Steve Reich Drumming
The Colin Currie Group
April 2011
“mention should be made of the members of Synergy Vocals, whose plaintive vocalise was deftly interwoven into the overall texture to highlight ‘principal’ lines”
Classical Source
Category Archives: Reviews
Royal Festival Hall, London
Steve Reich Tehillim
London Sinfonietta conducted by Thomas Adès
February 2011
“In one of the most refreshing, well-balanced and pioneering concerts of 2011 so far, Steve Reich’s Tehillim displayed the raw joyfulness that makes it still sound contemporary twenty years after its composition. Synergy Vocals’ strength, precision and technical accomplishment shone through. The delivery of the performers and Thomas Adès conducting made it absorbing and eminently satisfying to listen to.”
Multimediamouth.com
“(Tehillim) is very effective in its warmth and joyousness, well conveyed in the performance by the four women of Synergy Vocals who have often worked with Reich”
Berkshirereview.net
City Halls, Glasgow
Steve Reich Music for 18 Musicians
London Sinfonietta (rehearsals directed by Micaela Haslam)
February 2011
“Music for 18 Musicians is a total thrill when played this well”
The Guardian
The Guardian
“(Though) reproduced in countless great recordings, a really satisfying
live performance is not easy to come by. Beyond the work’s
significant technical and organisational demands, performers must also
gain control over a certain relaxed ease which can hardly be articulated,
let alone mastered. One thing’s for sure; (London Sinfonietta and Synergy
Vocals) had it. The players smiled instinctively at the pleasure of
each change and it was through their total absorption in the sound that
the pulsing magic of Reich’s music was communicated”
The Scotsman
“a sheer sense of joy accompanied the embodied exchanges between the
musicians throughout”
MusicalCriticism.com
Barbican, London
Luciano Berio Sinfonia
LSO conducted by Daniel Harding
November 2010
“Synergy Vocals did remarkable things with both the barrage of Beckett and with Berio’s sad rage at the assassination of Martin Luther King”
The Guardian
“Since 1968 Sinfonia has enjoyed numerous outings…this one was a particular success. The vocalists are required to recite not only words but create many effects, all valiantly and effortlessly delivered by Synergy Vocals with confidence and interaction, the voice-amplified balance especially well-judged, coordination between the octet and the orchestra spot-on. This was a Berio Sinfonia to be proud of.”
classicalsource.com
Berlin, Germany
Luciano Berio Sinfonia
LSO conducted by Daniel Harding
September 2010
“This was a superb performance, perceptive and controlled with considerable appeal.”
musicweb-international
Carnegie Hall, New York
Louis Andriessen La Commedia
Asko Schoenberg conducted by Reinbert de Leeuw
April 2010
“Synergy Vocals contributed formidably: the choir, in a way, personified Dante as much (and as vividly) as Ms Zavalloni did.”
The New York Times
“As engrossing as the soloists were, it is the chorus and ensemble who carry the biggest weight in La Commedia, and Synergy Vocals and the Asko Schoenberg ensemble were more than up to the task. These are some of the best performers in the new music world – indeed in all of classical music – and they proved their mettle on Thursday night, tackling a work full of wide, sudden contrasts..from the most highly energetic, rock/jazz tinged music, to thorny dissonances, to minimalist grooves, ironic pastiche and sublime beauty all within often tiny spans of time”
Sequenza21.com
“Synergy Vocals provided a strong foundation, engaging with the characters of “The Divine Comedy” as they journeyed from the City of Dis to Paradiso, covering a libretto in four different languages (English, Dutch, Latin, Italian) along the way”
Wall Street Journal
Walt Disney Hall, Los Angeles
Louis Andriessen La Commedia
Asko Schoenberg conducted by Reinbert de Leeuw
April 2010
“a spectacularly sung and played performance..the eight Synergy vocalists were inspired scat singers and inspired madrigalists”
Los Angeles Times
“Synergy Vocals provided clear and assured backing throughout”
Out West Arts
Town Hall, Birmingham
Steve Reich Music for Mallets and Drumming
The Colin Currie Group
February 2010
“Refreshingly unique, their programme mesmerised the audience. The Colin Currie Group and Synergy Vocals are all very talented and are definitely worth going to see in whatever they take on next.”
Redbrick
Music for Mallet Instruments – “a riveting account of one of my favourite Reich pieces. A superb concert….a truly wonderful group of highly talented musicians”
Musicweb-international.com
Queen Elizabeth Hall, London
Steve Reich Drumming
Colin Currie Group
February 2010
“As the solo female voices start, we could be back in the era of the Swingle Singers”
Financial Times
“This was a mesmerizing performance, which was highly appreciated by the QEH’s capacity audience, which included Reich himself. A feast for the eyes as well as for the ears….The voices, whistling and piccolo were blended, adding an interesting timbral effect which was well-balanced…an impressive performance…something I was very glad not to have missed.”
Seen and Heard International
“Held together by eye contact, ear contact, intimate understanding of the score and collective breathing, the performance was both aurally and visually exciting”
The Independent
“virtuoso band of musicians…performed with finesse and moment-by-moment satisfaction. No wonder the composer himself, taking his bow at the end, looked so pleased”
Times Online
“Something special happened at the Queen Elizabeth Hall…..That (Steve Reich) was so effusive about the performance added to the audience’s already overwhelming acclamation…a mesmerising performance…from all angles, a revelation”
Classicalsource.com
Palais des Beaux Arts, Brussels
Steve Reich Music for 18 Musicians
Ictus
October 2009
“Nineteen musicians – all experts in the works of Reich. The audience was in for an exceptional experience, a fascinating and hypnotic journey without equal in classical music – the applause at the end was more reminiscent of a rock concert”
La Libre Belgique