Listening to Johanna Telander’s Tales of Les Dames Blanches feels like being drawn into a collection of ghost stories, each with its own secrets, pain, and history. Inspired by the legendary Ladies in White found in folklore around the world, the Finnish-American composer takes a familiar subject and looks at it from a different angle. Instead of focusing only on the fear these women inspire, she asks us to think about who they were and what might have happened to them before they became legends.
From France’s La Dame Blanche de Puymartin to the White Lady of Balete Drive in the Philippines and Finland’s Valkoinen Rouva, these stories come from different places, but they share a mysterious connection. Telander brings them together through a musical theatre project featuring twelve female phantoms, each with her own story to tell. Inspired by different stages and experiences of womanhood, the characters include maidens, mothers, witches, and other familiar figures from folklore. What makes the concept interesting is the suggestion that behind these frightening tales were women whose real experiences may have been forgotten or misunderstood.
Musically, the album moves between classical, folk, and ethereal pop-jazz, creating a sound that suits the stories being told. There is a theatrical quality to the project, with its orchestral arrangements and atmospheric textures helping to bring its mysterious world to life. You can imagine the old castles, dark forests, and lonely shores that form the backdrop to these tales. Rather than relying on the ghostly subject alone, Telander uses the music to explore the emotions and experiences behind the characters.
The vocal cast is another important part of the project. Featuring performers such as Militia Vox, Natalie Toro, Felicia Curry, and Telander herself, the album brings together a range of voices to represent its different characters. With twelve phantoms at the centre of the story, each bringing a different perspective, the project has the feel of a full theatrical production rather than a collection of unrelated songs.
What stands out most about Tales of Les Dames Blanches is the idea behind it. Women in ghost stories are often remembered for their mysterious appearances, tragic deaths, or the fear they create. Telander wants us to look beyond that image. What if these women had been given the chance to tell their own stories? What if the legends we grew up hearing left out the most important parts of their lives? These questions give the album a meaning that goes beyond folklore and connect its themes to the way women have been treated and remembered throughout history.
Known for her work on Kalevala the Musical, Telander once again shows her interest in combining storytelling with music. With this project, she takes a different route, drawing on international legends to explore themes that remain relevant today.
Tales of Les Dames Blanches is an intriguing musical journey that encourages listeners to see familiar ghost stories in a new light. Beneath the mystery and supernatural imagery are stories about women, their struggles, and the lives that history may have overlooked. Sometimes, the most interesting part of a ghost story is not the ghost itself, but the person who was forgotten behind it.
