewel of an album. Filled with universally identifiable
emotions, it will be the perfect soundtrack for your life.
Sapphire Oak will be available on all music platforms and as a limited-edition CD on June 10,
2022. www.SharonFendrich.com
SAPPHIRE OAK – Album Liner Notes
The Sapphire Oak Story
Like a distant voice calling from across a valley, I feel the sound of the Sapphire Oak approach
me as a whisper on the breeze. Its mesmerizing blue, with its power of strength and wisdom,
climbs my limbs, and envelops me in a magnetic pull of attraction. It’s time to return to the
forest.
As I near the ancient woodland the cerulean reflection upon the sky becomes ever more
radiant. My walk perceives the cooling warmth that emanates towards me and hurries its step.
Now yet closer, the ground has softened and my hands inhale the forest dew.
The light is brighter now, and nearly fully encompasses the path before me. The drawing in of
my heart, body and spirit, is like a bath in a natural warm spring. And then, I see it unfold within
the scene before me.
Some were brought into this world, here upon this mossy blue cushion. And here some found
slumber, beneath this ancestral oak. Here, between her branches, lovers in arms danced and
dreamt. And here the brave died, laid to rest in a cloak of blue beside the quiet brook. Here is
where the wisdom passed from ancestor to descendant, from soldier to survivor, from dancer
of stories to singer of songs.
Her canopy is as high as the heavens, her branches as wide as the horizons. Her skin glows
as the sky of the bluest ocean, her hair sparkles with an opal fire. Her roots are the pathways
deeply grooved in the ground under foot, which come from everywhere that has been and lead
to everywhere that will ever be.
I have been here before, thousands of times, as have you. We have stood here together and
we have stood alone. This place is the center, from where all life comes and all death rests.
This is the Sapphire Oak.
Order, Title, Runtime
1. Sea of Oaks……………….. 5:33
2. Leaves of Glory………….. 3:40
3. The Grove at Dodona…… 3:55
4. Runic Roots………………. 4:15
5. Call of the Ruins…………. 5:37
6. The Oaken Door………….. 3:30
7. Dryad’s Rejoice…………… 5:10
8. Of Badges and Crowns…. 4:41
9. Under Her Canopy……….. 5:47
10.Sapphire Oak……………… 3:55
11. Carry the Oak……………… 5:35
Lyrics by Sharon Fendrich
Call of the Ruins: lyrics by Sharon Fendrich, translation by Ital Michael Dewar (z”l)
Sung by Sharon Fendrich
Here in this place where you walked, where you prayed and where you cried, I hear your
prayer and taste your tears.
Runic Roots:
Sung by Sharon Fendrich
The chanted word is Ansuz, the “a” rune of the Elder Futhark (the eldest form of the runic
alphabets.) As the Anglo-Frisian languages developed, the Ansuz rune was split into three –
one of which became Āc, which led to the word “oak”. Ansuz is commonly associated with
breath, sound, the voice of the universe, music, the power of hypnosis, inspiration, and
listening to one’s own inner voice.
Sapphire Oak: lyrics by Sharon Fendrich
Sung by Sharon Fendrich
Sapphire Oak, I feel your song stir inside my weary soul. Sapphire Oak, I hear your song
calling me to carry on. Sapphire Oak, I see your song light the path to where I belong.
Sapphire Oak, I will sing your song, ev’ry day my whole life long.
Chorus: Sung in Ta’ek, a language devised by Sharon Fendrich
My song is your compass Ge klad dokh ya rade
Let it lead you to your calm Um yi red a kha ya size
Sapphire is the color of love Tzafir dokh mes mosh ta
Oak is strength Ek dokh stu’ah
Sapphire is love, and Oak, strength Tzafir ta, kmo Ek stu’ah
Under Her Canopy: lyrics by Sharon Fendrich, translated into Irish by Audrey Nickel, Bryan
Mullan, Mickey Woods
Sung by Sharon Fendrich and her daughter, Talia Valdez
Listen, my darling, Éist, a thaisce,
I am always with you. Bím leatsa i gcónaí.
Look up and see her shelter. Féach suas, go bhfeice tú a foscadh.
I hear a whisper in the leaves around us. Cloisim siosarnach sna duilleoga tharainn
Stand tall. Seas go hard.
Reach out your arms, as the Oak tree. Sín amach do lámha, ar nós an Crann Darach.
Stand tall. Seas go hard.
May her roots be as a path before you. Go raibh a fréamhacha mar chosán romhat.
I feel so safe here. Airím chomh slán sin anseo.
I am always with you. Bím leatsa i gcónaí.
I will grow in her shelter. Fásfaidh mé ar a scáth.
You will grow under her shelter Fásfaidh tú ar a scáth.
… with you always Leatsa I gcónaí.
We gaze with pride upon her canopy. Breathnaímid le bród ar a ceannbhrat.
