Lenoriana, featuring the baritone Elem Eley and pianist J.J. Penna, consists entirely of recording premiÃ¨res. An eight song cycle on poetry of Poe, Benjamin C.S. Boyle's Lenoriana is divided into two halves, revolving around the central axis of the poem Lenore, a paean for a love lost too early and misunderstood by most. Laurie Altman's settings of two Frost poems were composed at the request of Mr. Eley. A Time to Talk attempts a tightness of structure, moving forward both quickly and conversationally; the Sound of the Trees is far more languid and restrained. Daron Aric Hagen's Larkin Songs cycle works very hard to be as simple as possible. The poems are like a portrait of a man looking back over the course of his life; the music gives you the interior material. Martin Hennessy's Three Dickinson Songs closes the program. I TASTE a liquor never brewed) was written for Mr. Eley. Elem Eley enjoys a remarkably varied career, from opera, oratorio and recital to premiÃ¨res of contemporary vocal music. He is Prof. Of Voice at Westminster Choir College of Rider University. J.J. Penna has premiered song cycles by William Bolcom, Ricky Ian Gordon, Richard Hundley, and Lowell Liebermann. A frequent recital pianist for top-echelon singers, he has been a Julliard School faculty member since 2006.

Tracklist:

Lenoriana, Op. 4: No. 1. Annabel Lee
Lenoriana, Op. 4: No. 2. Lenore
Lenoriana, Op. 4: No. 3. To
Lenoriana, Op. 4: No. 4. The Conqueror Worm
Lenoriana, Op. 4: No. 5. Intermezzo
No. 6. El Dorado
Lenoriana, Op. 4: No. 7. Lenore
Lenoriana, Op. 4: No. 8. A Dream Within A Dream
Lenoriana, Op. 4: No. 9. To Helen
Mountain Interval: A Time To Talk
Mountain Interval: The Sound Of Trees
Larkin Songs: 1a. Going
Larkin Songs: 1b. Coming
Larkin Songs: 2. Interlude No. 1: Fiction And The Reading Public
3a. Counting
Larkin Songs: 3b. "None Of The Books Have Time"
Larkin Songs: 4a. "Within The Dream You Said"
Larkin Songs: 4b. Talking In Bed
Larkin Songs: 5. Interlude No. 2: "To Write One Song, You Said"
Larkin Songs: 6a. "Morning At Last: There Is Snow"
Larkin Songs: 6b. The White Palace
3 Dickinson Songs: No. 1. My River Runs To Thee
3 Dickinson Songs: No. 2. Let Down The Bars, O Death!
3 Dickinson Songs: No. 3. I Taste A Liquor Never Brewed

UPC: 888295304184
Label: Affetto Records
Release Date: 9.25.15
Format: CD

Boyle / Elem Eley / Penna,Jj - Lenoria (CD)