Susana Peña & Skruk - Vuelo Libre (2000)

Press from the record label:

Susana Peña and Skruk make voices meet in hymns from Latin America. Moving to listen to. Enriching the mind and the soul.

Most of the hymns on Vuelo Libre are of old and unknown origin. Some of the tunes have their Jiddish roots, and some texts are between 3000 and 4000 years old. They have survived a long and winding journey to reach their musical destination. Today, these hymns are sung in parish churches all over Latin America - from San Francisco to Patagonia.

When Susana Peña released her love songs in 1995 on KKV's label, under the title Sentimiento, the record was described as "a hot water bottle for the winter season". This time she brings us hymns, but these again contain that warm, melodic quality.

It is no coincidence that Susana Peña has chosen Latin American hymns as material for her new record. Her father was a priest in the Lutheran Church in Guayaquil in Equador, and Susana relates closely to many of the hymns on this recording.

Susana's voice is warm and passionate, whereas Skruk adds further musical depth to the recording. This combination makes harmony and closeness. Skruk is a strong presence throughout the record, but this is much more than choir music. Skruk creates a backdrop for Susana's voice, in addition to the "solo" choir sections on the album.

Henning Sommerro plays the organ, and Mauricio Vicencio plays all other instruments.

Susana Peña - a warm voice from Latin America

Susana Peña is well known in her home country Equador, where she has appeared in TV programmes as well as releasing several records together with her male partner in the duo "Susana and Johnny". During the war against Peru, Susana toured Ecuador actively to sing to the soldiers. In the Ecuadorian music industry there is strong focus on body and sex, and at times the business demands rather promiscuous performances from their artists. Susana Peña said no thanks, and pulled out of the business. In 1988 Erik Hillestad from KKV and Skruk's conductor Per Oddvar Hildre heard her sing. In 1990 she contributed to some tracks on Skruk's CD "Slipp mine fløyter fri", and in 1995 Susana's first solo album was released - on Kirkelig Kulturverksted's label. Today, Susand Peña lives in the USA, where she works as a singer, among other places in the Latin churches of New York.

Skruk - a Norwegian choir of international calibre

SKRUK was established in 1973 and are well known for their co-operation with both Norwegian and international artists. Vuelo Libre is SKRUK's 17th recording. Several of their previous records have sold to gold and silver. Their Christmas recording, "Stille natt" (Silent night), is their best seller with over 70 000 copies so far. SKRUK has performed at music festivals all over Norway, and have toured the length of the country from top to bottom several times. They have also toured the USA, Equador and Aserbajdsjan.