INTERVIEW: A cappella group Voctave celebrates ‘Spirit of the Season’
Photo: The 11-member Voctave’s new album is called The Spirit of the Season. Photo courtesy of Clay Greenhaw / Provided by Fortune Creative with permission.
Voctave is an 11-member a cappella group that is getting into the holiday spirit thanks to their latest album, The Spirit of the Season: Deluxe Edition, out now on Club44 Records. There are many beloved tunes on this recording, including “O Holy Night,” “Go Tell it on the Mountain,” “Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas” and “Where Are You Christmas?”
At the helm of the group and the new album is Jamey Ray, who produced the recording and provided the arrangements. He has seen the group ascend the charts and garner real success, including more than 150 million online views for their music videos (see below for a sample).
On the holiday album, the group’s singing chops are on full audio display. This being an a cappella group, there are no traditional instruments, only harmonies and complementary, pitch-perfect vocals. Listeners can enjoy “It’s the Most Wonderful Time of the Year” and “O Come, O Come Emmanuel,” renditions that honor the original songs and make them unique with new arrangements.
Recently Hollywood Soapbox exchanged emails with Ray about Voctave and The Spirit of the Season. He is joined in the group by E.J. Cardona, Tiffany Coburn, Ashley Espinoza, Karl Hudson, Chrystal Johnson,Kate Lott, Drew Ochoa, Jamey Ray, Kurt von Schmittou, Aaron Stratton and Sarah Whittemore. Questions and answers have been slightly edited for style.
What do you love about Christmas / seasonal music?
I’ve always loved Christmas music! When you’re a musician, seasonal songs always figure so prominently that it becomes like [a] way of life. Even back when I was a child, Christmas music has always given me such a warm, nostalgic feeling. It’s really huge for me.
Do you have a favorite track on the new album?
I like a lot of the songs for different reasons. Gael, the 5-year-old son of our soloist Ashley Espinoza, joins his mother for a duet on “Where Are You Christmas?” It’s truly a unique treat. And of course on “Mary, Did You Know,” we got to sing with its lyric writer Mark Lowry. I don’t know if anything could be more special than that. Being in the studio with Mark and having him on this album is a tremendous honor. I also love “Carol of the Bells of Notre Dame.” It was an exciting opportunity to combine a classic Christmas carol with the popular Disney song. You wouldn’t necessarily know it from hearing each song individually, but they really do work beautifully together.
How challenging is a cappella singing?
Every style of singing has its own challenges, and a cappella singers must be masters of pitch and timing. But when you get to sing with the best in the business like I do, it can just be fun, and I don’t have to worry about anything.
Is the a cappella space a crowded one? Is it tough to compete against other groups?
I don’t necessarily feel like we’re competing against anyone. Because there are so many a cappella groups out there, there truly is something for everyone. We get to celebrate each other’s differences. I feel that Voctave is best at what they do, and Pentatonix is best at what they do. Everybody has their own individual style and their own custom arrangements. It’s awesome to watch people fall in love with cappella music, no matter which group they like most.
Why 11 members? How did you settle on that particular number?
It wasn’t necessarily an official plan. When we first started out, I wanted only eight or nine people for what was planned as a studio group. But when we started performing live, we added another male voice and female voice — that brought us up to 11. And we found that’s the sweet spot. We can have a solo singer step out and have a full group behind them. We can have a duet step out and still have a full ensemble behind them. Having a smaller group would limit what I could do in the arrangements. With Voctave having 11 singers, we have no limits.
What’s it like to work with Club44 Records?
The label has been extremely attentive to anything that we need. Working with Wayne Haun, along with his business partner Joel Lindsey, has been a dream. Wayne is so calm and normal and relaxed, you don’t realize the ridiculous level of talent that he has in his body and his mind. Being a part of their team has made me feel like we can only go further. Even within the first few days of being signed with the label, many things started to move forward for our group. I only see positive things in the future for us.
By John Soltes / Publisher / John@HollywoodSoapbox.com
Voctave’s new album is The Spirit of the Season: Deluxe Edition. Click here for more information.
