My first look/listen of Voctave, and what a joy it was! Such a talented group of singers, and with no shortage of musicianship. This is a much more "raw" listening experience than most of the music I make videos for -- at it's core, it strikes me as a blend between more popularized acapella music and choral chamber ensemble music. Big fan of this combination!

@stevanholland7672

2 жыл бұрын

Amazing to see you react to voctave. I really like them as a group and they put out great music. I would love to see more of them in your reactions.

@RedRoseSeptember22

2 жыл бұрын

You've definitely gotta react/analyze their Cinderella video next :) and also the great movie medley by them. It's amazing!!! I've been following Voctave for years now and I just love them so much ^__^

@MegaJogadora

2 жыл бұрын

I was waiting for long days 🥰👏👏👏👏👏👏👏 Great reaction! Welcome to Voctave's World 😊

@chrisjung7139

2 жыл бұрын

Did you catch that Kirsten Maldonado from Pentatonix is in there?

@daventunes3822

2 жыл бұрын

Ms Maldonado is not in this one. She's a guest vocalist in their "Disney Love Medley." The brunette here is Ashley Espinoza.

Yeah I'm a big Voctave fan. Their rendition of O Come All Ye Faithful is beyond incredible.

@ericbogie8111

2 жыл бұрын

I concur. Their version of O Come All Ye Faithful is an unreal experience. EJ Cardona is just an incredible tenor and featured on it. If you've heard VP's cover of Go The Distance you've heard him. But he is just let loose on this Christmas song. He is just an incredible vocal talent.

@jasonkim2739

2 жыл бұрын

Only thing better is listening to EJ and Voctave sing that song live. That was an experience of a lifetime!!!

@ericbogie8111

2 жыл бұрын

@@jasonkim2739 I can only imagine. The man is incredible.

@marybrown6128

2 жыл бұрын

I couldn't agree more, its a must watch!

@joelleneker2729

3 ай бұрын

You must review O come All Ye faithful!

They also famously did "Mary Did You Know" with the composer. Old school if you didn't have the pipes to be heard in the balcony on your own you didn't get the part. 🙂

@Loruca

2 жыл бұрын

Actually, Mark is the lyricist. Buddy Greene wrote the music. Just nitpicking here.

Welcome to the Voctave rabbit hole! There's a playlist of all their Disney and Christmas songs here on KZread, so have fun listening to each song! I'd highly recommend "Disney Heroes & Villains Medley", which showcases solos from all 6 men (audio only). Their "Prince of Egypt Medley" is epic, and maybe their best work to date. Voctave's Christmas songs are all top notch as well, with "O Come All Ye Faithful" being the best (EJ Cardona's solo is unreal!).

@garylife5320

2 жыл бұрын

Absolutely! Prince of Egypt, Let There Be Peace, Mary Did You Know, and O Come All Ye Faithful are absolutely stunning! Thank you for this amazing reaction! BTW, several of their arrangements are available for purchase on their site.

Voctave's 'Great Movie medley ' is really good.

14:36 caught the swallow there, getting you in the feels! Check out the collab they did with Pentatonix, "Disney Love Medley". Actually it's only Kirsti and her then boyfriend Jeremy Lewis, but it's a gorgeous piece. Kate Lott, the descant soprano hitting all those high notes like she's doing her nails, is an absolute phenomenon. Voctave are vocal excellence, they're all great. Jamie Ray does their arrangements and he's a total musical genius. Love their stuff!

The true brilliance of Voctave can be credited to Jamie Ray (the tenor standing in the second position from the far left), who is the founder of the group and the arranger of ALL of their pieces. Most if not all members of Voctave are current or former singers at Disney World ... Voices of Liberty and one of the barbershop groups.

Most of these singers came from the Liberty Singers at Disney World! They're magnificent! 💖

Please listen to their Disney Love Medley with Kirstin from Pentatonix. You will not regret it. It is unreal!

