With Singers: Amy Van Roekel, Kristina Bachrach, Hannah Ludwig, Raehann Bryce-Davis, James Reese, Keith Phares, Sidney Outlaw; with pianist Laura Ward.Composers: Melissa Dunphy, Derek Bermel, Gilda Lyons, James Primosch, David Shapiro, Curt Cacioppo, Glen Roven, Isabella Ness, Raymond Lustig, Nkeiru Okoye, Robert Convery, and the winner of the young composer competition, Samuel McLaughlin.
For the bicentennial of Walt Whitman’s birth and his lasting contribution to American letters and song, Lyric Fest brought two concerts with distinct programming to Philadelphia. Presented in two parts, Lyric Fest premiered 12 new works (17 individual songs), alongside extant settings of Whitman. Whitman expert Greg Trupiano narrator and Jim Bergwall reader from Whitman’s poetry and letters. A composer talk preceded each concert. A third performance of all commissions offered in NYC with The Phoenix Concerts, Inc.
