Identical mirror twins Hannah and Naomi Moxon grew up singing nursery rhymes and listening to Vivaldi and Shania Twain in the car. “We remember singing along… it was probably quite embarrassing!” Now, at the ages of 20, they are veterans of popular television talent show The Voice, and have just released their first Christmas EP. “We love everything about Christmas… probably our favourite things are: Getting up early on Christmas morning, dinner(!!!), wrapping everyone’s presents, and having family board games.”
A video for “The Living Years,” featuring The Voice co-competitor Emmanuel Nwamadi, was released in conjunction with the EP, which is titled “The Night Before Christmas.”
“Our video was really something Emmanuel & ourselves had been talking about since we left The Voice. We had so many lovely comments about the song so we felt we really wanted to give back something to those who support us!”
The girls’ love of singing was instilled from an early age. “Since the moment we could talk our mum would sing with us for about an hour every morning. It was never about being perfect but just having fun!” Classical crossover seems to have also been an instinctive choice, with the freedom it offers in its blend of styles and relaxing mood that appeals to a wide audience, even those who primarily listen to other genres. In choosing songs for their repertoire, melody takes top priority. The twins love “emotional songs,” and love having audiences leave their concerts feeling “uplifted and happy.”
“We always feel really honoured when someone cries or is touched by a song. We had a lovely compliment from a 90 year old gentleman recently who said that we were the pinnacle of his life! We were really moved by that comment!”
In life off the stage, Naomi and Hannah present an image of refreshing relatability. Some hobbies they enjoy are “learning how to do makeup online, watching reality TV shows and having long walks with our dog Wylie!” They enjoy listening to popular artists such as The Civil Wars and Charlie Puth. While they “personally feel more comfortable getting dressed up when we sing,” because “it makes us feel in the zone,” they share that “our everyday style is very girly, we mostly wear skirts and here in the winter always a scarf!”
Their experience on The Voice was approached with the same down-to-earth equanimity. “[it] was definitely something we will never forget! We never really had any expectations going in for the show, we tried to take each stage at a time, not thinking too far ahead. We were really surprised at how relaxed we felt through the whole experience, we just wanted to enjoy everything!”
As expected, the girls’ voices are both soprano, and nearly identical to the point that they will often trade off between the high and low harmonies within the same song (“It seems very confusing but it happens naturally“). In their blind audition for The Voice, the judges weren’t certain that there were two vocalists until they split into harmony after beginning the song in unison. Naomi and Hannah admit to the occasional argument like normal siblings, sharing that “it’s easy to annoy each other when you are so close,” but in the end they get along very well, aided by the fact that they “share the same opinions which is quite useful.”
The pressure of being in the public eye and competing on a reality show does not seem to have phased them. They admit to being “the least competitive people, especially when it comes to each other,” and have this sage advice to share: “…we do feel the music business can be a tough one. We have had our fair share of rough experiences within the music business, especially when it comes to management, however we feel it’s so important to keep focusing on all the positives that you gain every day & not just the negatives, but most importantly not to compare your career to anybody else’s as everybody is different!”
Another high priority alongside their career is teaching music to children, something they intend to make time for, no matter how successful they become with their performing career. “We know just how important sometimes a singing lesson is, because when we were at school we had a bit of a hard time. Singing was the thing we really looked forward to all week, we hope that the lessons can be a time for the children to have fun! We think the most important thing to teach a child about music is to have determination, confidence & to enjoy singing always!” However, they share that in order to maintain the health of their voices they are always careful to “not talk too loudly when teaching a large class, so our voices aren’t strained at all,” and they also ensure that they never get too cold (“especially where we live in the winter“), drink a lot of Vitamin C, and “of course warm up our voices before singing!”
In addition to teaching, another cause close to Classical Reflection’s heart is the charity “The Guide Dogs,” having boarded guide dogs in their home for ten years, and adopting a former guide dog as their family pet. “We worked with the charity for a week so we could see all the various ways they help. It was so amazing, we made audio CD’S, learnt a bit of braille and helped on reception. It really made us appreciate just how important the charity is.” They anticipate supporting the charity in upcoming events in the new year.
As to the future, a new album is in the works for 2016; no specific songs were mentioned, but the sisters did drop a few potential hints, mentioning that they were keen to work with modern composer Christopher Broom again, that while they did not anticipate writing their own music they would “love to take a classical piece of music such as Swan Lake and have lyrics put to it,” and that some of their favorite classical composers are Ludovico Einaudi and Debussy.
Classical Reflection is a duo with a genuine passion for connecting with their fans. Unlike some talent show contestants who flare up only to quickly fizzle out again, their work ethic and love of music has them on a sure and steady path to success!
“Its great to make people feel an emotion through singing. We also love meeting the audience afterwards, it is so lovely to hear their stories and how music helps them. “
