Cai’s kickstarter is live!
Cai is 12. He began singing at the age of 7 with the choir of St Thomas-on-The-Bourne in Farnham, Surrey, where he was spotted by a major label and in April 2019 he had the chance to record some demo tracks.
It's clear from the results that Cai has a great album in him, so we've taken the first steps on that journey by recording the first three tracks of an album:
G.F. Handel's Lascia ch'io pianga
Pie Jesu from Gabriel Fauré's Requiem
The Welsh folk song Suo-Gân
We're immensely proud of these tracks. We've proven it can be done, and we're now ready to record the rest of the album. Cai has the full support of our whole family and a great team of experienced professionals.
Cai is an experienced singer, despite his young age. He sings in his local church under the direction of the Director of Music, Rob Lewis. He lives in Farnham and is a music scholar at Edgeborough School in Frensham. He holds the Bishop’s award for choral singing and has won competitions at local festivals and at school. He's an accomplished soloist and regularly performs both locally and during choir tours in European cathedrals including St Mark’s Venice, Brussels and Cologne.
You can follow Cai on Facebook and listen to his recording of Pie Jesu from Gabriel Fauré's Requiem here.
Making an album is a new adventure for Cai and the Thomas family and we're confident it will be a positive experience that will create new and exciting opportunities for Cai's development as a performer. And allow us to share his talent!
What your support will provide
We have chosen the repertoire for Cai's album carefully to create a blend of some of the best-loved tracks for treble and orchestra/small ensemble as well as some exciting lesser known tracks which are well-suited to Cai's voice:
Ombra mai fu (Handel)
Silent Noon (Vaughan Williams)
The Ash Grove (trad.)
Only in Sleep (Eriks Esenvalds)
Laudate Dominum (Mozart)
Ave Verum (Sir Karl Jenkins)
The Lord is my Shepherd (John Brunning)
The Ground (Ola Gjeilo)
The Blue Bird (Stanford)
We plan to release this album on CD and digitally in March/April 2020. If we could afford to do this on our own to the standard Cai deserves, then we would, but we can't, and that's why we're asking for your help.
Your much appreciated support will help with the costs of producing the master CD, including studio hire, production, engineering, and editing costs; orchestral and choral backing (we are working with some great musicians); and expert advice on bringing a new artist to market. In return, we are offering a range of rewards to involve you, and share Cai's music with you as soon as possible.
