The Real Group
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| The Real Group | |
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| Image:TheRealGroup promo1.JPG (Clockwise from upper left) Anders Jalkéus, Margareta Bengtson, Peder Karlsson, Katarina Henryson, Anders Edenroth. |
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| Origin | Stockholm, Sweden |
| Years active | 1984 - present |
| Genres | A cappella Vocal jazz |
| Website(s) | http://www.realgroup.se |
The Real Group is a professional a cappella group from Sweden, consisting of five members: soprano Margareta Bengtson, alto Katarina Henryson, tenor Anders Edenroth, baritone Peder Karlsson, and bass Anders Jalkéus. The group has announced plans for Johanna Nyström to become a permanent member after Christmas 2006, replacing the departing Bengtson.
The group's members compose or arrange most of the songs that they perform. A large fraction of the group's recorded songs are sung in English, with the remainder being almost entirely in Swedish.
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[edit] History
[edit] Formation
The Real Group was formed in 1984, when its original members were students at the Swedish Royal College of Music.
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[edit] Planned departure of Margareta Bengtson
Margareta Bengtson has announced her intent to retire from The Real Group after Christmas 2006 [1]. Bengtson's last concert with the group is planned for December 2006 in South Korea.
Johanna Nyström, who regularly substituted for Bengtson in prior years, will become a permanent member of the group, presumably taking a soprano role similar to that filled by Bengtson.
Upon her departure, Bengtson will be the first original member to leave The Real Group. The Real Group has retained its original membership for roughly twenty-two years.
Bengtson has finished recording a solo project album titled "I'm Old Fashioned", scheduled for release by EMI on October 25, 2006.
[edit] Musical style
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[edit] Vocal ranges of the members
- Margareta Bengtson: From F below middle C up to G above high C.
- Katarina Henryson: From D below middle C up to high C.
- Anders Edentroth: From C below middle C up to A below high C.
- Peder Karlsson: From low E up to C above middle C.
- Anders Jalkéus: From contra A up to G above middle C.
[edit] Performances
The Real Group has performed in more than 2000 concerts worldwide.
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[edit] Discography
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A compilation album originally targeted at the European market. |
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A compilation album originally targeted at the US market. Fourteen tracks: ten in English, two in Swedish, two with no lyrics. |
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Twelve tracks, all in Swedish. |
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Released in Sweden under the title "jazz:live". Twelve tracks: ten in English, one in Swedish, one with no lyrics. All tracks are live performances in concert. |
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Title translates "All the best". A best of album with twenty tracks, four of them previously unreleased. Eight tracks in English, ten in Swedish, one in Spanish, one with no lyrics. Three tracks are live performances in concert. |
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Twenty-two tracks, all in Swedish. Swedish folk songs, all choral in their musical style. The performances were recorded without overdubbing and were directed by the well-known Swedish choral director Eric Ericson. |
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Fifteen tracks: three in English, eleven in Swedish, one with no lyrics. Four tracks are live performances in concert. Includes a video clip of a live performance of "Clown of the Jungle", an a cappella arrangement of the soundtrack to a Disney short film by the same name[2]. |
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Thirteen tracks: twelve in English and one with no lyrics. The Korean-market version contains two additional tracks in English. |
[edit] Trivia
(From left) Johanna Nyström (standing in for Margareta Bengtson), Katarina Henryson, Peder Karlsson, Anders Edenroth, Anders Jalkéus.
- The group cites Bobby McFerrin as an early source of inspiration: "What we do may never have happened if we hadn't heard his [albums]."[3].
- The Real Group does not tour often in the United States; in order to avoid extended absence from their families, the group has a policy not to take tours lasting longer than one week, and tour-booking management agencies in the US don't generally accept such relatively short tour lengths[4].
- Margareta Bengtson and Anders Jalkéus were previously married to each other, but have since divorced[4]. Up until the August 31, 2006 announcement of her planned retirement from The Real Group, the group's publications still referred to Bengtson as Margareta Jalkéus.
- On December 22, 1993, to commemorate the fiftieth birthday of Queen Silvia of Sweden, The Real Group backed up former ABBA member Anni-Frid Lyngstad in a performance of the ABBA hit "Dancing Queen", using an a cappella arrangement that would later be released on the album "Varför får man inte bara vara som man är".
[edit] Awards
- Contemporary A Cappella Recording Awards (CARAs):
- 1995: Best Contemporary Cover: "Dancing Queen" from Varför får man inte bara vara som man är
- 1995: Best Jazz Song: "Flight of the Foo-Birds" from Varför får man inte bara vara som man är
- 1996: Best Female Vocalist: Margareta Bengtson
- 1997: Live Album of the Year: Live in Stockholm
- 1997: Best Original Pop Song
- 1997: Best Jazz Song
- 1997: Best Female Vocalist: Margareta Bengtson
- 1998: Best Holiday Album: En riktig jul
- 2003: Best Classical Album: Stämning
- 2003: Runner Up for Best Classical Song: "En vänlig grönskas rika dräkt" from Stämning
- 2004: Best Holiday Album: Julen en her
- 2004: Best Holiday Song: "Hark, the Herald Angels Sing" from Julen En Her
- Other awards:
- 2002 Karamelodiktstipendiet (Swedish), an annual award given to a Swedish entertainer by Povel Ramel.
[edit] Footnotes
- ^ The Real Group New member. Group web site content. Retrieved on September 1, 2006.
- ^ The Disney short film Clown of the Jungle is typically broadcast on Swedish television on Christmas Eve, hence its appearance in the Christmas album Julen er her.
- ^ The Real Group Questions & Answers. Group web site content. Retrieved on August 15, 2006.
- ^ a b The Real Group Questions & Answers. Group web site content. Retrieved on August 11, 2006.
