In Real Life

In Real Life is a new album that combines three witty, contemporary pieces for solo singer and ensemble: In Real Life I (for soprano), In Real Life II (for baritone), and Extraordinary, an operatic scene for soprano and baritone. The beloved musicians on this album are Marnie Breckenridge, soprano, Jorell Williams, baritone, and American Modern Ensemble, one of America's most admired new music ensembles, conducted by Steven Osgood. In Real Life was originally conceived by composer Robert Paterson and lyricist and librettist David Cote as a set of dating app songs for a soprano and piano called In Real Life (retitled In Real Life I), commissioned by Austin Chamber Ensemble Artistic Director Martha Mortensen Ahern, in honor of it's 35th season. Getting into the heads (and hearts) of five different women looking for romance was so fun, Paterson and Cote wondered, what would a similar cycle for baritone sound like? The result was In Real Life II, songs that dramatize the romantic quests of five different men. As a full program, In Real Life consists of these two song cycles (interwoven for variety) and Extraordinary, an operatic "date" for soprano and baritone. Mingling comedy with pathos through a lively range of character types, In Real Life is a chance for a soprano and a baritone to show off their versatility, and for an audience to enjoy a delicious, theatrical revue about love, romance, and second chances. In Real Life was produced by Grammy® winning producer and engineer Adam Abeshouse, and recorded live at The DiMenna Center for Classical Music's Mary Flagler Cary Hall in NYC.