All Angels

All Angels are a British classical and pop group formed in 2005, consisting of Charlotte Ritchie, Melanie Nakhla, Laura Wright, and Daisy Chute.

The group's style is classical crossover music, with a repertoire spanning classical, choral, opera and pop including Franz Schubert's Ellens dritter Gesang, Agnus Dei (the choral arrangement of Samuel Barber's Adagio for Strings) and the Sancta Maria intermezzo from Pietro Mascagni's Cavalleria rusticana, along with the Flower Duet from Léo Delibes' Lakmé and the Barcarolle from Jacques Offenbach's The Tales of Hoffmann, plus pop songs such as Robbie Williams' Angels, Fleetwood Mac's Songbird, Coldplay's The Scientist and Prince's Nothing Compares 2 U. They have also performed "God Save the Queen" at the England vs. USA football match in Wembley Stadium in the summer of 2008.

They have recorded two albums. Their self-titled debut album, All Angels was released in 2006, and their second album, Into Paradise was released on 26 November, 2007. A third album is scheduled to be released in September 2009. Some songs on the new album are to include Norah Jones's Come Away With Me, Send In The Clowns, Bob Dylan's Blowin' In The Wind, Eric Whitacre's Sleep, and a duet with The Harlem Gospel Choir on I'll Fly Away. They have sold over 500,000 albums to date. All Angels are managed by TCB Group.

They are undertaking a UK tour supporting Katherine Jenkins in Summer 2009.

History

All Angels signed a five album deal with Universal Classics and Jazz in 2006 to be targeted at the populist classical crossover market. Each of the groups members had to go through an audition process in order to join the group,^[1] and were selected from 120 auditionees. Their first live performance was at Cadogan Hall in Chelsea, London.^[2]

The group released their first album at the end of 2006, entering the United Kingdom (UK) charts at number nine. It was the UK's fast selling debut for a classical act and won them a platinum disc, and was also nominated in the Classical BRIT Awards album of the year category in 2007.^[3] They sang in front of the Queen at the Festival of Remembrance held at the Royal Albert Hall on 9 November and at Silence in the Square, a concert held in Trafalgar Square on 11 November.^[4] In December 2006 they released the single Angels, the first ever Christmas single to be released in association with the Royal British Legion and their Poppy Appeal.

They sang at the Classical BRIT Award ceremony held on 3 May and broadcast on ITV on 6 May.^[5]

They made a cameo appearance in the British soap opera, Emmerdale during a wedding on 9 October, 2007 singing Songbird.^[6] They again sang at the Festival of Remembrance on 10 November. On 26 November they released a second album, Into Paradise, which features Nothing Compares 2 U and Sancte Deus. At the same time the album was released the winner was announced of the national Angel Idol competition, run in conjunction with Classic FM to find a fifth member for the group. The winner was Alexandra Lawrie who then had the opportunity to record a track and perform with the girls at a concert in London on 28 November.^[7]

They appeared on the BBC Radio 4 2007 Christmas Service, held at Wesley's Chapel in London^[8] and on the BBC 2007 New Year's Eve show, singing Nothing Compares 2 U.

On 14 January, 2008 All Angels sang The Sounds of Silence and Pie Jesu in a one-off concert at the International Eisteddfod’s launch in Cardiff. They are due to appear at the International Eisteddfod in Llangollen on 11 July, 2008.^[9] On 27 January they appeared on Songs of Praise on BBC One.^[10] In 2008 they embarked on a Cathedral tour in the Spring and further touring at open air concerts venues including Sandringham and Gawsworth Hall. They performed for the "Make a wish Foundation Summer Ball at Blenheim Palace. They went into the recording studio at the end of 2008 and into early 2009 recording tracks for their forthcoming cd.

On 10th December 2009, they participated in the Birmingham Young Voices concert. They sang with VV Brown, a singer from Wolverhampton who also paricipated in the event. People were getting up and dancing and really joining in with them.

Members

Daisy Chute

Daisy Chute (born 17 August 1989)^[11] is from Edinburgh. She studied at St Mary's Music Schoolwhere she was a chorister at St. Mary's Episcopal Cathedral and Loretto School^[1] and began her performing career at the age of nine as the young Cosette in the touring production of Les Misérables. At the age of thirteen she appeared as a young Judy Garland in Stars In Their Eyes Kids, and made her first appearance on the Edinburgh Fringe. At fifteen she recorded her debut album, Simply Jazz after she performed with a trio at a jazz cabaret show at the Edinburgh Jazz and Blues Festival and Edinburgh Fringe. A track from her Simply Jazz album was played by Humphrey Lyttelton on his BBC Radio 2 Best of Jazz show making Chute the youngest performer to ever be showcased on his show. Chute finished her secondary schooling at the Purcell School of Music in Bushey, Hertfordshire where she studied voice, piano and composition and gained 3 A's at A level examinations.^[12] In 2005 she was a joint winner, of a Scottish songwriting competition for the music festival Burnsong, with her song, Promises to Keep. All the winning songs were performed professionally and broadcast live on BBC Radio Scotland.^[13]

