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Dark Hope | Renée Fleming | CD

Tue, 08 Jun 2010 08:00:00 GMT

Luna Nueva | Debi Nova | CD

Tue, 18 May 2010 08:00:00 GMT

“Debi’s talent is unique! Her vocal ability is proof that she’s focused and disciplined. She’ll go far! She’s a star and will always be family”
-Ricky Martin

"I loved working with her....she understood my concepts right off the bat. And with her amazing voice and her natural sex appeal, I'm sure she'll win everyone over when her debut drops..Good luck Mami!!"
-Sean Paul

"It was a pleasure to work with Debi Nova and I look forward to watching her career blossom in the years to come."
-Sergio Mendes

“I just call Debi this ‘hybrid jazz-funk-latin type of artist’ that can play anywhere in the world and people would get it.”
-Raphael Saddiq

“Debi is the whole package – she’s a cute girl, writes her own songs, plays piano and guitar AND she surfs …in three words: honest, talented and beautiful”
-Beto Cuevas (latin recording artist, former lead singer of La Ley)

“The fact that Debi leaps effortlessly from language to language in her writing and her performances on this record, it wasn’t planned, it wasn’t mapped out, it wasn’t something that we made a conscious effort to do. It just happened very naturally. This is the way that she communicates. There’s an intelligence and a musicality in everything that she does. I think we’ll be seeing her around as a force to be reckoned with for many years to come.”
-Marius de Vries (five-time Grammy Award nominee and two-time BAFTA award winner known for his work with Madonna, Björk, Massive Attack, and Josh Groban)

“There have to be certain traits in an artist that will make me excited to work with them. In the case of Debi, there are a lot of things that attracted me. She’s a great musician to start with. She writes great songs. She’s a great performer. Debi has that talent that she can write in part Spanish and English, and in part of the concept of this album, both Spanish and English in the same song. All those things add up to make Debi a very exciting artist.
-Gustavo Santaolalla (eleven-time Grammy-winning producer who has scored a host of critically acclaimed films including Brokeback Mountain, Babel, and The Motorcycle Diaries, and produced multi-platinum and Latin Grammy-winning artists such as Juanes, Café Tacuba, and Julieta Venegas)

Tracks
1. Need 2 B Loved
2. We Were Young
3. Corazón Abierto
4. Drummer Boy
5. Ashes & Pearls
6. Calle Sin Salida
7. Rather Be Your Lover
8. Don't Wanna Forget
9. Something To Believe In
10. Vete De Mi

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Nikki | Nikki Yanofsky | CD

Tue, 04 May 2010 08:00:00 GMT

Tracks
1. Take The "A" Train
2. Never Make It On Time
3. I Got Rhythm
4. For Another Day
5. God Bless The Child
6. Cool My Heels
7. You'll Have To Swing It (Mr. Paganini)
8. Bienvenue Dans Ma Vie
9. First Lady
10. On The Sunny Side Of The Street
11. Grey Skies
12. Try Try Try
13. Over The Rainbow
14. I Believe

All Days Are Nights: Songs For Lulu | Rufus Wainwright | CD

Tue, 20 Apr 2010 08:00:00 GMT

Tracks
1. Who Are You New York?
2. Sad With What I Have
3. Martha
4. Give Me What I Want And Give It To Me Now!
5. True Loves
6. Sonnet 43
7. Sonnet 20
8. Sonnet 10
9. The Dream
10. What Would I Ever Do With A Rose?
11. Les Feux D'Artifice T'Appellent
12. Zebulon

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synthesis | Raul Midón | CD

Tue, 13 Apr 2010 08:00:00 GMT

Tracks
1. Don't Be A Silly Man
2. Bonnie's Song
3. These Wheels
4. Next Generation
5. Everyone Deserves A Second Chance
6. Don't Take It That Way
7. When You Call My Name
8. Invisible Chains
9. About You
10. Blackbird
11. Why Am I Feeling So Bad

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The Ten Shades Of Blues | Richard Bona | CD

Tue, 06 Apr 2010 08:00:00 GMT

Tracks
1. Take One
2. Shiva Mantra
3. Good Times
4. M'Bemba Mama
5. Kurumalete
6. Souleymane
7. African Cowboy
8. Esukudu
9. Yara's Blues
10. Sona Moyo
11. Camer Secrets

