Alumnus's Choir Corvus Consort releases debut album on Chandos Records

‘Revoiced’, the brand new collaborative CD by Corvus Consort, directed by Freddie Crowley (Merton College 2015), and Ferio Saxophone Quartet was released on Chandos Records on 1st July. 

Originally inspired by ‘Revive’ (the Ferio Saxophone Quartet’s 2018 disc of Baroque transcriptions), ‘Revoiced’ explores the magical blend of saxophones and voices, bringing new colours to music from the Baroque and Renaissance, recasting contemporary choral works into a fresh soundworld, and inspiring the creation of new music.

Freddie Crowley is a freelance musician whose career encompasses choral and solo singing, conducting, composing, arranging, recording, producing and teaching. A member of the 2018-19 cohort of Genesis Sixteen, The Sixteen’s young artists’ programme run by Harry Christophers and Eamonn Dougan, he also held a 2019-20 Fellowship with the National Youth Choirs of Great Britain, and was chosen to be a Making Music Selected Artist for the 2020-21 season. Freddie graduated in 2018 from Merton College where he read Music as a choral scholar. While at university, he was also a member of jazz a cappella group The Oxford Gargoyles and made frequent musical theatre appearances.

On his latest release, Freddie writes: 'It’s been such a pleasure to work with the Ferio Saxophone Quartet and Chandos Records to produce our debut CD, "Revoiced". And we’re incredibly grateful to the Genesis Foundation for generously supporting the project with one of their #GenesisKickstartFund grants.

We hope that the album will offer a fresh and exciting route into the Baroque and Renaissance vocal repertory, as well as showcasing the incredible sound world of voices and saxophones from a new angle. We’ve also loved working with some leading living composers to re-imagine existing choral works, bringing a new depth of colour and range of emotion to some already stunning music.

I hope "Revoiced" will be as much fun to listen to as it was to create!'

‘Revoiced’, is now available to buy or to stream online. Find out more on the Corvus Consort website.

“A bold and fascinating recording … the Corvus Consort joins forces for their debut album with the Ferio Saxophone Quartet to reimagine compositions old and new to dazzling effect.”
— Tortoise Media, Matthew d'Ancona

“The whole album offers intriguing and effective arrangements of music by Schütz, Gabrieli and Bach as well, contemporary reflections from Park, James MacMillan, Roderick Williams and Sarah Rimkus, framed by this beautifully-resonant recording. The intimate way the saxophones and voices interweave and blend is strikingly effective.”
— BBC Radio 3 Record Review, Andrew McGregor

“The 17th century and modern day collide as Freddie Crowley directs the Corvus Consort and Ferio Saxophone Quartet in a recital of new works and beguiling re-imaginings of older ones for voices and saxophones.”
— BBC Radio 3 Record Review Extra, Hannah French