Anika Kildegaard, soprano
Gabi Vanek, electronics/mixing

Psalms 130 : 1-3, 5-6.

Mima’amakim k’raticha Havayah
Havayah shim’ah v’koli ti’yenah oznecha, kashuvot-- l’kol tachanunai.
Im avonot tishmor Yah-- Havayah mi ya’amod.
Kiviti Havayah kivtah nafshi ; v’lidvaro hochalti
Nafshi la’Havayah mishomrim laboker, shomrim laboker.

From the depths I call to you, Great Existence.
Great Existence, hear my voice. Let your ears be attentive to my cry for mercy.
If you kept a record of our sins, Great Existence, who would stand?
I wait for the Great Existence, my whole being waits; and in their word do I hope.
My soul waits for the Great Existence, more than watchmen
for the morning, watchmen for the morning.

Mima'amakim - solo soprano and fixed media electronics - (2019)

I mean you no harm (2020-2021) for mixed chamber ensemble

Premiered on Wednesday, December 15, 2021 at the First Presbyterian Church of Ypsilanti, MI.

Emily Ji, clarinet
Jeremy Howell, alto saxophone / Tibetan Singing Bowls
Reed Puleo, percussion
Celia van den Bogert, harp
Karalyn Schubring, piano
Alex Anest, guitar
Kaitlyn Walker, viola
Helen LaGrand, cello
Stephen Castiglione, double bass
Alexia Benson, soprano
Pelagia Pamel, alto
Nicholas Music, tenor
Grey Grant, bass

Audio/Video Recording by Solid Sound Recording Company 
Ann Arbor, MI. 
Lisa Tar and Eric Wojahn, engineers

"I mean you no harm" is a work for mixed chamber ensemble (cl, asax, perc, hp, pno, gtr, vla, vlc, db, SATB choir) composed with the intent of alleviating stress and down-regulating the sympathetic nervous system based on studies and research at the intersection of music, neurology, and meditation and healing. In this work, I focus on utilizing and applying proven techniques for healing such as binaural beating and auditory entrainment while amplifying the healing power of extra-musical experiences such as those available to us in the natural world and in mystical and spiritual practices such as Kabbalah and meditation. I attempt to accomplish this by means of the use of timbre, pulse, atmosphere, and the manipulation of the overtone series to create a meditative and healing sonic space.
Some of the Jewish teachings I have embraced since my childhood, such as caring for and loving the earth and performing acts of loving-kindness, are exemplified in the teachings and actions of Kabbalah and those who practice it. One of the fundamental questions of Kabbalah is how can we each properly attune ourselves to the earth, to Havayah (the Great Existence), to the S’firot (emanations of Havayah between the physical and metaphysical realms), and to each other. While the answers lay deeply within each of us and scattered throughout the universe, I aspire that this work might help us each attune to each other, to the depths of the universe, and to our own selves.
While the “standard” unit of time measurement in a piece of classical music is beats per minute within a given time signature, the unit of time measurement in this work is in seconds as dictated by synchronous stopwatches for each performer in the ensemble. The work is to be performed sans conductor; each sonic event will act as a cue for the subsequent sound in the score. The performers are to be distanced and spatialized in individual groupings within the physical space for performance by instrument family. This lends the opportunity to re-figure the role of “concert-goer” as that of “meditator/participant” with agency over individual experience. Each individual has the freedom to discover which individual performer or group of timbres generated by the ensemble resonate best within them, and to move freely throughout the space. It is my utmost hope that in these current treacherous times of uncertainty or any perilous moments we may endure in the future, that this work be a catharsis and a release for anyone who participates, meditates, or listens.

