Echo Vocal Ensemble, directed by Sarah Latto, give their first offering with a fresh interpretation of "innocence". The disc features an eclectic mix of choral music, fully accapella, with music by Hildegard Von Bingen through to Paul McCartney. The centerpiece of the album is Ravel's Trois Chansons, performed exquisitely by the singers.
The album has recieved great critical acclaim, with 5 star reviews for both the performance and the recording from BBC Music Magazine, along with very favourable words from Gramophone and The Arts Desk.
My personal highlight from the album is Anna Rocławska-Musiałczyk's Bibi, Synkù, Bi, a beautiful Kashubian lullaby, sung as if to the baby Jesus.
Sarah Latto:
"Innocence is one of those many-sided concepts that has different meanings and resonances in different places and at different times. It is a concept that is transformed by history — through the shifts in our collective relationships to faith, to tradition and to the natural world — but it is also a concept that contains a notion of history within it: a before and an after. We only know what innocence is after we have lost it."
Echo are thrilled that the album was named as BBC Music Magazine's Choral and Song choice in October 2024 and nominated for their Best Newcomer award 2025.