2024 NYC songSLAM Competition

CONGRATULATIONS to the winners of the 2024 NYC songSLAM!

Sparks & Wiry Cries is happy to announce the 2024 commission prize winner as Jonathan Wyatt. Mr. Wyatt premiered "The Shipbuilder" as part of Team 7 (with Devony Smith, Temple Hammen, Danny Zelibor, and James Danner). We were engaged by their strong team dynamic and resulting storytelling, and we look forward to seeing where this collaboration leads.

Virtual Voting:

We raised $3832 in total to be split between teams and towards the future of art song!

1st Prize - Team 8 • Trust Exercise No. 42
Nisha Caiozzi, co-composer, singer & poet
Michael Yang-Wierenga, co-composer & pianist

2nd Prize - Team 3 • Schlesser
Devorah Belin, composer
Elisheva Pront, soprano
Jialiang Li, pianist

3rd Prize - Team 2 • We Will Never Be Brothers
Marie Herrington, composer & soprano
Timothy Krippner, pianist

Live Voting:

1st Prize - Team 7 • The Shipbuilder
Jonathan Wyatt, composer
Devony Smith, mezzo-soprano
(Live performance: Temple Hammen)
Danny Zelibor, pianist
James Danner, poet

2nd Prize - Team 1 • Dreamers
Clint Borzoni, composer & pianist
Michelle Trovato, soprano

3rd Prize - Team 8 • Trust Exercise No. 42
Nisha Caiozzi, co-composer, singer & poet
Michael Yang-Wierenga, co-composer & pianist

We would like to congratulate everyone who participated in this year's event. The extraordinary level of musical creativity was amplified by warm community interactions from the beginning of our recording process to the live event at National Sawdust. #livesongandprosper

The virtual component of the NYC songSLAM — a 50/50 fundraiser — was open from January 19th at 10 pm EST through January 29th at 5 pm EST. 

Voters listened to each work and voted for their favorite via Give Lively (link above each video). The funds that each team raised during the virtual event was split 50/50 with the respective team members and Sparks & Wiry Cries, who will reinvest their portion in larger commissions, future competitions, and new art song initiatives.

January 19, 2024 at 7:30pm — National Sawdust

8th Annual NYC songSLAM
& songSLAM Commission winner

Anger in Open Mouths: Three Sweet Songs
by composer Laura Nevitt
World Premiere performance by
Clara Osowski, mezzo-soprano and Erika Switzer, piano

Laura Nevitt  is a conductor, composer, and educator based in Boston. She earned degrees in Composition and Music Education from the University of South Carolina, and a M.M. in Choral Conducting at Boston Conservatory, studying with George Case.
Her compositions have been featured in concerts and performances by the Choral Arts Initiative, Boston Conservatory Choir, Lilith Vocal Ensemble, Nightingale Vocal Ensemble, The Evelyn Duo, The Handel & Haydn Society Youth Choruses, Quorum, Opera on Tap Boston, Voices Boston Children's Choir,  Una Voce (Community Music Center of Boston), the University of South Carolina Concert Choir, the East Central College Choir in Missouri, the Choir of Saint Peter’s Episcopal Church in Cambridge, and many more.

Laura is the winner of the 2023 songSLAM Commission Prize.