Cavafy Songs

for soprano, viola, and piano (2023, rev. 2024-2026)

I was initially not interested by Cavafy’s poetry, when it was first brought to my attention by a commissioning opportunity by the Cavafy Foundation. Later, however, my opinion has changed. The elusive character of his writing is not only facilitative to an imaginative reading and rereading, but also opens the text up to the musical re-imagination.

This set of Cavafy Songs is the first composition I started in Houston, in August 2023. I finished the first draft very quickly (in about 1.5 months), but then spent 2 years revising it, until the present state in 2026.

The initial version was premiered in 2023 by Soprano Julia Holoman, Jimmy Cunningham on viola, and Betty Singyat Chen on piano. The current recording features soprano Jenna Kreider, Ho Fei Ng on viola, and Jake Barren on Piano, under the direction of composer/conductor Paul Mortilla.

Link to recording: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1_g_G1kyCc5YuaRcCT8uiYGptuxkeSSVo/view?usp=sharing

Link to score: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1PaDuQ_Pn92JlGkBXuOlB2lZZhbfMYUSR/view?usp=sharing