“Music speaks what cannot be expressed, soothes the mind and gives it rest; heals the heart and makes it whole, flows from heaven to the soul.” – Author Unknown
Cross-cultural connections, communication and collaboration feels like it’s needed more than ever, these days, and music can serve as a soothing and uplifting example. The Vancouver Inter-Cultural Orchestra (VICO) serves to fosters the creation of musical works that fuse and transcend cultural traditions.
The Vancouver Inter-Cultural Orchestra is excited to announce the release of In the Key of the World. Out today, the full-length studio recording features music by Canadian composers Dorothy Chang, John Oliver, Moshe Denburg, and Farshid Samandari, performed by an ensemble of 28 musicians playing instruments from a wide range of musical traditions, including Chinese, Persian, Indian and European.
While live orchestral performances are impossible, the release of new material in album form becomes even more meaningful- especially when the music in question provides a powerful demonstration of creative interconnectedness, communication and collaboration that spans cultures.
In the Key of the World, like the VICO itself, exists in several musical genres at once: world, classical, traditional. It’s fusion music on a global scale; music that transcends borders and breaks down barriers, throwing open the doors of contemporary classical music and forging a new path towards a truly diverse 21st Century Canadian music scene.
“Intercultural music has existed for centuries in most traditional cultures,” says VICO Artistic Director Mark Armanini. “The VICO has spent the past two decades developing a contemporary musical art form that draws on this history and brings the idea of “music as a universal language” to global fruition. We have developed a ground-breaking sound palette and repertoire that combines aural and written traditions, ancient and contemporary styles, and a huge variety of instruments (bowed strings, plucked strings, winds, brass, percussion) into one ensemble. The album offers a glimpse into the limitless creative possibilities of the intercultural orchestra, and the VICO is proud to present this music to the world as an aural offering of humanistic beauty and hope for a harmonious future.”
In the Key of the World is available today, June 4, 2020 on vi-co.org