This is live recording from the concert "There Is a Magic Made by Melody", presented at the historic St. Joseph of Arimathea Episcopal Church in White Plains in December 20 of 2014. The duo is accompanied by Sofya Melikyan. "The Wedding Gift of Pirate Granny" (music by composer-soprano Alla Borzova, libretto by David Johnston) is a comic chamber opera in three scenes scored for three singers: soprano, mezzo-soprano, and tenor. The time is the late 17th century, on the island of Far Tortuga, in the Caribbean. In the first scene, ELIZABETH (soprano), a respectable young school teacher is about to marry Jack, a former pirate, who promised his bride to give up piracy. However, Elizabeth finds him looking for a map, that belonged to her notorious grandmother, PIRATE GRANNY (mezzo-soprano), the Buccaneer Queen of the Spanish Main. Elizabeth convinces Jack that the map is not real, but, when he leaves, she realizes that as much as she has tried to be good, she is longing for GRANNY’s life of piracy and adventure. ELIZABETH knows that the map is in the prayer book, a gift from GRANNY, and decides to rid herself of the map, thereby never being tempted again to piracy. In the second scene she kneels at PIRATE GRANNY’s grave and begs her forgiveness for returning her gift (opening aria "I miss you, Granny"). The ghost of PIRATE GRANNY appears, and refuses to take the book back, informing ELIZABETH that the book is to remind her of her true self.(Aria "They're wrong if they tell you that crime don't pay.") PIRATE GRANNY shows her the map, opening her eyes. (Duet "Don't you want to be a pirate, just like Granny?")

The 2nd scene from the comic chamber opera "The Wedding Gift Of Pirate Granny" by Alla Borzova

This is live recording from the concert "There Is a Magic Made by Melody", presented at the historic St. Joseph of Arimathea Episcopal Church in White Plains in December 20 of 2014. The duo is accompanied by Sofya Melikyan. The cycle" Dark Songs" by composer Beth Anderson (poems by Dana Gioia) consist of three songs for duet of soprano and mezzo soprano. Composer writes: "The cycle's title is derived from the fact that these three songs are alternately sinister, randy, and violent. In the Alley Cat Love Song" two female cats are expressing their interest in "seeing" their friend Fred. The music is jazzy with multiphonics."

"Alley Cat Love Song" by Beth Anderson, poem by Dana Gioia

"The rose" is a song setting by American composer Theodore Chanler (1902-1961) to a poem by Father Leonard Feeney. It is an excerpt from the song cycle "The children", dated 1945.



"The Rose" by Theodore Chanler, poem by Father Leonard Feeney

This is live recording form the Liederkrantz Foundation, March 21, 2015, Nataliya Medvedovskaya on the piano.  Composer writes: In “Carousel” I used a traditional song form of verse-chorus/refrain which are clearly shown in the poems. The song is full of excitement and joy of holidays, bright color harmonies and syncopated rhythms.




"Carousel" by Nataliya Medvedovskaya, poem by Federico Garcia Lorca

This is live recording from the concert "There Is a Magic Made by Melody", presented at the historic St. Joseph of Arimathea Episcopal Church in White Plains in December 20 of 2014. The duo is accompanied by Sofya Melikyan. Duet “Classical Roses” is a final song of the vocal cycle Chanson Russe (composer Alexander Dmitriev, poems by Igor Severyanin). 
Once, when the dreams would bloom - the times were those -
In peoples hearts, transparent and aflame,
How fresh, how beautiful have been the roses
Of my love, of my spring, and of my fame!

The years have passed, many a tear flows -
The country and its people all are lost.
How fresh, how beautiful are now the roses
Of memories of my delightful past!

But days go by, and thunders in repose.
Russia is seeking pathways to go home.
How fresh, how beautiful will be the roses
That my country will throw upon my tomb! 
                                              -Igor Severyanin 
                          (Translated by Ilya Shambat)



"Classical Roses"  by Alexander Dmitriev, poem by Igor Severyanin

This is live recording from the concert "There Is a Magic Made by Melody", presented at the historic St. Joseph of Arimathea Episcopal Church in White Plains in December 20 of 2014. The duo is accompanied by Sofya Melikyan. “Chanson Russe” (composer Alexander Dmitriev, poem by Igor Severyanin) is the second song of the cycle of songs of the same title.  The poem tells a story of a young peasant woman, who misbehaved while her old drunkard husband went away.  The entire village was shaken, women hid their husbands, and even the bell-ringer fell from the bell tower.

