The Element Choir

Arguably Canada's foremost vocal improviser and a virtuoso singer who covers everything from new opera to blues, Christine Duncan is a national treasure. She's now using her creativity and artistic insights to lead the 51-member Element Choir in their first recording, done at Toronto, ON's Rosedale United Church. Joined by Jesse Zubot (violin), Jean Martin (drums), Jim Lewis (trumpet) and Eric Robertson (Casavant pipe organ), the ensemble journey through invisible landscapes populated by shouting crowds, chanting monks, calling birds and assembled angels, all summoned by Duncan's deft conduction. The choir improvise, cued and guided by her intuitive grasp of massed sound's architecture and sectional interplay. Especially evocative are the roles played by the organ and trumpet, which set moods with clarity and emotional resonance. The 80-minute, eight-track recording provides an enveloping, transcendent listening experience well worth the time invested.