Else Torp by Kieran Kesner and Kelly Crandell

Else Torp is a Danish

soprano A soprano () is a type of classical singing voice and has the highest vocal range of all voice types. The soprano's vocal range (using scientific pitch notation) is from approximately middle C (C4) = 261 Hertz, Hz to A5 in Choir, choral ...

born 1968 in

Roskilde Roskilde ( , ) is a city west of Copenhagen on the Danish island of Zealand. With a population of 53,354 (), the city is a business and educational centre for the region and the 10th largest city in Denmark. It is governed by the administrative ...

Career

She is a member of Paul Hillier's

Theatre of Voices Theatre of Voices is a vocal ensemble founded by baritone Paul Hillier in 1990;www.paulhillier.net
. Retrieved March 9 ...

, with whom she sings ancient and baroque works of composers such as

Peter Abelard Peter Abelard (12 February 1079 – 21 April 1142) was a medieval French scholastic philosopher, leading logician, theologian, teacher, musician, composer, and poet. This source has a detailed description of his philosophical work. In philos ...

, Roland de Lassus,

Thomas Tallis Thomas Tallis (; also Tallys or Talles; 23 November 1585) was an English composer of High Renaissance music. His compositions are primarily vocal, and he occupies a primary place in anthologies of English choral music. Tallis is considered one ...

, and

Heinrich Schütz Heinrich Schütz (; 6 November 1672) was a German early Baroque music, Baroque composer and organ (music), organist, generally regarded as the most important German composer before Johann Sebastian Bach and one of the most important composers of ...

, as well as contemporary creations such as by

John Cage John Milton Cage Jr. (September 5, 1912 – August 12, 1992) was an American composer and music theorist. A pioneer of indeterminacy in music, electroacoustic music, and Extended technique, non-standard use of musical instruments, Cage was one ...

Karlheinz Stockhausen Karlheinz Stockhausen (; 22 August 1928 – 5 December 2007) was a German composer, widely acknowledged by critics as one of the most important but also controversial composers of the 20th and early 21st centuries. He is known for his groun ...

, and

Arvo Pärt Arvo Pärt (; born 11 September 1935) is an Estonian composer of contemporary classical music. Since the late 1970s, Pärt has worked in a minimalist style that employs tintinnabuli, a compositional technique he invented. Pärt's music is in p ...

. She has also collaborated with renowned ensembles such as Concerto Copenhagen, the Lautten Compagney Berlin and the

Kronos Quartet The Kronos Quartet is an American string quartet based in San Francisco. It has been in existence with a rotating membership of musicians for 50 years. The quartet covers a very broad range of musical genres, including contemporary classical musi ...

. Torp first specialized in

baroque The Baroque ( , , ) is a Western Style (visual arts), style of Baroque architecture, architecture, Baroque music, music, Baroque dance, dance, Baroque painting, painting, Baroque sculpture, sculpture, poetry, and other arts that flourished from ...

and even earlier music, but is also recognized as an exponent of many kinds of new music. She has been featured with orchestras as the Scottish Chamber Orchestra, Gulbenkian Orchestra, Lautten Compagney Berlin and on recordings with ensembles such as Theatre of Voices,

London Sinfonietta The London Sinfonietta is an English contemporary chamber music, chamber orchestra founded in 1968 and based in London. The ensemble has headquarters at Kings Place and is Resident Orchestra at the Southbank Centre. Since its inaugural concert ...

, Smith Quartet and the Kronos Quartet. After a recent concert and CD project, David Harrington wrote: "As a violinist I judge the quality of my high notes by those I've heard Else Torp sing. What an inspiration." Torp also sings an extensive repertoire of German and Danish Lieder, and presents exotic works such as

William Walton Sir William Turner Walton (29 March 19028 March 1983) was an English composer. During a sixty-year career, he wrote music in several classical genres and styles, from film scores to opera. His best-known works include ''Façade'', the cantat ...

's ''Façade'' and Judith Weir's one-voice opera '' King Harald's Saga''. Her

Harmonia Mundi Harmonia Mundi is a record label that specializes in classical music, jazz, and world music (on the World Village label). It was founded in France in 1958 and is now a subsidiary of PIAS Entertainment Group, which is itself owned by Universal M ...

recording of Pärt's "My Heart's in the Highlands" with organist Christopher Bowers-Broadbent is featured on the soundtrack of

Paolo Sorrentino Paolo Sorrentino (; ; born 31 May 1970) is an Italian film director, screenwriter, and writer. He is considered one of the most prominent filmmakers of Italian cinema working today. He is known for visually striking and complex dramas and has of ...

's Oscar-winning film '' The Great Beauty'', and was chosen by

Nick Cave Nicholas Edward Cave (born 22 September 1957) is an Australian musician, writer, and actor who fronts the rock band Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds. Known for his baritone voice, Cave's music is characterised by emotional intensity, a wide variety ...

to be featured on a promotion CD in the February 2014 issue of ''

Mojo Mojo may refer to: * Mojo (African-American culture), a magical charm bag used in Hoodoo Arts, entertainment and media Film and television * ''Mojo'' (2017 film), a 2017 Indian Kannada drama film written and directed by Sreesha Belakvaadi * '' ...

''. She also sang on "Distant Sky", from Cave's 2016 album ''

Skeleton Tree ''Skeleton Tree'' is the sixteenth studio album by Australian Rock music, rock band Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds. It was released on 9 September 2016 on Bad Seed Ltd. A follow-up to the band's critically acclaimed album ''Push the Sky Aw ...

''.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Torp, Else Year of birth missing (living people) Living people Danish sopranos People from Roskilde Musicians from Region Zealand