Annie Moses Band: Annie Wolaver (vocals, violin); Jeremiah Wolaver (guitars); Camille Wolaver (harp, background vocals); Gretchen Wolaver (mandolin, violin, background vocals); Alex Wolaver (viola, background vocals); Benjamin Wolaver (cello); ... Full DescriptionBill Wolaver (piano, keyboards); Robin Wolaver (background vocals).
Additional personnel: Tom Hemby (guitar); Mike Bauer, Pete Huttlinger (guitars); Jeff Taylor (accordion); Mario Sangermano, Craig Nelson (bass guitar); Javier Santiago (drums, percussion).
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Annie Moses Band's "This Glorious Christmas": A Review| Posted November 18, 2008
by C.E. Moore
“This Glorious Christmas” is my introduction to the Annie Moses Band. Wow. Just…wow. They are absolutely amazing. This is the way sacred Christmas music is meant to be experienced. There’s just something about violins, cellos, and the feminine voice that just captures the spirit of the season.
First, let me explain a little about who the Annie Moses Band is. Composed of the Wolaver family—Bill (composer/arranger/pianist) and Robin (lyricist/vocalist) and their children, Annie, Alex, Benjamin, Gretchen, Camille, and Jeremiah—this group has wowed audiences and critics alike. Each of the members is specially trained in a specific instrument (some at Julliard) under renowned instructors, so they work well together as a unit. And in case you’re wondering why the band is named after one of the children, it’s not. It’s named for the kid’s great grandmother.
That being said, let’s talk about the music.
You know, I really just feel like “Wow” could sum up my feelings about the entire album, so I’ll keep things brief. The album starts out with the traditional English “Sussex Carol” and it is bright and vibrant as the violin, viola, cello, piano, harp, and other strings coalesce to create a beautiful sound. It will recall a simple time while reminding listeners that Christmas is a time to celebrate the advent of God on earth. “God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen” is the next track and here we are introduced to Annie Wolaver’s lithe vocals that blend delightfully with the family’s instruments as they build towards a crashing crescendo. Several offerings were penned by family matriarch Robin Wolaver—“Bethlehem, House Of Bread,” “Little Baby,” “When The Christmas Baby Cries,” and “Red, White, & Blue Christmas.” The best of these tracks is “Bethlehem, House Of Bread,” which is nimble and haunting. It is quite difficult to craft a modern Christmas song while infusing it with classic sensibilities. Robin Wolaver is a gifted lyricist in that sense. This is new and unfamiliar, yet it feels like I have known it all of my life. “Red, White, & Blue Christmas” is a bonus track that remembers those serving in America’s armed forces away from their friends and families during the holiday season.
In addition to the album comes a DVD of the band playing live. And let me tell you, seeing is believing. I am awed by this talented family and how they are using their gifts as a family to glorify God and edify believers and non-believers alike.
I cannot overstate how flat out amazing this album feels. If you’re only going to buy one Christmas album this season, make it the Annie Moses Band’s “This Glorious Christmas.” Listening to this offering will make the holidays glorious indeed.
This review has been reprinted on NRT with permission from The Christian Manifesto. Click here to visit TheChristianManifesto.com today!
A GLORIOUS, REFINED DEBUT| Posted October 07, 2008
There’s certainly something respectable about a band of young people who hope to “raise up a generation of excellence among musicians in the Church.” Where original, innovative art once thrived, the Church has been noted in modern culture as a “behind-the-times” venue where creativity is stalemated by what is deemed “appropriate” and “inappropriate” for worship.
But The Annie Moses Band put its words of hope into action. Having been thoroughly educated in the fine arts (does Julliard ring any bells?), the five siblings not only create excellent recorded product but host Fine Arts Summer Academies to gift even younger generations with a skilled appreciation for arts in the context of greater spiritual meaning.
This fall the siblings contribute their refined sound to This Glorious Christmas, the band’s first major label debut. A stylistic journey through elements of bluegrass, pop, jazz and classical music, the holiday disc is amazingly cohesive, thanks to Annie’s lead vocal and the other four siblings' consistent instrumental (Alex on viola, Benjamin on cello, Gretchen on violin and mandolin and Camille on harp) and vocal contributions.
Beginning with the traditional English “Sussex Carol,” the siblings’ fiddles play off one another in a delightful, Irish-flavored instrumental dance motif. An audience favorite, “God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen” mixes the instrumental strong suits of each member while communicating the carol’s timeless message through traditional three-part harmonies.
Originals such as the country/pop influenced “Little Baby” (think Alison Krauss) strengthen the handpicked carols. But it is the creative force of the band’s instrumental arrangements that most effectively translate on CD. From the modern pulses of the harp on the indefectible “We Three Kings” to the bending Appalachia fiddle and harmonizing mandolin on “Go Tell it on the Mountain" and the impressionistic dreamscape of “It Came Upon a Midnight Clear," the members of the Annie Moses Band know their instruments and know them well.
This “glorious” Christmas, enjoy a band who has chops to spare, and cozy up to the infectious landscapes of the Annie Moses Band. –Andrew Greer
This review has been reprinted on NRT with permission from CCMMagazine.com. Click here to visit CCMMagazine.com today!
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