Vermont’s Addison County group Va-et-vient (“Come and Go”) celebrates the many colors found in music from several French cultures. They play repertoires from across different centuries ranging from France to Québec and New Orleans. They perform dance numbers, love songs, Cajun and Créole tunes, and traditional Québecois tunes. From their neighbors to the north, they bring back traditional tunes learned from Québecois elders, reweave them into their own arrangements, and have been spreading them throughout New England and Québec since 2001. The group includes Carol Reed from Leicester (voice, guitar, & mandolin), Suzanne Germain from Lincoln (voice and percussion), and Lausanne Allen from South Starksboro (voice, fiddles, flute, penny whistles, harmonica, & mandolins). All three have backgrounds rich in French cultures and language, and lifelong experiences living and traveling in French-speaking lands.
Interviewed by Tamar Sella, 10/01/2020.