The Idea of North
Encyclopedia
The Idea of North are an Australia
n a cappella
vocal ensemble, founded in Canberra
in 1993. The group's name is taken from radio broadcasts of pianist Glenn Gould
.
The group are generally referred to as a jazz
quartet, but sing a wide variety of styles including, but not limited to, jazz, pop
, R&B, classical, folk
, soul
and gospel
.
Australian jazz musician James Morrison
referred to The Idea of North as "the best contemporary a cappella group in the country". In 2005 the group were awarded the awards for best jazz album and best jazz song in the Contemporary A Cappella Recording Awards.
In 2010, The Idea of North won the Australian Recording Industry Association
(ARIA) award for best jazz album for their seventh studio album, "Feels Like Spring" (in collaboration with James Morrison
).
Meg Corson (alto
) left the group between the production of The Sum Of Us and Here & Now and Naomi Crellin took her place. Trish Delaney-Brown
left in early 2008 after being on maternity leave the previous year. Her stand-in, Sally Cameron, became a permanent member in her place.
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
n a cappella
A cappella
A cappella music is specifically solo or group singing without instrumental sound, or a piece intended to be performed in this way. It is the opposite of cantata, which is accompanied singing. A cappella was originally intended to differentiate between Renaissance polyphony and Baroque concertato...
vocal ensemble, founded in Canberra
Canberra
Canberra is the capital city of Australia. With a population of over 345,000, it is Australia's largest inland city and the eighth-largest city overall. The city is located at the northern end of the Australian Capital Territory , south-west of Sydney, and north-east of Melbourne...
in 1993. The group's name is taken from radio broadcasts of pianist Glenn Gould
Glenn Gould
Glenn Herbert Gould was a Canadian pianist who became one of the best-known and most celebrated classical pianists of the 20th century. He was particularly renowned as an interpreter of the keyboard music of Johann Sebastian Bach...
.
The group are generally referred to as a jazz
Jazz
Jazz is a musical style that originated at the beginning of the 20th century in African American communities in the Southern United States. It was born out of a mix of African and European music traditions. From its early development until the present, jazz has incorporated music from 19th and 20th...
quartet, but sing a wide variety of styles including, but not limited to, jazz, pop
Pop music
Pop music is usually understood to be commercially recorded music, often oriented toward a youth market, usually consisting of relatively short, simple songs utilizing technological innovations to produce new variations on existing themes.- Definitions :David Hatch and Stephen Millward define pop...
, R&B, classical, folk
Folk music
Folk music is an English term encompassing both traditional folk music and contemporary folk music. The term originated in the 19th century. Traditional folk music has been defined in several ways: as music transmitted by mouth, as music of the lower classes, and as music with unknown composers....
, soul
Soul music
Soul music is a music genre originating in the United States combining elements of gospel music and rhythm and blues. According to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, soul is "music that arose out of the black experience in America through the transmutation of gospel and rhythm & blues into a form of...
and gospel
Gospel music
Gospel music is music that is written to express either personal, spiritual or a communal belief regarding Christian life, as well as to give a Christian alternative to mainstream secular music....
.
Australian jazz musician James Morrison
James Morrison (musician)
James Morrison AM is an Australian jazz musician who plays numerous instruments, but is best known for his trumpet playing...
referred to The Idea of North as "the best contemporary a cappella group in the country". In 2005 the group were awarded the awards for best jazz album and best jazz song in the Contemporary A Cappella Recording Awards.
In 2010, The Idea of North won the Australian Recording Industry Association
Australian Recording Industry Association
The Australian Recording Industry Association is a trade group representing the Australian recording industry which was established in 1983 by six major record companies, EMI, Festival, CBS, RCA, WEA and Universal replacing the Association of Australian Record Manufacturers which was formed in 1956...
(ARIA) award for best jazz album for their seventh studio album, "Feels Like Spring" (in collaboration with James Morrison
James Morrison (musician)
James Morrison AM is an Australian jazz musician who plays numerous instruments, but is best known for his trumpet playing...
).
Members
The four members of the group are:- SopranoSopranoA soprano is a voice type with a vocal range from approximately middle C to "high A" in choral music, or to "soprano C" or higher in operatic music. In four-part chorale style harmony, the soprano takes the highest part, which usually encompasses the melody...
: Sally Cameron - AltoAltoAlto is a musical term, derived from the Latin word altus, meaning "high" in Italian, that has several possible interpretations.When designating instruments, "alto" frequently refers to a member of an instrumental family that has the second highest range, below that of the treble or soprano. Hence,...
: Naomi Crellin - TenorTenorThe tenor is a type of male singing voice and is the highest male voice within the modal register. The typical tenor voice lies between C3, the C one octave below middle C, to the A above middle C in choral music, and up to high C in solo work. The low extreme for tenors is roughly B2...
: Nick Begbie - BassBass (voice type)A bass is a type of male singing voice and possesses the lowest vocal range of all voice types. According to The New Grove Dictionary of Opera, a bass is typically classified as having a range extending from around the second E below middle C to the E above middle C...
: Andrew Piper
Meg Corson (alto
Alto
Alto is a musical term, derived from the Latin word altus, meaning "high" in Italian, that has several possible interpretations.When designating instruments, "alto" frequently refers to a member of an instrumental family that has the second highest range, below that of the treble or soprano. Hence,...
) left the group between the production of The Sum Of Us and Here & Now and Naomi Crellin took her place. Trish Delaney-Brown
Trish Delaney-Brown
Patrician "Trish" Louise Delaney-Brown is an Australian singer and songwriter. She sang soprano with The Idea of North, an a cappella quartet which she co-founded, until 2007. In 2003 she was won the 'Songwriter of the Year Award' by the Australian Songwriters Association.-References:...
left in early 2008 after being on maternity leave the previous year. Her stand-in, Sally Cameron, became a permanent member in her place.
Discography
- The Idea of North (1997)
- The Sum of Us (2001)
- Here & Now (2003)
- Evidence (2004)
- The Gospel Project (2006)
- Live at the Powerhouse (CD and DVD, 2007)
- Feels Like Spring (CD With James Morrison, 2010)
- Extraordinary Tale (2011)