Ryan Vail and Ruth McGinley found solace and inspiration in their work during lockdown in their homes, Chrysalism is the amniotic tranquillity of being indoors during a thunderstorm and the pair have applied those parameters to their collaboration of the same name.

Of the track, Vail says “We wrote this piece together at the peak of lockdown. We had  to work remotely from our own studios, blending the worlds of classical and electronica  to document our mood and frustrations with what was happening around us”

Vail and McGinley look to document their frustrations through the melding of alternative  electronic and classical composition on this one-off collaboration. With seismic tonal  shifts between minimalist expression and sweeping, vibrant electronica, ‘Chrysalism’  was inspired by the silences and space that self-isolation has wrought.

McGinley says of the track “I found deep inner peace in lockdown as the world slowed  down and I could stay indoors and connect back to my true nature at a slower pace. But  you only had to put on the tv/radio/media to realise that there was a full-blown storm  outside in the world. A fusion of sounds and musical worlds, Chrysalism sums up the  feels of lockdown for me fully.”

Ryan Vail is best-known for his award-winning record ‘Borders’ – a collaborative project with Elma Orkestra – which won the Northern Irish Music Prize in 2019 and  was the subject of a BBC documentary and saw the pair appearing together for a special edition of the BBC Proms in September.

Ruth McGinley is a renowned concert pianist who has performed as soloist with the BBC Philharmonic Orchestra, National  Symphony Orchestra and RTE Concert Orchestra.

The video for Chrysalism was shot live in First Church Belfast; a stunning location for a beautiful track.