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Finis by Amanda Tosoff

From the album

Album Title: Earth Voices
Empress Music Group
Released: 2021

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About the Album

Merging the deep, powerful messages of poetry with adventurous modern jazz, Toronto-based pianist/composer Amanda Tosoff leads a hybrid ensemble with strings and seven rotating vocalists on Earth Voices, the follow-up to her Juno Award-nominated 2016 release Words (“a grand achievement” – CBC Radio). The album is being released by Empress Music Group, a label and company founded by award-winning vocalist Emilie-Claire Barlow. Earth Voices is Tosoff’s sixth album as a leader and the second to feature vocals. But whereas Words featured the marvelous singing of Felicity Williams straight through, Earth Voices adds six additional vocalists to the lineup in turn, each ideally suited to the song at hand. The compositions and orchestrations are sonorous, texturally rich, with a string quartet, guitarist Alex Goodman, and guest saxophonists Allison Au and Kelly Jefferson augmenting the lineup. The performances, full of eloquence and fire, are centered by Tosoff’s assured and lyrical pianism, revealing an artist at the peak of her powers.  Featuring the poetry of: Edgar Allan Poe, Walt Whitman, Rumi, Pablo Neruda and more; plus Tosoff’s arrangements of songs by: Joni Mitchell, Mike Ross (Soulpepper Theatre), and Yo-Yo Ma’s Goat Rodeo Session project.   Earth Voices was released internationally on January 29th, 2021 by Empress Music.

Tracks

1. A Dream Within a Dream (feat. Emilie-Claire Barlow) 2. Sonnet 49 (feat. Robin Dann) 3. Here and Heaven (feat. Michelle Willis & Alex Samaras) 4. Birdwings (feat. Alex Samaras) 5. Oh, Life (feat. Laila Biali & Alex Samaras) 6. The Fiddle and the Drum (feat. Lydia Persaud) 7. To a Stranger (feat. Felicity Williams w/ strings) 8. Finis (feat. Emilie-Claire Barlow) Vocalists and composers listed above. Music arranged by Amanda Tosoff

Personnel

Amanda Tosoff

piano

Kelly Jefferson

saxophone, tenor

Allison Au

saxophone, alto

Aline Homzy

violin

Beth Silver

cello

Jeremy Potts

violin

Laurence Schaufele

viola

Alex Goodman

guitar

Jon Maharaj

bass

Morgan Childs

drums

Emilie-Claire Barlow

vocals

Robin Dann

vocals

Michelle Willis

vocals

Laila Biali

piano and vocals

Lydia Persaud

vocals

Felicity WIlliams

vocals

Alex Samaras

vocals

Additional Personnel

Produced by Amanda Tosoff & David Hermiston Engineered & mixed by David Hermiston Recorded at Revolution Recording Mastered by João Carvalho Art by Sonia Beckwith

Reviews

Earth Voices by Dan Bilawsky

Date featured

February 17, 2021

This song appears by permission of the contributing artist and/or record company.
It is for personal use only; no other rights are granted or implied.

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