Program Note: 

Originally commissioned by the William Douglas Dancers as the ballet score And the Air and premiered under that title at the Merce Cuningham Dance Studio at the Westbeth Center for the Arts, New York, New York, on the evenings of 4-9 December 1987, conducted by the composer. William Douglas, "Bill," Choreographer, dancer, teacher (b at Amherst, NS 25 Sept 1953; d at Montréal, Qué 10 March 1996). Douglas was best known for the elegant, intelligent and sensual formality of his 30 choreographies - much of it achieved with the collaboration of contemporary composers and lighting designers. His dance works, crafted over a decade from 1986 to 1996, also reflected a Cartesian fascination with vortices, honed during early studies and work in architectural design. The score was revised, with linking material and music conceived of purely for the dance excised, during the summer of 2005.

Selected Reviews:

"A seductive rabbit hole of otherworldly music has been created within “Rapture and Regret,” a recording featuring a compilation of the music of composer Daron Hagen... More than a usual listening experience, the recording results in an extraordinary adventure in music and song, inviting us to explore the “over the top” genius of Daron Hagen.”

―Joel C. Thompson, Cherry Grove Music Review [October 2021]

"[Hagen's music is] lyrical and mostly tonal, with dissonant and polytonal diversions; no trends are followed. His vocal writing is nuanced and richly detailed, though it feels completely natural... This is satisfying and endlessly rewarding music from one of America’s leading composers of vocal music. I’ll be returning to this again and again."

―Faro, American Record Guide [January/February 2022]

"The combination of soprano, cello, and piano is a most effective one in Rapture and Regret... The passages for soprano and pizzicato cello are particularly touching at the end of the first song... Hagen captures the essence of these emotions beautifully. It helps that the performance is so on point: Ariana Wyatt’s laser-focused and expressive soprano, Benjamin Wyatt’s superb cello (a vocalist in itself), and Cowden’s simply beautiful piano playing (there is real sensitivity here). It would be remiss of me not to mention Wyatt’s supreme control at the very close in his high, sustained note—superb... All the pieces are billed as world premiere recordings, adding substantial musical value to this disc... This is a great introduction to the vocal and pianistic output of Daron Hagen, brilliantly produced and recorded."

―Colin Clarke, Fanfare [January/February 2022]

"This is a lovely collection of music that is well performed and recorded with excellent balances between the performers. MSR’s inclusion of texts is another asset. Strongly recommended."

―Henry Fogel, Fanfare [January/February 2022]