Elvis plans to produce at album for Anne Sofie von Otter
Wall Of Sound, 1999-06-21
- Gary Graff

 

Elvis Costello Goes the Classical Route

The facile Elvis Costello, who never ceases to have a musical surprise up his sleeve, will be returning to the classical realm early next year. But it won't be for himself. Costello has been invited to produce an album for Anne Sofie von Otter, a Swedish mezzo soprano he's been a fan of and with whom he performed three years ago in Stockholm.

"She's one of the top singers in the world in my opinion — well, in most people's opinion," Costello says. "She has what they call a 'nature voice,' and it's a really beautiful thing. She has a very low range; she doesn't need to use the supported operatic voice. The lower she sings, the more attractive it is."

Costello says the two are currently considering material for the album, which will likely be songs rather than classical compositions. They're planning to record next February. "It's more like choosing songs from the last 50 or 60 years and finding connections that lay between them," he says. "That's what most pop records are based on. Seeing as it is music drawn from the pop idiom, it seems to make sense to program it like a pop record, to the strengths of the artist rather than the strengths of the music." — Gary Graff