Foê

We are so excited and thrilled to finally reveal this project, which we have been imagining and developing for months… « Nos 4 saisons », our four seasons! We heard The Four Seasons for the first time before we even knew how to talk, and the sound of the violin is one of our first memories. It's as if we always knew we would return to this repertoire one day, that we would happily dive back into our childhood. Vivaldi has laid the foundations of all modern music with his work, and if you listen well, you find his harmonies in all of today’s pop music. With this album, we built our own bridge between classical music that made us grow and the song that has soothed us for a long time. It was obvious for us to record these four seasons together, as sisters, with our common vision of the work.” – Camille & Julie Berthollet

There is no doubt that when these guys released 'Bilateral' in 2011 that they created a lot of noise in the prog scene, literally. Here is a band that is happy, really happy, to be a metal outfit and tour with bands like Amorphis, Therion, Opeth, Pagan's Mind et al yet also have one foot firmly in the prog camp. And if you didn't know, these guys have acted as fellow Norwegian Ihsahn's backing band so they really have no qualm with producing music at the heaviest and most complex level. Here is a band that takes the melodic soundscape of Muse, and then mixes it up liberally with Devin Townsend to create something that at times is almost breathtakingly beautiful. This is modern, with the odd nod back to King Crimson, and is very much modern metallic progressive music for the 21st century.

The King’s Consort, with many of our new, second-generation period instrumentalists, exhibits all the benefits of authentic timbre and texture – there is no need nowadays to make allowances for uneven tone or bad intonation. The New College Choir are spot-on, poignant in mourning, exultant in victory. The whole ensemble is recorded over a wide stereo spectrum which leaves every detail clearly audible. Emma Kirkby’s ‘Israelitish Woman’ enlivens even the most pedestrian numbers. Catherine Denley contrasts but blends in their five duets, and has great facility over an impressive range. Bowman is superb in ‘Father of Heav’n’. Jamie MacDougall rises to the virtuoso challenge of the warlike hero, and Michael George focuses with no less clarity as Simon. Any weaknesses in this, the first ever complete recording, are Handel’s.

Collection includes: Pikul (2005); Carnavas (2006); Swoon (2009); Neck Of The Woods (2012).

It seems incredible that a singer of Heldentenor quality like Vickers could sing so stylishly in Handel, with elaborate divisions perfectly executed. Not only that, his portrayal of Samson is deeply moving, thanks to vocal acting over as wide tonal and dynamic range.