Joys Abiding

JOYS ABIDING shines a light on vocal duets by female composers in Italian, French, German, and English from the Baroque, Classical, and Romantic periods of the Western Classical tradition. We hope to expand the traditionally all-male canon to include some of these important works by female composers. We are particularly pleased to be offering recordings of three duets by Rebecca Clarke, a British-American composer and virtuoso violist. The name of our album, JOYS ABIDING, comes from the last line of her duet Sleep. Look for the companion to this recording, our annotated score anthology with Classical Vocal Reprints, which features first publications of all three of the Clarke pieces.

In addition to introducing you to some beautiful music, we hope that this project becomes an additional resource for voice instructors and music directors programming vocal chamber concerts pairing soprano and baritone — or soprano and mezzo — voices. Currently available resources include the anthologized canon of sacred and secular duets (exclusively works by European male composers), a wealth of English-language Art Song vocal duet literature by 20th-century and living composers (including some women and composers from other marginalized communities), and operatic duet literature (almost exclusively by white male composers). We hope this recording will inspire listeners to further explore vocal works by each composer, as this project is only a sampling of the rich body of duet repertoire created by these women.

Our project is a collaborative effort between faculty at Butler University and Portland State University. We would like to acknowledge the support from both schools, in particular a Faculty Research Grant from the Butler Awards Committee. Special thanks also to our Butler administrators Dr. Lisa Brooks, Dean of the Jordan College of the Arts and Professor David Murray, the Director of the School of Music. We would also like to acknowledge the tireless work of our piano technician Mathew Dickerson. Special thanks to Sheridan Stormes, our producer, and to Frank Felice, our engineer and mixer. We would also like to acknowledge the support and assistance of Wayne Wentzel and Eric Peabody during the rehearsal and recording process. Further thanks to the Butler Arts and Events Center staff, especially Aaron Hurd, Kelsey Dunn, and Joey Wever for support and access to the Eidson Duckwall Recital Hall. Finally, our most heartfelt thanks to Christopher Johnson for permission to record and publish Rebecca Clarke’s beautiful duets. Thank you for listening to our recording.

— The artists