On July 28, 2021, Seven Lions was set to take the stage at Red Rocks Amphitheater for Higher Love with special guest Andrew Bayer and MitiS and Gem + Tauri as support. ATLYS, a string quartet comprising Jinty McTavish, Sabrina Tabby, Genevieve Tabby, and Rita Andrade took the stage, assumed their positions, and started playing. They weren’t on the Higher Love poster and at first, nobody knew what to expect. But it didn’t take long to find out. The chords that came from their instruments were immediately identifiable as those belonging to some of Seven Lions’ time-tested classics, translated to the strings. What happened from that point on was “pure exhilaration and joy” according to ATLYS. The crowd shared in this sentiment and sang along. ATLYS went on to make another appearance at Seven Lions’ Chronicles III at The Gorge in Washington, where their performance was met with equal excitement. The performances gave resolve to Seven Lions and his Ophelia Records team: they knew that continuing to give life to the strings-led project was worthwhile. What came next was Opus, a full-length album of eight Seven Lions productions all written, performed, and recorded on the strings and eventually released in December 2021. It was the cherry atop a banner year for our Label of the Year. Conversion to the strings is no small feat, but with the help of the sonic forces behind ATLYS, as well as composers Andrew Vogt and Ari Fisher, Opus came to life not only on stage but also on streaming platforms. In an exclusive interview with Dancing Astronaut, ATLYS, Vogt, and Fisher discuss the making of Opus. Read the Q&A below.For the listeners who are not familiar with your work, who are you?How did you first get involved with the Opus project?What was the creative process behind Opus like?Please describe the process of recording Opus.What were some of the difficulties in translating dance music to a string quartet?What was it like preparing for the show at Red Rocks?What was it like to experience your project come to life live at Red Rocks?Why do you think it is rarer to see dance music performed like this?Do you think we’ll see more projects like this in the future?Do you have any other fun tidbits to add?What was your favorite part of this whole experience?Featured image: Tariq Abdel PhotoTags: Andrew Vogt, Ari Fisher, atlys, Ophelia Records, OPUS, red rocks, Seven Lions, the gorge
Categories: Features
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