Fly to Paradise – The Eric Whitacre Singers

Fly to Paradise recorded by the Eric Whitacre Singers is the single version of Virtual Choir 4.

When Britlin Losee – a fan of Eric’s music – recorded a video of herself singing ‘Sleep’ and shared it on YouTube, Eric was deeply moved by the spirit of her performance and responded by sending a call out to his online fans to purchase Polyphony’s recording of ‘Sleep’, record themselves singing along to it, and upload the result.

Scott Haines generously volunteered to cut the video together. Eric was so impressed by the result that he decided to push the concept to the next level by recording himself conducting ‘Lux Aurumque’, and asked Virtual Choir members to sing along to that. Once again, Scott edited the audio and video and produced the very first Virtual Choir.

Britlin Losee’s first video has been like a drop of water on the surface of a still lake, rippling the musical and online landscape to reach millions. Now with more than six million views collectively on the first three Virtual Choir performances, the VC phenomenon has reached all corners of the world, inspiring more and more singers to join each year. The VC has grown from 185 singers in VC1 to an amazing 5,903 singers and 8,400 videos for VC4 this year. These singers use webcams, smartphones, tablets, and video cameras to record themselves in bedrooms, bathrooms and basements across the World, creating a truly global choir that this year includes 101 countries.

And the VC is not just growing in size but it’s also evolving to include new musical genres and eclectic mixes of sounds and visuals to further expand the art form. By combining traditional choral singing, electronica, video and digital animation, Virtual Choir 4: Fly to Paradise represents a continuing evolution that will once again ripple the musical and online landscape.