The Apex Singers is a new and up-coming 8-piece a cappella vocal ensemble based in Manchester. All alumni of The Royal Northern College Of Music, the group have known each other for a long time and this certainly helps in their singing and arranging of these intricate yet beautiful folk melodies.
Due to the Coronavirus lockdown their planned concerts were unfortunatley cancelled, and so, as an alternative I listened to their first album, Hiraeth. The word Hiraeth itself is a lovely word to chose for this carefully selected set of 14 folk song arrangements from all around the globe. All the songs reflect a sense of rose-tinted yearning or nostalgia for the people or places depicted in the songs. Not only does the ensemble show considerable skill at close-harmony singing, but all the songs are, as far as I can tell, sung in their original language too.
The 14 songs they showcase on this album come from various countries, cultures and even centuries, but with The Apex Singers' interesting reworkings making these songs lush and mellow. And although all the songs remain faithful to their origins there is still a contemporary feel to them too. From the French mountain song, "Que Tu Est Haute", through haunting children's lullabies like "Abiyoyo", to the more dramatic songs taking inspiration from folklore such as the Welsh "Dacw 'Nghariad" and the Scandinavian "Yggdrasil". However my favourite song in the selection has to be the strangely titled "Bura Fera", which has a rather interesting etymology and history. The words are from an Aboriginal language-group called Yorta Yorta and is a hymn asking for God's help to win against the armies of the Pharaoh! [although one has to wonder what the Pharaoh and the Aborigines have to do with each other....]
Crystal clear melodies and flowing, inventive harmonies are this ensemble's trademarks. And so, as the lyrics of their final track state, "...joy be with you all". I really hope I will be able to hear them singing live very soon; however in the meantime these tracks will remain high on my playlist! A hugely talented group of singers who will, with their unique sound, go from strength to strength I feel sure.
Reviewer - Matthew Dougall
on - 20/3/20
No comments:
Post a Comment