I mean you no harm - mixed chamber ensemble - (2021)

their keen and watchful eye
for double bass septet
(2020)

Commissioned by the Tanglewood Music Center for the 2020 double bass fellows, and performed by the 2022 double bass fellows

Tobias Vigneau, bass 1
Kebra-Seyoun Charles, bass 2
Jesse Dale, bass 3
Andres Vela, bass 4
Ethan Moffitt, bass 5
Christopher Laven, bass 6
Luis Arturo Celis Avila, bass 7
Nicolò Umberto Foron, conductor

7.10.2022, Seiji Ozawa Hall, Tanglewood Music Center, Lenox, Massachusetts

they blossom soundful
but the hush illuminates
me in almaya.
maybe someone will be my fantasy?
-Ari Sussman (2019/20)


note: the title of this work is adapted and borrowed from "The Wolves" by Watchhouse (formally known as "Mandolin Orange")

their keen and watchful eye - double bass septet - (2020)

"I hope this finds you well"
for orchestra 
(2022)

Commissioned by the New York Youth Symphony as part of the First Music program.

2.2.2.2, 4.2.3.1, timp+3 perc, piano, strings

The COVID-19 pandemic has greatly affected humanity in numerous ways; the physical, physiological, mental, psychological, and emotional tolls that the pandemic has created and exacerbated have become great sources of stress and anxiety for many, including myself. While sources of global, substantial, and sustainable healing are difficult to find, I always remind myself and the people in my life
that empathy always endures; we were and are never alone in experiencing the affliction that the pandemic and other calamities inflicted on each of us. I hope this finds you well is a work for orchestra based on a newfound practice in empathy and solace I began shortly after the pandemic ensued; I started composing texts and e-mails to friends, colleagues, mentors, and family with the phrase “I hope this finds you well.” It was (and is) the hope that this phrase, while merely an idiom, would provide some compassion to its reader in a time of tumult. In turn, I hope that this music provides some compassion to its listener in any given time of tumult.

Premiered on 11.20.2022
Carnegie Hall, New York, NY.
New York Youth Symphony
Michael Repper, conductor

This recording is a NYYS rehearsal recording at the DiMenna Center for Classical Music in New York, NY. It is NOT the premiere recording in Carnegie Hall

"I hope this finds you well" for orchestra - (2022)

for all we know (2022) | ari sussman 
208 ensemble 

"through millions of souls
I tessellate arcana
till the final stitch"

commissioned by 208 ensemble in 2019 as part of our Avant Garden project, designed to cultivate an accessible, collaborative environment for the creation and performance of contemporary art. "for all we know" was premiered as part of State of the Art in February 2023 and recorded shortly thereafter.

208 ensemble:
Geoffrey Hill, violin
Emily Jones, viola
Jake Saunders, cello
Stephanie Joy Zickau, piano
Riley Johnson, keyboard + vocals
Enrique Martinez, percussion

Audio + Video by Galle Studios 

performed at First Presbyterian Church Boise | Boise, ID
February 2023

"for all we know" - for chamber ensemble - (2022)

run away with me (2023) | ari sussman

emerald orbs and twinkle;
forget me not, my Daffodil, and
run away with me

Carina Yee, violin
Mark Stewart, guitar
Madeline Hildebrand, piano

Kathryn Vetter, audio

performed at MassMoCA during the Bang on a Can Summer Festival | North Adams, MA., 7.26.2023

"run away with me" - for violin, guitar, and piano - (2023)

Everyone that pursues music has that one song that they have a special connection to. This is mine. I've been playing this piece for 10 years, and every performance is always incredibly enlightening. I don't get to play the piano as much as I used to since I entered Conservatory as a Composition major, but performing this piece never gets old. I hope you enjoy my performance (recorded from my phone in an empty Williams Hall at NEC, 10/14/14)


Franz Schubert - Impromptu in G Flat Major (Op. 90 No. 3 - D. 899/3)

Yih'yu L'Ratzon (2017)

