Posted on: November 2, 2015 Posted by: James McQuiston Comments: 0

The Fourth Messenger is a musical written by Tanya Shaffer (lyrics) and performed by Vienna Teng (music). The rich rising and falling that begin The Human Experience ensures that listeners take notice, while the harmonies reached by the vocals and instrumentation are complex and completely rewarding. The deliberate beat of Bois Riche provide a backdrop that the vocal side thrives on; the back and forth between the male and female elements here continue to further the story while establishing a spontaneous nature to the musical.

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You’ve Got A Glow showcases the tremendous vocal range of the performers, while the tapestry laid down by the piano further fleshes out the composition. Where many musicals require a visual (stage or film) component to shine, there is a richness to each of the efforts on The Fourth Messenger that makes it easy for an individual to enjoy in a car, during a workout, or in those situations where going to a performance may be difficult. As Long As I Am Living is an emphatic hammering-home of the different trends and experiences heard during the musical

The three-part Sid’s Temptations cycle (Bread And Water, Hundred Thousand Lifetimes, and Come Back To Me) are able to be enjoyed as a cohesive statement or on their own. The different approaches and styles that listeners will experience (a more rock-heavy effort initially, moving into a slower and more traditional sound for the second and a classical/waltz-esque sound concluding this triad) speak as a microcosm of the wide array of styles and approaches which listeners will experience when they play through The Fourth Messenger.

Top Tracks:  Sid’s Temptations, Part 2 – Sleep – Hundred Thousand Lifetimes, The Human Experience

Rating: 8.6/10

Vienna Teng The Fourth Messenger CD Review / 2015 Self / 27 Tracks / http://viennateng.com/ / https://www.facebook.com/ViennaTeng / https://twitter.com/viennateng /

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