Voices Max Richter

• Max Richter (b. 1966):
• 1All Human Beings06:16
• 2Origins03:56
• 3Journey Piece02:22
• 4Chorale11:24
• 5Hypocognition01:05
• 6Prelude 603:21
• 7Murmuration08:17
• 8Cartography04:22
• 9Little Requiems07:38
• 10Mercy05:29
• 11All Human Beings (Voiceless Mix)06:00
• 12Origins (Voiceless Mix)03:49
• 13Journey Piece (Voiceless Mix)02:16
• 14Chorale (Voiceless Mix)11:13
• 15Hypocognition (Voiceless Mix)01:15
• 16Prelude 6 (Voiceless Mix)03:21
• 17Murmuration (Voiceless Mix)07:39
• 18Cartography (Voiceless Mix)04:22
• 19Little Requiems (Voiceless Mix)07:33
• 20Mercy (Voiceless Mix)05:29
• Total Runtime01:47:07

Info for Voices

Over a decade after its inception, ground-breaking composer Max Richter announces the release of VOICES – a major new recording project inspired by the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. The first single from his uplifting new work, which he describes as "a place to think and reflect", is out today via Decca Records. It is the latest album from the innovative, billion-streaming artist behind landmark 2015 composition SLEEP, which continues to evolve five years on with the launch of a new app. Available to download now, the app enables listeners to reimagine the 8-hour Deutsche Grammophon recording in custom-made musical sessions to help with focus, meditation and sleep. At the heart of both VOICES and SLEEP is a profound sense of global community, born out of Richter's career-long view of music as activism and his desire to unite audiences worldwide.

In a time of dramatic global change, VOICES offers a musical message of hope. Max Richter invited people around the world to be part of the piece, crowd-sourcing readings of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights to be interwoven into the work, which features an 'upside-down' orchestra. He received hundreds of submissions in over 70 languages. These readings form the aural landscape that the music flows through: they are the VOICES of the title.

Adopted by the United Nations General Assembly in 1948, in the aftermath of the Second World War, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights was drafted by a group of philosophers, artists and thinkers convened by Eleanor Roosevelt to address the great questions of the time. The voice of Roosevelt can be heard at the start of VOICES, as Richter incorporates the 1949 recording of the preamble to the Declaration into his piece. Alongside Roosevelt and the crowd-sourced VOICES, there is also narration by acclaimed US actor Kiki Layne (If Beale Street Could Talk) whose distinctive tones complement the choral, orchestral and electronic soundscape.

Max Richter explains, "I like the idea of a piece of music as a place to think, and it is clear we all have some thinking to do at the moment. We live in a hugely challenging time and, looking around at the world we have made, it's easy to feel hopeless or angry. But, just as the problems we face are of our own making, so their solutions are within our reach, and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights is something that offers us a way forward. Although it isn't a perfect document, the declaration does represent an inspiring vision for the possibility of better and kinder world."

VOICES had its world premiere in London in February, with more than 60 musicians performing live on the Barbican stage. The music involves a radical reimagining of the traditional orchestra formation. "It came out of this idea of the world being turned upside down, our sense of what's normal being subverted, so I have turned the orchestra upside down in terms of the proportion of instruments," says Richter. He has scored the work for 12 double basses, 24 cellos, 6 violas, 8 violins and a harp. They are joined by a wordless 12-piece choir as well as Richter on keyboards, violin soloist Mari Samuelsen, soprano Grace Davidson and conductor Robert Ziegler. The striking visuals for this large-scale project are by Richter's creative partner, artist and film-maker Yulia Mahr.

Max Richter, piano, synthesizer
Sheila Atim, narrator
Tenebrae choir
Grace Davidson, solo soprano
Mari Samuelson, solo violin
Robert Ziegler, conductor

Produced by the Barbican

Max Richter
The work of the award-winning British composer Max Richter includes concert music, film scoring, and a series of acclaimed solo albums.

Working with a variety of collaborators including Tilda Swinton, Robert Wyatt, Future Sound of London, and Roni Size, Max's work explores the meeting points of many contemporary artistic languages, and, as might be expected from a student of Luciano Berio, Max’s work embraces a wide range of influences.

Recent projects include the ballet INFRA, for Wayne McGregor at The Royal Ballet, with scenography by Julian Opie, the award-winning score to Ari Folman's Waltz with Bashir, and the music installationThe Anthropocene, with Darren Almond at White Cube.

Max's music has formed the basis of numerous dance works, including pieces by Lucinda Childs, NDT, Ballet du Rhin, American Ballet Theatre, Dresden Semper Oper, The Dutch National Ballet, Norwegian National Ballet, among many others, while film makers using work by Max include Martin Scorsese (Shutter Island).

Recent commissions include the opera SUM, based on David Eagleman’s acclaimed book, premiered at The Royal Opera House, London and Mercy, commissioned by Hilary Hahn.

Current projects include Vivaldi Recomposed for Deutsche Grammophon, recorded by British violinist Daniel Hope and the Konzerthaus Orchester, Berlin, as well as a variety of other recording and film projects.

This album contains no booklet.