Northern jazz with African flavour
Vadsø kirke is filled with African tunes singing. A joint concert given by Amadeus music choir from Murmansk, Varanger festival choir and famous singer Melanie Scholtz is being recorded on a CD.
(Photo: finnmarken.no)
For the 27th time, Vadsø city hosts Varanger-festival. Each year in August a small city on a Varanger fjord becomes a musical metropolia. World-known jazz musicians, performers from all over the world and totally different music trends – from saami melodies to hot Cuban tunes. The schedule is tough but interesting: 30 gigs in just four days!
Yet again Amadeus music choir took part in Varanger jazz festival, this year for the 11th time. Their participation in festival was many times funded by the Norwegian Barents secretariat. The friendship between Murmansk choir and Varanger festival choir started back in 90s when people’s diplomacy arose and people-to-people cooperation was flourishing.
A joint performance of Amadeus choir and Varanger festival choir has always been a success becoming a distinguishing feature of the festival. Traditionally it takes place in Vadsø church and gathers crowds of people.
Amadeus singers say that Scandinavian countries are on the whole interested in Russian church music. Russian speech having many vowels produces melodic sounds. People like Classical Russian School of choral singing, another manner of singing, sincerity and high professionalism.
This time apart from Norwegian and Russian choirs one could hear the voice of Melanie Scholtz from South Africa. Melanie is popular not only in her native Cape town but around the globe. Being opera singer by her education, Melanie prefers jazz and bright experiments performing them with her own, exceptional temper.
–Melanie is so sunny and easy to work with, she is full of charm! – admire Amadeus singers. In her turn, Melanie says that Amadeus choir is the best ensemble that she ever worked with. They got to know each other last year when performing together during Varanger-festival. Melanie liked it so much that this time she decided they would record their live concert on a CD.
–It is an awesome blend of different choirs and musicians performing in Vadsø kirke which has a very special vibe. This is the best concert I ever had. So we decided that we just have to document it. Right here. On a CD.
The CD is not yet brought to Murmansk, but hopefully this fall Norwegian musicians will come to Murmansk and perform the same programme together with Amadeus choir.