Canciones de Lorca, Prometheus

Released by Naxos in 2015, this recording captures William Bolcom's large-scale settings of Federico García Lorca’s poetry. The project emerged from a collaboration between the Pacific Symphony Orchestra and the Pacific Chorale under the baton of Carl St. Clair, aiming to preserve these demanding, lyrical vocal works. Bolcom, a Pulitzer Prize-winning composer, is known for his ability to bridge the gap between classical structures and popular musical idioms, and these works reflect his deep engagement with the surreal, haunting imagery of the Spanish poet.

The recording features tenor René Barbera and pianist Jeffrey Biegel, whose performances were meticulously captured to reflect the intimate, dramatic shifts within the cycle. Upon its release, the album was noted by critics for its technical clarity and for providing a definitive recorded interpretation of Bolcom’s complex orchestration. Naxos, committed to expanding the recorded repertoire of 20th and 21st-century American composers, positioned this disc as a significant contribution to the choral-orchestral canon.