Thanks so much for visiting my Kickstarter page! 

I really appreciate your taking the time to visit and check out my exciting new project. My name is Lindsay Kesselman, and I am a soprano who specializes in working with living composers and bringing to life new, never-before-heard pieces of music. 

I am preparing to record my FIRST ALBUM which will feature the music of 6 different composers whose work I believe in and want to bring to a wider audience so that you can know just how great they are! Four of the pieces have been written specifically for me (I know....LUCKY GIRL!), and I am also commissioning a wonderful up-and-coming visual artist to create the artwork and do the graphic design. 

The funds I raise here will cover studio costs, editing, graphic design, the commission fee for a new piece by Amy Beth Kirsten, and the commission fee for Adrienne Justice, the visual artist.  This project will definitely be a labor of love and will result in an INCREDIBLY useful tool, as I continue to promote my own performing and the work of the featured artists! 

And, as you might know, Kickstarter is an AMAZING and TOTALLY SAFE way to do this, because unless we reach our goal, none of the funds will be applied.  Any amount makes a big difference, so even if you only have $1 to spare for my project, I would be incredibly grateful! 

Who are my partners in crime?

I am so fortunate to record this album with my husband and amazing pianist Christopher James Lees (also conductor extraordinaire!)- we love to work together and this project will ensure that we see each other occasionally amidst our busy schedules.  Featured on a newly-commissioned piece by Amy Beth Kirsten will be my brother, double bassist Robin Kesselman , who is  one of my favorite people and also a remarkable musician. My friends Timothy Munro, amazing flutist from eighth blackbird, as well as David Skidmore and Robert Dillon, incredible musicians from Third Coast Percussion, will contribute as well.  And Adrienne Justice, a wonderful artist from Philadelphia will be providing brand-new album artwork which will be the perfect visual expression of this great music and tie everything together in a really unique way. 

Where are we recording?

At a beautiful, intimate, and independently-owned studio called Solid Sound....definitely one of Ann Arbor's best-kept secrets. 

What will be on the cd?

This album will be called "If this world could stop," referencing a poem by Rita Dove (which is also a song text), and despite the diversity of the musical styles and composers represented, the music comes together around a central theme...who we truly are and which parts of ourselves we choose to show the world. I could not be more excited about the music on this album....to fill you in, here's a track listing:

"L'ange pale" by Amy Beth Kirsten                                                                 Timothy Munro, flutes                                                                                           David Skidmore and Robert Dillon, percussion                                                           *premier recording

"Arson" by Sarah Gibson                                                                                    (Poetry by: Jackson Bliss)                                                                                             *premier recording

"i live in pain" by David Lang                                                                                 (Poetry by: Contessa de Dia)                         

*TBA commission by Amy Beth Kirsten                                                                 Robin Kesselman, double bass                                                                            *premier recording

"Faces" by Lee Kesselman                                                                                            1. If this world could stop (Rita Dove)                                                                    2. I am writing poetry (Amanda Riva)                                                                        3. i carry your heart (e.e. cummings)                                                                  *premier recording

"The Clan of the Lichens" by Abbie Betinis                                                      (Poetry by: Opal Whiteley)                                                                                        1. All Things Live                                                                                                         2. Night and the Little Failures                                                                                     3. The Prayer Wind                                                                                                         4. A Tale for Children and Taller Ones                                                                        5. The Clan of the Lichens   

"The Shining Place" by Lee Hoiby                                                                  (Poetry by: Emily Dickinson)                                                                                      1. The Shining Place                                                                                                      2. A Letter                                                                                                                        3. How the Waters Closed                                                                                        4. Wild Nights                                                                                                              5. There Came a Wind Like a Bugle

There will definitely be something for everyone on this album, so whether you are a new-music newbie or a new-music junkie, you'll find something which will move you, surprise you, and open your ears to some beautiful possibilities!  

Thank you so much for visiting- remember to share this with your friends and family, and thank you in advance for your support!!