One splendid new disc arrived just too late to make my last column of CD reviews of new releases by Oregon musicians. The Portland–based choir Cappella Romana is not only one of the finest vocal ensembles in the West, it’s also renowned for being the world’s primary exponent of music from the Byzantine era.
[…] singing by the choir and soloists set over minimal instrumental lines, not only does the music evoke the proper sentiments, but it does so without artifice. The Benedict XVI Choir is perfectly suited for this type of music. Their seamless tonal blend, combined with simple yet genuine delivery, directs your focus on the essence of the music.
Producer Blanton Alspaugh has published a wonderful op -ed in The Wall Street Journal about the explosion of interest in sacred music. Cappella Records has been thrilled to work with Blanton Alspaugh and his SoundMirror engineering team on many of our most recent recordings, and we are honored to have them featured in such […]
[…] Classical Billboard® Charts! Congratulations to the GRAMMY®-nominated Rowan Benedict Sheehan & The Saint Tikhon Choir! Benedict Sheehan conducting the Saint Tikhon Choir in background with billboard logo at top and the Benedict Sheehan Vespers album art in the center on top of the choir. A screenshot of the Billboard Chart listing is on top of the […]
[…] years ago this month, my friend Dr. Harold Sabbagh and I had initial conversations about a spark of an idea. He was infectiously enthusiastic about CERN’s then -recent confirmation of the existence of the Higgs boson. He then asked me, “How can we produce a unique musical and artistic work of art that both […]
[…] to ingenious use of technology their performances have been ‘placed’ in the virtual acoustics of the vast Hagia Sophia in Istanbul. The music is astonishing, the performances are superb and the sound is demonstration quality. This is a formidable achievement.” —John Quinn See his original review here Lost Voices of Hagia Sophia: Medieval Byzantine Chant
Cappella Records is thrilled to share that Billboard® has released its 2020 Year -End Charts and Cappella Romana’s Lost Voices of Hagia Sophia was the #2 Traditional Classical Album of the Year and Cappella Records was the #3 Traditional Classical Label of the Year! We were also thrilled to mark Lost Voices of Hagia […]
Cappella Romana are specialists in Byzantine chant, and this album is a stunner. … Hearing this recording in surround made me feel like I was standing in the Hagia [Sophia] when these hymns were new. I am so looking forward to the next installment.”
The music’s warmth and, above all, its assurance that what the performers sing is true is remarkable. … as an experience, the Blu–ray service is unforgettable. This could constitute a rare entry of religious music into my Wants List
[…] has a fantastic feature and review of our recent World Premiere performance of Maximilian Steinberg’s Passion Week in Classical Voice North America: “Sometimes it sounded stern or foreboding, sober or somber, at other times brighter and joyful, or hypnotic, peaceful, and uplifting, or solemn and reverential, even exalted in Great Saturday’s canon. It’s a […]
Sam Harnett spoke with NPR’s Scott Simon this Saturday (February 22, 2020) about our Lost Voices of Hagia Sophia project and recording on NPR’s Weekend Edition! Listen on-demand now: Amazon Apple Music Spotify YouTube Music Qobuz Primephonic ArkivMusic Cappella Romana Lost Voices of Hagia Sophia: Medieval Byzantine Chant
[…] filie Syon’ (Venice in the East) Emperor Leo VI ‘the Wise’ (866–911), ‘When She Saw You Hanging on the Cross’, from Good Friday in Jerusalem Nikolai Rimsky -Korsakov (1844–1908), ‘Do not Weep for Me, Mother’ Donate Now Further Reading I. The Gospel Story of the Sinful Woman as Set to Music by Kassía and […]
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