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88 of 92 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Beautiful, but may not be your cup of tea, September 21, 2006
This is another gorgeous set of music from Anonymous 4. However, these ladies do come from the classical rather than the vernacular tradition. If you're very committed to either performing style this album may not appeal to you. As is often the case when classically trained singers sing gospel or popular songs or broadway, pitch and clarity of tone is more important to these singers than emotional commitment (though that's not absent). If you're from the folk side, you may find the performances too formal, even to the point where "all the tunes sound alike." From the other side, people from a classical background may find the singer's adoption of some traditional phrasing and pronunciations off-putting (though it many cases it's necessary in order for the lyrics to scan). The same problem exists when singing songs from "Guys and Dolls": Do you correct the grammar or sing the words as written?. The two instrumentalists use a rougher tone than people used to classical music may find acceptable (though early-music enthusiasts will probably feel right at home). In addition, the four singers don't sound close-miked. Instead, the miking creates a sense of space (as if the group was singing in a church or meeting hall). If you're used to the sound created by placing the microphones close to the singer's lips (more typical in recording modern singers) as opposed to a "cathedral-like" effect (more typical of recording classical choral music) the result can be distancing. However, when traditions collide something new happens. It's hard to predict if the result will appeal to you (or whether you even feel the combination is worth doing). I thought the result was beautiful: not a folk or gospel/bluegrass album nor an album of medieval chant but it still caught at my heart. Just to offset the reviewer who suggested that Anonymous 4 don't like this kind of music: On this site, Marsha Genensky commented about Emmylou Harris's Angel Band CD, "This album came out not too very long after I first heard hymn singing in a tiny Primitive Baptist church in rural Arkansas. I was hooked. I'm still hooked." People's initial reaction doesn't fully describe how they grow into new things--something that might be remembered when listening to an album the first few times.
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24 of 24 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A Revelation, December 7, 2006
I purchased this CD after hearing the music contained within performed live in concert at Royce Hall on the UCLA campus. The evening was magical and the performance was enlightening. By enlightening I refer to the fact that Anonymous 4 has some thing to say on this album about American music; and that is, that there is a thread that connects Medieval European music to early American music. Moreover the thread is religious in origin specifically relating to church choirs plying religious tunes to the faithful through the centuries. In short this recording is best thought of as a church choir version of local old Appalachian Hymns. Albeit, with the most heavenly voices on the planet. No screechy overweight church sopranos here. The blend and pitch is exquisite, the choice of tunes thoughtful and the accompaniment perfectly balanced to the voices (in concert it was mentioned that this recording was supposed to be "a cappella music with instruments"). I agree with the reviewer who stated that the use of far-miking is distracting to the recording. This was not the case when the group played in concert nevertheless the women all stood about three to four feet from the microphones. This music is definitely not African-American spiritual music. A rendering by these musicians of that music would be awful indeed.
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17 of 17 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Incredible rendition of American sacred songs, by a singer of such music, February 15, 2007
I've been a fan of Anonymous 4 for years, and have seen them in concert. I also sing many of the songs included on the CD on a regular basis, for they come from a nineteenth century American, a cappella shaped-note songbook titled The Sacred Harp. Anonymous 4's haunting renditions turn these gritty, sometimes harsh harmonies into ethereal beauties, while taking away none of the intense essence that is Sacred Harp. A southern singer once said to me that Sacred Harp is "heavy metal music for country folk." Well, Anonymous 4 have taken that "heavy metal" and refined it into purest silver tones--silver tones that coat the common-metal core so important to this music, for it was and is music of the common people. If you enjoy shape-note music, early American music, Anonymous 4, or simply crave something different, I highly recommend this CD to you.
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