Wow! Wicked, the movie is incredible! I knew from the moment Holly Sedillos and Edie Lehman Boddicker reached out in regards to vocals for this film, it would be epic! John Powell’s score did NOT disappoint! The session included score vocals (textured “oohs” and “aahs” along with the orchestra), as well as lyrics to the iconic musical. We were pinching ourselves during the session, knowing how surreal the moment was.
I love getting to work with my old college buddies! Mike Lee is incredibly gifted with arranging… from orchestra pieces to vocals, he knows what we need to see on the paper. Great voice leading and creative approaches always make a session with him enjoyable and FUN! I also shared the stand with fellow APU cougars Wendy (Hinkle) Taquino and Kesha Nugent.
Yes, it was a Christmas album. NO, it wasn’t Christmas when we recorded… ha! So, to invoke the holiday spirit we were all invited to come wearing our ugly Christmas sweaters. There were lights and even some goodies for Santa. I brought a bunch of reindeer antlers and passed them around.
Randy Crenshaw is not only a singer, trumpet player, and MEAN pitchpipe performer (ha), but he’s also an incredible vocal arranger! Wow! He has such an incredible library of both arrangments and originals that are definitely worth checking out!
Wow! Please do yourself a favor and check out Toulouse Engelhardt’s album entitled “Three Novellas”. His original compositions and guitar playing are so soothing I have his album on repeat regularly. What an honor to sing on a couple of his tracks. He allowed me to sing in an operatic style while the lines soared higher and higher. Such a satisfying session.
What a special project LouAnn Lee has on her hands. My favorite song of the day was about God’s peace. It was a timely song for the season I was in. I continue to be in awe of how God can speak to us in our everyday routines and work lives. We just have to listen.
What a treat to be a part of the choir backing up Michael Buble on his new release “Smile”.
The creation of a musical from start to finish is an amazing feat. I was honored to be invited to record vocals for Alan Silvestri as he shopped Back to the Future: The Musical. We had a blast bringing the music from such an iconic film to the stage.
Check out the pitch performance here:
I am pinching myself right now!! The chance to sing for Sir Paul McCartney?!? Are you kidding me!? This HAS to be one of the biggest highlights of my career! I can get pretty excited about a session call but will keep my expectations low knowing that the artist won’t always be there. My heart began to race a little faster; however, when we were greeted at the door by a large security guard who checked our purses and requested no photos. He was here! He was actually going to be at the session! The recording studio was not a studio at all. It was held in a large cathedral in the heart of LA. The acoustics were fantastic. Sir Paul was a complete gentleman and even invited us back into their make-shift “booth” at the end to let us hear the final product. As we left, he made it a point to shake each of our hands and say thank you. Not only was he completely sweet and humble, but he even had his completed CD mailed out to our homes! We may not have been allowed to take pictures in the church, but that didn’t stop us from taking a group pic outside!
Monique Donnelly 