Browsing Tag

Tenor

Ten(or)s Across the Board for Cameron Owen’s Striking Rework of Bridge Over Troubled Water

After growing up to the sounds of Simon and Garfunkel, listening to Cameron Owen’s classical reworking of Bridge of Troubled Water was an evocative trip of nostalgia. Yet, it was the cinematic crescendos which gripped the senses tight enough to leave a mark which made this a truly unforgettable release.

Tuning this consolingly dulcet classic into a cuttingly intense orchestral masterpiece that is enough to stun you into arrestive awe was undoubtedly no easy feat, but Cameron Owen, armed with his beguilingly commanded operatic tenor range, stunningly succeeded.

With the number of accolades and awards under the British Pianist and singer’s belt, we’re hardly coloured surprised by the international virtuoso’s talents, but God damn, he epitomised visceralism with this dramatical reinvention. I genuinely can’t bring myself to stop listening to it.

Hear it on Spotify.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Welsh singer-songwriter M’ Donwaite is an artful aural vision in his indie-folk single, Watering Can

Watering Can by M' Donwaite

Welsh singer-songwriter M’ Donwaite has released his achingly beautiful, orchestrally-scored indie folk pop single Watering Can. Its delicate intensity creates a beguiling paradox which may as well be pandora’s box for the way Watering Can unpredictably unravels.

With the naturalistic elements brought up against M’ Donwaite’s Tenor vocal notes and the contrastingly lamenting finger-picked guitar strings that bring a little lo-fi intimacy to the release, it is an artful triumph. Yet, it never dares to come close to the same air of pretension often affixed to the neo-classic Avant-Garde. To say M’ Donwaite is the most exciting act from Wales since the Anchoress wouldn’t be an exaggeration.

Watering Can officially released on April 17th; it is now available to stream and purchase on Bandcamp.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Paul Ettore Tabone takes us to ‘Heaven’

Opening up with some Spanish guitar, Paul Ettore Tabone – a.k.a. The Tenor From Oz – brings us an Italian language operatic version of Bryan Adams’ ‘Heaven’, as a sampler from his new album ‘This Is Me’.

Paul was given the prestigious ‘Most Promising Voice For Music Theatre’ in both 2007 and 2009 at the Central Queensland Conservatorium of Music, before making his operatic debut in Verdi’s ‘Rigoletto’, a period in West Side Story and Puccini’s ‘Madame Butterfly’, and a four year West End run in Andrew Lloyd Webber’s ‘Phantom Of The Opera’. That operatic heritage and training has stood Tabone in good stead here, his deep, rich resonant tenor voice carrying the song beautifully, the combination with the Italian language lyrical translation transforming a pop-rock classic into something much deeper and more emotional.

You can hear ‘Heaven (Paradiso)’ on Soundcloud; order Paul’s debut album, ‘This Is Me’, from Paul’s website.

Review by Alex Holmes

John Riesen and Neill Campbell – Oh Holy Night: A stunning Classical showcase of nocturnal piety

Plenty of people will be making difficult compromises this Christmas, one thing which we definitely don’t have to compromise on, thanks to artists such as John Riesen and Neill Campbell, is festively enrapturing music.

Their Classical cover album, Christmas at Home, is a collection of the most revered Christmas songs from across the decades, revived by award-winning Tenor, John Riesen. During the soul-melting crescendos, drinking in his theatrically transfixing vocal timbre becomes more important than breathing. Their ardent operatic stretches perfectly compliment the arcanely uplifting Classical score which is breath-taking enough to abstract you from the fact that Christmas 2020 might be a little bleaker this year.

Oh Holy Night is available to stream via Spotify along with the rest of John Riesen and Neill Campbell’s Christmas album, Christmas at Home.

Review by Amelia Vandergast