Customer Reviews

Let Your Voice Be Heard

5 star:		(7)
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I bought this CD after reading John Atkinson's (the recording engineer) account of the recording sessions in Stereophile magazine last year. I figured there was a good chance it would have stellar sound, and I wasn't the least bit disappointed. I don't believe I've ever heard as natural a sounding vocal group recording ever. Clear, dynamic, unassailable sound. It has goosebump moments scattered throughout, and not just on the voices. Some of the percussion and hand claps will startle you with their realism on a good (and I mean *good*) hi-fi.

Now, having said that, let me add what was for me, the big surprise - the music is fantastic. I was prepared to sit through one or two listenings of the unfamiliar pieces and then never go back to them, but the entire disc is absolutely captivating. I knew I would like the songs I already knew and loved, like "Loch Lomond," "Danny Boy," "She Moved Through the Fair," and one of my very favorite songs ever since I was a boy, "Shenandoah." (Even though they sing a slightly different melody line in the opening bars of each verse than the one I grew up with. They sing C-F-F-F-G-A-C-C-A, while I prefer C-F-F-F-G-A-Bb-C-A). But I'm finding that I'm spending just as much time, perhaps more, with the more obscure pieces. I defy *anyone* to listen to the Zulu freedon song, "One By One" without breaking out in an ear-to-ear grin. The only one that hasn't gotten hold of me (yet) is the Inuit chant, "Nukapianguaq."

The pieces are all first-rate, and the vocal arrangements are gorgeous. Listening to some of the lesser-known (to a WASP from the midwest) ethnic pieces makes me wonder just how authentic they would sound to those people for whom these are native songs (Inuits, Tanzanians, Venezuelans, Georgians, Swedes, Zulus, etc.), but from where I sit, I'm amazed. I'd love to know where (and how) they got their texts and melodies, and how they learned the other languages (or were they phonetically memorized?). One of these days I'll have to read the liner notes, just in case they say.

All told, this is a 64+ minute disc of drop-dead gorgeous music, with drop-dead gorgeous sound. I've already bought three copies, and I'll be buying more as the year goes by and various gift-giving opportunities come around.

PS - I understand from John Atkinson at Stereophile that he and Cantus will be working on a second recording, this time of more mainstream western classical music. It may not have all the surprises of this disc, but you can bet I'll be first in line to get it when it comes out.

Reading of this CD, which I now regularly give away to others, made my "Stereophile" subscription worthwhile all by itself. The selections are eclectic, the arrangements sophisticated, the singing of high quality, and the recording marvelous despite the on-site noise problems the recording engineer wrote about. However, it may be too eccentric for people not familiar with a cappella or interested in music from varying traditions. (I say this knowing it is not all strictly a cappella.) I could only quibble that the "inebriated" arrangement of "What to Do With the Drunken Sailor" and the clanking chains under the spiritual seem just a bit forced, but who cares? There are so many good cuts here.

I've owned this recording fro several months now and I still can't believe how truely wonder they sound. The recording actually prompted me to go see them in person and it helped to realize the true quality of the recording because they sounded the same. Just as vibrantly alive. The large variety of songs on the cd will appeal to everybody no matter what style of music you normally listen to.

Let Your Voice Be Heard is simply amazing. Cantus brings out all the joy and wonder of the texts. This is the kind of charismatic group we need more of these days. The blend and the individuality of their voices is simply astonishing. This is one of the best examples of contemporay choral singing. Whether you are an avid choral singer or someone who has never even been to a choral concert does not matter. You WILL enjoy this!

This CD never travels far from my CD player. With everything from Zulu freedom to American folk songs, it is impossible to get bored. Cantus' sound is an amazing blend--the individual color and character of every voice comes together with nearly paralyzing results. This is a CD that can cause any music lover to miss a turn.

It is an interesting collection of music from around the world with interesting harmonys and arrangements. My young grandchildren really enjoy it as well.

I read the review in "Stereophile". It gave a very good review on this disc. I was not able to find it in my local store, so came to Amazon.com.
This disc is the most addicted disc I have ever bought. The quality of recording was superb, their voices are gorgeous, and the selection of songs is fantastic.
It is SIMPLY THE BEST.

George Chew Kok Wah