Voctave's great because each singer is talented enough to have a super successful career on their own, and yet they brought their talents together to form an amazing supergroup. They're so greatly underrated. I second the recommendation for their rendition of "O Come All Ye Faithful" as the next venture into their repertoire.

I’m so happy you are reacting to Voctave. Their arranger Jamey Ray is outstanding!

Love your breakdown!! And welcome to the world of Voctave. They all have been or currently sing with The Voices of Liberty at Epcot ,Disney World Florida.They take great pride in NOT using auto-tune so they sound the same live as in their recordings/videos.The normal group is 11 singers, but have done as few as 8. Jamey Ray is the genius behind the group and arrangements. ( he has arranged for PTX, Voice Play and others) Yes, Mary Did You Know, with the original writer of the lyrics, Mark Lowry is wonderful.They also do some unique pieces. The Great Movie Medley ( an ode to the great John Williams scores) only has 1 song with lyrics.The Prince of Egypt (all 8 minutes plus) is unbelievable .If you want to hear an amazing tenor, E.J. on Oh Come All Ye Faithful, will drop your jaw into your eggnog! For fun, you being a bass singer...... The Grinch, featuring 2 basses and a baritone is really fun.

I *strongly* recommend the Prince of Egypt medley. It's *stunning*

@carolemerckel3461

2 жыл бұрын

I second that recommendation!!!!!

My first Voctave listen too, wow, what a group! The joy on your face was beautiful to watch and of course as always, your analysis was 👌

Welcome to the world of Voctave, the best acappella group of all time! You will be more than blown away every time you listen to their music!! The man in the middle left, Jamey Ray, is the arranger of all Voctave's work! He is a genius! Next, you can check their " Disney Showstoppers Medley"! You will love it! All the love from Lebanon🇱🇧!

Makes me feel like a kid again watching my favorite Disney princesses sing. Disney made me fall in love with music in the first place.

They all have beautiful voices, and their harmonies and vocals are amazing! Kate (soprano , first lead) gives me goosebumps every time! 💖💯🔥

Ok. I just watched, what I would consider, one of the most comprehensive break downs of this song. You highlighted even the most minute detail of the backgrounds. You emphasized the feelings being conveyed by the singer. Your conveying the emotions the listener is supposed to be feeling. You even admitted, what I’ve been saying for years, that groups doing videos enhances their performance electronically, with auto tune or whatever other programs or mixing tricks there may be. I’m sure Voctave does post production work, but I think it may just be for blending, as opposed to enhancing. Many reactors have mentioned a lot of your power points you picked out, but you did them all in one evaluation. I’ve watched many of your videos, even the bass gang stuff. I love everything you do and appreciate your musical knowledge and experience. I would like to see you react to their “Disney love medley” with Kirstie from PTX, to see if you have the same “criticism” I have had. Peace.

Voctave are my favorite acapella group, and that's saying something, as there are a lot of good ones. Since you are already familiar with Pentatonix, why not check out the Disney Love Medley, which Voctave did with Kirsten Maldonado?

I have been listening to you for a while but I’ve never commented before. It’s very refreshing to listen to a reaction where the reactor knows what they are talking about musically and vocally. You are giving information in a very warm and entertaining way so please keep going. It’s very appreciated and enjoyed. Also I could listen to your voice for hours, very soothing.

They are even better live. Love, love, love this group. Their final piece they sang at the show I went to was completely off mic and absolutely amazing.

Finally!! So glad you caught up with Voctave! You will love ALL of their music. Check out Prince of Egypt medley!

Voctave is honestly one of my favorite groups on KZread. I highly suggest checking out more of their covers. Some of my personal favorites are “Poor Unfortunate Souls/I Put A Spell on You” ft. Rachel Potter, “How Far I’ll Go,” “Disney Love Medley,” and “Prince of Egypt Medley”

The first song is from Snow White. That is why it has that styling is such. The whole performance follows the time line.

