Stile Antico

The son of an old therapy related pal of B's was one of the singers in this antique enterprise. He stood centre stage, bearded and Christlike in the newly restored All Saints church, and to push the relgious metaphor over the edge, the group gathered around him all sang like angels. As was fitting in this setting we sat on distractingly uncomfortable wooden pews, but I was able to shut my eyes and drift off into the lovely, impossibly intricate, vocal harmonies. I've always loved vocal harmony, though in very different genres, but the stark northern tones of The Watersons, or the sunny Californian harmonies of the BeachBoys are just different tones on the same aural canvas. It wasn't too hard to shake off the religious overtones, as all of the songs were in latin, and I comfortingly convinced myself that while the original composers may have believed they were creating something which glorified God, in fact it is the human voice itself which approaches divinity by way of these beautiful hymns and prayers.