Friday 23 March 2012

The 3 Baritones


I am a little late in posting this, sorry. On Sunday, I was railroaded by the Grandmothership into a trip to Muson. Although I say railroaded, I do love a bit of culture on a Sunday afternoon, especially on a Sunday like the last one where I'd spent the better part of three hours, stuffing myself silly at the Southern Sun; and was in desperate need of something to distract me from how full I was!

The 3 Baritones, Obinna Ifediora, Olumide Dada and John-Paul Ochei apparently met at a house party given by The Godfather of Lagos, Tinubu, in 2006, where they had each been invited to perform. They have been performing together since.

The concert was well curated, and gave us a chance to experience both their individual and collective sound. Ifediora, whose voice I recognised instantly from his part as the Pirate King in 'The Pirates of Penzance' which showed at Muson a couple of weeks ago, has a distinctive flair. His voice is rounded and rich, and deep but with a featherlight tenor touch that makes his singing sound effortless. His rendition of Mozart's Non Piu Andrai from The Marriage of Figaro was true to the original form but benefitted from his own interpretation too, and you can see from his expressiveness that he is in possession of a special kind of emotional intelligence. I reckon he'd make a great actor too!

Listening to Olumide Dada's versions of 'Pieta Signor' by Stradella and 'Alright, Okay, You Win' were like listening to a CD. His voice is the easy drinking red wine of the lot, and yet, technically, the truest baritone. The tension between those features creates this velvety and sonorous sound that puts you at ease enough for you to stop actively listening. You kind of come to once he's stopped singing with the feeling of having had some good thoughts but not being really alert enough to articulate them. That's a compliment! He's good, and definitely one to watch. 

John-Paul Ochei, I also recognised from his role as the head policeman in 'The Pirates of Penzance'. Those of you who saw the show will remember him as the police man with the hilarious wobbly-headed walk. He brings a wicked comic streak to his performances and his delivery of Largo Factorum by Gioacchino Rossini was no different. I especially enjoyed this performance because my relationship with this piece goes way back to my childhood. Do you know, that the piece features in a major way in the Tom & Jerry Cartoon series? I remember Tom singing it all the time and to this end, I practically know all the words. Myself and the Sistership had an awesome time singing along, despite the quizzical looks from people sitting around us. I guess the message is: cartoons aren't all bad and they may actually reinforce your kids interest in classical music. I did think on his piece from Roger and Hammerstein's South Pacific that he needs a little bit more coaching on projection, and range but all in all a good performance and his enthusiasm on stage is infectious.

Together, the 3 Baritones have an endearing sound and they have managed to find a good harmony with a mixture of pieces in Yoruba and English, ranging from Ayo Bankole to John Lennon and Paul McCartney. I like the fact that they are very simply accompanied, by just a piano, the double bass, some drums and a sax. It makes for a well rounded but uncluttered sound. 

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