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Press Releases
Sparks & Wiry Cries Presents All-Virtual, Free 2022 songSLAM Festival
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Katlyn Morahan | Morahan Arts and Media
katlyn@morahanartsandmedia.com | (646) 378-9386
Sparks & Wiry Cries Presents All-Virtual, Free
2022 songSLAM Festival
Previously Scheduled Events at The Blue Building
on January 14th and 15th, Now Accessible Online
Festival Includes World Premieres by Composers Rachel DeVore Fogarty and John Glover, and Performances by Maria Brea, Martha Guth, Myra Huang, Michael Kelly, LaToya Lain, jessica Care moore, Erika Switzer, and Howard Watkins
Composer/Performer Teams To Compete in Virtual songSLAM on January 15
January 5th, 2022, New York, NY — Sparks & Wiry Cries (Sparks), led by Co-Founders and Directors Martha Guth and Erika Switzer, will now present its 2022 songSLAM Festival from January 13 to 15, 2022, entirely virtually, due to rising Covid case numbers in the area. The Festival includes the presentation of four emerging artist duos, fifteen world premieres, and the popular songSLAM competition.
The Festival kicks off on Thursday, January 13, 2022 at 7pm EST with Songs of Identity. Four singer and pianist duos present works that reflect the fullness and complexities of their diverse identities and lived experiences. Featured performers include tenor Bo Shimmin and pianist Natalie Sherer, soprano Shana Oshiro and pianist Brian Bartoldus, mezzo-soprano Hailey McAvoy and pianist Bethany Pietroniro, and soprano Paulina Swierczek and pianist Ania Vu. The recital will be available on the Sparks & Wiry Cries website and Youtube channel where it will remain available.
The following evening, Friday, January 14, 2022 at 7pm EST, Sparks premieres At the Crossroads, a virtual concert featuring four commissioned works that focus on stories advancing the critical dialogues around the issues of our time. The program includes two world premieres commissioned for the 2022 songSLAM Festival, After Him by John Glover, performed by baritone and poet Michael Kelly and pianist Howard Watkins, and From the Woolworth Tower by 2021 songSLAM Commission Prize winner Rachel DeVore Fogarty, to be performed by sopranos Maria Brea, Martha Guth, and LaToya Lain, with pianist Myra Huang, and a reprise of two 2021 songSLAM Festival commissions, Ciudad perdida (The Lost City) by Reinaldo Moya, which will be performed by soprano Maria Brea and pianist Howard Watkins; Ramadan 20 vs COVID 19 by Andrew Staniland, performed by soprano LaToya Lain, poet jessica Care moore, and pianist Erika Switzer. The concert will be available on the Sparks & Wiry Cries website and Youtube channel where it will remain available.
The songSLAM Festival concludes on Saturday, January 15, 2022 at 7pm EST with the NYC songSLAM, a unique community event for composer/performer teams to premiere new art songs and compete for cash prizes, determined by audience voting. songSLAM prizes include First Place ($1,000), Second Place ($600), and Third Place ($400). Additionally, one team will be selected by Sparks & Wiry Cries for a paid commission in a future season.
Recordings will be shared virtually on the Sparks & Wiry Cries website and YouTube channel between January 7 to 15, 2022. Teams will compete via a text-to-vote function through Give Lively and audiences can vote for as little as $1 starting January 7, 2022 through the Sparks & Wiry Cries website. Teams that raise the most funds will win songSLAM awards. Funds raised during the event are reinvested into larger commissions, future competitions, and new art song initiatives.
Sparks will host a Watch Party on January 15th at 7pm EST on its Youtube channel. The Watch Party features songSLAM songs, plus the announcement of the winners and the 2023 commission recipient.
Festival Information
Songs of Identity
Thursday, January 13, 2022 at 7pm EST
Link: http://www.sparksandwirycries.
Brian Bartoldus, pianist
Hailey McAvoy, mezzo-soprano
Shana Oshiro, soprano
Bethany Pietroniro, pianist
Natalie Sherer, pianist
Bo Shimmin, tenor
Paulina Swierczek, soprano
Ania Vu, pianist
At the Crossroads
Friday, January 14, 2022 at 7pm EST
Link: http://www.sparksandwirycries.