@imgcas

2 жыл бұрын

Almost, but not exactly. Mulan is from 1998 and Pocahontas is 1994.

"link to original video" actually directs to VoicePlay's Hoist The Colours

May I suggest Voctave's Great Movie Medley (their tribute to John Williams)? It's fantastic. Like the Disney Princess Medley here, they shot it "live" in studio. And the music--well, it's John Williams, so need I say more?

YESSS and more YESSS! I've been eagerly waiting for you to go into Voctave's stuff. I always loved your in-depth analysis and how you break everything down so meticulously. Hope you consider doing more Voctave stuff, looking forward to it! 🙂

This and "Disney Showstoppers" are my favorites of them. This song showcased the Ladies, and "Disney Showstoppers" showcased the Gents. I often listened to both back-to-back...

Just saw Voctave live in Red Wing, MN sing this song. They sound awesome live! If I closed my eyes I could not tell if it was live or a recording. The venue was a small intimate theater built in 1904. Jamie gave a special well deserved recognition of their sound engineer. Their encore song was "Smile" off-mic..sensational!

A new fan of Voctave and that was incredible! I absolutely love Disney music so this was a treat! Thank you for your wonderful reaction and analysis. I have listened to their O Come O Ye Faithful and it was spectacular! Please react to that as well!

I’m kind of shocked you’ve gone this long without listening to Voctave. They seem more like the kind of group you would gravitate to being very choral-based. The ladies from left to right are Kate, Tiffany, Sarah, Ashley, and Chrystal. Incidentally also arranged from highest to lowest voice. Kate was the one hitting those insanely high notes, which is a breeze for her.

You did the “eeee ooooo eeeee oooo” and my mind instantly sees Patrick Star 😂

Easy to tell you really feel the music you're listening to. That's why I love watching your videos.

You gotta listen to their great movie medley !

Huge fan of this group. I've watched all the videos countless times, however their rendition of Prince of Egypt is chef's kiss.

Two of the members, Tony DeRosa (left side, directing) and Ashley Espinoza (middle in group of three ladies) are also medal winners in the world of Barbershop acapella singing--- Tony with the quartet Main Street and Ashley with the quartet Windsor.

@nelsonhemstreet3568

Жыл бұрын

Tony is a four-time gold medal winner - with Keepsake, Platinum, Max Q and then Main Street. (Geek check!)

As a fellow lover of Disney music in all it's forms, I wanted to share with you that I Have had the pleasure of meeting X Atencio, who wrote so many songs for our fave attractions and have had dinner with the one and only Richard Sherman and his lovely wife. Sitting beside him and talking, he was sharing so many wonderful stories of the infinite songs with his brother for Walt and was telling stories of Walt. Again, as a Disney music nerd, it was a magical evening I will never forget. He was so kind and humble. I just love your channel and reactions and hearing you sing as well.

Everyone’s post is from 2022, but I just have to say: Peter, your reaction was spot on. Thank you for making me aware of Voctave’s beautiful sound.

Please more Voctave!!! They’re voices and videos are amazing! They’re all so professional 😩

Nice reaction! You've touched on something that makes Voctave so spectacular - specifically, their arrangements. Jamey Ray, who sings Tenor (second from the left in this video) is their arranger and his arrangements are incredible - they are custom made to the specific singers and their strengths. He truly is a master.

Listen to those basses! Beautiful, full, rich sound

Check out “Great Movie Medley” by voctave too it is INCREDIBLE

Ahhhhhhhh! I'm so happy you did a Voctave reaction- I love their singing!! They create such visual, moving pieces!

Fun seeing a very masculine dude vibing so hard to some Disney music like Little Mermaid and Mulan. Thanks for just being you and loving all music. :)

So rewarding to listen to your analysis. Choral singing is my least favorite style, but you are helping me to listen-& not just hear. Huge difference for me & a journey that I’m incapable of doing solo (pun!). Thank you for sharing!!!

I love them!!! The lady who sings "color of the wind" just hits me different. I felt that.

