ELIS REGINA: THE FEELING BETWEEN THE NOTES

All Things Considered, the cherished radio show by NPR, aired a little special on Elis, where Critic Tom Moon makes his case for why her voice is the latest in their yearlong series 50 Great Voices. Now we have a perfectly rational explanation for something we knew already: Elis rocks, big time.

To really appreciate Elis Regina, start with the lowly half-step. It's the penny of the music world — the smallest interval on the piano. Some vocalists treat half-steps as annoying afterthoughts. They smush them together into a blur. Regina's art happens inside the half-steps, in the tiny increments that make up a melody.

When Regina sings, half-steps seem to expand. Partly, that's a reflection of her exacting technique: When she wants to, she can nail the most challenging intervals. At the same time, she's not at all fussy. Her lazy, endlessly sloping phrases magnify the sometimes hidden shades of meaning in a lyric. She's the rare singer who can conjure an ocean of love trouble in the space between C and C-sharp.

Elis Regina: The Feeling Between The Notes
Transcript of the show

.