Julien discovered the voice of 13-year-old Cai Thomas as he recuperated from COVID-19 in March and was immediately struck by the purity and clarity of tone he heard. With plans already in place to record Pärt’s Vater Unser as part of an album set for 2021 release, Julien felt strongly that Cai’s voice was the perfect vehicle for the piece, so evocative of hope as it traverses from the heart-breaking B Minor melody to the D Major release of tension at its conclusion.
With the help of their label Rubicon, Julien and Cai were able to collaborate from afar, recording a video of this track at their respective homes in Brussels in Belgium and Farnham in the U.K. A prayer which asks for peace, something that we can all hope for regardless of faith at this most challenging of times, Julien and Cai hope their music can offer a few moments of solidarity and hope for all of us at home around the world. Julien says: “Cai’s voice appeared as light shining through darkness, and I couldn’t see a better moment to create together this uplifting music.”
The track will be released as a single one the Rubicon Classics label on 22 May.