Wow, that ending made it feel like a whole strings section came up behind the soloist to close out the song... Amazing...

I learn so much from your videos. I love music, but haven’t really had the education.

A lot of the voctave members sang with voices of liberty at epcot which is why they have that disney feel

Welcome to the world of Voctave. I look forward to following your journey of discovery into their music. I know you have the pit viper for the bass, but you should come up with something for the high sopranos like Kate Lott.

@tommyhg32

2 жыл бұрын

Incidentally, they all work or worked for Disney in some capacity and the director is heavily into Barbershop harmony.

@jasonkim2739

2 жыл бұрын

@@tommyhg32 - Tony was their musical director at the time this video was made, but he and JC left the group back in 2019. They were replaced by Drew and Aaron in spring of 2020. Their current musical director is Bradley Roberts, a longtime member of EPCOT's Voices of Liberty. Bradley filled in for EJ for several of Voctave's December concerts while EJ and his wife waited for their baby to arrive.

I adore voctave. Your joy as you listen to this is amazing to see and I appreciate your breakdowns.

Thank you for introducing this group to me! They are amazing! Colours of the Wind gave me goose bumps.😁

@thomasberwick3082

Жыл бұрын

Incidentally, Crystal Johnson, the lady singing "Colors of the Wind", holds her final note for 17 seconds. It has been timed with a stop watch.

Glad you discovered Voctave. There is not a more professional, more talented group out there. They do not rely on artificial or mechanical mixing and tuning to sound good. They don’t have to. They just are good. Period.

Peter, I really hope that you'll down with a glass of wine (or not) and listen to every Voctave piece you can find. It's good for the soul ~

Voctave are amazing!

The "music director" is a world champion barbershopper!

Voctave is a phenomenal group! Every one of them is a great talent and they blend so well.

I enjoyed your reactions based on your own music experience. It is nice to hear your critiques and nuances you hear that I did not. That said, they were amazing. Please react to more of their music as I myself am starting to go through their library.

Listen to Mitch and Scott from Pentatonix (together known as "Superfruit") joined by Kirstie to do a medley from "Frozen" after having a few cocktails. Hilarious and still insanely talented!

Incidentally, Crystal Johnson, the last of the lady singers, holds her final note for 17 seconds. It has been timed with a stop watch.

You should revisit Voctave again sometime--maybe the Love Medley next.

Great reaction. Voctave is my favorite...they are amazing. I hope you will do more reactions. They have a lot of amazing songs. Just pick one and then keep going! :) They are great in person too. I had the chance to hear them right before Covid hit. It was a magical night. They sing just as good in person. Better probably, because you get the chance to know them a little. They are funny, and very talented. You can see some of their humor in Carol of the Bells/Bells of Notre Dame. Also in You're a Mean One Mr. Grinch. I also love Mary Did You Know, Disney Showstoppers, You Will Be Found, Someone Like You, and Disney Love Medley.

The guy doing the directing is Tony De Rosa, who is or was some sort of musical director at Disney World, and is a BIG NAME in the barbershop world, having been a quartet gold medalist at least twice, and he also directs a Sweet Adelines chorus which has competed at the International level. The Mulan soloist, Ashley Espinoza, is also a Sweet Adeline quartet medalist. Tony left the group last year, as did the very solid and accomplished bass, JC Fullerton (the man standing next to the Pocahontas singer).

Peter - Love your insights and explanations of these details! Also love watching your emotive expressions … You’re introducing me to some great groups, and I thanks you for that! 🙏🏻

The man who does the arranging for this group is the man in the dark jacket with the blue shirt underneath. And he only has one arm. He has also done some arrangements for Pentatonix and the London symphony.

You're A Mean One, Mr. Grinch - Voctave The Basses take over in this one.

Jamey Ray's arrangements are fantastic. Their penultimate piece is The Prince of Egypt Medley. I've seen them live and they sound even better than in their recordings. It is that life wall of sound that technology still can't fully capture.