SATB/SATB Acappella Double Chorus

Performed by the KC VITAs Chamber Choir
Mr. Jackson Thomas, conductor

Originally derived from the Psalms, Yih’yu L’Ratzon is commonly known as the penultimate line of the Amidah, the central prayer of each of the three daily services in the Jewish tradition. In the Amidah, the Yih’yu L’Ratzon is succeeded only by the Oseh Shalom (the prayer for peace). While the Oseh Shalom is one of the most celebrated texts in Jewish liturgy, it has no direct mention of God; rather, God is merely referred to as ‘the maker of peace.’ This results in a prayer that celebrates and honors both universality and a global hope for peace. In contrast, the Yih’yu L’Ratzon strongly emphasizes the first person and the self, particularly with direct mentions of God as my rock and my redeemer. In Judaism, the intimate but individualized focuses of the self and of one’s community are highly emphasized in an environment of prayer. As the Oseh Shalom celebrates universality and the hope for peace in a communal fashion, the Yih’yu L’Ratzon becomes the final opportunity in the Amidah (and one could argue the only opportunity) for a brief but earnest moment of personal prayer, meditation, supplication, and reflection. This setting of Yih’yu L’Ratzon is a meditation and an incantation of this beautiful prayer.

TEXT (translation):
"May it be desired that the words of my mouth and the meditations of my heart be acceptable to you, Lord, my rock and my redeemer."

Artwork:
David Baruch Wolk
“Blessed is He Who Redeems and Rescues, Blessed is His Name” (From the Morning Prayers)
(Oil on Canvas, 2013).
Used with gracious permission from the Artist

Yih'yu L'Ratzon - יהיו לרצון - SATB/SATB double acappella chorus - (2017)

Aurora, for flute, clarinet, violin, cello, piano, and percussion.

Carlos Aguilar, flute
Adam Floyd, clarinet
Sophie Wang, violin
Nitzan Gal, cello
Jacob Mason, piano
Alex Garde, percussion
Ari Sussman, conductor

Premiere:
New England Conservatory of Music
Jordan Hall, 9.19.17

In verdure and light,
Aurora soars and hears our
own vibrant colors.

Aurora - chamber ensemble - (2017)

Kol Galgal - (2017) - for orchestra

2.3.2.2 , 4.3.3.1, shofar, timpani + 3 perc, harp, piano, strings

NEC Philharmonia, 12.8.17, Jordan Hall.
Gavin Wright, shofar
Stuart Ryerse, piano
Matthew Szymanski, conductor

Winner of a BMI Student Composer Award in 2018.

The text of Kol Galgal is found in the Zohar, the foundational writings of Kabbalah, or Jewish mysticism. Often attributed to Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai in second-century ancient Israel, the Zohar was codified and first published in a combination of medieval Aramaic and Hebrew by Rabbi Moses de León in fourteenth-century Spain. The Zohar is a group of books that include commentaries on the Torah (the five books of Moses), and dialogues of the mystical and spiritual origin and nature of God, mythical cosmogony, and mystical psychology. It is understood that only those with high degrees of spiritual perception are permitted to study the Zohar, and that the Zohar is a guide of actions to discover deeper and elevated states of spiritual and metaphysical awareness. One of the most important elements of study of the Zohar is the understanding of the Sefirot, or ‘emanations.’ The Sefirot are ten attributes in which God reveals and manifests itself and continuously creates and maintains the physical, spiritual, and metaphysical realms. The Sefirot are the essence of our existence and our co-existence with God, or the Ein Sof, ‘the Infinite one.’ They are directly referenced in the text of Kol Galgal, which is as follows:

Kol Galgal hamitgalgel mimatah l’malah, merchovot stomot holchot u’mitgalg’lot. Kol n’imot oleh v’yored, holech u’m’shotet ba’olam.
Kol shofar nimshach b’omkei hamad’r’got, u’m’sovev hagalgal saviv.

The voice of the wheel rolls from low to high, as obstructed chariots wander and roll. The voices of melodies rise and fall as they wander and encircle the universe. The voice of the Shofar reverberates through the depths of the Sefirot, and they keep the wheel turning.

