“Standing Still; Still Standing” song project
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At this point in my forty-year international opera career I want to leave something more concrete than a recording. I am commissioning a number of songs that may live for years to come. During the "Covid days" Reg Huston, like many people, has been writing a lot of poetry. Some of the texts were quite profound so as a Christmas gift I commissioned a setting by composer Jake Heggie. I then asked Composer Libby Larsen to set another one. (She wrote two song cycles that I premiered and recorded).
Now, just 8 months later, I have commissioned an entire evening of songs with piano or string quartet by a diverse group of composers, all to Reg’s poetry.
There will be a free performance on March 3, 2022 at San Francisco Conservatory of Music. To date I am paying for these with my savings. I would have hired the pianist, a string quartet and another vocalist. The following composers have written or have committed to writing a song or two. (Usually one composer sets a cycle of songs with one poet. This project is different because all the composers will set texts by Reg Huston.)
Susanne Mentzer https://www.ada-artists.com/mezzo-soprano-susanne-mentzer
BIPOC composers:
Karim Al-Zand https://www.alzand.com
Stephen Bachicha http://stephenbachicha.com
Michael Ching https://operaandbeyond.com
Andre Myers http://www.andremyers.com
Dave Ragland https://daveragland.com
Jason Hainsworth http://www.jasonhainsworthmusic.com
Brent Michael Davids http://www.brentmichaeldavids.com/concertmusic.html
Women composers:
Tammy Hall https://www.tammyhall.com/bio (also BIPOC)
Tamara McLeod https://soundcloud.com/tamara_mcleod
Hilary Purrington http://www.hilarypurrington.com
Libby Larsen https://libbylarsen.com
Other:
Kurt Erickson https://www.kurterickson.com
Richard Pearson Thomas https://www.richardpearsonthomas.com
Jake Heggie https://jakeheggie.com
Daron Hagenhttps://www.daronhagen.com
Learn More: http://susannementzer.com