Today violinist & TikTok sensation Esther Abram reveals her new single ‘Chocolate’‘, her interpretation of the score from the movie of the same name, which was nominated for an Academy Award for ‘Best Original Score’. Composed by Academy & Emmy Award winning composer Rachel Portmanthis dreamy and mysterious single is a medley of Esther’s favorite parts of the score of the movie, which has been exclusively rearranged by Rachel herself to create Esther’s composition.
The track will feature on Esther’s self-titled debut album, out on March 25th via Sony Classical, and is accompanied by a music video, also out today. Listen to ‘Chocolate’ here, watch the video here and pre-order the album here.
Since a very young age, Esther has been a fan of Rachel Portman, and working with the composer was a childhood dream. Speaking about the single, Esther says “Rachel Portman has been an inspiration for me since I was very young – for her compositions first, but also for being the first woman really well-known in the movie scores industry. ‘Chocolat’ is my favorite score, and working with her on it was a dream come true. Everything started from an Instagram message! I asked her if she would like to rearrange the music for my album but I had little hope she’d say yes, and to my great surprise she accepted! Without a doubt – one of my best experiences so far to work with her.”
Accompanied by a video, filmed in a little village around Tours, Esther takes viewers back to the village from the movie, telling us her own story. Armed with her violin, Esther lights up and colors the world around her music, in the same way that Chocolat’s main character Vianne does with her chocolaterie. “We wanted to keep the essence of the movie, where the main character brings life, light and color to this village, but without doing a remake of the movie. So it’s a nod to the movie, with my personal touch!You can watch the video here.
Rachel became the first female composer to win an Academy Award In the category of Best Musical or Comedy Score, a real inspiration for Esther who made it her mission to spotlight female composers in her album, so girls entering the classical music world have role models, as well as expanding the repertoire written by women. She notably released Tomorrow by Annelie and Romance by Clara Schumann on International Women’s Day 2021.
Last week, Esther released the first episode of her YouTube series ‘Women In Classical‘, filmed at Abbey Road studios, where in each episode she interviews a different woman from the classical music industry. More than an interview, Esther describes it as an exchange, where she can have an intimate conversation with the guests, in order to offer inspiration and advice to young and aspiring musicians, through recounting challenging experiences or personal anecdotes. Again, Rachel Portman supported the young violinist as she sat with her for an episode, out today for International Women’s Day. WATCH HERE
Out on March 25th, her self-titled debut album is a melting pot of different styles of classical music. From classic pieces by Clara Schumann to modern compositions with Alexis Ffrench and movie scores, Esther wants to make her music accessible to the largest number. “I’ve decided to perform different styles to connect with all my audience. People who get to know me via TikTok aren’t the same as those who found me on YouTube or on the radio. I wanted to link all of them together. I don’t think we should just be put in a box with only one music style.” explains Esther.
In November, Esther toured with the world’s most successful classical singer Katherine Jenkins OBE, and was one of five musicians featured in the Sky Arts TV special, Classic FM’s Rising Stars with Julian Lloyd Webber. In 2019, she became the first classical musician ever nominated in the Social Media Superstar category at the Global Awards. Through TikTok and Instagram she has welcomed a whole new audience into her musical world, sharing welcome practice and sight-reading videos together with tips and helpful techniques for aspiring young musicians. So far, her passion for music has united more than 323k followers on TikTok, 241k followers on Instagram and 153k followers on YouTube. She was even recently invited by TikTok to create a playlist for the platform in celebration of #classicalmusic day.
Esther studied at the Royal College of Music and was awarded a full scholarship for a Master’s degree at the Royal Birmingham Conservatoire. Esther plays a fine Jean-Baptiste Vuillaume violin, kindly loaned to her through the Beare’s International Violin Society.
Listed by Julian Lloyd Webber as one of the ’30 under 30 classical artists to watch’ on Classic FM, Esther is recognised as one of the most promising young classical music artists of her generation. With a highly-anticipated debut album out this month, and additional live performances on the way, Esther has fast become a new artist to watch beyond the classical genre.
Esther Abram tracklist:
- Swan Lake Variation (Pjotr Ilitsch Tchaikovsky)
- Paganini Variation (Sergei Rachmaninoff)
- Jackie’s Song (Romanza) (Julian Lloyd Webber)
- Tomorrow (Annelie) ft. Annelie
- Bach Variation (Johann Sebastian Bach) ft. Florian Christl
- Hope, Ascending (Alexis Ffrench)
- Violin Dream (Jacob Shea)
- Mozart Variation after Eine Kleine Nachtmusik K. 525 (Mozart) ft. Wide Eyed
- Ravel Variation after Pavane Pour Une Infante Défunte, M. 19 (Maurice Ravel)
- Chopin Raindrop Variation after 24 Preludes, Op 28. No. 15 (Frédéric Chopin)
- Three Romances, Op. 22: I. Andante Molto (Clara Schumann)
- Sainte Victoire En Sol Minor (Worakls & Esther Abrami) ft. Worakls
- Themes from “Chocolat” (Rachel Portman)
- Sunken Dreams (Alban Claudin)
- Scales and Arpeggios from “Aristocats” (Sherman & Sherman)
- Satie Variation after Gymnopédie No. 3 (Eric Satie)
- Romance for violin and piano, Op. 23 (Amy Beach)