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New Release from Kenneth Cope Hits Stores April 17 Source : Excel Entertainment Group FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Salt Lake City, UT—After a three-year break from recording songs and a foray into film composing, Kenneth Cope has returned to the inspirational genre with the release of Hear My Praise, a collection of inspirational Christian favorites. The album hits music stores everywhere on April 17. One of the top-selling artists in the intermountain West, Cope is best-known for his original concept albums like Greater Than Us All and Women at the Well. A multiple PEARL Award winner, his film score-like soundtrack to Joseph Smith, The Seer has garnered him a 2002 nomination from the Faith Centered Music Association. His latest project breaks from previous models and breaks new ground in the LDS inspirational genre by combining original material with covers of some of the best-loved songs from other contemporary Christian artists. The album weaves three new original songs, three new recordings of songs previously released on different projects and five covers of songs from Christian artists like Michael W. Smith and Chris Rice. "I know it probably sounds like a cliché, but I really feel that this is the best recording I've ever done," says Cope. "The material is really amazing, or at least I know the five cover songs are," he continues in his gently self-effacing way. The album grew out of Cope's desire to create an album that expressed his personal faith in and love for Jesus Christ. "I wanted this album to simply say that Christ is magnificent. Everything around us says it, but man doesn't say it enough. Each song on the album expresses that magnificence in a different way." Cope re-recorded three of his songs previously released on albums for Especially for Youth, a summer youth program run by Brigham Young University, for Hear My Praise. "I've always wanted to re-record some of those EFY songs. This album was a great opportunity to dig in deeper and do some great things with those songs." When asked about his decision to cover songs from artists like Michael W. Smith and Gary Chapman, Cope gets excited. "I am so fortunate to be able to record these incredible songs. Breathe in Me, Every Season, Welcome to Our World, these are all songs that the Christian music world has loved for years, but a lot of people in LDS culture aren't familiar with them. I almost feel spoiled that I get the opportunity to introduce LDS audiences to this great music." One of the most poignant songs on the album, Gethsemane, grew out of an experience Cope had while working on an upcoming project with author Susan Easton Black and artist Liz Lemon Swindle. The three artists are collaborating to create a multimedia presentation of the life of Christ called Son of Man. During a photo shoot of a model posing as Christ in the Garden of Gethsemane another model represented an angel sent to comfort the suffering Christ. "As I watched the models re-enact this key and most incredible moment in human history, I was just overcome with the desire to be that angel. I wanted to be the one who would have come to comfort Christ in his moments of deepest anguish. It was a really powerful experience for me, and the song just grew out of it." "If anything, I think this album is really honest," Cope
concludes. "It expresses simple faith, and I feel like it captures
my feelings. I hope that the honesty will speak to people." | ||||||||||
