SKU: FG.55011-857-7

Žibuoklė Martinaitytė tells about the background of Aletheia (2022) for mixed choir (SSSSAAAATTTTBBBB): Aletheia is variously translated from Greek as unconcealedness, revealing or unclosedness. It is uncovering of the Truth - the one we are afraid to face, the truth that can only be expressed directly through the pre-verbal communication. How do you find words for the horrors of the war, for all unimaginable global atrocities? How do you even allow yourself to feel it out? Solely through art, through music that offer a safe space and a formalized framework for processing these accumulated complex emotions and sharing them with others in a moment. This piece has no verbal text and it is based on various combinations of vowels and consonants, thus connecting us on a deeper level through the immediate emotional experience.

The war in Ukraine in spring of 2022 had an impact on all of us and shattered my deeply rooted Lithuanian identity. When the freedom is threatened and innocent people are dying, it is hard to make sense out of the reality. Yet there is poetry even in the worst nightmares. I was imagining that the only instrument people have even in situations of destruction, in the midst of the war, is their VOICE. It brought back memories of my youth when Singing revolution was taking place in the Baltic countries. Human voice was the only weapon that people used to express their determination for freedom and independence. Voice is our first and the very last instrument we have in our lifetime. Thinking in these terms brings almost a sacred dimension to the voice as an expression of the life itself - from the very first baby's scream until the last breath and whisper.

Duration c. 15'

The works of New York -based Lithuanian composer Žibuoklė Martinaitytė (b. 1973) have been lauded as breathtaking and profoundly moving. Her stimulating music bristles with energy and tension and revolves often around the subject of beauty, which she calls both a guiding principle and an aesthetic measure for sonic quality.

SKU: PR.114422190

ISBN 9781491134276. UPC: 680160684649. 9 x 12 inches.

PRAYER FOR A DAMAGED WORLD is, above all, a very beautiful and innocent melody for Bass Flute, supported by a gentle piano accompaniment – neither of which is technically demanding. Composed as a plea during the challenging summer of 2020, the work is a moving introduction to the lyrical and sonorous richness of the Bass Flute.

SKU: AP.6-780376

ISBN 9780486780375. English.

Safe within their cocoons, butterflies only become vulnerable when they emerge to enchant the world with their beauty. Madama Butterfly has been breaking hearts for over a century with its tragic tale of an innocent Japanese girl who abandons her faith and her family to marry an American naval lieutenant. Giacomo Puccini created a dozen operas, many of them rooted in his fascination with exotic lands and foreign cultures. Inspired by a London performance of one-act play by American playwright David Belasco, the composer developed an emotionally charged musical score to accompany this tale of devotion, tradition, and sacrifice. The opera's most famous aria, Un bel dí vedremo (One beautiful day, we will see), in which the heroine professes her faith in her lover, ranks among the most popular works in the soprano repertoire. Dovunque al mondo (Throughout the world) characterizes Butterfly's American officer with a musical theme based on The Star Spangled Banner. Other highlights include the endings of each of the three acts: the extended love duet Vogliatemi bene (Love me, please.); the wordless beauty of Coro a bocca chiusa, (Humming Chorus); and the climactic aria Con onor muore (To die with honor). This authoritative 1906 edition of one the world's most beloved operas features the original Italian lyrics.