After meeting composer, Howard Goodall at the Royal Albert Hall's School Proms where she was fronting Loretto School ensemble, she was asked to sing on his television show, How Music Works^[12] where she performed the Shaker song 'Tis A Gift To Be Simple with Anastacia Nosobin on guitar on the first programme of the series.^[14] She also recorded the theme tune for the BBC Radio series What is Melody written by Dr Richard Niles.^{[citation needed]}

In June 2006 she was a "Highly Commended" finalist in the joint BBC Proms and The Guardian newspaper Young Composer Competition.^[15]

On 24 September, 2006 she performed at Wigmore Hall in London,^[16] giving a solo recital of Alec Wilder songs. She was signed to Universal Classics and Jazz (UCJ) on the day she turned seventeen, as part of All Angels.^[12] Chute has also had a brief stint presenting the CBBC news programme, Newsround at the Pop Poll Awards and interviewed Ronan Keating, Billie Piper and Westlife.^{[citation needed]} In summer 2008, she was featured in Highland Heartbeat, a Scottish music special filmed by American broadcaster PBS and broadcast throughout the USA in the Spring of 2009.^{[citation needed]}

In 2008 Chute won the Scottish Music Centre's Young Composer's competition with her African Magnificat.^{[citation needed]}

She is currently studying for a Bachelor of Music degree at King's College, University of London.^{[citation needed]}

Melanie Nakhla

Melanie Nakhla (born 29 December, 1988),^[17] she moved with her family to Shrewsbury, Shropshire when she was three years old, where she attended Prestfelde School. She began singing at a young age, joining the Shrewsbury Children's Choir when she was eight years old.^[2] She competed in the Oswestry Eisteddfod when she was ten years old coming first in a singing competition.^[18] She was a student at Wycombe Abbey in High Wycombe where she was head of choir.^[1][2] She has also appeared at the opening of the Severn Theatre in Shrewsbury. She is studying French and Spanish at University College London.^{[citation needed]}

Charlotte Ritchie

Charlotte Ritchie, (born 29 August 1989 in Clapham, London) joined the National Youth Music Theatre (NYMT) aged eleven and performed in a touring production of Pendragon in Japan, as well as appearing in summer productions in London, Devon and Edinburgh with the NYMT and Youth Music Theatre:UK. Educated at James Allen's Girls' School in Dulwich South London, she appeared as an extra in Harry Potter: The Goblet of Fire and went on to play the lead character in a short film The Open Doors with Michael Sheen and Cherie Lunghi.^[1] She appeared in The Pierglass, at the Young Pleasance Theatre at the Edinburgh Fringe in August 2006.

Ritchie was presenter on Boomerang and played a neighbour in the BBC's Life of Riley.^{[citation needed]} She is studying English and Drama at Bristol University.^{[citation needed]}

Laura Wright

Laura Wright, (born 17 June 1990)^[19] won the BBC Radio 2 Young Chorister of the Year in 2005. This led to live radio broadcasts on Sunday Worship, Sunday Half Hour and Aled Jones' Radio 2's Good Morning Sunday programme and a series of performances. Solo television appearances include About Anglia and BBC's Heaven and Earth.^{[citation needed]} She studied at Framlingham College in Suffolk^[5] where she held scholarships in art and music.^{[citation needed]}

Wright has been a member of the National Youth Choir of Great Britain since 2005.^{[citation needed]} In 2006 she was invited to sing with the RAF Band in a concert in Bury St Edmunds Cathedral.^{[citation needed]} A regular soloist with the Suffolk Singers, she has sung as guest soprano in John Rutter's Requiem at St Paul's Cathedral, broadcast on Radio 2.^{[citation needed]} In 2008 Wright played the second woman in Purcell's Dido and Aeneas alongside Daniela Bechley and Stephen Varcoe.^{[citation needed]}

She has represented The East of England in javelin, her county in hockey and athletics, and has reached the national schools tennis finals with her school team as well as singing backing vocals for rock band A Personal Victory, fronted by her brother Seamus.^[1] She began attending the Royal College of Music in London, in autumn 2009.^{[citation needed]}

On 26 September 2009, Wright sang "Abide with Me" during a tribute to Bobby Robson at Portman Road, Ipswich before kick off and "My Way" at half time in the football game between Ipswich Town and Newcastle United, in front of a crowd of 27,059.

Discography

Albums

• 2006: All Angels
• 2007: All Angels (Revised) - Digital release
• 2007: Into Paradise
• 2009: Fly Away, Release date set for 11 January 2010 ^[20][21]

Singles

• 2006: Songbird
• 2006: Angels
• 2007: Nothing Compares 2 U

Featured

• 2007: The Number One Classical Album 2008 - "Sancte Deus (Nimrod)
• 2008: Tenor at the Movies - "Vois Sur Ton Chemin" from Les Choristes with Jonathan Ansell
• 2008: A New World - "Anytime Anywhere" with Will Martin

References

External links

• Official website
• Official MySpace site
• Official Record Label Website
• All Angels at the Internet Movie Database
• Daisy Chute at the Internet Movie Database
• Melanie Nakhla at the Internet Movie Database
• Laura Wright at the Internet Movie Database
• Charlotte Ritchie at the Internet Movie Database
• Interview 2007 on ilikemusic.com
• All Angels tour dates 2008
• All Angels on classicalx.com
• All Angels interview on classicalx.com