Close-harmony group the Puppini Sisters coming to the Apex
Regarded as the world’s leading close-harmony group, the Puppini Sisters are back on tour with a brand-new show featuring fabulous 1940’s flavoured renditions of swing tunes and pop classics and they are set to appear at the Apex, in Bury St Edmunds.
They were conceived 18 years ago by Marcella Puppini and have since collaborated with Michael Bublé (among others), performed all over the world and had numerous TV appearances, including “The Graham Norton Show”, “The Royal Variety Show” and “Strictly Come Dancing”.
Italian-born singer Marcella was inspired by an animated French film called “Belleville Rendezvous” which featured a 1940s-style female singing trio.
“It was a revelation seeing these three ladies on stage in their matching outfits singing these close harmonies. I’d been thinking of forming some kind of harmony group. I’ve always been into choirs and harmony singing but I hadn’t had an exact idea of what I wanted to do until I saw this,” she said.
The Puppinis have five Gold and Multi-Platinum albums under their waist-cinching belts. Their debut “Betcha Bottom Dollar” was the fastest selling UK jazz album of all time and mixed traditional close harmony songs, like “Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy” and “Mr Sandman” with reworked versions of more modern tracks like Kate Bush’s “Wuthering Heights” and Blondie’s “Heart of Glass”.
Many others have followed their trailblazing lead, whether it’s the gorgeous close harmony singing style, the swing-style reworkings of modern pop songs, or their impeccable retro-futuristic fashion sense, but none come close to these true originals.
Marcella says: “We live very much in the present, and consider ourselves as 21st Century women, totally absorbed in a world of modern technology and women’s rights. But we also like to play dress up and sing old songs with a new spin or new songs with an old spin.
“I think our enduring popularity (as well as our enduring love for what we do) is a combination of two factors: swing is infectious and cool, with its intricate syncopated rhythms and with its echoes of fabulous dance parties; and harmony singing, in my opinion, resonates deeply with everybody – it’s as if it speaks directly to the soul.”
Their fun and thrilling live shows feature songs from the 1930s to the 50s, jazzy reinventions of pop hits, self-penned original songs and a selection of strictly swing dance style arrangements from their latest and fifth album, “Dance, Dance, Dance”.
The Puppini Sisters are at the Apex on Friday, September 16, at 7.30pm. See www.theapex.co.uk or ring 01284 578000 for tickets or more information.