Our latest album release: Spark Catchers
“‘When I founded Chineke! in 2015, one of the most important aims, as well as creating a top-class orchestra comprising a majority of Black and Minority Ethnic (BME) musicians, was to champion the music of BME composers, both living and from the past. Over these last three years we have given many performances of new commissions and existing works by some of the UK’s leading BME composers and I am delighted that six of these works are now captured in perpetuity on this NMC Recordings album. Chineke! has derived enormous pleasure in performing and recording these works, which represent such a variety of instrumentation and mood, and I hope that you, the listener, will gain as much enjoyment from hearing them.’”
Errollyn Wallen pays homage to Bach and Corelli in Concerto Grosso with its combination of dance elements and the buoyant rhythms of Baroque and popular music. James Wilson’s evocative The Green Fuse is inspired by Dylan Thomas’s poem The force that through the green fuse drives the flower and Julian Joseph’s energetic Carry That Sound combines elements of jazz and blues harmonies.
Daniel Kidane’s Dream Song was written for the reopening of Southbank Centre’s Queen Elizabeth Hall in 2018 and sets words from Martin Luther King’s powerful ‘I have a dream’ speech, sung by soloist Roderick Williams. Hannah Kendall’s The Spark Catchers draws on the dynamic poem by Lemn Sissay, commissioned for London’s 2012 Olympics.
Philip Herbert’s poignant Elegy is a tribute to Stephen Lawrence who was murdered in a racist attack in London in 1999. Herbert says ‘There is a need to place a higher value on the strength that comes from diverse peoples living together in Britain’.
Our latest album with NMC Recordings is available to order and we couldn't be more excited! Spark Catchers is a compilation of our work with composers Errollyn Wallen, James B Wilson, Daniel Kidane, Hannah Kendall, Philip Herbert & Julian Joseph.
Spark Catchers
Chineke! Orchestra & Chorus
Roderick Williams baritone
Tai Murray violin
Chi-chi Nwanoku double bass
Isata Kanneh-Mason piano
Anthony Parnther conductor
Kevin John Edusei conductor
Wayne Marshall conductor
REVIEWS
Fiona Maddocks, The Guardian
Errollyn Wallen’s Concerto Grosso (2008), compact and energetic, mixes stylistic patterns of the baroque with punchy jazz rhythms. James Wilson’s The Green Fuse (2017), buoyant and intense, is in pastoral mood. Hannah Kendall’s vibrant and compelling The Spark Catchers (2017), inspired by Lemn Sissay’s poem, gives the disc its title. Daniel Kidane’s Dream Song, which sets the words of Martin Luther King (sung by the baritone Roderick Williams), and Philip Herbert’s lyrical Elegy (1999) for 18 string players, in memory of the murdered teenager Stephen Lawrence, reflect issues that, as Kidane says, “echo the unity of Chineke!”. The disc ends with Julian Joseph’s Carry That Sound, making a bluesy, upbeat conclusion.
Geoff Brown, The Times ★★★☆☆
"More exclamation marks are warranted by the orchestra’s ebullience across some of Spark Catchers — a variable conspectus of new British music by composers of colour, promoted by Europe’s first professional classical orchestra for black and minority ethnic musicians."
Richard Fairman, The Financial Times ★★★☆☆
“…this disc gives an enjoyable sample of the sheer range of music by BME composers that is out there.”
Brenda Nelson-Strauss, Black Grooves
“Spark Catchers is a true gem, brimming over with exciting new music from both young and established composers. I sincerely hope this recording inspires programmers and conductors to look beyond the standard works often performed during Black History Month, and recognize the vast potential for diverse programming throughout the rest of the year. Very highly recommended!”