“On April 6th Ensemble 1607 shared the stage with Red Priest, and were certainly not upstaged! In fact they shared a lot more than the stage. They, too, are consummate musicians with near perfect tuning, co-ordination and a real sense of style. Like Red Priest they are also very entertaining. They manage to capture the true spirit of old music (not its ghost) and bring it right into the present in vivid colour. This is an a cappella vocal group that really knows where it is going—and is doing so with infectious energy and enthusiasm.”
—Deborah Roberts, former Tallis Scholar, founder of Musica Secreta and co-founder of the Brighton Early Music Festival
Originally formed when two of our members were studying at the Royal College of Music, The 1607 Ensemble is unique in that we perform early consort repertoire alongside 20th-century vocal jazz—both to a high professional standard—and create our own eclectic compositions using elements from both styles. We draw our inspiration from a cappella groups like The Real Group, Take 6, Manhattan Transfer, and the New York Voices; mainstream early music groups such as The Consort of Musicke, I Fagiolini, and Le Poème Harmonique; and “third stream” jazz/classical fusion groups like The Modern Jazz Quartet.
We believe that vocal jazz and fusion repertoire can be every bit as powerful, moving, and emotionally profound as a Monteverdi madrigal. It's also a lot of fun! Our ultimate goal is to infuse a technically sound and artistic musical product with the all the vigour and imagination of non-classical music traditions.
Our members come from the mainstream classical music tradition, and we draw our experience from a wide variety of channels including consort vocal music (e.g. Gabrieli Consort, Tenebrae, Ex Cathedra); early and modern opera; oratorio; and cathedral and chamber music. At the same time, we are all experienced in jazz and have performed both as soloists and in groups for many years. We see The 1607 Ensemble as a way of bringing these traditions together and creating something exciting and new.