recordings

Released Today: “Oh, the OF It All!” Mini Ballet (With Orchestra Video)

This entry was posted in new works recordings travelogue on January 30, 2023 by marybichner

(Album art by: John J King / Video screenshot by: The Budapest Scoring Orchestra)

Exciting news! “Oh, the OF It All!“, a nine-minute orchestral mini-ballet composed by Mary Bichner, is released today! Based on the wonderful libretto by playwright John J King, “Oh, the OF It All!” tells the tale of American illustrator/author Edward Gorey and his fondness for choreographer George Balanchine’s days at the New York City Ballet.

“Oh, the OF It All!” was performed and recorded BEAUTIFULLY by the amazing Budapest Scoring Orchestra at Rottenbiller Studio in Budapest, Hungary in October 2022; with mixing and mastering by the fantastic Peter Moore at Palace of Purpose Studios in Malden, MA, USA.

Here is a video featuring live footage of the session filmed and edited by the Budapest Scoring Orchestra’s video team, paired with the ballet’s libretto text so that you can follow along with story:

The audio track can also be purchased via Mary’s Bandcamp…:

<a href="https://marybichner.bandcamp.com/track/oh-the-of-it-all-a-miniature-ballet">Oh, the OF It All! [A Miniature Ballet] by Mary Bichner</a>

…or streamed via popular streaming services such as Spotify, Apple Music, YouTube Music, and more:

“Oh, the OF IT All!” is arranged for a traditional mid-sized ballet orchestra consisting of: 2 flutes (flute + flute/piccolo), 2 oboes (oboe + oboe/English horn), 2 clarinets (clarinet + bass clarinet), 2 bassoons (bassoon + bassoon/contrabassoon), 4 horns, 2 trumpets, 3 trombones (2 tenor + 1 bass), tuba, timpani, percussion (snare drum, triangle, gong), piano, celesta, harp, and string orchestra.

For booking and inquiries, please contact either composer Mary Bichner ( info [at] marybichner [dot] com ) or librettist John J King ( johnjking80 [at] gmail [dot] com ).

Thank you so much for listening, and Mary and John both hope you enjoy “Oh, the OF It All!”

Live Videos from the Tours, France Edition of “Rencontres Poétiques” Now on YouTube

This entry was posted in new works performances recordings the memoirs of antonina travelogue on December 26, 2022 by marybichner

Greetings all! Just a heads up that some live videos from the French edition of Christina Goh and Mary Bichner’s Rencontres Poétiques collaborative poetry concert series are now on YouTube!

This second concert in the series took place at La Salle Jean de Ockeghem in Tours, France on October 22nd, 2022; and featured guest performances by medieval troupe Les Passeurs de Légendes, actress Justine Calais-Gillot, and baroque lyric soprano Betsabée Haas (who very beautifully performed the European premiere of Mary’s aria, “If I Could Live My Life Again”, from the opera “The Memoirs of Antonina“). The set also includes a video for the unreleased “À la seine”, a new musical setting of the Marceline Desbordes-Valmore poem of the same name that Mary composed especially for Rencontres Poétiques, performed as a duet by Mary and Christina:

For more information on Rencontres Poétiques, you can check out the official info page right here:

https://www.marybichner.com/rencontrespoetiques/

Thank you so much for everyone who joined us for this concert, and we look forward to more editions of Rencontres Poétiques in the future! Lots of love and wishing everyone a very happy new year!

“Oh, the OF It All!” Orchestral Recording Coming In Early 2023 + Travelouge Part II: Recording with the Budapest Scoring Orchestra in Budapest, Hungary

This entry was posted in new works recordings travelogue on November 3, 2022 by marybichner

Exciting news! An audio recording of “Oh, the OF It All!“, the ten-minute orchestral ballet that Mary composed for John J King’s stunning libretto about American illustrator/author Edward Gorey (and his fondness for George Balanchine’s years at the New York City Ballet), will be available in early 2023. The piece was recorded late last month by the wonderful Budapest Scoring Orchestra at Rottenbiller Studio in Budapest, Hungary. Here’s a little video clip from the session!:

More info of on “Oh, the OF It All!” (including the orchestral score, the ballet libretto, and a MIDI rendering of the audio) can be found HERE, and an official release date for the recording will be announced in the coming weeks. THANK YOU so much to Balint, Peter, Viktor, Norbert, and the entire Budapest Scoring Orchestra and team for such a fantastic recording session experience!

While in Hungary for the session, Mary was also lucky to have some free time to explore the beautiful city of Budapest. Here are a few photos from her visit!:

Synesthetic Study: Városliget (City Park) in the Key of G Major (vibrant green, vibrant orange, pale green)

Synesthetic Study: Palace District in the Key of C Minor (vibrant yellow, deep jewel-toned blue, grass green)

Wishing everyone a wonderful end to your 2022, and looking forward to sharing the new recording for “Oh, the OF It All!” very soon!

All Past Music Releases Added to Streaming Services

This entry was posted in recordings on May 9, 2022 by marybichner

Hooray! All ten of Mary’s past recording releases — including albums, EPs, and singles from Mary as a solo artist as well as in collaboration with Box Five (her old rock band), Planetary Quartet (her current double-viola string quartet ensemble), and Mount Auburn Cemetery (where she served as composer-in-residence from 2016-2017) — are now on streaming services! Simply search “Mary Bichner” on your favorite streaming app such as Spotify, Amazon, Apple Music, Instagram, YouTubeMusic, Pandora, Snapchat, Tidal, TikTok, and more.