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Amazon

VOCAbuLarieS | Bobby McFerrin | CD

Tue, 06 Apr 2010 08:00:00 GMT

Tracks
1. Baby
2. Say Ladeo
3. Wailers
4. Messages
5. The Garden
6. He Ran To The Train
7. Brief Eternity

Buy
Amazon

Ladyhawke - iTunes Live From Soho | Ladyhawke | Default

Tue, 23 Mar 2010 08:00:00 GMT

16-YEAR-OLD SINGING PRODIGY NIKKI YANOFSKY SHINES ON JAZZ/POP INFUSED DEBUT ALBUM NIKKI, OUT MAY 4th ON DECCA | Nikki Yanofsky | News

Danielle — Fri, 12 Mar 2010 13:42:00 GMT

Sixteen-year-old Nikki Yanofsky is poised to break out as one of the year's most-exciting new artists with her self-titled CD Nikki, out May 4th on Decca. Nikki is a fizzy, spirited collection of newly arranged standards and elegant originals reflecting the young singer’s love of jazz, blues, R&B, soul, and traditional pop. Already deemed a rising star by NBC’s Brian Williams, the press has hailed Yanofsky as a "young Ella Fitzgerald" (Seattle Post-Intelligencer) with a "golden road ahead" (NBC Nightly News) and a "bright, pitch-perfect voice" (Washington Post).

Produced by 15-time Grammy-winning producer Phil Ramone and Grammy-winning songwriter and producer Jesse Harris (best known for his work on Norah Jones’ Come Away With Me and Feels Like Home), Nikki showcases Yanofsky's "purity across her multi-octave range" (NY Post), and her effortless ability to tackle standards, as well as her own original collaborations with Harris and Ron Sexsmith. The disc also includes a new song written by breakout critics’ darling Feist.

A national treasure in her native Canada, Yanofsky was the musical standout performer at the 2010 Winter Olympics, with performances during the opening AND closing ceremonies to a worldwide audience of over 3.2 billion. She earned her first #1 hit single with "I Believe" - CTV's Official Song for the Vancouver 2010 Olympics. The song garnered Nikki the highest first week sales of any Canadian artist in Soundscan history and was certified quadruple-platinum, making her the youngest Canadian artist to ever achieve such a distinction. She also headlined the Montreal Jazz Festival at age 12 and was nominated for two Juno Awards at age 13, the youngest performer to do either. The fashion-forward 10th grader, who's performed at Carnegie Hall, Lincoln Center, and the Kennedy Center, has also been praised as "a refreshing alternative to mainstream music" in a recent Women's Wear Daily cover story.

Additional impressive accomplishments already on Yanofsky’s resume: being the youngest singer to record for Verve Records when she sang "Airmail Special" for 'We All Love Ella: Celebrating the First Lady of Song,' recording for Walt Disney’s 'High School Musical 2,' and collaborating with Grammy Award-winning musicians Herbie Hancock and Will.i.am (from The Black Eyed Peas) for Kareem Abdul-Jabbar's audio book 'On the Shoulders of Giants.'

» www.deccarecords-us.com

“MUSICAL PHENOMENON” (New York Times) AND 10-TIME GRAMMY-WINNER BOBBY MCFERRIN SINGS JOYFUL MUSIC FOR THE 21ST CENTURY: VOCAbuLarieS IN STORES APRIL 6TH ON DECCA | Bobby McFerrin | News

Danielle — Thu, 11 Mar 2010 09:58:00 GMT

VOCAbuLarieS is Bobby McFerrin music for the 21st century. It is unlike anything the 10-time Grammy-winner has ever recorded. An ambitious project several years in the making, it draws from the array of influences that have long contributed to McFerrin’s innovative style — classical to world music, R&B to gospel and beyond — and recasts the world-renowned singer in a new framework defined by dense compositional detail, rich textures and complex arrangements. VOCAbuLarieS builds upon McFerrin’s past explorations and journeys into expansive territory. The CD will be in stores April 6th on Decca.