Credits and Acknowledgments
Composer, Producer, Arranger: Sharon Fendrich
Orchestration, Contractor: Joaquin Garcia
Recording Engineer: Katharina Nuttall
Mixing Engineer: Linus Andersson
Mastering Engineer: Bruce Maddocks
Orchestra: Symphonica Recording
Conductor: Vladimir Martinka
Vocals: Sharon Fendrich, Talia Valdez
Violin: Lisa Rydberg
Cello: Klara Källström
Harp: Stina Hellberg Agback
Irish Whistle, Uilleann Pipes: Ian Harper
For their support: Nathan and Beatrice Fendrich, Mark Epstein, Talia Valdez, Max Epstein, Bob
and Mimi Epstein, Theresa Koon, Stacey Bonk, Michael Whalen, Angie Elliott, Itai Michael
Dewar (z”l), Erica Kele, Peter and Anneli Korn, Caroline Lavelle, John Iverson, and Karen
Mitzner. For special assistance with Under Her Canopy: Audrey Nickel, Bryan Mullan, Mickey
Woods, and Karen Thames Ballew.
Sapphire Oak – by Sharon Fendrich – Title Explanations
Track 1 – Sea of Oaks
Throughout history, especially in the British Isles, the oak tree has been revered for building
the best ships upon the seas. Imagine entire beautiful forests being planted with the solitary
intention of cutting them down to construct ships. For centuries, the seas were filled with the
creaking, snapping, and growling of these majestic trees, in battle and commerce. But once,
these trees lived in serene, quiet groves. What if the tree had memory and longed for its home
in the grove, with its family of trees? What if it knew it would never return, and the oak could
come to embrace its prideful purpose upon the sea?
Track 2 – Leaves of Glory
Many of the bravest oaks have lived for hundreds of years. They’ve stood and watched
countless battles over their changing landscape. Beneath their canopies rest thousands of
brave hearts who have died in the name of a cause. Their corporeal remains then nourished
the trees. As the leaves rustle in the winds, they whisper the glory and memory of those who
rest beneath them.
Track 3 – The Grove at Dodona
Oak groves have been used as sacred places for innumerable cultures and religions throughout
history. Legend says that the Druids performed all of their sacred work in oak groves. The grove at
Dodona, in Greece, is believed to be the location of the second oldest Greek oracle. Some believe
this oracle was devoted to a Mother Goddess and that ancient priestesses would listen to the
rustling of the leaves in the oak trees and interpret the prophecies held within the sounds.
Track 4 – Runic Roots – vocals by Sharon Fendrich
The chanted word in this piece is Ansuz, the name given to the “a” rune of the Elder Futhark
(the eldest form of the runic alphabets.) The name is based on the Proto-Germanic “ansuz”,
denoting a deity in Germanic paganism. As the Anglo-Frisian languages developed, they split
the Ansuz rune into three. One of the three became Āc, which is where we get the word “oak”.
Runes have deep meanings. Ansuz is commonly associated with these concepts: breath,
sound, voice of the universe, music, power of hypnosis, inspiration, and listening to one’s own
inner voice.
Track 5 – Call of the Ruins – vocals by Sharon Fendrich
Since the beginning of written human history people have congregated under the shade of the
oak. There they have prayed, studied, lived and died. This song has lyrics in Hebrew which
translate as: “Here in this place where you walked, and where you prayed, and where you
cried, I hear your prayer and taste your tears.” There are many mentions of oak trees in the
Old Testament. There are also some belief systems which have held that ancestors live in the
oak trees.
Track 6 – The Oaken Door
In Celtic lore, the oak represented the axis mundi. It was the center of the world and the
connection between Heaven and Earth. The Celtic name for oak, daur, is the origin of the word
door. The root of the oak was the doorway to the Otherworld, the realm of Fairy. As a sign of
longevity and strength, oak was often used above a home’s threshold or fireplace.
Track 7 – Dryad’s Rejoice
In Ancient Greek mythology, oak tree spirits emerged from the first tree created by God – an
oak, the World Tree – and were called dryads. From that oak tree came all of humanity.
Track 8 – Of Badges and Crowns
Images of oak trees and their leaves have been used across cultures and time on flags,
insignias, crowns, and coats of armor. Those designs embody dedication to a cause, and
represent hope and bravery.
Track 9 – Under Her Canopy – vocals by Sharon Fendrich and daughter, Talia Valdez
In Celtic tradition the bond between mother and daughter was sacred. Together with the
knowledge that women were known for their physical strength and never being thought of as
property, it surely was one of the best times in history to be a woman. But all women begin as
young girls looking up to their mothers for guidance and love. Now, let’s think about our
Sapphire Oak, as a female energy who guides and protects, who holds fast as an honorable
figure of strength. Her roots are the same that generations before have stood over, and will
continue to expand as time passes and the next generations grow. In this piece we hear the
voice of the mother, the daughter, and the chorus of the female ancestors enveloping them in
comfort and love.
Track 10 – Sapphire Oak – vocals by Sharon Fendrich
For thousands of years sapphire blue has been seen as a color of protection from harm or
illness and a guard against envy. It is a sign of loyalty, honesty, and peace. I believe that if the
wisdom and strength of the oak were to emit a color, it would be sapphire blue. And if we were
to tune in to that radiance, and guidance, the trust and the loyalty, we would feel grounded and
connected to all living things.
Track 11 – Carry the Oak
Various beliefs exist that if you carry a piece of an oak tree (twigs, galls, acorns) with you,
especially on a journey, it will act as a talisman to protect you from evil, keep you safe, etc. As
this track ends the album, carry forward with the gifts of introspective reflection, hope,
guidance, and companionship the mighty oak has, and always will, share.