Scroll down to view performances of Nina Soyfer’s compositions for piano, voice, and percussion.
“Frolicsome Polka,” piano solo, composed in 2003 by Nina Soyfer.
This award-winning piece has been enjoyed by a number of people in Canada and Ukraine. It is an expression of how I envisioned this dance (“stylized polka”) translated into music language.
“I Love You My Ninetta,” piano solo, composed in 2012 by Nina Soyfer.
This piece was first dreamed during a day nap along with words, which became the title of the piece.
which are displayed above the melody in the first bars (hence the title).
This video is of this piece’s 2014 premiere, as performed by pianist Owen Lawrence, in Ottawa, Canada.
“Look Into Your Heart” for piano, voice, and percussion, by Nina Soyfer in collaboration with Drunvalo Melchizedek, author of the lyrics from the poem, “When We Created the World.”
Performed by Nina Soyfer (piano, voice) and Paul Therrien (percussion interpretation) on November 23rd, 2011 at The Humanity in Harmony Festival, an Interdisciplinary Expressive Culture & Performance Collaboration (IECPC), organized by Isaac Akrong, at the Student Lounge, 2nd floor – Accolade East Building ACE at York University.
“Your Smile,” voice and piano, December 2011, by Nina Soyfer.
Vocalist Jane Loewen and piano accompanist Carol Gibson performed at the Uxbridge Celebration of the Arts 2015, in Uxbridge Music Hall, on September 26, 2015.
Birds and Waterflows, for SATB choir, piano, guitars and percussion. Composed and arranged by Nina Soyfer. Lead Guitar by Oleksandr Soyfer. Percussion by Paul Therrien.
Dao Zsi – choral composition – world premiere took place on March 4, 2017, in St. Simon the Apostle Toronto Church, by Jubilate Singers, in “African Connections”
WORLD PREMIERE
Dao Zsi: aka Inside Desire
by Nina Soyfer
Jubilate Singers
Conductor Isabel Bernaus
Filmed by Rick Harper
Great Northern Productions
Produced by Jubilate Singers
Conducted and Interpreted by
Isabel Bernaus
Music by Dr. Nina Soyfer
Piano – Sherry Squires
Percussion Paul Therrien,
Dr. Gilbert Verghese
Ubuntu Percussion
Solo Group:
Carol Chin
Judith Hayes
Kathryn Humphrey
Pat Keating
Contralto: Nina Soyfer
Choreography and Dance:
Nina Soyfer
Special Thanks to All
Participants
JUBILATE SINGERS
African Connection
March 4, 2017, Toronto
Dao Zsi Description:
Dao Zsi is a choral piece, which features African inspired percussion and dance, as well as Nina Soyfer’s original language. The title translates into Inside Desire, and the song overall is wishing people happiness.
In the summer of 2007 Nina composed (or rather improvised) Dao Zsi as an a cappella song, originally in a lower key (A minor), while envisioning her original language. The alphabet, grammar, and vocabulary of this language were organized and notated in the same time period, and represent a continuous process of discovery. Dao Zsi is just one of the songs Nina has created in this language. All of them share a similar music quality and folk feel. Each word in Dao Zsi has a specific meaning and is connected to the other words of the song in sentence-like structures. The lyrics of the song are a complete poetic unit that contains a philosophical message or meaning, and therefore English literal and approximate transliterations are provided. The original cursive of the language has been notated and is also provided here. Transliteration into Latin alphabet has been employed in the score to accommodate choral performance.
One interesting feature of the piece musically is the voice-drumming technique, where the composer treats voices as pitched drums with lyrics. Nina says: “When we drum in African culture, we each play our short pattern over and over again, gaining mastery in it every time, and merging with our instrument. For this piece, I employed the voice instrument in place of a drum, and the piece features a short choral-voice-drumming section where each voice repeats a pattern in recurring fashion, and thus the combinations of these patterns are heard as they flow circularly.”
The earlier sections of the piece feature some recitative and rhythmically flexible material, while the latter sections are in strict upbeat timing.
Dr. Nina Soyfer Bio:
Dr. Nina Soyfer is a Ukrainian-Canadian composer, pianist, vocalist, and musicologist, as well as educator, dancer, and visual artist. She recently completed her doctorate in music at York University, as well as her LRCM in piano performance at the RCM.
Dr. Nina Soyfer’s career as composer began in 2003 with her prize-winning piano miniature, Frolicsome Polka, which was published in Suzir’ya Muz magazine and premiered in Ukraine. She has since composed over 100 pieces, mainly written for piano, voice, percussion, guitar, bandura (Ukrainian lute), as well as choir and orchestra. She has also completed West African percussion-inspired arrangements of intercultural folk tunes and collaborative works with composers/writers from Tanzania, America, Russia, and Ukraine. Her involvement in African music, as a professional dancer, singer, drummer, and educator, has been ongoing since about 2006. Her African culture mentors and colleagues include Isaac Akrong, Sani-Abu Mohammed Allen, Amadou Kienou, Modesto Amegago, and Kwasi Dunyo.
Dr. Nina Soyfer is also a prize-winning painter, pianist, and poet, as well as a dancer/choreographer, and developer of the Integrated Arts Method (IAM) for teaching. Her works have been performed and exhibited in Canada and abroad.
This the second time Nina enjoys collaborating with Jubilate Singers.
www.ninasoyfer.com