Omo Bello - African Art Song - COMPACT DISCS [CD]

Songs are the heart of the African people. -Rebeca OmordiaSOMM Recordings is excited to announce African Art Song, a continuation of pianist and InchAfrican classical music pioneerInch (BBC World Service), Rebeca Omordia's exquisite exploration of African classical music repertoire in her African Pianism series, in which she partners award-winning soprano Omo Bello. Throughout, an illuminating, and frequently mesmerizing musical tapestry appears, incorporating five indigenous languages and cultures with songs that merge African and Western European musical forms with African melodies to produce songs full of simplicity, playfulness, and most importantly, joy.The repertoire recorded by the two artists ranges from the love songs of Joseph Bologne (1745-1799), to works by living composers Shirley Thompson and Errollyn Wallen, whose InchPeace on EarthInch has grown from a song for Christmas to a song of peace for all seasons.The plaintive longing heard in InchAdura fun AlafiaInch (Prayer to God / Prayer of Peace,Inch by Nigerian composer Ayo Bankole, is a prayer reflecting the depth of devastation and starvation experienced during the Nigerian Civil War, known as the Biafra War (1967-1970).Ghanian-Nigerian composer Fred Onovwerosuoke's InchTwelve African SongsInch are a kaleidoscope of dances, healing dances and calls on the rain.Percussionist Richard Olatunde Baker's two compositions Inchserve as intermission, as a way of bridging the multiple musical languagesInch. Baker's compositions join those of Ayo Bankole, Akin Euba, Christian Onyeji, and Chijioke Ngobili as first recordings. French-Nigerian Omo Bello is the winner of many of Europe's most prestigious awards, including the Luciano Pavarotti Giovani competition (2010), Arca d'Or Prize (2013), Paris International Opera Competition (2014), and more after beginning her career as a scientist. Bello combines her talents