Esther Swift was at The Queen’s Hall Edinburgh tonight to launch her debut album 'Expectations of a Lifetime' and from the very beginning it was obvious that attention to every aspect of this multi-media event had been planned and rehearsed down to the smallest detail.
'Expectations of a Lifetime' is a bold project, and the twelve works on it allow harpist, composer and vocalist Esther Swift to explore her love of a wide diversity of musical genres that include (amongst others) classical, jazz, folk and dance music. Often this music is taking us all into soundscapes that you would not usually expect harp music to be taken, but that love of exploring new possibilities for this instrument and for herself as an artist has been a trademark of Esther Swift and her music to date.
This live event for the launch of 'Expectations of a Lifetime' was far more than the often standard set-list of the songs/music from the album. Instead, this was a performance work created with visual artist Oana Stanciu (who also created the graphic and design for the album) with additional work by sound designer Dave House and lighting designer Sam Jones. Together with on-stage appearances from... read the rest of this article here.