Classic 107’s first Album of the Month for 2025 comes courtesy of an ambitious local ensemble eager to break the boundaries of the oboe-piano repertoire.  

Sing to Me Again is the debut album from Fierbois, the duo of oboist Caitlin Broms-Jacobs and pianist Madeline Hildebrand, out on January 10 through Leaf Music. The name Fierbois comes from the sword worn in battle by Joan of Arc, so it’s small wonder where the duo gets their ambition and their desire to expand their repertoire beyond the expectations for their instruments. 

According to Broms-Jacobs and Hildebrand, this record has been a decade in the making as the two have collaborated together on various projects. “At some point in these intervening years, we realized, you know, we have some really interesting, beautiful and unique repertoire here,” explained Broms-Jacobs on Morning Light. “Why don’t we just expand on this a little bit and we should really record this because more than just the Winnipeg audience should be hearing this.” 

The real impetus for recording Sing to Me Again came three years ago, when Broms-Jacobs discovered an oboe and piano suite written by Czech composer Pavel Haas. The piece served as a focal point for the record, which grew to include works that the duo had performed over their ten-year collaboration.  

"The first time we worked together more than ten years ago, when Caitlin first walked through my door, it felt like just a friend coming over,” says Hildebrand. “When you have so much in common and you’re so excited to work together, it was such a natural fit.” 

The common thread through the record is the Soviet Socialist Realist nature of the music. Hildebrand explains that the works were written at a time when the Soviets were very controlling of the music being produced. “What you get in this music is a strong folk element, a strong kind of tonal, lyrical, melodic element,” she elaborates. “At the same time though, when anybody tells you what to do, what comes out is a bit of a fire.” Even though there might be a hidden nature to that fire that we will never understand, it is still tangible.  

Fierbois will officially be releasing Sing to Me Again on January 10 with a concert in the Garden of Contemplation at the Canadian Museum for Human Rights. The duo chose the venue very intentionally because of the nature of oppression that exists for the composers featured on the album. “There is a human right element to what these Soviet composers were going through in the mid-20th century, and we thought the space itself would be a beautiful collaborator,” says Hildebrand. 

The concert starts at 7:30 p.m. on January 10. Tickets and more information can be found here. 

Listen to the album here!

Listen to the Album on Spotify