The single “Quantum Equivalent” is a collaboration between vocalist Cheryl B. Engelhardt and the Dallas String Quartet that will stick in your memory. It explores ethereal journeying as its theme and the idea that an individual can long physically manifest the quantum equivalent of an event in the future. It is, at its heart, a musical invocation of self-realization. The pairing of Engelhardt and the Quartet, the latter renowned for several collaborations with major pop figures as well as performing for Presidents, is an ideal match. Their complementary talents come together here and give birth to an unquestionable work of musical art that elevates the listener’s spirit and engages their senses.
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Strings open the song. It is unfortunate that there are listeners who regard classical music as an exclusionary high-brow style. However, those listeners will do well to open themselves up to this single and likely find themselves convinced, seconds in, that the Dallas String Quartet and Engelhardt are responsible for crafting an accessible work. Piano and Engelhardt’s voice soon follow the strings and begin weaving magic. Interplay between the participants is crucial for the track’s success from the start, and they sustain their instant chemistry for the duration of the performance.
Predominant motifs anchor the arrangement, but Engelhardt and the Quartet are far from risk-averse. “Quantum Equivalent” undergoes a gradual evolution as the performance progresses without ever losing the core melodic values established in its initial seconds. The Quartet utilizes a bevy of strings to realize the composition, and the layering effect the instrumentalists achieve adds heft to the single without ever bogging it down in sonic minutiae. It runs a little less than three and a half minutes in length yet has the impact of a chamber suite.
Engelhardt’s wordless vocals supply the crowning ethereal touch. Her upper register vocalizations have an almost spectral aspect and seemingly float above the arrangement without ever wafting away. Her presence in the track is nearly constant from her first appearance without ever overshadowing the arrangement.
She’s a magnificent interpreter of the theme. It isn’t a strain picturing Engelhardt ascending skyward as her voice scales the upper-most reaches, and she pulls listeners along with her for the journey. There’s never anything overwrought about her vocals, and you never hear her straining for effect. Instead, her voice effortlessly glides through the arrangement and carries the listener beside her all the while.
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Let’s hope Engelhardt and the Dallas String Quartet work together again – and soon. They form an extraordinarily complementary union for this single, and there’s definitely ample room to continue growing in tandem. There are no egos here either. It’s a work where the collaborators obviously prioritize art over personal glory and results in an affecting and deeply moving work that listeners can return to time after time. “Quantum Equivalent” is an uplifting and exploratory work that reaches far beyond the disposable and reminds you of music’s timeless power to move the heart and shape our perceptions. Seek this out today, and you won’t be disappointed.
Garth Thomas