We’re celebrating Music Monday here on the Everyday Opera! We, at Rosebrook Classical, pride ourselves on telling you about cool new composers, ensembles, and concepts, but sadly, we have to admit that we can’t recall ever writing anything about an innovative brass ensemble. Well, that changes today as we introduce Genghis Barbie! This is the greatest of ways to break our lack of brass streak because it’s a Horn quartet! As a horn player myself, you have no idea how exciting finding this quartet was. Do you know how hard it is to make horns cool? So, when we saw the New York Times headline “Four French Horn Players Take on Lady Gaga, Queen, and More” we stopped everything we were doing to check out the article! We like the line in the article from Daniel Wakin that their photos make them look like “the Four Hornswomen of the Apocolypse or neon-colored aerobics instructors.” And it’s true, their incredibly fun and wild image is striking for a professional, and fantastic horn quartet, but that’s what makes them so fantastic.
They do a lot of arrangements of pop-tunes, which isn’t our favorite thing in the world, but when done by such wonderful horn players, we actually enjoy it quite thoroughly. (Who couldn’t get into four horns playing The Thong Song?) They also do some standard repertoire arrangements too, but the fact that even those are arrangements makes them new music, which is something we’ll always get into, no matter the ensemble. And from a nerd standpoint, the video of “Velvet Barbie” performing Britten’s Serenade on an alphorn is absolutely fantastic! (For our horn-nerds out there, the Alphorn duet between “Attila the horn” and “Velvet Barbie” is also a must watch)
Their bio is pretty great as well -
GENGHIS BARBIE, the leading post post-feminist feminist all-female pop horn quartet is the most recognized chamber ensemble of its generation and beyond. With a combined 26 years of conservatory training, Genghis Barbie brings you a visceral and unadulterated musical adventure. Performing solely arrangements of pop music from the 70′s, 80′s, 90′s, 00′s and today, Genghis Barbie is the most versatile and expansive musical experience on NYC’s classical-pop-rock-jazz-indie-alternative-punk-electro-acoustic scene today. Genghis Barbie was incepted in a unique moment of ingenuity when Freedom Barbie, Jungle Barbie, Atilla the Horn Barbie, and Velvet Barbie converged at Freedom’s bachelorette party. Genghis Barbie aspires to appear on the Ellen Degeneres show within one calendar year.
They are also very modern in the fact that they don’t seem to have a website, but instead operate from their Facebook Page! When looking through their pictures, and seeing the way they engage with their audience members, it is easy to see that these women know the importance of changing the image of classical music and classical musicians. And seeing their touring schedule, it certainly seems to be working!
These women should serve as nothing but complete inspiration to all musicians, regardless of instrument. Play fun, new, exciting music, get out of the music-museums, don’t be afraid to wear something beyond normal “concert attire” and show the world that classical musicians are fun and like having fun with music as much as any pop musicians do!
So make sure and check out the Genghis Barbie Facebook Page, give them a like, and check out their videos in their links!
Here’s a video of them performing Seal’s song “Kiss from a Rose” for four horns:
