One hundred years hence, when critics look back at the art songs of our era, there will be many fine composers to laud and applaud, but few will deserve higher praise than Lori Laitman. …With nearly 200 songs already to her credit, there seems to be not the slightest diminishment in the expressive impact of her writing or the bracing originality of her ideas. To paraphrase a comment once made about the prolific Camille Saint-Saëns, Laitman seems to create great songs as easily and naturally as a tree produces apples, and one might add that hers are especially delicious and distinctive…One of the most striking features of this collection — and indeed Laitman’s entire oeuvre — is the endless variation and variety, coupled with an overarching sense of coherence and consistency. Laitman has her own distinctive voice as a composer, but what makes it such a seductive voice is its limitless range of inflections, which stems from the even more limitless possibilities to be found in the world of words and ideas to which she is so devoted. A basic sort of excellence which one always finds in Laitman’s songs is an unerring ability to write songs that can be sung (a simple-sounding proposition, but one that defeats many modern art song composers) and to set texts in such a way that they can be understood by listeners. That Laitman achieves consistent success in this regard without writing cautiously is a shining testament to her impressive and still-improving skills as a composer. Finally, Laitman crafts her accompaniments with just as much care and sensitivity, and with a consistent understanding of what will work to perfectly complete the picture. …These are superb songs sung superbly, and a composer as gifted as Lori Laitman deserves nothing less than that.
