Origins

Description

Sjaella is the vocal ensemble to discover! Six singers as talented as they are sparkling, who fear nothing and prove it in a program titled 'Origins', ranging from 17th-century music to contemporary repertoires. From ether to existence. The starting point. The beginning. The origin that returns endlessly. Between minimalism and picturesque arias, light, time, and life emerge. In 'Origins', the female vocal ensemble Sjaella focuses on the natural cycles that have surrounded us since time immemorial. In every era, people have known the changing seasons, the relentless rhythm of day and night, the individual flow of the body, and the fleeting nature of rebirth. All these themes are presented as a unity, forming a cycle of key concepts from the origin of life to a post-apocalyptic void. The music confronts and combines new arrangements of 17th-century English songs, some taken from Henry Purcell's The Fairy Queen, with contemporary pieces, notably those in the American minimalist style, such as Evening, Morning, Day by David Lang. By primarily including commissioned works, the album showcases Sjaella's close collaboration with renowned international composers such as Paola Prestini, singer-songwriter Shara Nova, and former King's Singers member Philip Lawson.