Martin Hennessy is a prolific composer of art song and chamber opera. Devoted to building a bridge between American music-theater and opera, he approaches text like a method actor, thoroughly memorizing then rehearsing the scene. After many years as a collaborative pianist and vocal coach, he has an intimate understanding of the voice, setting words not only based on prosody and scansion but with an ear for the sweet spot in each singer’s range. Listeners often describe his music as a breath of fresh air.
He eschews the current vogue of extended recitativo and prefers to give legs to a story. He mines and re-invents the structures of song and dance without sacrificing rhythmic complexity or the constant curiosity of his compositional program. Whether he is experimenting with neo-classical, madrigal, tone rows or a rhumba, his music unleashes melody, movement, drama, and spirit.