VOCAbuLarieS was imagined by McFerrin’s longtime manager and producer, Linda Goldstein. She envisioned a new kind of vocal ensemble music using extended compositional forms. Bobby’s inventive articulation, timbre, and phrasing would serve as a template, allowing singers to break free of choral conventions. “I was trying to harness the way Bobby takes ideas, sounds from all over the world and alchemizes them into a new language” commented Goldstein. To begin this experiment, Linda recruited Roger Treece, a classically trained composer/arranger and vocalist. Roger and Linda listened to hundreds of hours of Bobby’s wildly diverse archival recordings, searching for the finest threads of ideas. Over the seven years of writing, recording and editing VOCAbuLarieS, Treece “got a triple Ph.D. in Bobby McFerrinisms,” says Goldstein.

Treece found starting places for his compositions in the most interesting motifs from those recordings, and in classic songs from Bobby’s catalogue. “I set out to construct each piece with lots of twists and turns and modulations, like a page-turner or a movie that keeps you on the edge of your seat,” says Treece, “but I also wanted to stay true to the loose, easy feel of Bobby’s singing, the joyful quality. What emerged was through-composed music that’s got groove.”

“It’s a very different project for me,” says McFerrin. “I’ve never worked so closely with another writer who could create around what I do. As an improviser, everything exists only in the moment, and then you let go of it. But in this context, Roger would hear something I did once, write it down and build the material into a fully scored theme and variations form, and then say, “Here, sing this.” It was old and new, mine and not mine. It was a challenge for me.”

Bobby and Roger enlisted members of Voicestra and fine vocalists from the worlds of jazz, opera, performance art, early music, cabaret, and rock and roll. Roger spent years in the studio recording Bobby and Grammy-winning recording artists like R&B singer Lisa Fischer, Brazilian jazz innovator Luciana Souza, Janis Siegel of the Manhattan Transfer, and the stellar ensemble singers of New York Voices, editing and re-editing to design the right sound. The singers were recorded one at a time and in small groups to create a virtual choir made up of over 1,400 vocal tracks. Over the course of many years and over a thousand hours of studio time, the best performances were captured and sculpted into form. “The music emerged elegantly from the meticulous craftsmanship of Roger’s surgical recording and editing process,” says Goldstein. “Voices of different colors, types, and stylistic bents were joined to invent a new sound, inspired by Bobby McFerrin. The technique allowed us to combine studio R&B sound, classical choral blend, and African tribal chant. We melded them into a new amalgam, built up layer by layer.” The final mix required over 100 gigs of audio memory to house the enormity of the musical material: intricate, overwhelming, and yet vividly joyous.

The seven songs that make up VOCAbuLarieS “keep the listener’s ear in a constant state of surprise,” says Roger Treece. Each song unfolds a kaleidoscopic perspective on Bobby’s irresistible vocal riffs. The lyrics offer a collage of Latin, Italian, Sanskrit, Zulu, Spanish, Russian, Hebrew, Portuguese, Mandarin, Japanese, French, Arabic, German, English, Gaelic as well as Bobby’s own invented language. In the song “Say Ladeo”, McFerrin sums up his musical philosophy. “Time for taking words away,” he sings, “the melody will tell the story as we go along.”

From the opening cry of Baby through the final notes of Brief Eternity, McFerrin, Treece and their virtual choir transport us to uncharted ground. It’s like arriving in an unfamiliar city that feels like home. This is a universal music that works on many levels. Every listener will hear something different in VOCAbuLarieS. “One song becomes a thousand songs,” Bobby sings. Within the seven songs of VOCAbuLarieS are many thousands of songs, each one a moving, wondrous, enveloping creation brimming with ecstasy, uplift and a sense of infinite possibility.

