Cambridge organist Anna Lapwood and Norwegian pop star Aurora release new live version of ‘The Seed’
Norwegian alt-pop superstar Aurora has released a live version of her haunting anthem The Seed, featuring Cambridge-based organ sensation Anna Lapwood.
The track was recorded during Aurora’s sold-out Royal Albert Hall show in London earlier this month, as part of her What Happened to the Earth? world tour.
Together, the pair transformed this fan favourite, filling the iconic venue with the organ’s resonant depth and delighting the audience.
Anna recently shared a TikTok video explaining how rare it is to play the Royal Albert Hall organ in its full, resonant power - a privilege she previously experienced only once before with Bonobo.
The video has already amassed more than 9 million views.
The Seed comes from Aurora’s acclaimed 2019 album, A Different Kind of Human (Step 2), and tells the story of humanity’s lost connection with nature.
Aurora says: “To have Anna bring her light and her mountain of sound into my world was absolute bliss. I felt like I was soaring.
“And I could feel that the audience was as well. Something truly magical happened - and I will never forget it!”
Anna adds: “Collaborations at the Royal Albert Hall are always special, but occasionally you are sitting there playing with these amazing artists and it just feels like the music takes everyone in the room to a new dimension.
“Playing The Seed at the Aurora show with the full force of the Royal Albert Hall organ felt like one of those moments.
“Aurora is such a phenomenal artist with such an energetic audience, so it felt like everyone was feeding off each other’s energy in the most glorious way. I’ve rarely had a post-show high that lasts a whole week!”
Anna Lapwood holds the position of director of music at Pembroke College, Cambridge. She has become a celebrated force in classical music, earning both the associateship of the Royal Academy of Music and the Royal Philharmonic Society’s Gamechanger award in 2023.
Anna made history as the first female musician to top the Classical Artist Album Chart with her acclaimed album Luna in 2023, and returns as conductor of the Pembroke College Girls’ Choir for a new six-track EP, The Waiting Sky, which is out on 8 November.
[Read more: Anna Lapwood: ‘I tried to persuade Tom Cruise to take up the organ’]
This comes on top of Anna’s recent impromptu organ lesson with Tom Cruise at the Top Gun: Maverick film screening also at the Royal Albert Hall.
With over a million album sales, 2.6 billion streams, two bestselling books and her hit single Cure for Me featuring in online game Fortnite, Aurora is pulling in a bigger audiences than ever before.
Following a busy festival season, including a standout set on Glastonbury’s Park Stage, Aurora has added six extra European arena shows for next year, which will culminate in her biggest UK performance to date at the OVO Arena Wembley on 3 May.
For more on Aurora, visit aurora-music.com. For more on Anna Lapwood, go to annalapwood.co.uk.