Guest Vocal Artists: Timothy Bentch, Lorraine Hinds, Jennifer Hsiung, Steven LaBrie, and Pennsylvania Girlchoir.

"Power is safest in a poet's hands, thus for the artist, God will pose," wrote Hâfez, the Persian Mystic and Poet revered by Goethe, set by Brahms, Strauss and Szymanowski. Indeed, the experience of the Divine has been an inextinguishable source of inspiration for artist expression from the beginning of recorded time. In this special program, on the eve of All Souls' Day, we will present musical and poetic works from many cultures, times and genres: solo song, oratorio, readings of poetry and prose inspired by ethnic roots - all looking to an inner world, noticing a bigger reality. 
 
As we considered ideas for this program, we decided to commemorate the occasion with a special commission. Lyric Fest has a desire to foster new works as a way of looking towards the future of vocal music and as a part of our mission. We turned to Kile Smith, who is not only a very gifted composer, but is a deeply motivated and spiritual person, knowing he would be a good fit for this project. The resulting work is a gorgeous two-movement composition, Two Laudate Psalms, written for a mezzo-soprano solo, a girl choir and a piano. These settings of Psalms 113 and 150 will be performed by Suzanne DuPlantis, the Motet Choir of the Pennsylvania Girlchoir, Mark Anderson conducting, and pianist Laura Ward.
 
Generous support for this commission came from the Musical Fund Society and our patron and board member Allan Schimmel, to whom we extend our deepest gratitude for making this project possible.   
 
The concert will also feature songs by J.S. Bach, W. A. Mozart, Hugo Wolf, Claude Debussy, Samuel Barber, Joaquín Nin, Charles Ives, Leonard Bernstein, excerpts from Behind the Caravan, Songs of Hâfez by Abbie Betinis, and poetry by Rumi, John Bunyan, Villon, Moericke, and Judah Halevi.  We will conclude with Benjamin Britten's God Moves in a Mysterious Way, from St. Nicholas.

Tickets: General $20, Student $5. Call us at 215-438-1702 to pre-order, or purchase at the door.  For more details visit us at www.lyricfest.org.

Our publicist interviewed Kile Smith about his new composition Two Laudate Psalms and he told us some curious things!

Please tell us about your musical background and how you started writing music.
 
KS: I came to music composition fairly late, as I didn't get started until the end of high school. Even though I always had been involved in singing in choirs, and was good enough to get into the New Jersey All-State Chorus, I didn't know how to read music. I had a pretty good ear but no idea what I was doing. And I didn't know anything about classical music!
 
Read full interview with Kile Smith.

Learn more about Kile and his works at his online blog.

 

Winner of many awards and competitions, Steven LaBrie, 21, is currently a fourth year resident artist at the prestigious Academy of Vocal Arts (AVA) in Philadelphia.

During his residency, he has performed roles such as Malatesta in Don Pasquale, Guglielmo in Così fan tutte, Kuligan in Kát'a Kabanová, Baron Duphol in La Traviata, Fiorello in Il barbiere di Siviglia, and the Captain in Eugene Onegin. 

We are thrilled to have Steven as a member of the Lyric Fest cast and welcome him with a few questions:

How did you manage to get into AVA right out of high school? This is apparently unheard of! 
 
SL: I was taking lessons in Dallas and getting ready for college auditions. My teacher and I decided that it would be helpful for me to sing in person for some teachers at the schools where I wanted to attend. I set up some appointments with some teachers at some schools in New York and ended up singing for a coach that was a friend of my teacher's in Dallas. She recommended that I sing for my current teacher, Bill Schuman, and that I should go to AVA. I sang for him and he set up an audition for me at AVA that March. All the coaches had a meeting after my audition and they decided that despite my age, they would take me into the school.

Song vs. opera: is there an artistic difference to you?  
 
SL: It seems to me that in an opera, with the props, the costume and the story line, it is all given to you.  Whereas in song all you have is the words and the music. The character is drawn from your own personal experiences.

What are your favorite things to do when not singing? 
 
SL: When I am not singing or studying my roles or languages, I am pretty simple. I like walking around the city or meeting up with friends. I am a member of the Philadelphia Art Museum and I go there with a friend of mine sometimes. I am also a fan of baked goods and I try to have something in the house all the time.