Raul Midón | Raul Midón | Photo

Danielle — Wed, 10 Mar 2010 12:51:00 GMT

Raul Midón | Raul Midón | Photo

Danielle — Wed, 10 Mar 2010 12:51:00 GMT

Raul Midón | Raul Midón | Photo

Danielle — Wed, 10 Mar 2010 12:50:00 GMT

Raul Midón | Raul Midón | Photo

Danielle — Wed, 10 Mar 2010 12:50:00 GMT

Edge of Everything | Greta's Bakery | Default

Tue, 09 Mar 2010 08:00:00 GMT

Tracks
1. If This Ain't Love
2. What You See Is What You Get
3. Useless
4. Prototype
5. Edge Of Everything
6. Se Telefonando
7. Pizzicarella
8. Smoke From Incense
9. Aurora
10. Hard To Read
11. Give Up The Ghost

Buy
iTunes [US]
Amazon MP3 Store [US]
Rhapsody [US]

GRAMMY-NOMINATED BASSIST RICHARD BONA SHOWCASES THE TEN SHADES OF BLUES IN STORES APRIL 6TH ON DECCA | Richard Bona | News

Danielle — Mon, 08 Mar 2010 14:51:00 GMT

2009 marked ten years since Richard Bona's first album Scenes From My Life set the music world on fire. Five studio albums and one live album later, the Grammy-nominated Cameroonian bassist and singer continues his musical journey of past decade with The Ten Shades Of Blues. The CD will be in stores April 6th on Decca. New Yorkers will get a special performance co-billed with singer-songwriter Lizz Wright at the famed Town Hall on April 9th at 8PM.

Showing his diversity and love for music of all kinds, Bona focuses on the Blues and "its key notes that can be recognized in all cultures and music." Marking the album with his trademark sound, Bona also makes this album unique with an irresistible blend of Western blues and Jazz influences, layered with African rhythms and melodies. Of the album Bona states; "I like each of my albums to have a theme, a project behind it. This time I chose the blues. I look at the blues from the universal angle: you can find it in Africa, in America and in India. People put a style to it, a style with guitar and vocals. But I see it first as a scale, one that's present in different traditions and expressions in music. “Ten Shades Of Blues” means ten nuances, ten different ways of playing the blues."

The Ten Shades Of Blues starts out with “Take One,” of which All About Jazz considered a “a choral masterpiece.” All of the vocals are Bona’s except there are no actual lyrics, just notes played on the guitar. “Shiva Mantra” showcases his Jazz and African music background while introducing an Indian overtone with his signature bass line. This moving tune features the mesmerizing vocals of Shankar Mahadevan and Nandini Srikar, as well as Niladiri Kumar on sitar. “Good Times” features R&B vocalist, Frank McComb and Gregoire Maret on harmonica while Tennessean Ryan Cavanaugh (banjo) and Christian Howes (violin) assist on “African Cowboy” giving an Americana feel to it. Stand-out track “Mbemba Mama” meaning “the tears of the mother” pays tribute to all mothers, including his own. Of the song, Bona says “there are the joys and sufferings of a mother: they're there to protect us all their lives.”

The TakeAway - Bobby McFerrin's Cultural Heritage | Bobby McFerrin | News

Danielle — Mon, 08 Mar 2010 14:10:00 GMT

Click above to listen to Bobby McFerrin on The TakeAway.

» www.thetakeaway.org

Rufus | Rufus Wainwright | Photo

Danielle — Fri, 05 Mar 2010 11:05:00 GMT

Rufus | Rufus Wainwright | Photo

Danielle — Fri, 05 Mar 2010 11:04:00 GMT

Rufus | Rufus Wainwright | Photo

Danielle — Fri, 05 Mar 2010 11:03:00 GMT

Rufus | Rufus Wainwright | Photo

Danielle — Fri, 05 Mar 2010 11:02:00 GMT

Rufus | Rufus Wainwright | Photo

Danielle — Fri, 05 Mar 2010 11:01:00 GMT

Rufus | Rufus Wainwright | Photo

Danielle — Fri, 05 Mar 2010 10:58:00 GMT

Rufus | Rufus Wainwright | Photo

Danielle — Fri, 05 Mar 2010 10:57:00 GMT

Rufus | Rufus Wainwright | Photo

Danielle — Fri, 05 Mar 2010 10:55:00 GMT

Rufus | Rufus Wainwright | Photo

Danielle — Fri, 05 Mar 2010 10:55:00 GMT

Rufus | Rufus Wainwright | Photo

Danielle — Fri, 05 Mar 2010 10:53:00 GMT

O Canada | Nikki Yanofsky | Default

Fri, 05 Mar 2010 08:00:00 GMT

Tracks
1. O Canada

NEW YORK CITY BASED JAZZ/POP TRIO GRETA’S BAKERY RISE TO THE OCCASION WITH THEIR DEBUT ALBUM THE EDGE OF EVERYTHING | Greta's Bakery | News

