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Performance Projects

Her Art in Song is dedicated to lifting up the voices of women in art song through a variety of performance related endeavors. In-depth explorations of female poets and their song settings, chamber music and art song commissions that feature women writers, portraits of women in music and their circle of influence; and world premiere recordings of new music and forgotten art song gems show our commitment to bringing the words, music and the stories of women to life.

Her Poetry through Song

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Edna St. Vincent Millay: A Century of Song

Dedicated to the poetry of Edna St. Vincent Millay, this recital contains early gems by little known composers Constance Mills Herreshoff and Edward Harris. These begin an almost century long journey of songs --captivating expressions of her poignant texts by living American greats including William Bolcom and Sheila Silver, the world premiere of settings by Joshua Burel, and recently discovered songs by the inimitable Margaret Bonds. First presented as part of the Constellation Concert Series at the University of Alabama in Huntsville with soprano Amalia Osuga, pianist Ron Guthrie, and reciter Susan Hazen Guthrie in March of 2023. 

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Let the Dancing Drink your Sorrow

This recital program explores the relationship between poetry and music through the eyes of two transformational female American poets who were great admirers and fierce supporters of each other. Forgotten masterpiece song settings by Mary Howe and John Duke to poet Elinor Wylie are paired with Edna St. Vincent Millay songs of intense nostalgia by living composers Georgia Stitt and Ricky Ian Gordon. The first performance of this program included the premiere of Joshua Burel's Four Millay Songs at Northern Arizona University with soprano Amalia Osuga and pianist Aimee Fincher in April of 2024.

World Premiere Recordings

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Songs of Mary Howe

In collaboration with Dr. Stephen Rodgers and Art Song Augmented, an online forum dedicated to underrepresented composers and their songs, soprano Amalia Osuga, pianist Aimee Fincher, and sound engineer Sam Gingher teamed up to record six previously unrecorded songs by American composer Mary Howe. These world premiere recordings represent a fraction of this composer's wonderful but almost forgotten contributions to the art song repertoire. 

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"Tavern" from Four Millay Songs 

"Tavern," the fourth and final song in Joshua Burel's Four Millay Songs was given its world premiere as part of the Sparks and Wiry Cries 8th Annual songSLAM. It was recorded that Blue Building in New York City in November of 2023. The live world premiere performance took place at National Sawdust with soprano Amalia Osuga and pianist Jillian Gardner in January of 2024. 

New Art Song and Chamber Music 

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Four Millay Songs

Four Millay Songs was written for Amalia Osuga by Joshua Burel as part of the recital project Millay: A Century of Song. The first three were premiered in March of 2023 with the final song receiving its premiere at the Sparks and Wiry Cries 8th Annual songSLAM at National Sawdust in January of 2024. The complete songs were premiered as part of Let the Dancing Drink your Sorrow in April of 2024. 

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Blue Means Water

Blue Means Water is a piece for soprano and chamber orchestra by award winning composer Joshua Burel. The text was adapted from “Blue Means Water,” in the award-winning short story collection Homing Instincts by Dionisia Morales. Written for Amalia Osuga and premiered in January of 2020, Blue Means Water was named a National Finalist for the Vocal Chamber Composition Division of The American Prize in 2021. Amalia Osuga performed the work with Huntsville Symphony in September of 2021. 

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