Harpist Bridget Kibbey makes her debut on the Pentatone label with her new album Crossing the Ocean, available as a digital-only release on Oct. 13. The album features six solo works for harp commissioned from an international set of composers, including Kinan Azmeh’s It’s About Time (Syria), Du Yun’s The Ocean Within (China), Paquito d’Rivera’s Bandoneon (Cuba), Avner Dorman’s Three Butterfly Songs (Israel) featuring soprano Dawn Upshaw, Kati Agócs’ Northern Lights (Canada), and David Bruce’s Caja de Música (England).
Kibbey asked each composer to write for the harp for the first time, drawing on their cultural background and memories of music from their childhood. “Oftentimes our creative output is a synthesis of [our] origins, and how they mix with our new surroundings and influences,” Kibbey says. “It was a delight to curate a sort of memory-and-cultural playlist via the harp, by choosing composers from diverse backgrounds and musical styles. My musical neighbors—composers and performers—continue to bless me in countless ways, by broadening my perspective on the harp and the world. This record is my first ‘love letter’ to these communities and friends.”
The album is available from Pentatone for digital download and streaming on major platforms. For more information, visit Kibbey’s website. To learn more about her love for new music, read our cover interview with Kibbey in the March/April 2005 issue of Harp Column.
