Pulitzer and GRAMMY-« Award winner Jennifer Higdon is one of the most performed living American composers, and this program provides a unique opportunity to hear premiere recordings of her earlier chamber music. The String Trio was written while Higdon was a developing young composer, and the influences of Prokofiev and Copland can be heard in the Sonata for Viola and Piano. The beauty and immensity of the Western US sky was the inspiration for Sky Quartet, while Dark Wood explores the soulful and virtuoso character of the bassoon. Higdon's "vibrant and individual voice" (Limelight Magazine) can be heard in further chamber works on Naxos 8.559298.