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Bringing throat-singing to pop culture's attention
Eclectic Icelandic pop singer Björk revels in naked sounds that aren't bogged down by heavy musical orchestrations: whispers, crunches, the sound of a candle gently burning, the sighing of a human voice. It's not surprising, then, that when she was searching for an lnuit choir in Greenland for a tour launching her 2001 CD, Vespertine. Björk invited Cambridge Bay, Nunavut, throat-singer Tanya Tagaq Gillis tojoin her, after a friend recommended Gillis. A talented painter as well, Gillis started emulating the throat-singing tapes her mother Mary sent when she began to tire of southern culture in her final year at Halifax's Nova Scotia College of Art and Design.
Her unique solo throat-singing style is a hit with Björk fans. Not only was she invited to sing again on Björk's latest CD, Medulla, with such collaborators as Mike Patton. formerly of Faith No More, hip-hop artist Rahzel. and the Icelandic Choir. Gillis also co-wrote the wordless track Ancestors with Bjork, where her throat-singing takes the spotlight.
Reaction from audiences has been "generally great" and "quite different in each country," says the 29-year-old Gillis who, for now, resides in San Sebastian, Spain, with her husband Felipe Ugarte and toddler Naia. "I...