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Infrastructure - The Songs of David Sisco on CD

In June 2026, Metier Records is proud to present "Infrastructure: The Songs of David Sisco" from the award-winning US composer, featuring over 25 years of his output of art song, performed by pianist David Fung, singers Laura Strickling, Elizabeth Mondragon, Michael Kelly, and David Sisco himself. The album mixes beautiful and thought-provoking settings of both contemporary and historic poetry with entertaining and often touching song cycles based on online posts and reviews, unusual inspirations for art song.

David Sisco believes one way the genre can continue to thrive and engage with today's audiences is through the use of contemporary texts, whether by living poets such as the three he has collaborated with here, or from the myriad virtual town halls one encounters on a daily basis.

Song cycle Italianate captures the wit and tenderness of his friend Linda Dini Jenkins' poetry about her travels in Italy, and is performed by the "mesmerizing" baritone Michael Kelly, who premiered the cycle in 2014 at Carnegie Hall. Infrastructure by Barbara Worton is performed by the composer himself and was set as a gift for a birthday celebration, perfectly encapsulating a typical New Yorker's skepticism and even a touch of neuroticism. Also performed by David Sisco is Where Memories Go to Die, the final piece in Sisco's song cycle 'Six Dennis Rhodes Poems', and like the poet himself, is a delightful, vulnerable, and joy-filled piece. Turning to writings of past centuries, mezzo-soprano Elizabeth Mondragon gives a powerful performance of the stunning setting of Amy Lowell's epic poem Patterns about a woman's loss during the First World War. Michael Kelly returns in My Best Beloved. Sisco was struck by the raw passion of the work of metaphysical poet Francis Quarles and has brought it forward in this gorgeous and sensuous art song.

Missed Connections was written for Sisco's longtime muse, Elizabeth Mondragon, and won the 2010 NATS Composition Award. Set to anonymous posts from classified ad website craigslist. Com, these musical vignettes reflect the human desire to find (or avoid) one another and are surprisingly affecting. The Wrong Kind of Fountain Enthusiast is a song cycle set to colourful online reviews across the United States, often savage and hilarious, and, as with Missed Connections, uses a variety of musical idioms. Dear God, a cycle of children's prayers, tenderly captures the delicious mix of simplicity and complexity in these miniature compositions. Both feature the "powerful and expressive voice" (Classical Scene) of soprano Laura Strickling.

Throughout the album, the superb voices are supported by the "poetic" (Washington Post) performances of pianist David Fung.

David Sisco is an award-winning composer whose vocal and theatrical works have been performed at major venues such as Carnegie Hall and Lincoln Center. He has received commissions from choirs and ensembles across the US. An alumnus of the esteemed BMI Lehman Engel Musical Theatre Workshop and the New Dramatists Composer-Librettist Studio, he currently serves on the adjunct voice faculty at NYU Steinhardt and maintains an international presence as a voice teacher and pedagogue.

David Sisco Editorial Review Quotes

"David's songs run the gamut from profound to silly, from bittersweet to tragic, from aphorisms to epics. His name belongs alongside the many substantial and important American songwriters working today, including Tom Cipullo, Jake Heggie, and Ricky Ian Gordon. A composer couldn't ask for better interpreters of his work than those on his album. "

Michael Brofman-Artistic Director, Brooklyn Art Song Society

Infrastructure, The Songs of David Sisco, is a compendium of 43 songs composed by David Sisco over the last 25 years. Whether short (20 seconds) or long (13 minutes), each song reveals a composer extraordinaire. Setting a wide variety of texts, David consistently reveals an unerring instinct for creating a perfect setting - with wonderful pacing, imaginative responses to the texts, a gorgeous melodic sound world, and a superb understanding of how to write for the human voice and for the piano. The performers - baritones Michael Kelly and David Sisco, mezzo-soprano Elizabeth Mondragon, soprano Laura Strickling and pianist David Fung, are all brilliant and bring David's music to life with verve and understanding. This is one of the best CDs of vocal music I have ever heard and I cannot recommend it highly enough.

Lori Laitman-Composer

Infrastructure is refreshing, inspirational, and filled with such profound emotional breadth! As a performer of contemporary music and a teacher who regularly assigns repertoire in my studio, I can confidently say this body of literature has something for everyone. The sheer artistry alone makes it a must-have for your library-it is bound to spark deep discussion and heartfelt emotion.

David Sisco is masterful in so many ways, and I am continually fascinated by his ability to weave everyday life into the fabric of our larger existence. The mundane becomes immediately relatable, but his true genius lies in connecting us through the broader meaning behind it.

I'd be hard-pressed to choose a single favorite, but a few go-to tracks worth diving into right away: "Patterns" is stunning and mesmerizing; "My Best Beloved" will leave you in awe and immediately trying to program it into an upcoming gig; "Jeff" asks a question of God that makes complete, resonant sense; and "Cistio" offers true solace in the face of the frightening things we cannot change. You won't be sorry!

Noélia Archambeault de Hernández-Assoc. Professor of Voice, University of Maryland

"David Sisco's album is exquisite. Both the compositions themselves as well as the performances reveal a deep love of poetry as well as more unconventional text sources. His songs are succinct in the extreme, often achingly lyrical, and sometimes utterly hilarious. With "Infrastructure" one has the privilege of taking a deep dive into this vital compositional voice. "

Daniel Schlosberg-Collaborative Pianist

"This collection, Infrastructure, is a beautiful survey of David's creative output. The musical language is accessible yet sophisticated, drawing on David's expertise in a wide variety of genres. Even in his most concise songs, David manages to craft a vivid, self-contained world that instantly transports the listener. His work, like the composer himself, resonates with charm, empathy and a keen understanding of the human condition. "

Jonathan Michie-Baritone

David Sisco is one of America's greatest composers of vocal music, and his recent album of songs is an embarrassment of riches. Lyrical, smart, deeply-felt, and constantly surprising, the 43 songs presented are a treasure trove for those who love the marriage of text and music. And the performances by Michael Kelly, Elizabeth Mondragon, Laura Strickling, David Fung, and David Sisco himself are extraordinarily beautiful and committed. This album is not to be missed!

Tom Cipullo-Composer