The 2020 GRAMMY Award nominations arrived with no shortage of good news. The Recording Academy nominated THE ARC IN THE SKY (Navona Records) for Best Choral Performance, and CeCe Winans’s Something’s Happening! A Christmas Album (PureSpring Gospel) nominated for Best Gospel Album, features our orchestral production work with the Zagreb Philharmonic Orchestra.
THE ARC IN THE SKY, the result of a collaboration between PARMA, GRAMMY Award-winning chamber choir The Crossing directed by Donald Nally, and accomplished choral composer Kile Smith, presents the writings of 20th-century poet and thinker Robert Lax in an innovative setting. Colorful, textural, and weaving together the space between art and spirituality, THE ARC IN THE SKY has been lauded for its “subtle variety” and “sensitive, responsive performances” (Gramophone Magazine). Both Kile and The Crossing are long-time PARMA artists since the release of the album VESPERS, also featuring the ensemble Piffaro, in 2009. THE ARC IN THE SKY, since its release on Navona Records in July of 2019, has offered a moving introduction of Lax’s works to listeners from the United States to Central Europe and beyond, and PARMA is thrilled to see this terrific music receive recognition by the Academy.
In the gospel realm, the holidays came early: best-selling gospel singer CeCe Winans received a nomination for “Best Gospel Album” for Something’s Happening! A Christmas Album. During the album’s creation, CeCe’s team called on PARMA to add something special to the final recording—orchestral performances on each piece, recorded with the Zagreb Philharmonic Orchestra at the Bersa Hall, Zagreb Academy of Music. PARMA planned, engineered, and produced the sessions, working alongside CeCe’s team to make this special, GRAMMY nomination-worthy collection of pieces come to life.
Congratulations to The Crossing, Donald, Kile, and to CeCe, her team, the Zagreb Philharmonic, and all involved in the creation of both of these albums. On to the GRAMMYs!