Kol Galgal expresses a physical, spiritual, and metaphysical universe in constant perpetual motion. It is a universe in which we all have the capability and headspace to be a part of and to be one with. The in-depth study of this text and other Kabbalistic texts have resonated greatly with me. Perhaps it is that I am named for Rabbi Isaac Luria, also known as ‘HaAri,’ the 16th century father of modern Kabbalah.

Kol Galgal - orchestra - (2017)

'needless to say'
for string quartet - 2018

performed by Ensemble Ipse
Esther Noh, violin I
Emilie-Anne Gendron, violin II
Stephanie Griffin, viola
Hamilton Berry, cello

Areté Venue and Gallery | Brooklyn, NY.
12.4.18

let the mind’s ear stray,
tremor’s realm. needless to say -
don’t say anything

needless to say - string quartet - (2018) - (Ensemble Ipse)

'needless to say'
for string quartet - 2017

performed by the New Fromm Chamber Players
Chi Li, violin I
Xiaofan Liu, violin II
Sam Pedersen, viola
Sonia Mantell, cello

Tanglewood Music Center, Seiji Ozawa Hall
7.28.19

let the mind’s ear stray,
tremor’s realm. needless to say -
don’t say anything

2019-07-28 1000AM CD1

needless to say - string quartet - Tanglewood New Fromm Chamber Players - (2019)

Higaleh Nah
for soprano solo, viola, SATB chorus, and piano
(2018)

Winner of the University of Michigan 2019 Brehm Prize in Choral Composition and a 2021 ASCAP Foundation Morton Gould Young Composers Award

University of Michigan Chamber Choir
Maggie Burk, solo soprano
Jimmy Cunningham, solo viola
Scott VanOrnum, piano
Eugene Rogers, conductor
(9.21.2019, Hill Auditorium, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan).

Y’did Nefesh is a Jewish liturgical poem, or piyut, in four stanzas. The poem is commonly attributed to the 16th century Kabbalist, writer, and poet Rabbi Elazar ben Moshe Azkari, and is typically sung and prayed during Kabbalat Shabbat, the Friday night Sabbath service. The Higaleh Nah stanza is the fourth and final stanza of this stunning piyut.

"Higaleh nah u’fros, chaviv alai et sukat sh’lomach, tair eretz mi’k’vodach, nagilah v’nis’mechah vach, maher ahuv ki va moed
v’choneini kimei olam, almaya…"

"Please, reveal yourself, my beloved, and spread upon me the shelter of Your peace. Illuminate the earth with Your glory, so that we may celebrate and rejoice within You. Quickly, my love, for the time has come. Have mercy on me for all days, forever."

Higaleh Nah - soprano solo, viola, SATB chorus, and piano - (2018)

Do you have a face?
for solo piano
(2019)

University of Michigan School of Music, Theatre, and Dance - Britton Recital Hall - 10.7.2019
Ari Sussman, piano

Through the filaments,
amongst the shapes before me,
The Ghosts mince and grin.
-Ari Sussman

Do you have a face? - solo piano - (2019)

Composed in the summer of 2012 while sick in bed, I composed this Oseh Shalom in order to express peace through music via a beautiful yet simple melody.  Oseh Shalom, meaning “He who makes peace” is one of the most well-known and celebrated Hebrew texts. The prayer concludes the “Amidah,” which is the longest and most important section of the daily Jewish prayer service. 

Premiere Performance: October 23, 2012 - New England Conservatory - Williams Hall – Class of 2016 Vocal Performance Majors


Oseh Shalom - SATB acappella chorus - (2012)

pianist, banjoist, composer
PHL → BOS → A2 → PHL
👨‍🎓 NEC | UMich 
💼 TempleU (Boyer) | WCUPA (Wells)

Ari Sussman

Pinned to spotlight

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