Songs of Water and the Spring | Virtual Concert Series

Lisa Daehlin, soprano & Tor Morten Kjøsnes, pianist



PROGRAM

Et Håb

from Fem Digte (1876), op.26, no.1

lyrics: John Paulsen, music: Edvard Grieg


Jeg reiste en deilig sommerkvæld

from Fem Digte (1876), op.26, no.2

lyrics: John Paulsen, music: Edvard Grieg


The Saddest (2020)

words: Emily Dickinson, music: Stefania de Kenessey


sweet spring is your time (1995)

poetry: e.e. cummings, music: Ellen Mandel


Willow Song (2014)

words: William Shakespeare, music: Ellen Mandel


Blue Fool (1949)

words & music: Alec Wilder & Bernie Hanighen


It May Be (2020)

words: Wendell Berry, music: Stefania de Kenessey


Ved Gjaetle-Bekken

from Haugtussa (1898), op.67, no.8

lyrics: Arne Garborg, music: Edvard Grieg


Tale of the Oyster

cut from Fifty Million Frenchmen (1929)

words & music: Cole Porter


Shall We Gather at the River

traditional hymn



ABOUT
Soprano LISA DAEHLIN has performed numerous operatic roles including Amelia (Un Ballo in Maschera), Fiordiligi (Cosi Fan Tutte), Tatiana (Eugene Onegin), Angelica (Suor Angelica), Madame Lidoine (Dialogues of the Carmelites), First Lady (Magic Flute) and the High Priestess (Aida). Maestro Richard Woitach cast her to sing the role of Wellgunde (Das Rhinegold), and as his soprano in the concert Woitach and Friends 3-1/2.

In New York City, Lisa performs frequently at St. Paul’s Chapel, Cornelia Street Café, and The Players Club. European concerts in Italy, Germany, and in Scandinavia as an invited singer for the International Edvard Grieg Society in Bergen, Norway. Recent programs include Raining of the Heart, December Songs, All About Eve, Songs of Renewal and the Spring, Move Into the Light, and Transcending Exotic: Embracing Familiar. Her concert repertoire focuses extensively on Norwegian, French and American Chanson, Cabaret and Art Song.

Though known for her rendition of “I’m a Stranger Here Myself,” Lisa is no stranger to the cabaret stage, having performed incarnations of her show From Classical to Cabaret: The songs of Poulenc, Porter, Satie, and Weill in venues as varied as the underground club to the concert hall. She has sung Dorothy Parker songs in the Algonquin’s Oak Room. She has performed the music of Stefania de Kenessey at City Center and with the Annabella Gonzalez Dance Theater at Lincoln Center. The recording project for that company is now used in the performance repertoire. Lisa produced and directed OperaKnit Cabaret at Performance Space 122 (PS122, NYC), and her one-woman show Twisted Stitch: Songs of Love and Knitting was featured in the Classical to Jazz Festival at Cornelia Street Café (NYC), weaving together songs of Edvard Grieg, Franz Schubert, Maury Yeston and a world premier cycle of songs by Stefania de Kenessey.

Recently awarded a Masters Degree in Music and Music Education from the Teachers College of Columbia University, Lisa operates a private voice studio in New York City. www.lisadaehlin.com.

Norwegian pianist TOR MORTEN KJØSNES is an active contributor to the New York music scene as an accompanist, soloist, and chamber musician. He accompanies up-and-coming as well as established ensembles, singers, and instrumentalists. Recent collaborations include legendary Swedish singer Sven-Bertil Taube, Norwegian violinist Arve Tellefsen, trombonist William Lang, and violinist Christian Svarfvar.

Kjøsnes graduated from Manhattan School of Music in 2010, where he studied with Nina Svetlanova. His studies in the U.S. were generously supported by the American Scandinavian Foundation. Earning his undergraduate degree studying with Tori Stødle at the Tromsø Music Conservatory in Norway, he graduated with honors in 2007, one of only a handful pianists to be awarded the top grade in the national censorship. He also held a full-time position as accompanist at the same institution, 2007–08. Additionally, he studied at the Hochschule für Musik und Theater in Hamburg, Germany, with Ralf Nattkemper. Kjøsnes has participated in masterclasses with artists such as Hans Leygraf, Martino Tirimo, Sigurd Slåttebrekk, and Volker Banfield.v