Alight!

Breaking radio silence to share news of a work assignment I completed recently—a piece of writing mostly meant to be read by other writers and editors, so I’ll share the gist here: I’m elated and grateful to have contributed the artist bio that accompanies Alight!, the upcoming recording by Troy, NY-based pianist, composer, and concert presenter Sova.

Here’s her own announcement, sent out earlier today:

I initially encountered Sova when she was working under her given name, Sophia Subbayya Vastek, as an interpreter of contemporary classical works. I heard her first in a 2017 recital presented with the entrepreneurial composer Michael Vincent Waller at Spectrum, when that venue was a cozy loft on Ludlow Street—a concert I reviewed for National Sawdust Log. Later that year she released Histories, a bold and gorgeous recital of works by Michael Harrison, John Cage, and Donnacha Dennehy, on the Innova label.

A period of evolution would soon commence. In 2022 I reviewed Sova’s next solo album – the sublime In Our Softening, featuring original piano pieces recorded on a weathered upright rescued from a church that had been occupied previously by what amounted to a hate group – in this newsletter:

For the Record: Oct. 21, 2022.

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October 22, 2022

For the Record is a regular round-up of new and upcoming recordings of interest to the new-music community – contemporary classical music and jazz, electronic and electroacoustic music, and idioms for which no clever genre name has been coined – on CD, vinyl LP, cassette, digital-only formats… you name it.

Sova’s new album continues that evolution, showcasing a new approach and sound—her “soul music,” as she describes it—heralded by the meaningful new name under which she’s now performing. Alight! sustains the momentum begun on In Our Softening, and welcomes new contributors like cellist Clarice Jensen, fretless bass guitarist Spencer Zahn, and her husband, multi-instrumentalist and producer Sam Torres, into the mix.

Here’s a video for the album’s opening track:

One hesitates to simplify a deep transfiguration with a “RIYL” tally, but if you’ve ever been touched by the painterly instrumental music of acts like Hauschka, Eluvium, and Mono, as well as the sanctified ruminations of Keith Jarrett in Köln Concert mode, then Alight! warrants your attention. The album is due in LP, CD, and digital formats via the Swiss label Hout on September 4, and pre-orders are open now on Bandcamp.

If you’re a writer, editor, or radio host and want to know more about Alight! reach out to Geo at Terrorbird Media: geo@terrorbird.com.

Speaking of Michael Vincent Waller, he’s back in New York after a lengthy Los Angeles sojourn, and is presenting a concert matching his works (including a world premiere) with pieces by Valentin Silvestrov and Morton Feldman. The concert features two stellar musicians, cellist Ruben Kodheli and pianist Steven Beck, and it’s happening tomorrow night – Thursday, June 11 at 8:30pm – at the DiMenna Center for Classical Music, 450 W. 37th St., $20 suggested donation at the door.

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