"Drop in the Ocean"

It's safe to say, that I'm really jealous of Latvia. It's literally overflowing with choirs. Virtually every company, society, school sings. Singing seems to be an intrinsic part of their culture, and the quality that comes from this is outstanding. The 'Kamer...' choir that recorded this disc are a youth choir...once you listen to the piece you'll understand how unbelievable this is.

I listened to what is apparently the best track on a disc bursting with virtuosity; and that is the effervescent and haunting, "Drop in the Ocean". Using text from Psalms and The New Testament, the composer, Esenvalds has succeeded in creating an arresting and original sound, that often mirrors it's title - each sound creating a ripple, that gradually builds into a full blown wave, before dying down once more.

The piece is basically unaccompanied, a backing of eerie, haunting sounds being the only addition to the choir - and it doesn't exactly serve as a musical starting block for the choir anyway, who seem to have a magical ability to pick out the correct pitch from thin air. The pure sound of the choir really suits the religious theme of the text, and the pious sound is whipped into the 21st century with a good dose of chromaticism here and there. It's really breathtaking when the entire choir comes together, in a raucous, brilliant climax - which is set off by some great counter rhythm in what sounds like the tenor section. And this somehow disappears into thin air, as the phrases repeat, each time gradually thinning, before vanishing completely with some magnificent diminuendo. Though, this is far too complex for me to fully understand I think, unfortunately. It's beautiful to listen to though...and at least, thankfully, I can appreciate that.