Interview by Tony Cannella
Earlier this year those German Acapella metal legends Van Canto released what just might be their most epic and powerful album yet. “Voices of Fire” is a true metal masterpiece which sees the band take the listener to a conceptual realm. The band really hasn’t missed a beat and continues to deliver great music. Recently, female singer Inga Scharf was kind enough to answer some questions for Femme Metal. Here we go…
You have recently released your new album, “Voices of Fire”. What can you tell me about it?
“Voices of Fire” is our first concept album, which is a cooperation between Van Canto and Christoph Hardebusch, a German fantasy author. And while writing he and Van Canto were always in contact, so that we could write our songs to the story.
You mentioned that “Voices of Fire” is a concept record. Can you tell me what the story is about?
The story of “Voices of Fire” is about a fantasy world, where an ancient dragon wakes up after aeons of sleeping. And this evil dragon is about to destroy the harmony and balance of the world. So of course everyone is in need of a real hero to fight the dragon. But there is ‘just’ our anti-hero, an always drinking and fighting bard, who isn’t avers to women. But he fulfills his burden together with a beautiful and strong queen. And of course singing is a strong force in this world.
Who came up with the concept?
Sly had the initial idea of the story, the characters and the world behind. Christoph and Sly developed the story frame together and then Christoph wrote the book.
Can you talk a bit about the writing and recording process for “Voices of Fire”?
In fact, for me it was like every regular VC album. I get some demos from Stef to practice my parts. And after a while I start recording. But this time there were more to happen after my recordings, because I recorded my lines while having in mind, that the MetroVoices London will add choirs to most of the songs. And that was a such an awesome experience. Having such wonderful voices being part of the VC songs. So I was a lot more excited about the result.
You had the actor John Rhys-Davies doing narration on the record. How did he come to be on the album?
We wanted a strong and impressive male voice to speak the lyrics between our songs. And who could be more stunning than him? So Stef asked him and well, he accepted!
What was it like working with him?
Unfortunately, I wasn’t able to join the recordings in London. But Stef was very enthusiastic after working with him. He is a kind and lovely person and of course a professional actor. Having him as part of the album is a dream coming true.
You toured Germany in support of “Voices of Fire”. How were those dates?
Yes, Germany and a few other European countries. We enjoyed the tour a lot. The shows were successful and the audiences as we know the VC fans amazing and warm-hearted people. And of course performing knew material live is always a fantastic experience because then you are able to see the reactions to your songs live and up close. Unfortunately, we can’t visit every fan at home to be at his side while listening to new stuff for the first time.
Do you have plans for any further dates planned?
No, for this year we enjoy a live break and spend a lot of time with our families and friend while refueling the creative and musical battery.
Are you already collecting ideas for your next record?
I think there is no moment in life where you can’t collect new ideas. Every experience and sometimes also very ordinary moments produce pieces for upcoming songs. Stopping the musical brain from working is impossible I think.
Thank you for taking the time to answer these questions. Do you have any final messages for your fans to close this out?
To those who already know us: I hope to see you in front of the stage soon and hope you are continuing supporting us in such a wonderful way. And to those who haven’t the faintest idea of what VC is: maybe you are open minded enough to start a new musical journey with Metal Acapella.\m/
