Alight!

About Sophia Vastek

Sova is known for her intimate and highly-detailed sound design, welcoming the listener into the complex sound of the piano itself (Troy Music Hall). And her muse is clearly inspired from the myriad sounds she brings out of whatever keyboard instrument she is playing. Equally comfortable on old out-of-tune uprights, concert Steinway Bs (thank goodness!), and an acoustic piano called a Keybird, all contribute greatly to her color palette of distinctive harmonic configurations amid perfectly-placed and thoughtful spaces. Her unique music is pleasingly difficult to label, and has been described as “a deeply immersive and cinematic experience” (Expansion Radial). Already garnering critical praise, Alight! “continues to broaden Sova’s creative universe, exploring new textures and embracing a more collaborative approach while preserving the intimate sensitivity that defines her work.” (TMH).

Sova’s new record Alight! is due out September 4 via Hout Records: “a mesmerizing fusion of neoclassical composition and indie electronic sound design” (Last Day Deaf) which she will share some of this with our North Country audience. The album extends the breakthrough Sova achieved on her last LP In Our Softening, a solo record of original music performed on a modest 1902 upright piano with softened hammers and a cracked soundboard. With Alight!, she broadens her conception to include contributions from a clutch of noteworthy fellow travelers: Spencer Zahn (fretless bass guitar), Clarice Jensen (cello), Evan Chapman (drums & electronics), Max Yassky (drums), and Sam Torres (saxophone and more).

In Our Softening (2022), produced in collaboration with Sam Torres (Polymouth Music), features nine of her own beguiling piano compositions, each track a part of a thoughtfully woven tapestry. The album was called “a tender and revelatory balm” by editors at I Care If You Listen, “heaven on earth” (Sun 13), and “one of the very best things I’ve heard all year” by longtime music journalist Steve Smith (Night After Night).

Her music has been released on OPIA, the record label founded by Ólafur Arnalds, Innova Recordings, and more. Her debut album, Histories (2017), was produced by Grammy-winning engineer Adam Abeshouse, and described as “a beautiful mosaic of the larger cultural intersections of our world” (Second Inversion). She has also released an EP of the complete solo piano works by composer Lili Boulanger (1893-1918), entitled Lili (2020, reissued 2023).

Equally important to the music itself are the spaces in which Sova’s music exists. Whether she is performing or presenting, she is dedicated to creating musical experiences that are grounded in care and intentional gathering. In that spirit, she is a co-curator of the popular Lift Series at the Troy Savings Bank Music Hall, which recently finished its sixth season. She also hosts concerts in her home—a converted church-space in Troy, NY called Troy Listening Room—that highlight risk-taking, independent musicians.

In 2022, Sova was recognized as a composer by the New York State Council on the Arts and New York Foundation for the Arts (NYSCA/NYFA) as a Music/Sound Fellow, a statewide program focused on the evolution of contemporary art. Her music has been featured on NPR, BBC, and KEXP, and she has performed across three continents.