What's New
BORN takes the GRAMMY!
Philadelphia-based choir, The Crossing and conductor, Donald Nally took home their third GRAMMY award for Best Choral Performance this past Sunday for their album BORN: music of Edie Hill and Michael Gilbertson.
BORN features the premiere recording of "Spectral Spirits," which was commissioned for The Crossing. "Spectral Spirits" received its premiere in December of 2019 and is based on poetry by Holly J. Hughes.
Congratulations to all! Read more about the album and all its vital contributors in the album stories section of The Crossing's website.
Textura's Top 20
"BORN: music of Edie Hill and Michael Gilbertson" appeared as one of four PARMA Recordings albums included in Textura's 2022 Top 20 Classical Vocal albums.
The Top 20 lists can be viewed on Textura's website. Additionally, read Textura's writeup on BORN here.
GRAMMY Nomination for BORN
The Crossing (Donald Nally, conductor) has received its 8th Best Choral Performance GRAMMY Award nomination for its 2022 album BORN: music of Michael Gilbertson and Edie Hill (Navona Records). This marks The Crossing's 7th consecutive year of GRAMMY nominations.
BORN features a full recording of "Spectral Spirits," which was commissioned for The Crossing and received its premiere in December of 2019 and is based on poetry by Holly J. Hughes.
MORE buzz for "Born"
The Crossing's (Donald Nally, conductor) new release with Navona Records (imprint of PARMA Recordings), "Born" continues to receive critical acclaim.
Carme Miró of Sonagrama Magazine called Spectral Spirits "pletòriques i robustes" ("plethoric and robust"). Textura reviewed the work as "consistently beguiling," "affecting," and "mesmerizing."
James Manheim of AllMusic said, in a particularly glowing review, "Hill's music evokes the bird in its particularity, and the overall effect of this is profoundly sad. ...one may nevertheless hope that it becomes more widely performed on programs devoted to environmental themes."
Buzz for "Born"
"Born" the new album by The Crossing (Donald Nally, conductor) has been recieving much acclaim on the airways and beyond!
VPM's Classical With Mike Goldberg featured an interview with Edie Hill, Michael Gilbertson, and Donald Nally.
WRUU's Contemporary Classics featured an extended dialogue exploring Spectral Spirits between Edie Hill, Donald Nally, and Contemporary Classics host David Lake.
The recording of Spectral Spirits has additionally been reviewed as "an almost Wes Andersonian cabinet of wonders" (VAN Magazine) and "one of the most interesting and engaging new compositions...in quite some time" (Classical Candor).
"Born" Released
Navona Records (imprint of PARMA Recordings) has announced the upcoming release of "Born," recorded by The Crossing (Donald Nally, conductor). The album features Edie Hill's Spectral Spirits (with poetry by Holly J. Hughes and others) as well as music by Michael Gilbertson.
The album will be available for purchase and to stream beginning August 12, 2022.
More information about the album is available on Navonna's website.
A sample recording from the album ("Carolina Parakeet" from Spectral Spirits) can be found here.
New Album Available
Mezzo-soprano/piano duo Emily Jaworski Koriath and Tad Koriath will soon release an album of 21st-Century Art Songs entitled "These Distances Between Us." The album will feature "The Giver of Stars" alongside works by Craig Brandwein, Jessica Rudman, and Jonathan Santore.
The album is currently available for pre-order from various retailers and is set to be released on June 24, 2022 through Naxos.
Honorary Doctorate from Concordia College
Edie has been awarded a Doctor of Humane Letters from Concordia College in Moorhead, Minnesota. Edie attended the college's commencement in Moorhead on Sunday, May 1 where she was presented with the honorary degree and offered a few words to the graduating class. The commencement ceremony was live streamed and archived.
Edie's indroduction and statement begin at 00:37:30.
"We Bloomed in Spring" was also performed in a concert on Saturday afternoon as part of the commencement weekend.
[Pictured: Concordia College President Emeritus William Craft, Edie Hill, and Dr. Gregory B. Carlson. Photo credit: W. Scott Olsen]
"Poem for 2084" on Sveriges Radio
On November 13, Sveriges Radio (Swedish Radio) presented a concert titled EXIL: OM MÄNNISKAN PÅ FLYKT ("Exile: A Man on the Run") at the Berwald Hall in Stockholm. The concert featured performances by the Swedish Radio Choir under direction of guest conductor Donald Nally (The Crossing) and cellist Johanna Sjunnesson with spoken narration by Etienne Glaser.
A full recording of the concert was broadcast on Sveriges Radio on December 3, 2021. The archive recording of the broadcast will be available to stream on the Sveriges Radio website during the month of December.
New Album with fivebyfive
Rochester, New York-based chamber ensemble, fivebyfive, is releasing their debut album Of and Between. The album includes recordings of all the pieces commissioned through their Glass Works project, including "Blue Jewel."
The album will be released December 1, 2021.
More about Of and Between, including how to purchase can be found on fivebyfive's website.