"Chanson Russe" by Alexander Dmitriev, poem by Igor Severyanin

This is live recording from the concert "There Is a Magic Made by Melody", presented at the historic St. Joseph of Arimathea Episcopal Church in White Plains in December 20 of 2014. The duo is accompanied by Sofya Melikyan. Composer writes: “Blue Sky” a scene from a theatre work titled Subway Suite in which a young Asian girl, a new immigrant to the United States, is about to have her first ride on the subway.  She enters the car and takes a seat by a window.  She has been told by her Mother that, although she cannot read or understand English, she will recognize the stop where she must get off the train, because it is the only stop where she will be able to see the sky.  She  keeps looking out the window and trying to remember everything her Mother told her.   We see her Mother standing off to one side of the stage outside the train.  Perhaps she is only in the mind of the young girl.   The scene ends when the train reaches the end of the line without her ever seeing the sky, since she has gotten on the wrong train.  However, a nice Conductor comes to her rescue and sees that she gets on the right train."

"Blue Sky" by Julie Mandel

This is live recording from the concert "There Is a Magic Made by Melody", presented at the historic St. Joseph of Arimathea Episcopal Church in White Plains in December 20 of 2014. The duo is accompanied by Sofya Melikyan. Born in Vienna circa 1707, Italian composer Camilla de Rossi  wrote this duet for her oratorio "Santa Beatrice d'Este". In this duo St.Beatrice and her friend, St.Guliana consider the rewards of saintliness.  The oratorio is a story of a 12th century saint of the d'Este family, who chose martyrdom rather then leaving her convent to marry the tyrant Ezzelion, who was at war with the d’Este prince.

"Quanto mi consola" by Camilla de Rossi

The Borzova-Tonna Vocal Duo with soprano-composer Alla Borzova and mezzo-soprano Anna Tonna, debuted in 2014 with the purpose showcasing vocal chamber music from the Renaissance to contemporary, with special attention to music by historical and contemporary women composers. The duo debuted at the historic St. Joseph of Arimathea Episcopal Church in White Plains New York with “There is a Magic Made by Melody...”, a program that highlighted vocal works by both historical and contemporary women composers. The concert was sponsored by the New York Women Composers, Inc., and included works by Hilary Tann, Beth Anderson, Nataliya Medvedovskaya, Juliana Hall, Julie Mandel, Nailah Nombeko and Alla Borzova, as well as historical composers such as Camilla de Rossi and Isabella Colbran. They have also bowed with the Aviva Chamber Players at The National Opera Center in New York City, performing a scene from Alla Borzova’s chamber comic opera The Wedding Gift of Pirate Granny. 

Alla Borzova is a musician of many hats: composer, conductor, pianist, organist and singer (lyric coloratura soprano). A composer of international reputation, Alla Borzova is a winner of several compositions competitions (All-Union Composition Contest before her arrival in the U.S. in 1993 and the Delius International Composition Contest), a recipient of the Goddard Lieberson Fellowship from the American Academy of Arts and Letters, awards from various foundations (Copland Recording Program, Susan Rose Recording Award, NYSCA, Meet the Composer) and residencies (Yaddo and Brahmshaus in Germany). Two all-Borzova CDs include orchestral music: cantata Songs for Lada and To The New World (Naxos 2012), recorded by the Detroit Symphony Orchestra under Leonard Slatkin; and chamber music (“Pinsk & Blue”, Albany Records 2007), recorded by the Naumburg Award winning ensemble Da Capo Chamber Players. Recent solo voice engagements included performances at the National Opera Center, Bard College, and Liederkrantz Foundation.
 
A former Fulbright Scholar to Spain, American mezzo soprano Anna Tonna combines her operatic career with concerts appearances as a recitalist both in the US and in Europe as a specialist in the music of Spain and Latin America. She can be heard in her disc “The songs of Julio Gómez” with label Verso and her upcoming disc “España alla Rossini” which debuts this fall with disc label iTinerant Records. www.annatonna.com



Borzova-Tonna Vocal Duo

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