Review and More

Our Review

Wonderful, wonderful, wonderful. I am a total sap for excellent a cappella music, and Chicago A Cappella definitely fills the bill with its fine Christmas A Cappella: Songs from Around the World. While winning no points for creative album titles, this skillful ensemble cleanly nails each international offering, combining the rare and obscure with better-known delights.

Why not open with a Nigerian song written in the Igbo language? Oh, you do not speak Igbo? No matter--the music is universal, and you will love it. Amuworo ayi otu nwa is light, bright, and beautiful; the snappy rhythms and clear harmonies dance and delight. Throughout the album, the sophisticated arrangements make fine use of these talented voices. Time and time again, these artists make familiar fare sound fresh and new. Other tracks are exciting discoveries; Lo Yisa Goy, for example, is a Hebrew prayer for peace that is moving, contemplative, and almost hypnotic in its delivery. Although it is difficult to pin down a "favorite" among these well-executed tracks, I especially loved the haunting Christ-child's Lullaby, which begins with a gorgeous (albeit moody) solo, then springs to exuberant life during a vibrant multi-layered "Alleluia" section complete with soft hand-tapping that sounds almost like rainfall. Unique and excellent! The Kenyan spiritual Nyathi Onyuol is another impressive jewel, and the jazzy rendition of Jingle a cappella sweetly swings.

If you enjoy a cappella music, you should enthusiastically embrace Christmas A Cappella. The music is technically superb, and the range of international offerings is totally satisfying. Pack your passport, and enjoy the trip!

--Carol Swanson
(Reviewed in 2009)

More

From the liner notes:

Chicago a cappella
Jonathan Miller, Founder and Artistic Director
Patrick Sinozich, Music Director

Kathryn Kamp, soprano
Cari Plachy, soprano
Elizabeth Grizzell, mezzo-soprano
Susan Schober, mezzo-soprano
Harold Brock, tenor
Cary Lovett, tenor
Michael Boschert, baritone
Matthew Greenberg, baritone
Benjamin Rivera, bass

From the Website:

This extraordinary new recording celebrates the holiday season with Christmas songs from Africa, France, Denmark, Canada, and America, as well as two works on Hebrew texts for Chanukah. Cedille's audiophile-quality sound and Chicago a cappella's compelling performances combine for a recording to be treasured.

Chicago a cappella is a classical vocal ensemble dedicated to performing innovative concert programs at the highest possible musical standards. Each singer is both a solo artist and a consummate team player. With the power of its nine singers, the ensemble aims to do what the greatest art forms all do: to give voice to the ecstatic, to honor human suffering and longing, and to intersect the timeless with the present moment.

Chicago A Cappella

Christmas A Cappella: Songs from Around the World

Artist link

Track List