Peter, just revisited this video and thought that now you've heard Katrina Valarde you might like her cover of this song. I believe it was the first recording she did after her husband passed away. Frankly it's awesome.......

I love this medley, thank you for this reaction!

I’ve been really enjoying your commentary and analysis. I was fortunate enough to see Voctave perform live at the Chapel at Rollins College in Orlando just before the pandemic. Drove 10 hours to see them. (I’d seen several of the singers perform at The American Pavilion at EPCOT in Orlando prior to that, where some still currently perform.) They are as spectacular live as they are on video. Perhaps moreso. Truly amazing singers and musicians. And Jamey Ray is their amazing arranger (the tenor standing beside the music director.) I’m a classically-trained singer as well and really enjoy your content. Keep up the great vids!

@PeterBarber

2 жыл бұрын

Jealous you've gotten to see them live! Sounds like an awesome experience. Thanks for the comment and I'm happy to have you here on the channel!

Cool reaction! Couple of things though: 1 - I believe they actually record first and are actually not singing live, they just record their music videos like this. The solos from the altos (for example) sound way to clear to be in the same mic from different positions. 2 - The tuning on “dreams” is actually correct. There is a a very flat note by one of the girls but it is supposed to sound that way. It is the 7th in a Dominant 7th chord, which is supposed to sound 31 cents lower than that note would sound on a piano. This just intonation is based on the harmonic series and is used in a lot of top level groups such as Voces8 for example but is mostly used in barbershop quartet music. Since a couple of them actually come from and still sing in barbershop quartets (Tony DeRosa and Ashley Espinoza), it is only natural they would adopt this tuning system.

@jasonkim2739

2 жыл бұрын

You're correct. Voctave records the audio track for their albums first, and then film their music videos. In this video (like many of their older videos), they filmed in the same Orlando studio where the audio track was recorded.

Another great reaction! I love that each time I watch your videos, you've got more subscribers! Keep up the great work!

Now you should check out Voctave's Disney Love Medley, which features Kirstin from Pentatonix and her then-fiancée. Such a great performance.

@HickoryDickory86

11 ай бұрын

Her finacée was Jeremy Lewis. Forgot to include his name.

Peter your reactions, analysis, explanations and commentary are so appreciated. You certainly know what your talking about concerning this beautiful art form. Love it! (plus you're pretty spectacular yourself ... OMG your speaking voice ... f'ing heaven 😇) 👍

The soprano is Kate Lott. Just incredible....

Love your voice! I put in my headphones at night and fall asleep to the sound of your voice ☺️

Voctave is AMAZING.

This is one of the 2 or 3 best reaction and analysis videos I have watched to date (at least 150 by now). I have seen others by you, and thought "A little cocky over there with that impressive basso profundo voice." Not so at ALL in this one! You seemed as relaxed as I've seen you. You clearly enjoyed both the music itself AND the delivery by Voctave. I think I saw you smile more times in this reaction than in the last 5 combined! 😊 Your explanations were really interesting and informative. I both enjoyed AND learned at the same time! You have a new subscriber!

Great reaction! They are so good together

EVERY SINGLE TIME the Mulan song comes on I instantly start crying!

Really glad you got to Voctave. Check out their Disney Showstoppers Medley next to hear the guys solo. Lots of bass presence on it.

@bigragu6828

2 жыл бұрын

I figured Peter, being a bass, would gravitate to that section. “Prince of Egypt medley” really impressed me for the rich bass sounds.

Gorgeous voices, blending so very well! I barely remember hearing the first song as a child & hadn't heard the rest before (watching Disney movies isn't a hobby obvsly ;-) but I enjoyed Peter's reactions & enjoyment & the things he pointed out. Disney princesses & their songs, as well as all other aspects of American film, were really affected by the demise of the old studio system & their control over content, production, & style. (Anybody else remember the "mid-Atlantic accent" that actors used?)

They have a some killer Soprano's in this group.

