Skywoman
If the very idea of two-time Grammy nominee Joanne Shenandoah performing with the Syracuse Symphony seems overwhelming--relax. She would shine in any setting. Her bell-like alto is obviously the fulcrum upon which this album is balanced, whether she is accompanied by arranger Hartmut Seidler's mellow finger-picked guitar or effortlessly holding her own amid an orchestra in full cry. The work comes across as a free-form but well integrated modern song cycle on Native American themes -- even an established favorite likeFeather In The Windseamlessly becomes part of the new expression while being discovered afresh. That the album was recorded in the heart of Ms. Shenandoah's Iroquois Confederacy-Oneida Nation homeland in upstate New York probably helped establish and maintain an ideal relationship between past, present and future. In any case, longtime fans will enjoy discovering another facet of a remarkable artist while newcomers will simply be transported by the beauty of her voice. --Christina Roden