Director & Vocalist

American soprano Sarah Tuttle enjoys a multifaceted career as a performer, teacher, and public radio host. Sarah is committed to authentic storytelling, joyful collaboration, and meaningful connection with her audiences - onstage, on the air, and beyond.

From Wagner roles to modern opera, chamber music to art song, Sarah’s performances have been praised for their "fine balance of energy and introspection." (The Wall Street Journal). Sarah has a special interest in contemporary vocal music and collaboration with composers, and she’s delighted to have participated in the creation of new works. Most recently, Sarah launched Songs From Here, a Maine-based initiative dedicated to commissioning new vocal works from Maine’s composers, and to connecting Maine audiences with art song through performances and residency programs. Songs From Here is now in its third season of concerts, and has introduced new compositions by Erica Ball, John Newell, Marianna Filippi and others to enthusiastic audiences around Maine.

Beyond Songs From Here, Sarah enjoys collaborating with musicians throughout New England. She has appeared as part of TUNDI’s Wagner in Vermont Festival, most recently offering a recital of art songs by Wagner and Brahms. Other recent collaborations include chamber performances with Venticordi, solo appearances with Classical Uprising and the Amethyst Chamber Ensemble, and a performance at Merrill Auditorium with organist James Kennerley.

Sarah holds a Masters degree from the Bard Graduate Vocal Arts Program at Bard College, and a Bachelors degree from the Sunderman Conservatory of Music at Gettysburg College. She is proud to have spent two summers as a Vocal Fellow with the Tanglewood Music Center, from whom she received the Grace B. Jackson Prize for Excellence. She makes her home in Portland, Maine.

Composer-in-Residence

Translating everyday life into music is at the heart of Erica’s whimsical and playful works. Inspired by the natural world, a childhood spent dreaming of becoming a ballerina, and studies of 20th-century American avant-garde music, Erica is equally at home writing lyrical melodies that sweep across an orchestra and collaborating with animators and circus dancers. With an affinity for layered complexity, Erica’s music portrays clouds building up on the horizon as a summer thunderstorm approaches or the busy sounds of passengers in a subway station.

Ball’s music has been performed by numerous ensembles including the Da Capo Chamber Players, the Daedalus Quartet, pianist Blair McMillen, Network for New Music, and the American Symphony Orchestra. Her works have been heard across the country in Chicago, Boston, New York and Philadelphia, and internationally in Germany and New Zealand. Recent commissions include Riding the EL and The Spotted Lanternfly for Relâche, Woodland Preludes for solo piano which was commissioned by a consortium of pianists, and of course songs for Songs From Here. In addition to her work as a composer, Erica remains active as a violinist, pianist, and educator with a special interest in bringing contemporary music to new audiences.

Erica received her PhD in music composition from the University of Pennsylvania where she studied with Anna Weesner, the late Jim Primosch, and Jay Reise. Other institutions of music learning that hold significance in Erica’s life include Bard College and the incredible Joan Tower, The Walden School’s Young Musicians Program, and Greenwood Music Camp. Erica resides in Portland, Maine with her cats, Presto and Allegro, and maintains an active teaching studio.

Pianist

A musician who enjoys performing music of our time, pianist Bridget Convey has found much fulfillment in collaborating with living composers. She has been fortunate to work with composers such as Morton Subotnick, Mel Powell, James Tenney, Daniel Sonenberg, Vineet Shende, Elliott Schwartz, John Newell, and many others.

As a soloist and ensemble musician, Bridget has been heard at venues such as Lincoln Center, Dorothy Chandler Pavilion, Ojai Music Festival, Maybeck Performing Arts Studio, Percussive Arts Society International Convention, among many others.

She received her Diploma from Mannes College of Music, NYC (Pre-college Division) 1989; BFA from State University of New York at Purchase 1993; and MFA from the California Institute of the Arts 1997.

Bridget performs regularly with the VentiCordi Chamber Ensemble and Songs From Here with Sarah Tuttle, and is co-founder / director of the Resinosa Ensemble, with Joëlle Morris (mezzo-soprano) and Eliza Meyer (cello). She can be heard on Navona, Cuneiform, Independent and Nataraja labels. Bridget serves as adjunct piano faculty at Bates College and has a private piano studio in Central Maine.