Danielle — Thu, 04 Mar 2010 16:31:00 GMT

DIGITAL RELEASE MARCH 9TH ON DECCA

New York City based trio known as Greta’s Bakery come from diverse backgrounds but ultimately came together through their love and appreciation for music. Blending eclectic jazz, pop and funk together with sensual grooves, Greta’s Bakery delivers with their digital Decca debut, The Edge of Everything. Music will be available through all digital retailers including i-Tunes and Amazon on March 9, 2010. The first single “If This Ain't Love” (by Steve Christanthau and John Beck, best known for their work with Corinne Bailey Raye) is currently being worked at AAA and Non-Comm Radio across the country. (Tour dates announced below.)

Greta’s Bakery is made up of vocalist Greta Panettieri, bassist/guitarist Mike LaValle and keyboardist Andrea Sammartino. The origin of the group’s name came from the English translation of Greta’s surname- Panettieri. “I kind of like the association between baking and making music," the singer observes. “In a bakery, you can create so many different things with the same few ingredients. It's the same in music; the same group of notes can create extremely different vibes or emotions when used differently.” After settling in New York, they began to play in different clubs around the city and soon began to create a bit of a following which led to an opening slot on Joe Jackson’s European tour exposing them to thousands.

The 11-song album—which the band members produced in association with Stewart Lerman—defies categorization, thanks to an album filled with catchy tunes with jazz, pop and multicultural flavors. The band wrote and arranged many of the tracks including the infectious "What You See Is What You Get," the bubbly, exotic "Smoke From Incense," the hauntingly bittersweet "Hard To Read" and the bossa nova-inflected "Aurora," which the Italian-born Greta sings in her native language. In addition to the band's own compositions and the previously mentioned sly funky tune, “If This Ain't Love”, The Edge of Everything features their own interpretation of OutKast's “Prototype,” “Useless” by veteran hitmaker Diane Warren and “Se Telefonando,” a '60s-vintage Italian inspired song co-written by legendary soundtrack composer Ennio Morricone.

Of what the future holds for Greta’s Bakery Mike commented; “We're not too concerned about where we fit in the grand scheme of things. It's more about just trying to make magic and then seeing where that leads us.”

» www.deccarecords-us.com

Eleanora Fagan (1915-1959): To Billie With Love From Dee Dee | Dee Dee Bridgewater | CD

Tue, 02 Mar 2010 08:00:00 GMT

Tracks
1. Lady Sings The Blues
2. All Of Me
3. Good Morning Heartache
4. Lover Man
5. You've Changed
6. Miss Brown To You
7. Don't Explain
8. Fine And Mellow
9. Mother's Son-In-Law
10. God Bless The Child
11. A Foggy Day
12. Strange Fruit

Buy
Amazon
iTunes [US]
Amazon MP3 Store [US]
Barnes and Noble
Best Buy
Rhapsody [US]

Story Of A Heart | Benny Andersson | CD

Tue, 02 Mar 2010 08:00:00 GMT

Tracks
1. Glasgow Boogie
2. Trolska
3. Story Of A Heart
4. Bed Of Roses
5. You Are My Man
6. Cirkus Finemang
7. Fait Accompli
8. Song From The Second Floor
9. Birthday Waltz For Mona
10. (If This Is) Our Last Dance
11. Jehu
12. Tyrolean Schottische
13. The Stars
14. P.S.

Buy
Amazon
Amazon MP3 Store [US]
Best Buy
Barnes and Noble

Nikki EPK | Nikki Yanofsky | Video

StephanieShim — Thu, 25 Feb 2010 17:46:00 GMT

Over the Rainbow (Live at RAW Session) | Nikki Yanofsky | Video

StephanieShim — Thu, 25 Feb 2010 17:45:00 GMT

Another Day (Live on RAW Session) | Nikki Yanofsky | Video

StephanieShim — Thu, 25 Feb 2010 17:45:00 GMT

Don't Know Why (Live on RAW Session) | Nikki Yanofsky | Video

StephanieShim — Thu, 25 Feb 2010 17:44:00 GMT

Songs of Delight EPK | Vai DaCapo | Video

StephanieShim — Wed, 24 Feb 2010 16:52:00 GMT

RENEE FLEMING – DARK HOPE Q&A | Renee Fleming | News

Danielle — Wed, 24 Feb 2010 14:44:00 GMT

Renée Fleming recently sat down to discuss her upcoming album “Dark Hope,” which the opera star describes as a “visit to a new, parallel universe.” The album was produced by David Kahne (Regina Spektor, Shawn Colvin, Paul McCartney, Bangles, Sublime, and countless others) in New York City, and features a diverse and adventurous track listing:

