American choral composer Eric Whitacre has announced the recording of the upcoming sixth installment of his critically acclaimed 'Virtual Choir' series is presently underway.
Given the title "Sing Gently," the Nevada native promises this project will be truly something special.
The new composition, which contemplates the power of 'togetherness,' comes at a unique time in modern global history, as the COVID-19 pandemic and nationwide quarantines have left millions isolated and struggling with mental health.
The sixth installment, dubbed 'VC6' for short, follows the same format as Whitacre's previous user-generated virtual choirs, bringing together singers from across the globe, who, often from the comfort of their own living rooms, record themselves singing an individual vocal part whilst listening to a prerecorded track through earphones. Rehearsals involve videos of Whitacre as the maestro himself, as he aids participants in keeping time.
The composer found his inspiration for the concept of a virtual choir after viewing online a video of a fan singing his 2000 choral work "Sleep." The fan had uploaded her rendition to the popular video sharing hub YouTube, and thus, the idea for a global collective was born.
Whitacre, moved by the fan's tribute, issued a request to his online fans to purchase Polyphony's recording, and upload videos of themselves singing along to the piece. As a result of that successful experiment, the gorgeous Lux Aurumque (heard above) was launched, becoming the first of Whitacre's Virtual Choirs (VC1). The number of participants in each succeeding installment have increased exponentially as videos of the global choirs, and word of their concept spread rapidly across social media (from 185 singers in the first virtual choir to over 8,000 singers - who at the time of recording, ranged in age from just 4 to 87 years - and who hailed from over 120 countries).
Describing the submissions thus far, the composer remarked,
"During the... rehearsal the other night I asked everyone in attendance to imagine themselves singing with one another, to sing with warmth and compassion as if we were all in the same large room together. I swear I could feel it happening through my tiny computer screen! I got all teary-eyed...many other singers wrote that they too had tears in their eyes as they sang. It was magical.As of May 18th, VC6 has amassed over 5,000 videos from 97 countries. There is still time to join the project - the deadline for submissions is slated for noon Friday, May 22, 2020 PST.
I think that strange sense of ‘togetherness’ we felt speaks to that part of the human spirit which we all share: a primal ache to find other members of our ‘family’, an ache to lift our voices as one and become part of something larger than ourselves."
To participate now, email Eric at community@ericwhitacre.com, join the Virtual Choir Facebook Group, or simply create an account at https://virtualchoir6.com/
Vocal parts, instructional video and rehearsal footage may be found on Whitacre's Virtual Choir YouTube page.
UPDATE - 22 MAY, 2020, 12:00 PM PST: Submissions are now closed for Virtual Choir 6. Whitacre is reporting an astonishing 17,562 videos from 129 countries - a dramatic increase from last weekend's already impressive stats. Links to the premiere will be listed here on Unraveling Musical Myths and on the VC6 website once announced.
UPDATE - 18 JUNE, 2020, PREMIERE DATE ANNOUNCEMENT: VC6 is scheduled to premiere on Sunday July 19, 2020 at 10:30 a.m. PT on the Virtual Choir YouTube page (linked below). In addition, Whitacre has announced an "online afterparty" for the event on the YouTube channel at 11 a.m. PST.
Links:
-Rose.
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