THANK YOU to all of the wonderful musicians, engineers, visual artists, and more that made all of these recordings possible, and brought them to life!

Wishing everyone a lovely week, and talk to you soon!

Guest Singer on Christina Goh’s “Double Trinome”, Released Today

This entry was posted in recordings travelogue on October 4, 2021 by marybichner

( Photo by: Christina Goh )

“Double Trinome”, the new EP by French composer, singer, and poet Christina Goh, is released today! The EP features special trio versions of two of Christina’s compositions, “C’est un jeu” (with musical guests G.K. Noland and Catherine Capozzi) and “Ut Fortis” (with musical guests Mary Bichner & David Perraudin). The EP is free and can be downloaded via the Christina Goh website right here:

https://utfortis.christinagoh.com/deux-trios-pour-lespoir-et-un-opus

And here is the press release, translated from French to English:

“Vocalists Christina Goh, Mary Bichner, GK Noland and guitarists David Perraudin and Catherine Capozzi cover two tracks from the Ut Fortis show. Double trinomial because in this opus, guitars and vocals express their emotions in the same way.

“To say thank you to all those who have followed over two years the realization of the international and solidarity show bringing together artists from totally different universes.

“Your choice: High resolution download directly and exclusively via the Ut Fortis site but also future listening on your favorite platforms.”

Mary recorded her vocals while visiting Tours, France in June 2021 for the “Ut Fortis” live concert.

THANK YOU so much to the wonderful Christina Goh for inviting Mary to collaborate on this beautiful EP, and we hope you all enjoy “Double Trinome”!

Christina Goh’s “Ut Fortis” Project in French Newspaper La Nouvelle République; Concert Rebroadcast by TV Tours Val de Loire on July 11th

This entry was posted in performances press recordings travelogue on June 29, 2021 by marybichner

On June 23rd 2021, the French newspaper La Nouvelle République published a write-up on Christina Goh’s powerful and meaningful live concert centered on the topic of suicide prevention, the “Ut Fortis” project. Mary is honored to be mentioned in the article, which discusses “Ut Fortis” as well as Christina’s and Mary’s music work together.

Here a link to the original article in French:
https://www.lanouvellerepublique.fr/tours/musique-en-couleur-pour-prevenir-le-suicide

And here is an English translation of the article:

“On June 9, the VIES 37 network (Living and intervening together in the face of suicide) organized a masterclass at the Institut de Touraine with Mary Bichner, guest composer of the Ut Fortis artistic project. Originally from Boston, she is the author of the Synesthesia Suite, with the Boston Museum of Sciences, and the composer of the opera The Memoirs of Antonina on Queen Marie Antoinette. In this context, a series of poetry workshops were conducted by the poet Christina Goh, initiator of Ut Fortis, with the students of the Institute. This is the first time that they have been together on stage in France, brought together by this solidarity project for suicide prevention. Colors are everywhere in the creations of Mary Bichner, synaesthete, synaesthesia being that particularity that allows some people to “see” music, to associate letters or tastes with colors. The final show will be broadcast in July, and from September, made available free of charge and on request to structures that so wish. — http://www.utfortis.com“

As mentioned in the write-up, a televised re-broadcast of the concert will air on TV Tours Val de Loire on Sunday, July 11th at 2:45PM Eastern Time [ET] / 8:45PM Central European Summer Time [CEST]; featuring performances by Christina Goh, Catherine Capozzi, Gotham Aymar, G.K, Les Passeurs de Legendes, Maxime Perrin, Noah Preminger, Jacques Moury Beauchamp, and Mary Bichner. You’ll be able to stream the broadcast on July 11th @ 2:45PM ET / 8:45PM CEST via TVTours website right here:

https://www.tvtours.fr/

Thank you so much to La Nouvelle République for this article, and for spreading the word about “Ut Fortis”! And thank you so much to TV Tours Val de Loire for bringing “Ut Fortis” to the airwaves — we hope you will join us for the broadcast!

Travelogue: Ut Fortis Concert June 11, Institut de Touraine Masterclass June 9, and Studio Concept Prod Recording Session June 8 in Tours, France

This entry was posted in performances recordings travelogue on June 25, 2021 by marybichner

(“Ut Fortis” Concert Finale / Photo by: Sabine Soury-Poussard)

From June 5th-13th 2021, Mary was honored to visit the city of Tours, France to perform in composer Christina Goh’s Ut Fortis concert; a multi-media, multi-artist event centered on the important topic of suicide prevention. While in Tours, Mary was also honored to give a presentation of her work at the Institut de Touraine as part of their masterclass series, as well as record vocals for the Christina Goh song “Ut Fortis” at David Perraudin’s Studio Concept Prod. Here are some photos from the week:

* * * * * * *

JUNE 8TH, 2021: “UT FORTIS” RECORDING SESSION AT DAVID PERRAUDIN’S STUDIO CONCEPT PROD:

(Christina Goh records the French-language verse of her composition, “Ut Fortis”)

(Mary records the English-language verse of the Christina Goh composition, “Ut Fortis”)

(A post-recording session selfie with Julien Legado, Gotham Aymar, David Perraudin, and Christina Goh!)

JUNE 9TH, 2021: “COMPOSITION AND SYNESTHESIA” MASTERCLASS PRESENTATION AT THE INSTITUT DE TOURAINE

(Top photo: Mary meets with the Institut’s president, Thierry Peltreau / Middle photo: Masterclass at the Institut de Touraine / Bottom photo: A post-event party with new friends at the Institut!)

JUNE 11TH, 2021: “UT FORTIS” CONCERT AT THE UNIVERSITÉ DE TOURS