Endlessly (Muse)
No One's Gonna Love You (Band of Horses)
Oxygen (Willy Mason)
Today (Jefferson Airplane)
Intervention (Arcade Fire)
With Twilight As My Guide (The Mars Volta)
Mad World (Tears For Fears)
In Your Eyes (Peter Gabriel)
Stepping Stone (Duffy)
Soul Meets Body (Death Cab For Cutie)
Hallelujah (Leonard Cohen)

Tell me about the album title, “Dark Hope.”

We discussed many potential album titles. Throughout the recording process, David Kahne and I had long conversations about the meaning of the song lyrics and the concept behind this project. He felt that the songs represent two opposing viewpoints: one of youthful ardor and the fight against establishment, and the other a more mature perspective of someone who has already experienced life. So what is “Dark Hope”? We know that hope is light, something positive. Dark we associate with the opposite. So “Dark Hope” is an outlook of maturity, of someone who's really lived, and been through it all, and who says to the young, angry person, “You have to stay hopeful, you have to stay positive.” I love the title, because it’s a paradox. It immediately makes you think.

Where did the idea for this project start?

For ten years, Peter Mensch and Cliff Burnstein from Q-Prime Management had the idea of pairing an opera singer with the best recent songwriters. Unbeknownst to me, they had been asking Christopher Roberts of Universal Music on a regular basis if I would consider a project like this. When we finally met, I was pleasantly surprised to learn that Peter played the cello when he was young and had some knowledge of classical music. Cliff and Peter were really enthusiastic about their idea, and it was contagious.
I’ve always been inspired by artists who have shown musical and intellectual curiosity and the courage to take risks. Because everything about the voice interests me, I felt it would be fascinating to learn a completely different style of singing.

How did you find your way into these songs?

What many people do when they venture outside of their normal genre is continue to sing with the same voice, although in music that is more contemporary, as in crossover. “Crossover” suggests that one is in between two worlds, and this album is NOT crossover. It’s so much more interesting to me, because there’s not a hint of “middle ground;” it's completely at the other extreme of the spectrum. It's been amazing to visit a new, parallel universe.

I was simply trying to find a voice for this music that made sense to me, one that sounded stylistically authentic. Singing in the lowest part of my voice was key to making this work.

How did you actually begin working on the album?

In our very first meeting, Cliff Bernstein handed me a CD. He had the most wonderful little Excel sheet print-out that said “Love it,” “Like It,” “So-So,” “Not My Cup of Tea,” “Would Love to Sing It.” Ultimately they gave me about 40 songs, mostly by – for lack of a better label – indie-rock bands, and I was impressed by the sophistication of the music and the texts, and by the seriousness of the material. Soon after this meeting, I had a whirlwind of performances on five continents, and I brought my family with me. When we weren’t hiking or swimming in the Galapagos, or on safari in South Africa, I played this CD. My children both said, “Mom, these are some of our favorite bands,” and my youngest brother, who is a voice student at Rice University, said, “We're all studying music, but this is what we listen to for fun.” It really grew on me, but I still don't think anyone knew how my voice could possibly combine with this music.

By the time I got home, I felt positive about at least trying to make a demo. Then Cliff and Peter paired me with the wonderful producer David Kahne. David is so articulate, detailed, and demanding about style that I become even more fascinated by the prospect of singing with completely different vocal technique. The challenges were by and large the opposite of what I face as classical singer on stage, since the technology plays such a strong part in creating the sound. It was stimulating to me artistically to be in a new process.

Is there something that unifies the final song selections for you?

