Christopher Tin: The Lost Birds - An Extinction Elegy

by Christopher Tin, Voces8, Royal Philharmonic Orchestra

Overview

The classical crossover genre, almost by definition, is designed to calm and reassure the listener ("Stress eliminator" read the billboards of a classical radio station in Dallas), but here's a high-minded release whose goal is to mourn and to change. As the title suggests, composer Christopher Tin offers a memorial for the many species of birds driven to extinction by human activity. Most prominent is the passenger pigeon, which is remembered in the opening instrumental track, "Flocks a Mile Wide." There is also an instrumental interlude, but most of the music is choral, and indeed a major attraction here is the immaculate blend of the small choir Voces8. The group makes itself sound much larger and stands up easily to the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, but the sound can contract to emphasize passages in the text. The poems are all by women -- Emily Dickinson, Christina Rossetti, Edna St. Vincent Millay, and Sara Teasdale -- and they are slightly modified to fit the format. The program has an interesting structure: the first texts refer to birds specifically, but at the end, Tin broadens into a more general tragic tone. The musical language, Tin indicates, is rooted firmly in the 19th century, as is the poetry. The music, combined with the rich instrumental and choral sounds, could suggest other topics than the one explored here, but Tin succeeds in his goal of introducing serious reflections into the crossover genre. This album made classical best-seller lists in the fall of 2022. ~ James Manheim

Product Details

Release Date:	09/30/2022
Label:	Decca
UPC:	0028948580293
Rank:	72909

Album Credits

Performance Credits

Christopher Tin   Primary Artist,Conductor
Voces8   Primary Artist,Vocal Ensemble
Royal Philharmonic Orchestra   Primary Artist,Orchestra
Barnaby Smith   Conductor

Technical Credits

Edna St. Vincent Millay   Poetry
Rich Breen   Mixing
Christina Rossetti   Poetry
Andrew Dudman   Engineer
Paul Blakemore   Mastering
Adrian Peacock   Vocal Producer
Christopher Tin   Composer,Producer,Liner Notes,Creative Producer
Sara Teasdale   Text,Poetry
Emily Dickinson   Poetry
Andrew Wilkinson   Photography
Andy Staples   Photography
Sean Patrick Flahaven   Producer
Aaron Lee   Associate Producer
Ulf Joensson   Executive Producer
Gareth Ellis Williams   Session Producer
David Hinitt   Engineer
Rafaela Hernandez   Coordinating Producer
Dyna Kau   Package Design,Creative Producer
Karen Console   A&R
Swagata "Ban" Banerjee   Executive Producer
Thomas Rudnick   Marketing
David Byard   Executive Producer
Piotr R. Michalak   Executive Producer
Dr. Timothy M. Hsia   Executive Producer
Emerson Sudbury   A&R
Dan Wright   Photography
Ryn Jorgensen   Photography,Music Preparation,Associate Producer