OperaBabes...Beyond Imagination....classical meets popular with stunning vocals

 

OperaBabes are an English crossover classical music duo, consisting of Karen England (born 1974), mezzo-soprano, and Rebecca Knight (born 1970), soprano.

The duo came to wide attention when they sang "Un bel dì vedremo" (from the opera Madame Butterfly) on television sports programs, beginning in 2002. In addition to performing with major orchestras in Britain and touring with their own shows, they released their first album, Beyond Imagination in 2002 and their second album, Renaissance, in 2006. In 2012, the group released its third album, Silent Noon, named after the song by Ralph Vaughan Williams, on the Warner Classics label. The album consists of British songs, from Handel and Purcell, to Quilter, to Britten and Novello, accompanied by piano.

Beyond Imagination ranked No.1 on the UK Classical Chart for eleven weeks, and No. 4 on the US Billboard Classical Crossover Albums chart. In addition to the "One Fine Day" track being selected as the World Cup 2002 theme by ITV, British Airways chose another of the tracks, "Lakme H2O", a "stylish re-imagining of the Flower Duet from Lakmé", for a commercial. One reviewer wrote: "If you're a young individual with a remote interest in the classical genre, this disc is the perfect introduction". The album has sold over 1.7 million copies. 

 OperaBabes

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 https://youtu.be/3m-jjdLFLLA

What is World Music and How is it Defined

It's been said that ALL music is World Music, and, if taken in that context, that is correct. The term "World Music" was originally coined to distinguish various forms of music from the more traditional and popular music that most western countries and communities are used to. 

The average music listener or aficionado knows the genres of pop, rock, jazz, blues, country and their variations, but if they look a little further or broaden their musical tastes a bit more, there is a whole plethora of instruments, rhythms, vocalisations, songwriting and production techniques that are just waiting to be discovered and appreciated.

At almost every corner of our globe from the Americas, Africa, Europe, Asia, Pacific and all points in between, there is indigenous music that has been around for decades, if not centuries, that can open our mind and ears and take us on a musical journey that is practically endless.

World Music has now become a popular form of music within itself, and artists now tour the world to present their sounds to populations that may not have heard or seen them before, and there also many collaborations between western artists and indigenous musicians that have resulted in multi-selling albums and music awards. 

Take some time out and discover these sounds, you'll be enlightened beyond your dreams.

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