Usually when I record an album, it’s centered on a concept, theme, period, or a particular composer. We are held to a stringent musicological yardstick. But these songs didn't seem to fit together, since there were a few songs from earlier decades, and I'd ask, “How do you see these songs fitting together?” Cliff would say, “They're just really good songs, they don't need to fit together.” Eventually I accepted that, and what I've discovered is that David provided the unifying voice with his arrangements.

Anytime I’m choosing music of any style, I have to make sure that the texts make sense for me. I was surprised by the inventiveness and edginess of the writing; the harmonies and the vocal lines; and even the instrumentation of this music. I find it interesting that so many of these young musicians are using stringed instruments like the cello or, for example, an organ, as in Arcade Fire’s “Intervention.”

It’s become clear to me that lines are blurring in a way that promotes collaboration across musical genres. It’s not clear yet where this will lead, but the choices are endless. It’s possible I can well imagine that this type of collaboration will help classical music move out of the “museum” and into the 21st century, since for example some young musicians are using string quartets to form bands.

What is different about singing these songs from singing the material you usually perform?

David was constantly coaching me, and the process was taking off layer after layer of training. In classical music, we perform unamplified in halls that seat up to 4,000 audience members, plus we’re required to project over large orchestras and often a chorus. We're kind of the weightlifters of singing; we have to have power, stamina, and projection. In this music, I had to let that all go, sing in my own language; and then sing in what often felt like a whisper. I was recording in a small, acoustic booth, with a microphone that's very close, in this very intimate style, which is the complete opposite of how I usually sing. David worked with me very closely so that there was no hint of drama, cheesiness, or “Las Vegas,” as he would call it. He was exacting about the minutest detail, even those barely audible to the trained ear. It was a wonderful learning curve, one reminiscent of my early days studying Mozart as a Juilliard student.

How was your family involved in the making of the album?

This was one of the great joys of this project, because my sister and my two daughters were the back-up singers on this recording. This was music that my daughters already knew and loved, and for me to take the time to enter and learn about their music was a reversal. Although they love opera and classical music too, it was meaningful to them to see me making the effort. So now when Sage says she’s going to a Muse concert, I know who she’s talking about, and I’ve become more respectful of their sophisticated and eclectic taste in music. In the beginning, they were skeptical about this project, more than anyone else, because obviously teenagers don't want to be embarrassed by their parents. But they've really come to like it and are very supportive now.

My sister has always had the most glorious, rich voice, and a timbre that goes directly to the heart. She sounds so beautiful, and it was just fun for us to share this together.

You're used to going into a role when you sing. Did these songs mean assuming a different kind of role, or was it an entirely separate process?

I do everything in the third person – I'm now divulging a secret. I'm an innately reserved person, so in order to become who I've become, when I'm onstage, I'm thinking “She does that, she feels that, she is that.” The way I can come out of my shell is to think that I'm someone else.

David and I talked for hours about the songs and what they mean and how I might sing a song that's clearly from an angry young person's perspective, and what I might bring to it. The young person might be saying “The world is tough, it's a really hard place, so let’s fight against the establishment,” and I'm coming from a more experienced, nurturing place saying, “Yes, it's tough and it's hard, and this is how you can deal with it.” We found an interpretation that enabled the point of view to sound authentic coming from me. Many of the songs have this similar vein, so this whole idea of enacting or playing a role is doubly true for this music.

Which of the songs stand out as being especially meaningful for you?

These songs fit broadly into two categories: love songs and songs about change and social injustice. “No One's Gonna Love You” is really just a beautiful love song. All of these texts are quirky in a way that makes them interesting. I always thought of pop music as being a bit more simplistic, but many of these songs are complex, if not completely enigmatic. I was especially fascinated by the Mars Volta song, “With Twilight As My Guide,” which is operatic in its scale and musical complexity. I was however a bit concerned about the text, specifically the reference to “devil daughters.” I said, “As much as I love this song, I really can’t sing it for that reason.” Peter Mensch offered to contact Cedric Bixler-Zavala and asked if the text could be changed, since the overall meaning of the song wasn’t completely clear anyway. Cedric responded, “Sure, she can change it. I would just like it to be known that in no way is the lyric supposed to paint women in a bad light… The song feels like it was written during the salem witch trials, and it sarcastically takes the religious right wing slang of how all women were treated. Our last album, Bedlam in Goliath, was one huge metaphor for the way women are treated in Islamic society (honor killings, etc) not just a story about a ouija board… its meant to make you question the way things are.”
This explanation was enough for me to feel as completely supportive of the song as I already had been about their musical talent.

