An award-winning musical couple from Caerphilly are celebrating the release of their latest album to critical acclaim.
Daniel and Laura Curtis are musical theatre composers and lyricists, whose work has become a staple in the repertoire of performers in the industry.
The couple, who live in Caerphilly, released their second album Overture on Monday October 24 – a double-disc record which offers 23 original tracks featuring a massive 24 different artists from Broadway and the West End.
Overture is undoubtedly musical theatre. The record features a mix of heartfelt ballads and marching numbers from both experienced and younger actors, as well as two orchestral pieces – known as overtures – which signify the two acts of the album.
Daniel, 32, explained: “Often in musical theatre, melodies repeat and weave in and out of the story. We really wanted this album to feel like every song was related, even though we’re moving through and representing different genres of musical theatre styles.”
Speaking about the release, Laura, 27, said: “We’re overwhelmed by the kind support that such a large number of artists have given us.
“We are passionate about writing music with the input of the singer, so we can tailor and mould a song to work with a specific artist’s voice and to have performers of such calibre just makes the experience very special.
“The name Overture represents both the dramatic context of the album, which is a sweeping journey through a number of common experiences we share in life, but also the style and structure of the album.
“We wanted this to feel like a soundtrack for a show.”
Seeing the album evolve from an idea into a fully-fledged release was not without stress, as the couple tried to juggle recording performers in both the UK and USA, after using Shabbey Road Studios in Caerphilly to record the orchestral melodies.
Daniel added: “It was a massively challenging experience logistically. We actually recorded many of the vocals via Skype, using a patch into the session to allow us to make comment as we would if we had been there.”