Her excursions into every
imaginable und inconceivable vocal dimension are eccentric and theatrical, counterpointed
by her exploration of sinister and melancholy realms. This year's recipient of
the prestigious art-prize granted by the Berlin Academy of Arts, Marena Whitcher has
arranged a mosaic of facets in her elaborate Shady Midnight Orchestra, issuing her
first album, entitled Ghostology.
Ghosts and spirits have haunted all different ages, cultures and fields of art. Marena
Whitcher is also fascinated with these timeless creatures. Always restless, they shift between
life and death, sadness and euphoria, torment and intrigue.
This clash of opposites drives and informs Marena's personal investigation of ghostly
escapades. Composing in a poetic jazz/avant-garde pop style that consistently departs
from conventions, her inquisitive spirit arranges a unique ensemble of three voices,
bass clarinet, piano, double bass, and drums, seasoned with curiosities discovered in a
trove filled with such treasures as a glass harp, a music box or a broken dictaphone.
The most prominent feature of Marena's ghost-jazz are the stories she tells with her
transforming voice; stories of dancing skeletons, soldiers frozen in time, and a strange
ocean child captures her listeners.
In Ghostology Marena Whitcher with her Shady Midnight Orchestra not only expands
every piece to the breaking point, it also weaves improvisational moments, storytelling,
and bizarre spectacles into a Gesamtkunstwerk, a cohesive artistic statement that conjures
spirits to guide us on a risky journey into the unknown.