Voices

I reckon that voice is the most intimate and natural thus most significant instrument there is, so it's no surprise that I love a choir.  But this concert was beyond the pale.  I was stunned, touched, by Oriana Chorale singing with the Phoenix Collective (string quartet) and pianist Jem Harding under Dan Walker.  Maybe partly because it was intimate in a smallish space, us being in the effective front row at the Larry Sitsky Room, or because of the programming which was diverse and interesting but also consistsent,, from Depeche Mode and Sigur Ros to Elgar and Rach and trad, or because of the number of performers, somewhere around 45.   Not just because the singing was exemplary as was the accompaniment.  This was also the second performance of the night, and I always love a repeat performance.  They sit so much better.  I find it hard to identify a fave piece.  The pop songs by Depeche Mode and Sigur Ros were all suitable for this format and interestingly complex pop tunes with a touch of minimalist electronica interpreted by strings and piano.  A pair of pieces by Ola Gjiela, Dark/Luminous night of the soul, were gloriously hopeful.  Ella Macens Look up: The sky is glowing was long and satisfying and as all the rest deserved hearing the lyrics (which I didn't manage) and Rachmaninov Hail Gladdening Light from Vespers was classic glorious religious music.  Phoenix did a string quartet Scandi-folk number called Waltz after Lasse in Lyby and perhaps the most complex, most intense of all was Lux Aeterna from Nimrod Variations by Elgar as an unaccompanied vocal piece, presumably with multi parts beyond SATB.  This seemed the hardest of the night and the most uncomfy for Oriana.  So what.  I blissed out on the parts, the soaring sopranos and the clear harmonies in Elgar and throughout the night and the intimate accompaniment that came with little preparation as Oriana had only sung with the Phoenix that morning, but that's the way with such professionalism.  It just works like that and it did work a treat.  Beyond a treat, it worked an emotional tsunami.   One to treasure in memory.

Oriana Chorale performed under Dan Walker (director) with Phoenix Collective (string quartet) and Jem Harding (piano) in the Larry Sitsky Room at ANUSOM.  The Phoenix Collective comprise Dan Russell (violin 1), Pip Thompson (violin 2), Ella Brinch (viola) and Andrew Wilson (cello).