For Immediate Release:
What: Quagmires and the Known Knowns by Marie Incontrera (world-premiere)
When: Tuesday, May 21st 2013 8PM
Where: Galapagos Art Space, 16 Main St, Brooklyn, NY 11201 (A, C to High Street; F to Jay Street)
Who: Kate Maroney, mezzo soprano; Brandon Snook, tenor; Paul An, bass; Michael Brofman, Michael Rose, Miori Sugiyama, piano
Price: $20 (21+)
More Info: www.brooklynartsongsociety.org

Brooklyn Art Song Society’s First World-Premiere Commission

Brooklyn Art Song Society (BASS) is proud to present its first commissioned work as part of its New Voices series: Marie Incontrera’s Quagmires and the Known Knowns. In this contemporary masterpiece the 27-year-old Brooklyn-based composer explores the stigmas, tragedies, and political agendas behind the Iraq War. Drawing from texts by politicians and human rights groups, this ambitious work is a songbook for our time. Texts include quotes and speeches by George W. Bush, Saddam Hussein, John Kerry, and Barack Obama. In equal measure hilarious, terrifying, incendiary and moving, Quagmires in the words of the composer, “sheds light on inescapable truths of the Iraq War.” Ms. Incontrera’s unique musical voice combines diverse influences: from Richard Wagner to Led Zeppelin, Igor Stravinsky to Black Sabbath. Performing this groundbreaking work are some of New York City’s most gifted singers and pianists: mezzo soprano Kate Maroney (BASS debut), tenor Brandon Snook and bass Paul An accompanied by pianists Michael Brofman, Michael Rose and Miori Sugiyama. Brooklyn Art Song Society’s marathon performance of the complete Charles Ives Songbook at Galapagos Art Space made the company a classical music institution overnight- now BASS returns to DUMBO once again to prove the relevance of art song in the 21st century.

Hailed by the New York Times as “ambitious” and “a company well worth watching,” the Brooklyn Art Song Society (BASS) will enter its third season of first-rate music making in the fall of 2012. Dedicated to the vast repertoire of poetry set to music, BASS presents programs of epic scope yet intimate at the same time. Past highlights have included performances of the complete songs of Charles Ives, Henri Duparc, and an ongoing project to present the complete works of Hugo Wolf. Internationally acclaimed guest artists have included tenor Paul Sperry, soprano Dominique Labelle, and Pulitzer-prize winning composer Yehudi Wyner. The 2012-2013 will feature a retrospective of the complete songs and representative piano works from Franz Schubert’s last year, featured composer Libby Larsen, Hugo Wolf’s Spanish Songbook and a world premiere commission by Marie Incontrera.

What: In Context: Libby Larsen
Who: Charlotte Dobbs, Melissa Fogarty, Laura Strickling, soprano; Jesse Blumberg, baritone; Michael Brofman, Erika Switzer, Miori Sugiyama, piano
When: Saturday, March 23rd, 2013 8PM
Where: Tenri Cultural Institute, 43 W. 13th St., New York, NY 10011 (N/Q/R/4/5/6/L to Union Square; 1/2/3 to 14th St.)
Price: $25/$20/$5 (tickets at the door)

Brooklyn Art Song Society’s Innovative New Music Series

Brooklyn Art Song Society (BASS) is proud to announce the third installment of its innovative new music series In Context. In Context presents the songs of important living composers alongside standard repertoire related by theme, text, or musical style. This season’s featured composer is Libby Larsen, who has been praised as “our finest living composer of art songs” by NATS Journal. Her works will be featured alongside those of Henri Duparc, Charles Ives, and Robert Schumann. Featured works include the New York premiere of Ms. Larsen’s newest cycle for baritone and prepared piano The Peculiar Case of Dr. H. H. Holmes as well as her iconic soprano song cycle Try Me Good King. This concert features three BASS debuts: soprano Laura Strickling, baritone Jesse Blumberg (artistic director, Five Burroughs Festival), and pianist Erika Switzer (co-creator Sparks and Wiry Cries). Be sure not to miss this exciting event!

Hailed by the New York Times as “ambitious” and “a company well worth watching,” the Brooklyn Art Song Society (BASS) will enter its third season of first-rate music making in the fall of 2012. Dedicated to the vast repertoire of poetry set to music, BASS presents programs of epic scope yet intimate at the same time. Past highlights have included performances of the complete songs of Charles Ives, Henri Duparc, and an ongoing project to present the complete works of Hugo Wolf. Internationally acclaimed guest artists have included tenor Paul Sperry, soprano Dominique Labelle, and Pulitzer-prize winning composer Yehudi Wyner. The 2012-2013 will feature a retrospective of the complete songs and representative piano works from Franz Schubert’s last year, featured composer Libby Larsen, Hugo Wolf’s Spanish Songbook and a world premiere commission by Marie Incontrera.