Arts on Grand presents Moira Smiley & VOCO

Moira Smiley & VOCO will bring their high-voltage harmonies to the stage of the Old High School Auditorium in Spencer on Nov. 8. (Photo submitted)

Arts on Grand will present the 2007 national a capella champions Moira Smiley & VOCO at the Old Spencer High School Auditorium at 8 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 8.

The group performs original music and brings new life to old songs, from Americana to Bart--k.

Moira Smiley has had an international career as a composer and vocalist, with specialization in early music vocal performance. She has performed with leading ensembles and artists at such venues as Lincoln Center and the Royal Festival Hall. She has made over 40 recordings, including several of early music, as well as Irish and Appalachian music, Eastern European folk music, and her own original compositions. Her work has been praised in Billboard and Gramophone.

Moira's voice, improvisations, and compositions can be heard in feature films and documentaries. She provided the voice for Marie Antoinette in the feature film The Affair of the Necklace. In addition, she was "the voice" for Sir David Attenborough's The Life of the Birds on BBC/PBS, and can be both seen and heard in the film Appalachia: The Endless Forest.

Moira has recorded a number of CDs of traditional songs, both as a soloist and with the a capella quartet Vida. Her collaboration with VOCO has yielded powerful, emotional music with lush harmony. Their recent CD Blink is a vocal symphony, featuring original music with roots in Eastern Europe and Appalachia.

Jess Basta, Jessica Catron, and Christine Enns are VOCO. Jess is a visual artist and actor as well as a musician. Jessica is a cellist and composer who has performed with Wilco, Linda Ronstadt, and Dave Matthews, among others. Christine is a jazz and studio vocalist who has performed and directed at such venues as Carnegie Hall and Walt Disney Hall.

Together, Moira Smiley & VOCO sing joyous harmonies that mourn and dance at the same time, with a delicious vaudevillian combo of cello, accordion, and banjo. Their a capella pieces feature show-stopping body percussion. Folkworks wrote, "This is a truly phenomenal act, combining the energy of urban street singing with first-rate musicianship and folk roots. Their body percussion sets are a sight to behold."

* Don't miss this chance to hear 2007's a capella champions--which is also a rare opportunity to hear a female a capella quartet. Tickets are just $10 per person, with proceeds going to benefit Arts on Grand. They are available at Arts on Grand, from members of the Spencer Area Arts Council board of directors, or at the door on the evening of the concert.