Israel born Boston resident Gitit Shoval with Ron Druyan and Tutti Druyan absolutely inspire listeners with the magic of their CD titled Connected. Based on Jewish prayers, poems, and Hebrew scripture, this disc makes several strong musical statements over the course of its 17 tracks. Towering melodies and bright, exciting vocals offer many colors and tones and fantastic instrumentation on this inspired work.
Opening track “R’tzei” finds Shoval’s vocal cruising over a bouquet of pretty notes from flute, piano, upright bass and many other instruments. She has one of the those remarkable voices that can sing in a higher range as starting point and then reach ever higher in pitch, power, and artfulness. It is impossible to miss the emotion in all of her vocalizing, her expression as strong as opera.
“Elohai N’shama” is a prayer of thanks, a thank you for creating the writer and singer of the song. Shoval’s easeful, shiny voice perfectly captures the power of worship and gratefulness. She sings in shorter verses here but with lengthy sustains. Her sustains inject plenty of emotion into this piece, a tune which also gets its strength from rippling acoustic guitar notes as well as a serious of fulsome low end notes.
Driven by sweet acoustic guitar strumming and a pleasant violin line, “Oh Elohei Hasheket” lets Shovall match her floating, sweet vocal presence with her husband’s hand some croon. A lovely chorus of coos feel like a pillow of musical tenderness. It is easy to get swept away with this ever gliding work of energy. This song is like an embrace that take flight to an even grander place.
“Avinu Malkeinu” enters with halting dramatic pauses. A violin climbs ever higher in pitch and purpose. A stop-start piano appears slyly beneath Shoval’s grand, melodic vocal line. Contrasting her sweeping ease with the brittle notes from her support players make her voice and the players’ skills more brilliant, showcasing each other beautifully.
Feeling as compact as a pop song, “Shema Koleinu” finds lift in a sharp, stunning vocal that arises in stride. A male singer, Ron Druyan, counters with a spiritually rich vocal, something that feels full of meaning and full of experience. A cooing chorus and a lively bob and weave of flute and saxophone make this song feel approachable, almost like a campfire sing along. Its presence is strong because it’s strung so tightly and neatly together by its special parts.
Shoval original “Hadudaim” has the gentle pep of a pop song. Her effervescent vocal bobs and weave well as it moves slyly over catchy accompaniment from numerous instruments, especially lively drums and percussion.. She tap dances her voice around backing vocals to add to the myriad of movements that crisscross and spice up this fun and danceable number. Rhythm is key here and Gitit counters all of the moving parts coolly.
“Me Ha Ish” finds our vocal heroine in duet with a smooth, handsome male vocalist, again her husband Ron Druyan. Her emotive and dynamic vocal increases each verse, coloring things up nicely. Her voice sings in compelling intervals of notes, creating an upward spiral sensation. Throw in a tender flute line, and one can feel this song taking the listener some place special.
Piano ballad “Sim Shalom” showcases Shoval’s vocal gliding over, contrasting with, a moody line from the ivories. She sings in brief vocal emissions, each ending with a beautiful sustain. Her measured vocalizations each reach higher in pitch, dynamics, and emotion, highlighting the spiritual oomph in this song. Violin and saxophone lines, too, create a soaring sensation. Everything in this song sounds like it’s waltzing toward a meeting with God.
“Adonai S’fatai Tiftach” gets a bluesy feeling from a leisurely harmonica line and pop sensibility from its catchy cooing chorus and percussion. Hip and relaxed at once, Shoval sings over a nice assortment of piano and percussion, a winsome combo that keeps this entire piece accessible and likable.
“Achat Sha alti” feels like an Elton John song in its opening buildup and subsequent soulful piano line. Gitit’s daughter, Tutti Druyan, is the featured vocalist on this track. The spiritual, self restrained vocal phrasing, too, sounds like the best of 1970s pop. Yet, there is a distinction in a spiritual spiritedness in what that voice is doing. Torchy and soulful, it finds good companionship in a bluesy saxophone melody and a mournful violin line.
“Ahavat Olam” makes a good duet vehicle for Shovall and hubby Ron Druyan. Their voices, whether taking turns or singing in unison, dovetail beautifully, become one tapestry with a sweet, polite saxophone line. The Shoval-Druyan love affair comes across with authenticity. Only two partners who get along most of the time can construct their union and harmony vocal lines as considerately as this.
“Ani Ma’amin” is not easy to understand lyrically. Yet, its empowered vocals, all three at once, do take on a weight of the world significance. With a drone sustaining beneath the vocals, the voices dovetail, offering a powerful invocation toward a spiritual goal while providing the listener with a solid ensemble of voice and tight musical accompaniment.
“Oseh Shalom” lets Shoval and hubby Ron Druyan and daughter Tutti Druyan harmonize smoothly over a run of fine acoustic guitar notes,. Their voices rise ever upwards in this mid tempo glide, a lofty climb toward a heavenly point, a place where everything will be as good and as beautiful as the voices taking us there.
Taking things slow, Shoval sings beautifully and nimbly throughout “Shiv’a Kanim”, an acoustic guitar driven vocal melody that could find a good home on Adult Contemporary radio. Shoval’s perfectly accented vocal line takes flight over a myriad of melodic instruments, and she is subtle enough to accompany them as much as they are accompanying her.
“Yerushalayim Shel Zahav” commences with dramatically eerie instrumentation before it segues into a quiet, pleading supplication. Singing in native Hebrew, Shoval sounds as emotionally vulnerable as the piano and violin lines hovering just beneath her voice. Written by Naomi Shemer, Shoval shows due respect to the songwriter’s vision by hitting each note with perfect accents, inflection, and a powerful voice that soars ever higher in dynamics and emotional strength.
A three part harmony crowd pleaser, “Rikma Enoshit Achat” finds Shoval and her family members delivering terrific vocal work. The trio of singers send their voices up high, rising their notes up above their sparse piano accompaniment. The contrast between the ever rising spiral of voices and the striking notes from the piano highlight the space between the two, increasing the listener’s appreciation of both.
Shoval and company close out strong with “Uf Gozal,” a piano ballad with radio potential. Shoval and her husband Ron Druyan blend in perfectly accented vocal glides. Moving their vocal melody alongside a strikingly bold saxophone line brings home the universal nature of music as well as the spiritual truth of this song.
Shoval and her immediate family as well as her family of friends who play on this album bring to three dimensional life the power found when prayers, poetry, and the scripture of a brilliantly resilient people are sung to powerful music. One does not have to belong to any particular religious faith or follow any particular musical genre to appreciate this Connected album. Musicians Tyrone Allen II, John Patitucci, Shaqued Druyan, Gilad Barakan, Layth Sidiq, Tania Mesa, Bengisu Gokce, Anna Stromer, Parker Ousley, Vasilis Kostas, Edmar Colon, Amir Milstein, Roni Eytan, Yair Amster, Jason Fujita, Amit Poznanski, and many others contributed to this project recorded at The HOME Studio over the previous two years. Hopefully, this disc will find a wide audience to appreciate the mass appeal of this assemblage of talent.
