The
Fron Male Voice Choir: Voices Of The Valley Live
“Wales
has always been known for
spawning ultra-talented singers, so
it comes as no surprise that The Fron
Male Voice Choir has captured such
hauntingly beautiful songs, performed
with such splendour, on a wonderful
DVD, Voices Of The Valley Live...”
TAKING ADVANTAGE OF THE NEAR-PERFECT ACOUSTICS of the lovely St Jude's
Church in London's Hampstead Garden Suburb, the Fron Male Voice Choir
was filmed during Proms at the St Jude's 2008 Music Festival for a very
special DVD, Voices Of The Valley Live.
The atmospheric, early 20th Century church designed by Lutyens provides the
ideal venue for the rousing performance of such exquisiteness and clarity that
could only be achieved with sixty enthusiastic Welsh male voices in full song.
The result is a collection of glorious, uplifting and delightfully poignant
songs.
Chairman and 1st Tenor David Jones praises the church as having "amazing acoustics"
and being "a wonderful place to sing" and speaks of the choir being established
in 1947 to coincide with a North Wales initiative to reunite the people of the
world in music, song and dance after the Second World War. There are some great
shots of the architecture and decoration of the church.
The Fron Male Voice Choir took an incredible 58 years to hit the big time. The
choir was spotted at a wedding in 2006 by Daniel Glatman, the former manager
of boy band Blue, and immediately signed them to UCJ — putting them on
the road to stardom and earning them the reputation of the oldest boy band in
the world!
One of the highlights of the DVD is an intimate documentary following the 'boys'
on the road and interviews with them in the stunning Froncysyllte Valley that
gives the amateur choir its name. Members of The Fron Male Voice Choir balance
their singing with their everyday lives and among the line-up is a prison warder,
a fireman, a farmer, an undertaker and a builder.
The concert DVD is Directed by John FD Northover and the accompanist is Alwena
Nutting. Twenty three songs are featured, all given the classic Fron treatment.
The choir's rendition of such popular songs as You Raise Me Up and the
fabulous Unchained Melody are mixed in with You'll Never Walk Alone,
Can't Help Falling In Love, The Beatles' Yesterday and the emotive
Softly As I Leave You, which is about a dying man talking to his wife
and is sung very sympathetically. These songs are featured along with others
on the Fron Male Voice Choir's albums Voices Of The Valley and Voices
Of The Valley Encore.
Traditional Welsh songs — that throughout the choir's sixty years have
become part of the live Fron Male Voice Choir experience — are also performed
on the DVD. A number of highlights are worth mentioning: the rousing When
The Saints Go Marchin' In, the overwhelmingly beautiful Battle Hymn Of
The Republic and the terrific encore Amen/This Little Light Of Mine that
is performed without one single hint of breathlessness. Closing with the Welsh
National Anthem (Land Of My Fathers), the concert reflects pride in the
choir member's talents and in their country.
The Fron Male Voice Choir's musical director Ann Atkinson is the only female
and her mezzo soprano voice is fabulous and emotive. Ann's solo verse on How
Great Thou Art is heartfelt and lovely and she performs on songs that include
World In Union — which should be adopted as the theme song for 2009!
— and Panis Angelicus as well as three more solos as DVD extras.
Ann is very visual and is clearly as passionate about the choir as the men.
In what has been described as one of the most momentous and astonishing rises
ever, The Fron Male Voice Choir's debut album for UCJ rocketed the 'boys' and
their solo female musical director Ann Atkinson to the top of the classical
charts. Selling almost one million copies (and still rising), Voices Of The
Valley Live spent two months at the top of the classical chart and became
the fastest selling classical album ever.
This is riveting stuff with beautiful songs; beautifully sung and at once dramatic,
gentle, soft and boisterous. If you enjoy indulging yourself in a musical extravaganza
of delightful male choir voices at their utmost best, you should invest in this
wonderful DVD.
• Fremantle Home Entertainment is
proud to announce the release (on 3 November, 2008) of Voices Of The Valley
Live, the first-ever DVD from the phenomenally successful, multi-platinum
selling The Fron Male Voice Choir. Catalogue Number: FHED2501.
The debut DVD coincides with the release of their third studio album Home
for Universal Classics and Jazz (released 10 November 2008).
Voices Of The Valley Live Tracklisting
1 Gospel Train | 2 Dyrchefi'r Fi (You Raise Me Up) | 3 Unchained
Melody | 4 Gwahoddiad (Invitation) | 5 My Little Welsh Home
| 6 The Miller's Song | 7 Panis Angelicus | 8 Tydi a Raddaist
(Thou Gavest) | 9 Yesterday | 10 Suo Gân (Lullaby) | 11 Softly
As I Leave You | 12 When The Saints Go Marchin' In | 13 Battle
Hymn Of The Republic | 14 Can't Help Falling In Love | 15 Ar Lan
y Môr (On The Sea Shore) | 16 You'll Never Walk Alone | 17 How
Great Thou Art | 18 World In Union | 19 Bring Him Home | 20
The Rose | 21 Rhythm Of Life | 22 Amen | 23 Land Of
My Fathers (Welsh National Anthem).
Extras
Documentary: The Story Of The Froncysyllte Male Voice Choir (over 20 minutes)
| Ann's extra solos: 1 Habanera (from Bizet's Carmen; 2 Dido's
Lament (from Purcell's Dido And Aeneas; 3 David Of The White Rock.
"The Fron Male Voice Choir has captured such hauntingly beautiful songs, performed
with such splendour, on a wonderful DVD, Voices Of The Valley" —
Maggie Woods, MotorBar
Check out fronchoir.com
