vocal big band

Everyone knows the tune I’ve got you under my skin, a song that came to be a true Sinatra classic. The tune and Sinatra are so inseperable, that many believe he is the author. That misconception is typical for many of the songs from the famous Great American Songbook.

Often these songs are from lesser known composers, such as Cole Porter, Jerome Kern or the duo Rodgers & Hart. They saw the light on the movie sets of Hollywood or the musical scene of Broadway, and soon started a second life thanks to numerous jazz and pop arrangements. Thanks to famous performers like Frank Sinatra, Ella Fitzgerald or even Lady Gaga, they became evergreens that conquered the world.

tribute

This time it's composer Jeroen D’hoe (°1968) who arranged several gems from the Songbook for the Vlaams Radiokoor, a vocal soloist, piano and strings.

It's no coincidence that the Radiokoor asked Jeroen for this job, because the music from those times is part of his musical DNA. Some ten years ago, together with singer Paul Michiels he released the album It's A Gas, a tribute to the songs from the Great American Songbook.

“I am using the choir as a 'vocal big band'.”

- jeroen d'hoe, composer

challenge

Today the composer takes on the challenge to translate some of those iconic songs to the vocal structure of the Vlaams Radiokoor:

“I am using the choir as a 'vocal big band' and divide them into different sections that one also finds in a jazz orchestra, from a rhythm and bass section to a brass and woodwind one. Sometimes the choir acts as a collective, other times the solistic groups create a dialogue.

For instance, percussive cluster chords are used to emphasize important punctuation marks in the text. The strings and piano have a more complementary role: they can introduce new motives in function of the lyrics, as an extra partner in the dialogue. But considering the many things happening in the choir, I also use them in a supportive fashion, acting as a cushion of sound."

personal accents

For most of the arrangements, Jeroen chose for a traditional, jazzy adaptation. Nevertheless, some songs were suitable for the addition of more personal accents:

“The melody of Moon River asked for a classic setting, but in a contemporary idiom. Hence I used sound clusters to gradually blend the chords in to each other."

surprise

Last but not least, Jeroen has one more surprise in store for the audience. Specially for this programme, he rearranged a cherished composition from his childhood, The Rhythm, that will take on different forms between the love songs of the night.