Canadian Daniel Taylor and the Trinity Choir The Tree of Life

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Sony Music Entertainment Canada is pleased to announce a new recording from celebrated Canadian Daniel Taylor and the Trinity Choir. The Tree of Life, a follow up to Taylor’s  critically acclaimed Four Thousand Winter, will be released internationally by Sony Classical on Friday, November 25, 2016. 

Within this beautiful sequence of Christmas music ancient and modern we find a stillness that is central to the experience – an awakening. The Tree of Life takes the listener on a new journey drawing each of us through the notes and through the moments of silence between them. Here we remember and reflect, hope and give thanks.

These compositions span over two thousand years, from a sixth-century chant to the miraculous works of Parsons and Mouton to the remarkable compositions from today by Pärt, Britten and Tavener. Among the pieces we find the “Seven Antiphons” by Arvo Pärt, disarmingly impassioned, otherworldly; the extraordinary “Hymn to the Mother of God” by John Tavener, and Benjamin Britten’s transformative “Hymn to the Virgin”. In close kinship with these profound offerings, the restrained ecstasy of “Nesciens Mater” by Jean Mouton, the “Ave Maria” of Robert Parsons and the moving “Jesus Christ the Apple Tree” by Elizabeth Poston, bring forth a sense of serene wonder.

Recorded in London, England with esteemed producer Nicholas Parker and bathed in the acoustics of Saint Augustine, The Tree of Life features the Trinity Choir including choristers from across Canada and members of the Tallis Scholars, the Gabrieli Consort and the Monteverdi Choir. These are magnificent interpretations that Daniel Taylor directs with passion and dedication.

The pure voices of The Trinity Choir include the best of today’s soloists from England and Canada’s choral scene including vocal stars: tenors Charles Daniels and Jeremy Budd, Sopranos Rebecca Genge and Ellen McAteer and baritones Alexander Dobson, Andrew Mahon and Geoffrey Sirett. The album was recorded in London, England with esteemed record producer Nicholas Parker and engineer Andrew Mellor. 

Daniel Taylor and Trinity Choir will be on tour this winter, with dates in in the U.S., Canada and Cuba.

More information: www.danieltaylor.ca

ABOUT DANIEL TAYLOR

Daniel Taylor is one of the most sought-after countertenors in the world and appears on more than 100 recordings across choral, a cappella, operatic and soundtrack repertoire. He is an active educator around the globe including master classes at the Beijing Conservatory, the Sao Paolo Conservatory, at the Royal Academy, the Guildhall and the Royal College of Music, as well as classes at leading Universities across North America. Daniel Taylor was recently appointed as Head of Historical Performance at the University of Toronto. As a Conductor, he made his debut with the Tallis Scholars, the Kammerchor Stuttgart and the Gabrieli Consort.

He has recorded several successful recordings for Sony Classical over the past decade, including ‘The Voice of Bach’ and a recital of Shakespeare Songs. ‘Four Thousand Winter’ was the critically-acclaimed debut of Daniel Taylor’s professional choir – the Trinity Choir. Canadian Daniel Taylor returns with a brand new album of stunning music. The Times (London) called him ‘brilliant’ while Gramophone notes ‘beauty of his voice will stop you in your tracks…his vocal beauty bows to no other’. The Globe and Mail writes ‘his star is rising at the speed of sound,’ – ‘Daniel Taylor, a new Conductor on the scene breathing new life into magnificent yet neglected choral masterpieces.’

Joining artistry and scholarship, Daniel Taylor grew up with the pioneering work of John Eliot Gardiner and the Monteverdi Choir (Taylor appears on many discs on the Bach Cantata Pilgrimage) as well as with Harry Christophers and the Sixteen and with Paul McCreesh and his Gabrieli Consort. His 2016-2017 Season includes appearances with Messiah with San Francisco Philharmonia/McGegan, Carmina Burana with the Toronto Symphony/Oundjan, St. Matthew Passion at Vienna’s Musikverein and at St. John’s Smith Square in London, UK as well as engagements with the Cincinnati Symphony , the Calgary Philharmonic and his recital debut in Havana, Cuba. Recently Daniel made his debuts with the New York Philharmonic, with the Dallas Symphony, the Cleveland Orchestra, the City of Birmingham Symphony and with the Israel Philharmonic.

Daniel is a Visiting Artist at the University of Vienna, Visiting Faculty at the Victoria Conservatory of Music, and on the Faculty of the Summer Academy at the Siena Liberal Arts University in Italy. The University of Toronto recently named Daniel Taylor as Head of Historical Performance and as Professor of Opera and Voice at the Faculty of Music. Daniel is Artistic Director and Conductor of the Choir and Orchestra of the Theatre of Early Music. The Theatre of Early Music performs more than 30 concerts every year in concert halls all over the world. This is Daniel Taylor’s second recording with his new choral ensemble – a gathering of the finest choristers from all over the world – The Trinity Choir.
 

“If you love choral music, drop what you’re doing and listen to this stunning new Christmas album from the Trinity Choir directed by Daniel Taylor.” CBC Radio-Canada
 

“Bathed in the natural reverb of St. Albans the Martyr Church in London, England, the voices of the Trinity Choir (a new group led by Canadian countertenor and conductor Daniel Taylor) sound positively luminous performing choral masterworks by John Tavener, Thomas Tallis, and others. I don’t get to use the word magnificent nearly enough when reviewing albums, but this one certainly warrants it.” Georgia Straight
 

“Les amoureux de chants de chorale ou anciens seront ravis de cette collaboration entre notre contre- ténor et le chœur; ils y interprètent des chants du VIe siècle à nos jours.” Journal de Montréal

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