The Brooklyn Art Song Society issued the following press release announcing the world premiere of Marie Incontrera’s new work:

For Immediate Release:

What: Quagmires and the Known Knowns by Marie Incontrera (world-premiere)
When: Tuesday, May 21, 2013, 8 p.m.
Where: Galapagos Art Space, 16 Main Street, Brooklyn, NY 11201 (A, C to High Street; F to Jay Street)
Who: Kate Maroney, mezzo soprano; Brandon Snook, tenor; Paul An, bass; Michael Brofman, Michael Rose, Miori Sugiyama, piano
Price: $20 (21+)
More Info: www.brooklynartsongsociety.org

Brooklyn Art Song Society’s First World-Premiere Commission

Brooklyn Art Song Society (BASS) is proud to present its first commissioned work as part of its New Voices series: Marie Incontrera’s Quagmires and the Known Knowns. In this contemporary masterpiece the 27-year-old Brooklyn-based composer explores the stigmas, tragedies and political agendas behind the Iraq War. Drawing from texts by politicians and human rights groups, this ambitious work is a songbook for our time. Texts include quotes and speeches by George W. Bush, Saddam Hussein, John Kerry and Barack Obama. In equal measure hilarious, terrifying, incendiary and moving, Quagmires in the words of the composer, “sheds light on inescapable truths of the Iraq War.” Ms. Incontrera’s unique musical voice combines diverse influences: from Richard Wagner to Led Zeppelin, Igor Stravinsky to Black Sabbath. Performing this groundbreaking work are some of New York City’s most gifted singers and pianists: mezzo soprano Kate Maroney (BASS debut), tenor Brandon Snook and bass Paul An accompanied by pianists Michael Brofman, Michael Rose and Miori Sugiyama. Brooklyn Art Song Society’s marathon performance of the complete Charles Ives Songbook at Galapagos Art Space made the company a classical music institution overnight- now BASS returns to DUMBO once again to prove the relevance of art song in the 21st century.

Hailed by The New York Times as “ambitious” and “a company well worth watching,” the Brooklyn Art Song Society will enter its third season of first-rate music making in the fall of 2012. Dedicated to the vast repertoire of poetry set to music, BASS presents programs of epic scope yet intimate at the same time. Past highlights have included performances of the complete songs of Charles Ives, Henri Duparc, and an ongoing project to present the complete works of Hugo Wolf. Internationally acclaimed guest artists have included tenor Paul Sperry, soprano Dominique Labelle, and Pulitzer-prize winning composer Yehudi Wyner. The 2012-2013 will feature a retrospective of the complete songs and representative piano works from Franz Schubert’s last year, featured composer Libby Larsen, Hugo Wolf’s Spanish Songbook and a world premiere commission by Marie Incontrera.