Now, the Vicar Street venue doesn't have the largest stage in the world. So just how did Vocal Sampling manage to fit trumpet, trombone, double and single bass, occasional violin, electric guitar, an enormous, varied-sounding drum kit replete with hats, cymbals, bongos, maracas, even those nasty sounding 1980s synth drums and six perfect Latin voices, all on that cosy little stage? Well, they didn't.
The stage was bare, except for six microphones and the monumental talents of a six-piece all-male a capella, impressionist (in the Rory Bremner sense of the word) group from Havana. They use only their voices, their cupped hands and their bodies to create a full range of timbres, tones and textures, barely distinguishable from the real thing. Think Gypsy Kings, Flying Pickets, Louis Armstrong and the Cuban Philharmonic all rolled into one and you have an approximation of the sound.
Latin flavours, swinging rhythms and punchy brass lines dominated the performance, but the feel was occasionally infused with hints of barbershop or ragtime, as well as a number of asides such as themes from Star Wars. The harder one listened, the more surprises appeared from the music both in texture and arrangement.
There was a great theatricality to the performance, the show was littered with costume-changes and gags, and though a certain degree of fluency in Spanish would be required to get all the jokes, it was easy to smile throughout.
