“Wondrous music ”
difficult loves is a brand-new song cycle co-written and performed by acclaimed string duo Balladeste — Preetha Narayanan (violin) and Tara Franks (cello) — together with trailblazing singer-songwriter Ana Silvera.
The song-cycle traces the many faces of love: from the revelation of romantic connection and the bonds of familial devotion, to ecstatic encounters with the natural world, and finally the darker shadows of love shaped by grief, loss, and longing. Loosely inspired by writer Italo Calvino’s book of the same name, difficult loves blends Ana Silvera’s moving and mercurial vocals with Balladeste’s fluid, mesmeric strings.
difficult loves brings together three women artists exploring the intersection of where composition and song-craft meet, shifting lithely between folk, electronic, improvised and neo-classical worlds and inviting listeners on an immersive odyssey of the heart.
“defies easy definition - very special indeed”
Created through a deeply collaborative process - sometimes building a song from a single melody or lyric line, other times arising from an improvised play or a string motif reimagined and unravelled - the music reflects a sense of creative exploration with careful craft.
Balladeste’s strings, at times lyrical and at other times raw or sparse, intertwine with Ana’s luminous voice and bringing to life a palimpsest of feelings that are as panoramic as they are tender. From the dreamlike glimmer of glimpse to the haunting lines of phantom limb - “This love is a loaded gun, I know, raise it fast, aim it slow” - difficult loves takes listeners on a deeply affecting and genre-straddling emotional journey.
“Stunning - magical story-telling”
Ana Silvera is a singer, multi-instrumentalist and composer known for her vividly imaginative song-writing and innovative practice across genre and discipline. Described as a “captivating singer-songwriter” (The Arts Desk), Ana has performed at major venues and festivals including SXSW, Royal Opera House, Aix en Juin, Iceland Airwaves, Snape Maltings and has collaborated with artists such as Imogen Heap, Jasper Høiby, Alice Zawadzki, Saied Silbak, Olivia Chaney and Aidan O’Rourke.
Balladeste, praised by Songlines as “music that can radiate suspense but at the same time is warm and intimate” are known for their experimental yet melodic approach. Drawing from Indian classical music, contemporary minimalism, and folk, the duo crafts original compositions that are both cinematic and emotionally rich - “songs without words” that speak volumes.