Look for Love Medley, Voctave feat. Kirstin Maldano

Very very nice. I must say those super high soprano notes do hurt my ears lol. I really have to keep my finger on the volume lol. I'm so impressed how high people can go. I love this medley, Disney songs are always so good to medley.

I'm a huge Voctave fan. Thought i was going to see them in person in Dayton in Dec. 23. Ticket purchased months before, so who is sick the night of their only performance 😢😢😢. Hopefully they'll be back in 24. 2 other singers to take a look at if you know of them. David Phelps, has to be 1 of the top tenors in the WORLD today. Should you listen, hope you'll listen to "O Holy Night" from 20 years ago. Yea, its that old, but David hasnt lost a thing. Saw him in person last year and his voice is just as superb. Another newer singer is Lucy Thomas from GB. She's on her way to super star class. You won't be disappointed by any stretch. I'll be subscribing to your channel based on this video. I know nothing about you at all, but I'm willing to take a look. Hope I'm not disappointed.

Omg, you _have_ reacted to Voctave! Would love to see your reaction to their Disney Love Medley (and so many more).

React to their version of "mr. Grinch"... The main singers are The basses

Peter, have you not reacted to Voctave again after this?? 😮 Would be amazing for you to interview Jamey Ray, their arranger!! They are incredible and deserve more recognition, please help! ❤

Love this group and your analyses. “Someone like you” was another beautiful cover they did with a guest singer. They also had a fun mashup with another guest singer covering “I put a spell on you” and “poor unfortunate souls”.

Oh I’m so happy to hear you reviewing them! They are top notch IMHO. Since you love the Disney music, next should be Disney Love Medley by Voctave, featuring Kirstin Maldonado of Pentatonix and Jeremy Michael Lewis. I feel, It’s even better than this piece.

Love reviewing the songs with you!!! Thank You! You always provide an angle that I would had never thought of. (It was worth it to end on a preposition) 😀 --BTW see if you can check the collaboration that Kirstin had with them. Is quite impressive.

Voctave is phenomenal. Many of it's members are current or former singers with The Voices of Liberty who singing at the American Pavillion in EPCOT at WDW so they are well acquainted with Disney music. The second man from the left as you look at the group is the fabulous Jamey Ray. He arranges all of Voctave's music. You will enjoy their Great Movie Medley (all John Williams songs) and their Disney Love Medley with Kirsten from Pentatonix. Welcome to the Wonderful World of Voctave!

I think you, with your opera background especially, would be interested to hear their live performance of The Impossible Dream with a full orchestra. It’s a great video, well worth a listen if not a reaction. Enjoy!

Wow ! Wow ! First time seeing your channel. Your voice is outstanding. Im a tenor that just decided I want to learn from a Baritone.lol Subbed

Disney Showstoppers Medley - Voctave A Cappella Cover Here we have the tenors.

Yes Peter!!! More voctave please!!! Such a great reaction!

I loved the guys in that second piece sounding like a calliope for that waltz cadence! That was totally cool! The addition of the high soprano accompanyments to the movie lyrics was surprising and very pleasant! And yes, that composite chord(?) at the end was amazing! :)

Voctave is amazing. Please react to their rendition of "Mary, Did You Know" featuring Mark Lowry who wrote the lyrics of the song.

I discovered your videos a couple of days and have enjoyed them a lot; I love the analysis and the explanations you share. So thanks for that. Considering how much you like finding original and creative arrangements, I think Voctave should give you some interesting content to analyse and react to. The arrangements are done by Jamie Ray (one of the tenors) and mostly they are phenomenal - just like the singers. Their heroes and villains should also hit a sweet spot as the villains are sung by members of the bass section (I can't find the version in the same setting as this one though I know it was on KZread at some point). Their Love medley with K. Maldonado (from Pentatonix) is top notch and I definitely second the motion for The Prince of Egypt Medley which is out of this world. Their version of You Will Be Found is a tear jerker for me.