“Intervention” is so powerful, and I had Bruce Springsteen in my head as I approached it. That's a song that could be from today or from 200 years ago – it mixes church, war, family and conflict in a way that makes it possible to invest your own story. Many of the songs have in common this aspect of not tying up all the loose ends; it’s the same thing I love about Strauss’s “Four Last Songs” or “Morgen” – there’s space in which you can invest yourself.

Do you have any plans to record any more in this style?

I've felt very strongly, for a long time, that I am American, my culture is so multi-dimensional and there's so much to explore, why should I be forced into a strictly European model in what I sing? Why can't I explore the music I grew up with, the music I listen to? It doesn't mean that everyone has to like it, but I don't want to be straitjacketed.

You can't predict anything about music and what the reaction is going to be – especially with this combination. You just wait and see if it finds an audience, and that's kind of the fun of it. The important thing is that, regardless of what the reception is, I have enjoyed the process. I feel good about the work that we've done, and I know that the project has integrity. I've learned so much, and whatever my role is in the future as it pertains to helping singers, helping music, I'll have had this experience to draw on.

VAI DACAPO SOAR ON THEIR DEBUT CD AND DVD SONGS OF DELIGHT FEATURING SPECIAL GUEST STAR PATTI AUSTIN IN STORES FEBRUARY 23RD ON DECCA | Vai DaCapo | News

Danielle — Wed, 24 Feb 2010 11:25:00 GMT

Vai DaCapo showcase their interpretations of some of the greatest love songs ever written on their new CD and DVD Songs of Delight, featuring special guest star Patti Austin. Songs of Delight was filmed for Public Television on the beautiful grounds of Germany’s picturesque Schwetzingen Castle. Nmon (pronounced IN-mun) Ford, Joseph Guyton and Colin Eaton bring their powerful tenor voices and dynamic vocal range together as Vai DaCapo. Songs of Delight will air on Public Television throughout March, with the CD and DVD in stores February 23rd on Decca.

The translation of the trio’s name Vai DaCapo is “to go back to the beginning” and that is exactly their mission on Songs of Delight. “We wanted to revisit music whose message might be missed these days,” explains Colin. “This is music from happier times, when songwriters addressed such topics as hope, inspiration, and love, and for whom the words and the message were so very important.”

Each member of Vai DaCapo boasts an impressive musical background. Colin is a proud member of the world-famous United States Army Chorus, performing for troops in combat as far as Iraq and Afghanistan; he also served as a soloist for President Reagan’s interment ceremony. Joseph trained at New York’s famed Juilliard School and the Curtis Institute in Philadelphia before being invited to join the Placido Domingo Young Artists Program in Washington, DC. He has also performed on opera stages across Spain, France, and Italy as well as the United States. Nmon was the soloist on the triple Grammy Award-winning recording of William Bolcom’s piece Songs of Innocence and of Experience and the Grammy-winning Transmigrations. The award-winning pianist, writer and arranger graduated from University of Southern California with honors. Currently Ford provides all of the vocal arrangements for Vai DaCapo on Songs of Delight.

Vai DaCapo’s debut album features R&B super-hits including The Jackson 5’s “I’ll Be There,” “My Girl” by the Temptations, and Al Green’s “Let’s Stay Together, while also successfully interpreting pop ballads such as Whitney Houston’s “Greatest Love of All,” Joe Cocker and Jennifer Warnes’ “Up Where We Belong,” and Journey’s “Open Arms.” The trio also tackle classical repertoire, with the disc culminating with “Torna a Surriento” a beloved tune also sung by some of their heroes including Mario Lanza and The Three Tenors.

Recently Nmon, Joseph and Colin performed to a sold-out crowd at the City Winery in NYC as a result of their first highly successful Public Television special broadcast, premiered on New York’s WLIW. Look for Vai DaCapo to tour across the U.S. in Fall 2010. Dates will be announced soon.

» www.deccarecords-us.com

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