Hidden Gems - Finding the Music

"An Art Song is like a diamond cut with strength into many facets, and it is our duty to polish the infinite details." -soprano Elly Ameling

For this album, I needed a theme. Something catchy, new, or meaningful for the field of classical art song. Why art song? Well...honestly, it's easier to put together as an ensemble because you really only need a singer and a pianist, and for my budget, voice and piano would do well.

But creatively, art songs (that are written well) are tiny gems of emotion and vulnerability which highlight the singer and pianist as partners, rather than being a highlighted performer as in opera or musical theater.

Then came the process: what music would I want to live with for a while? I would need to practice, rehearse, record, and live with this music for at least a year. I didn't want to get stuck with music that I didn't enjoy. Through research for a presentation at the NATS Internship Program in 2022, I discovered a set of songs  by American composer Edie Hill and I really loved them. Then through music I received at the program, I found some music by American composer Margaret Bonds...difficult, but interesting harmonies. I continued to find interesting music by woman composers, both living and deceased. But how would this album be different? Though women composers are an under-represented group, many had created albums with similar these.

So I reached out to my colleague Ingrid Stölzel, an Associate Professor of Composition at

Courtney (left) and pianist Marika (right) with composer Ingrid Stölzel (center).

the University of Kansas (https://ingridstolzel.com/). Ingrid has a fabulously rich collection of vocal music and I wanted to see if she would write a piece for this album. Luckily, she said yes! Ingrid's piece "Life is a Stream" (with text by Amy Lowell) will debut on this album and I am so thankful she was willing to join this project. More on her genius in a later post!

After more research, I landed on an all-English language, women composer album with songs for mezzo-soprano and piano with 16 tracks. With a variety of styles ranging from older "parlor" style songs (such as "With Violets" and "Ariette" by Amy Beach) to a dramatic orchestral reduction of Ethel Smyth's 3 Moods of the Sea, this album will represent lesser known pieces by these great composers.