JOHN GLOVER: After Him [World Premiere]
Michael Kelly, Howard Watkins
REINALDA MOYA: Ciudad perdida
Maria Brea, Howard Watkins
ANDREW STANILAND: Ramadan 20 vs COVID 19
LaToya Lain, jessica Care moore, Erika Switzer
RACHEL DEVORE FOGARTY: From the Woolworth Tower [World Premiere]
Maria Brea, LaToya Lain, Martha Guth, Myra Huang
Maria Brea, soprano
Martha Guth, soprano
Myra Huang, pianist
Michael Kelly, baritone
LaToya Lain, soprano
jessica Care moore, poet
Erika Switzer, pianist
Howard Watkins, pianist
6th Annual NYC songSLAM
Saturday, January 15, 2022 at 7pm EST
Info: http://www.sparksandwirycries.
Program and artists to be announced
About Sparks & Wiry Cries
Sparks & Wiry Cries (Sparks) began in 2009 as an online magazine contextualizing art song through recordings, interviews, and articles by prominent artists and scholars. In 2012, its art song recital series in New York City began with support from the Casement Fund, Ltd. In 2015, Sparks received its 501(c)(3) nonprofit status, growing to support its community through the successful Art Song Magazine and the rebranding of the Casement Fund Song Series as the annual NYC songSLAM Festival. In 2016, Sparks developed the popular NYC songSLAM competition for emerging composer/singer/pianist teams to premiere new works for a chance at audience-awarded cash prizes. Since then, Sparks has co-produced over 20 regional songSLAMs (five during the pandemic) in three countries. Over 400 musicians have participated and more than 200 songs have been written and premiered by young composers, 15 of which were published in the first songSLAM Songbook published by New Music Shelf in June 2020.
Fashioned after traditional poetry slams and storytelling events like The Moth, each of Sparks’ songSLAMs gives teams of composers and performers a chance to present world premieres of art song and compete for audience-awarded cash prizes totaling up to $2,000. Each regional songSLAM is produced with a partnering local organization. Since the inaugural songSLAM of 2016, our first come, first served registration often fills in under 30 minutes of opening, and our songSLAM audiences are typically sold out and/or standing room only. The songSLAM was developed to bring in new, energized, and invested audiences for art song while removing barriers and gatekeepers for performers and composers.
In 2022, Sparks will partner with organizations across the United States and internationally to produce 8 songSLAM events, allowing for the premiere of over 100 new songs and engaging with well over 200 emerging artists in the following cities: NYC (Sparks), Cincinnati (CSI), Chicago (Fourth Coast Ensemble), Ljubljana, Slovenia (Festival Ljubljana), London, U.K. (ReSung), Melbourne, AUS (University of Melbourne), and Otago, NZ (University of Otago). Finally, the NATS National Conference will co-host a GRAND songSLAM during their annual summer convention; all past participants will have the opportunity to apply for this competition with a national platform and $5,000 in prize money. Learn more about Sparks & Wiry Cries at www.sparksandwirycries.org.
About Martha Guth
Martha Guth has worked with major conductors and recital partners including Seiji Ozawa, Robert Spano, Helmut Rilling, and Alan Gilbert, Graham Johnson, Malcolm Martineau, and Erika Switzer, at venues such as Wigmore Hall, Lincoln Center, Leeds Lieder, and St. John Smith Square. Her extensive discography has been recognized with a Juno nomination and Latin Grammy Nomination, and she has won several major international competitions including the 2007 Wigmore Hall International Song Competition. Martha holds a DMA from the University of Michigan, is Assistant Professor of Voice at Ithaca College, on faculty at the Vocal Academy of the Collaborative Piano Institute, and on the Artistic Administrative team and Faculty for SongFest at Colburn in Los Angeles. Learn more at www.marthaguth.com.
About Erika Switzer
Erika Switzer is an accomplished collaborative pianist who performs regularly in major concert settings around the world, including New York’s Weill Hall (Carnegie), Frick Collection, and the Kennedy Center. Her performances have been called “precise and lucid” (New York Times), and “intelligent, refined, and captivating” (Le Monde). She has won numerous awards, including best pianist prizes at the Robert Schumann, Hugo Wolf, and Wigmore Hall International Song Competitions. She serves on the music faculty at Bard College and its Conservatory of Music, and holds a doctorate from The Juilliard School. Learn more at www.erikaswitzer.com.
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