Viennese band FAIRWAY's newest album "Splintered Glass" sets classical and contemporary English and American poetry to original compositions and arrangements.

The idea to add music to English poetry of the past centuries is not a new one. Donovan and Angelo Branduardi, for example, laid the groundwork for this concept in the '60s and '70s.

Proof that this approach is still relevant in modern music can be found in Carla Bruni's 2010 Album "No Promises" and the Waterboys' 2011 release "An Appointment With Mr. Yeats".

What these examples have in common is a folky musical realization; these artists paired century old poetry with paralleled traditional musical arrangements.

FAIRWAY takes a different approach.

Influenced by modern psychedelic rock, such as the British Canterbury scene and Scotch-Irish folk-influenced arrangements, FAIRWAY brings the lyrics to life without drifting into purist or sweet folk music.

While FAIRWAY is rooted in a classic rock set up, it extends beyond the traditional by including violin and the occasional accordion, flute, recorder and keyboard. Rock instrumentation with polyphonic singing results in a unique style with high recognition value.

The four FAIRWAY musicians call it "Urban Folk".

FAIRWAY’s “Splintered Glass” presents the works of classic English and American poets William Blake, Joseph Bruchac, Charles Bukowski, Abraham Cowley, William Empson and Robert Frost, with a timeless presence.

This concept gives the band the flexibility to add contemporary poetry to the classical without causing a musical break in style.

FAIRWAY musicians

Walter Glößl: e-bass, congas, accordion, recorder

Walter Kuhn: drums, percussion, keyboards, samples

Walter Schleger: e-git, ac-git, vocals

Karl Stepan: violin, ac-git, vocals, harp

Susanne Grof-Korbel: vocals, hurdy-gurdy

Georg „Surely“ Swatschina: e-git

Lilian Grof: vocals