Visions & Dreams
A 20-Year Retrospective from Art of Elan
A collaboration between Art of Elan and Phenotypic Recordings
For nearly two decades, Art of Elan has reimagined what chamber music can be: not confined to the concert hall, but alive within galleries, museums, and shared civic spaces — places where sound becomes part of a larger cultural conversation.
Visions & Dreams marks a 20-year retrospective of that journey. More than a collection of recordings, the album is a living document of relationships: between composers and performers, between audiences and spaces, between imagination and sound.
About the Project
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Since its founding in 2007, Art of Elan has cultivated a musical language rooted in collaboration, connection, and community, championing the voices of living composers and the stories they carry.
At its core is a simple but expansive idea: “our shared humanity is at the heart of everything we do,” explains Executive and Artistic Director Kate Hatmaker. That principle shapes not only how Art of Elan performs music, but also how it listens — across cultures, across disciplines, and across time.
The works gathered on Visions & Dreams span a wide emotional and stylistic terrain, yet they are united by a common thread: each piece reflects an act of imagination made tangible through sound. Together, they form a mosaic of voices — playful, searching, contemplative, and bold — that define the evolving identity of Art of Elan.
Each volume unfolds as a continuous and immersive experience, inviting audiences into a deeper mode of attention — what Hatmaker calls “intentional listening.” Beyond listening, there is a larger invitation embedded in the album’s design: to stay curious about one another, about other cultures, and about what we are capable of imagining together.
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May 29, 2026 Single Release: “Shiner” by Sarah Kirkland Snider
June 12, 2026 Single Release: “Life of Birds: 4. On a Wire: Mating Dance” by Mason Bates
June 26, 2026 Visions & Dreams, Volume I Release
July 10, 2026Visions & Dreams, Volume II Release
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“Shiner” by Sarah Kirkland Snider
Available Now!Sarah Kirkland Snider’s Shiner reveals beauty in contrast, bringing together an unexpected ensemble of sounds and colors. The work captures Art of Elan’s spirit of creative risk: finding beauty in unexpected places and inviting listeners into a vivid, transportive sound world.
“Life of Birds: 4. On a Wire: Mating Dance” by Mason Bates
Available Now!Mason Bates’s Life of Birds offers a series of miniature musical portraits, each one capturing motion, fragility, and the fleeting drama of the natural world. “On a Wire: Mating Dance” brings playful energy and rhythmic vitality to the album’s second volume.
Format Details
DIGITAL
$10 USD
Released separately as Volume I and Volume II
CD
$26 USD
Full physical album project
VINYL
$40 USD
Includes two vinyl-exclusive tracks
Visions & Dreams
A 20th Season Retrospective
Available
June 26
Volume I
The first volume of Visions & Dreams captures the spirit of invention and discovery that has defined Art of Elan since 2007. It functions as a "sonic journey" rooted in play and experimentation, opening with Paul Wiancko’s Toy Bricks, which establishes a sense of joy and forward motion and invites listeners into a world where structure and spontaneity coexist. The first half of the retrospective explores the emergence of identity through diverse cultural lenses, such as Chen Yi’s Sprout, and Michael Oesterle’s Parlour Games, where musical form itself is reimagined and reshaped. Across these works, sound behaves as something tactile and alive — shaped by curiosity, vulnerability, and creative risk.
As the journey progresses, the music expands in color and perspective exploring unexpected textures and improvisatory conversations. Works like Reena Esmail’s Nadiya and Sarah Kirkland Snider’s Shiner showcase how contrasting timbres and global influences—from Hindu ragas to modern ensemble blends—can create a "transportive" sound world. Nahre Sol’s Crossroads reveal unexpected landscapes and moments of transformation, while Ljova’s Vjola Suite brings the journey to an energetic close, weaving together dances that feel both rooted and newly invented. Together, these works establish the ensemble’s foundational ethos: liberating classical music from traditional confines and treating the stage as a laboratory for community and creative risk.
Volume I Track Listing
Paul Wiancko — Toy Bricks
Chen Yi — Sprout
Michael Oesterle — Parlour Games
Reena Esmail — Nadiya
Sarah Kirkland Snider — Shiner
Nahre Sol — Crossroads
Ljova — Vjola Suite
Available
July 10
Volume II
The second volume shifts the focus inward, moving from the playful energy of discovery toward a contemplative look at memory, landscape, and the passage of time.Through Mason Bates’s Life of Birds and Juhi Bansal’s Trail of Stars, listeners encounter celestial perspectives that illuminate fleeting moments and the fragility of nature. Gabriela Ortiz’s Exilios introduces themes of displacement and resilience, while Jessie Montgomery’s Peace provides a quiet, intimate response to uncertainty, balancing stillness with emotional depth. Across these works, the music invites a more contemplative mode of listening, emphasizing atmosphere, contrast, and emotional nuance.
In its final arc, the disc explores continuity, transformation, and personal history. Michi Wiancko’s Island in the Sky evokes landscape and geological time, while Aftab Darvishi’s Daughters of Sol unfolds as a mysterious meditation on change and return. The album closes with Kian Ravaei’s Family Photos, a collection of musical snapshots that capture memory as a form of composition that evolves with perspective. Together, these pieces form a deep narrative and solidifies Art of Elan’s mission to foster "shared humanity," reminding listeners to remain curious about other cultures and the enduring power of collaborative art.
Volume II Track Listing
Mason Bates — Life of Birds
Juhi Bansal — Trail of Stars
Gabriela Ortiz — Exilios
Jessie Montgomery — Peace
Michi Wiancko — Island in the Sky
Aftab Darvishi — Daughters of Sol
Kian Ravaei — Family Photos
Acknowledgements
Credits
Production Credits
Executive Producer and Creative Director: Kate Hatmaker
Producer: Jory Herman
Recording Engineer: Daniel Rumley
Mixed & Mastered by Daniel Rumley
Videographer: Vince Martinez
Front Cover Image: Vince Martinez
Art Direction & Graphic Design: Christopher Kornmann for Spit + Image
Ensemble
Wes Precourt, violin; Kate Hatmaker, violin; Hanah Stuart, violin/viola; Andrew Hayhurst, cello; Alex Greenbaum, cello; Ben Solomonow, cello; Jeremy Kurtz-Harris, bass; Rose Lombardo, flute; Max Opferkuch, clarinet; Eric Starr, trombone; Julie Smith Phillips, harp; Andy Watkins, percussion; Tina Chong, piano
For Art of Elan
Kate Hatmaker, Executive Director and Artistic Director
For Phenotypic Recordings
Michael Hostetler, Founder & CEO
Stephen Prutsman, Creative Director
Cristin Canterbury Bagnall, BroadBand Collaborative: Fractional COO
Mary Paz Cubero Navarro, Director of Product Development and Strategic Partnerships
For more information about Phenotypic Recordings, visit phenotypicrecordings.com
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