Lullabies

There's a new children's CD out on the market, and it's as much about art as it is soothing music for sleepless little ones.

The album? Lullabies. The artist? Apollonia Vanova.

Apollonia Vanova, who was born in the former Czechoslovakia, is an accomplished artist, with a resume that includes acting, singing, and being an accomplished sculptor.

Her album, Lullabies, is filled with both familiar and relatively unknown lullabies, which are set to largely classical instrumentation, including viola, harp, and piano accompaniment. The album’s eclectic feel is an intentional one by Apollonia—“I love and have been influenced by a variety of different types of music, ranging from the virtuosic complexities of Baroque music, to passionate compositions of
 Beethoven, to the rhythms of rock and roll, jazz and blues.” In addition to her many classical influences, Apollonia also counts singer/songwriter Leonard Cohen, rapper Eminem, rocker Led Zeppelin, and country icon Johnny Cash as inspirations. “Great music can transport me into a different mood in an instant.”

Even with her musical background and love for all things music, an album of lullabies wasn’t something that Apollonia ever thought she would be producing or recording. 

“I chose to create this album, because it was the right thing for me to do; it was the right medium at this time in my life to create with. The songs chosen, the mood evoked and the cover art have deep meaning to my art as a whole. Some [songs] came from my childhood, and when I sang them in the studio for the first time, the nostalgia caused me to burst into tears. I did not choose [the songs] because they are popular and that is what the audience would want to hear. I recorded this album at one of the most vulnerable times in my life and I think that vulnerability comes across in the voice. A new baby was born into our family and there was great joy. But at the same time, my pet (who was like my baby) was dying and I had to let him go. So this album is about unconditional love. The softness and magic that comes from having a baby or unconditional love, is contrasted with the underlying anxiety of protecting the innocence, knowing the trials and tribulations of life.”

Lullabies is available for purchase at CD Baby.

You can also download a free MP3 of Apollonia's rendition of Twinkle Twinkle Little Star here.