PRESS
A selection of recent concert reviews
Robert Geary’s excellent Volti …
— Joshua Kosman, San Francisco Chronicle, April 9, 2018
Reviewing John Luther Adams’s “Become Desert” with Seattle Symphony
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Volti, the superb contemporary-music professional chorus, … performed the 80-minute work heroically, with beautiful sound, stupendous musicianship, and superb tuning. All this, while moving around Grace [Cathedral] and becoming a part of the dance.
— Lisa Hirsch, San Francisco Classical Voice, February 18, 2018
Reviewing “Path of Miracles” with ODC/Dance
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… sublime and awe-inspiring …
–Joe Cadagin, San Francisco Classical Voice, March 7, 2017
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… deeply rewarding … the combined forces performed magnificently throughout the evening.
–Rebecca Wishnia, San Francisco Classical Voice, October 27, 2016, reviewing joint concert with Left Coast Chamber Ensemble string quartet
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Volti sang with exemplary precision and suppleness. … There’s a moment when the chorus rises to the fore … and it’s absolutely dazzling. The final “amens” of that movement were positively heartbreaking.
–Harvey Steiman, MusicWeb International’s “Seen and Heard” website, reviewing Volti’s performance of Terry Riley’s Sun Rings with the Kronos Quartet, presented by Cal Performances on May 1, 2016
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… opens with the chorus humming a dreamy cluster chord at pppp — a nearly impossible feat for any other choir, but executed beautifully by Volti.
–Joe Cadagin, San Francisco Classical Voice, November 10, 2015
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… a spectacle that is hard to do justice by way of the written word … images that will linger in my memory for some time. Winges’ score is imaginative and colorful, rich in atmosphere …
–Niels Swinkels, San Francisco Classical Voice, May 20, 2015
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— stunning … brilliantly realized … an unforgettable experience … a complete triumph for all involved.
–Mark Rudio, A Beast in a Jungle, May 23, 2015
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… choral passages (splendidly sung by the new-music ensemble Volti) that luxuriate in ripe harmonic colors.
–Joshua Kosman, San Francisco Chronicle, March 20, 2015, reviewing “Death With Interruptions”
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… flawless execution … nailed the cluster chords with crystalline intonation … rhythmic precision and wit …
–Patrick Galvin, writing in San Francisco Classical Voice about Volti’s appearance as the only choral ensemble at the first New Music Gathering, January 2015
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… 20 magnificent voices … infinite expressional capabilities … magnificent, atmospheric soundscapes …
–Niels Swinkels, San Francisco Classical Voice, November 25, 2014
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… superb concert by Volti, Robert Geary’s innovative new-music chorus … fantastically inventive …
–Joshua Kosman, San Francisco Chronicle, May 19, 2014
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… an absolutely superb choral performance by Volti, directed by Robert Geary, on the theme of “War and Peace.” If you enjoy immaculate singing, well-planned programming, and passionate performance, then this is a group for you. In a word, this concert was masterful.
… In Volti, there seem to be no weak links.
–Maggee VanSpeybroeck, San Francisco Classical Voice, March 8, 2014
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Beautifully sung … magical moments … intoxicating and powerful.
–Joshua Kosman, San Francisco Chronicle, April 29, 2013
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…soul-baring … ethereal … immersive … Reluctant to break the spell, the audience sat in silence for several long minutes, a rare admission of their engagement in the shared experience.
–Heather Heise, New Music Box, May 2, 2013
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Intellectually rich, emotionally sustaining, and musically diverse, this is music that you want to listen to again and again. … This new music chamber chorus boldly creates audacious dissonances, combines them with angelic harmonies and unnerving rhythms, and delivers them right over the plate.
–Cy Ashley Webb, StarkInsider, December 5, 2012
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Being a fabulous chamber choir is only the baseline for Volti. On top of that rare distinction, Robert Geary’s 33-year-old, 20-voice chorus is a champion of new and American music, a connoisseur of literature, and extensively international in scope and interest.
–Janos Gereben, San Francisco Classical Voice, December 8, 2012
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CD Reviews:
Their newest recording, the color of there seen from here (innova) is an impressive display of Volti’s enthusiastic approach to new works, facility in extended vocal techniques, and remarkable cohesiveness as an ensemble. … an intriguing presentation of some of the most cutting-edge contemporary choral music being written today, and Robert Geary and his singers should be commended for their impeccable musicianship and artistry.
— September 2019, CD review, I Care If You Listen
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Volti’s incandescent sound … the magnificent polyphony of the ensemble’s singing and a dynamic control that sees the group shift from hushed whispers to glorious declamations with an ease that comes from years of dedicated practice.
— July 2019, CD review in Textura
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The music is adventurous, surprising, inventive, and best of all, enjoyable. All of the selections are technically difficult, often using extended vocal techniques, but performed flawlessly without a note out of place or voice out of tune, and there isn’t a weak piece among them.
— Don Kaplan, San Francisco Classical Voice, April 20, 2019
Reviewing CD “the color of there seen from here”
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The music is … suavely crafted and expressive, with a sleek air of sensuality that the chorus, led by founder and artistic director Robert Geary, evokes through finely blended singing. … buoyant and inventive creations, beautifully and sincerely sung.
–Joshua Kosman, reviewing “This is What Happened” CD, SF Chronicle, February 8, 2017
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Lose yourself in the sounds of new music performed by a choir that undoubtedly is the finest collection of new music singers we have.
–Don Kaplan, reviewing “House of Voices” CD, San Francisco Classical Voice, December 7, 2012
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… inspiring, magnificently performed music. Virtuosic? Absolutely. If this recording doesn’t make every composer who listens to it crave to write choral music, and in particular for Volti, I don’t know what will.
–Alexandra Gardner, reviewing “House of Voices” CD, New Music Box, June 19, 2012
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Each composer … has internalized the choral tradition at its best and done something new with it. Some of it is ravishing. All of it is a testament to the excellence of the Volti ensemble.
–Grego Applegate Edwards, reviewing “House of Voices” CD, Classical-Modern-Music Blogspot, June 28, 2012
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A great demonstration of effective, satisfying choral music that doesn’t insult your intelligence. Bravo!
–Robert Carl, reviewing “Turn the Page” CD, Fanfare, December 13, 2010
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… exhilarating range … an irresistible blend of vigor and bonhomie.
–Joshua Kosman, reviewing “Turn the Page” CD, SF Chronicle, April 4, 2010
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