To create the musical score for Varekai, Violaine Corradi drew inspiration from the vast repertoire of world music. Each piece seems to evoke a meeting or juxtaposition of different cultures, which are not always identifiable.
Violaine Corradi combined the sounds of Hawaiian ritual, the songs of 11th-century troubadours from the south of France, traditional Armenian melodies and gospel music with contemporary arrangements to conjure up the unique musical universe of Varekai.
The 7-piece band includes a bandleader/keyboards player, a second keyboard player, drummer, percussionist, bassist, violinist and a wind instruments player, plus 2 singers—one male (The Patriarch) and one female (The Muse).
In almost all of Cirque du Soleil shows, the music is performed live. And, unlike musicals, the music needs to adapt to what is going on stage and not the other way around. To do so, the band leader, the musicians, the singers and the sound staff are in constant communication via headsets and microphones.