Various Artists - Up Toward the Sky (CD)

This unique album of American songs for soprano and piano includes 10 world premiere recordings, including the first recording of Winifred Hyson's 'Songs of Job's Daughter' and many of the other songs have not been extensively or recently recorded but some modern classics are included, such as Menotti's Five Songs. The repertoire highlights female composers and female poets (Amy Beach, Winifred Hyson, Gertrude Stein, Ina Coolbrith, Marianne Moore) and the mix of obscure and well-known songs (lyrics included) make a valuable contribution to the catalogue. Soprano Rachel Evangeline Barham, whose voice was described by the Washington Post as "ample. . . precisely articulated and confident," specializes in Baroque music, oratorio, new music, and recitals. She is a frequent soloist with Cantate Chamber Singers, most recently in DiOrio's Stravinsky Refracted, and notably in Handel's monumental Brockes Passion. Www. RachelBarham. #com Jeremy Filsell is one of only a few virtuoso performers as both pianist and organist. His discography comprises more than 35 solo recordings including, as an organist, the complete oeuvre of Marcel Dupré (on Guild). Jeremy studied as organ scholar at Keble College Oxford, before completing graduate studies in piano performance at the Royal College of Music. He is currently Organist & Director of Music at St. Thomas, 5th Avenue, New York in 2019.