Lori Laitman, composer

Videos

Almost all of my songs have been recorded. To hear the commercial recordings, please visit my page on Spotify.

Below are a few links from YouTube.

  • Men with Small Heads

    Poetry by Thomas Lux, from the song cycle of the same name. With baritone Andrew Garland and pianist Donna Loewy.

  • Men with Small Heads 

    Video from Lyric Fest of Philadelphia. With baritone Randall Scarlata and pianist Laura Ward.

  • Opera Colorado: The Scarlet Letter, Act I, Scene 4: ‘Our Nights’

    Tenor Dominic Armstrong and pianist Keun-A Lee perform Dimmesdale’s aria “Our Nights” on Colorado Public Radio in 2016.

  • Opera Colorado: The Scarlet Letter, Act I: ‘Now Truly Know Me’

    Baritone Malcolm MacKenzie and pianist Keun-A Lee perform Chillingworth’s aria from The Scarlet Letter — “Now Truly Know Me” on Colorado Public Radio in 2016.

  • Our Voices: Lori Laitman “I Shall Not Live In Vain” — Eastman Opera Theatre, December 2021

    During the pandemic, I worked with the talented students of Eastman School of Music’s Opera Theatre, Artistic Director Steven Daigle and Music Director Timothy Long as the students prepared video interpretations of my songs. Near the end of the film, Steven interviews me. Songs included are: I was reading a scientific article (Margaret Atwood); Swimmers on the Shore (David Mason); Men with Small Heads (Thomas Lux); Homeless (Michael Flack); The Butterfly (Pavel Friedmann); The Old House (Franta Bass); Kindness (Sylvia Plath); On a Photograph (John Wood); If I… (Emily Dickinson).

  • Sarong Song

    This is a newly released (2022) film of Sarong Song, the 2nd song in my 2013 song cycle The Soul Fox (settings of David Mason). Made in conjunction with Positive Note Films (in the UK) and directed by Jeremy Hamway-Bidgood, the film is a hybrid presentation of classical song, poetry and art featuring mezzo-soprano Kitty Whately and pianist Simon Lepper and illustrations by Ian Beck. The film won Best Original Song in the Global Film Festival Awards, Best Animation in The Scotland International Festival of Cinema, Honorable Mention for Best Original Score in the Mindfield Film Festival in Albuquerque and The Athens International Monthly Art Film Festival.

  • Thanks a Latte

    Music by Lori Laitman and Lyrics by Caitlin Vincent

    Commissioned by Laura Strickling for her 40@40 Project. Here is a live performance from February 2, 2025 from a recital at the DeBartolo Center for the Performing Arts, recorded at the University of Notre Dame’s O’Neill Hall of Music — with soprano Laura Strickling and pianist Daniel Schlosberg.

    Today’s the day. Today I’m taking a stand. Making an impression. Changing my coffee order! Every day, it’s the same. My standard. Regular. Habit. Every day at the hipster café. Every day with the cute barista. For three whole seconds, I have his complete attention. (Not to mention, his dreamy smile.) But every day, I waste it on routine. You aren’t what you eat, but what you order. And I’m predictable. Forgettable. But not today. Today, I’ll be spontaneous. Complex. Today, he’ll wonder what I do, who I am, where I’m going. Today, I’ll order…a macchiato. Edgy and stylish and chic. Or maybe a cappuccino. Funny and frothy and fun. A flat white to show I travel. A long black to show I’m tall. I just need the perfect blend to best espresso myself. Would a filter be too hipster? A triple shot too high strung? What’s the message in non-fat or skinny? No foam? Extra whip? Light ice? My keep cup is full of potential. For a drink that’s quintessentially me. This is the moment. I’m next in line. Ready with my order. And there he is in a beanie. Brewing and foaming and grinding. Never minding my racing heart. He turns to me with a smile. Turns to me and says… “The usual?”

  • The Apple Orchard 

    Poem by Dana Gioia. Recorded March 28, 2021, at the Tonhalle St. Gallen in Switzerland — with baritone Shea Owens and pianist Roxana Ionescu-Beck.

  • The Apple Orchard — a film.

    This is the second in a series of films of my art songs made with Positive Note Films in the UK and Daniel Norman. It was released March 22, 2024, with tenor and filmmaker Daniel Norman and pianist Simon Lepper.

  • The Ballad Singer 

    Poem by Thomas Hardy, recorded on March 28, 2021, at the Tonhalle St. Gallen in Switzerland — with baritone Shea Owens and pianist Roxana Ionescu-Beck.

  • The Imaginary Photo Album

    Archival Video of the Wigmore Hall premiere with soprano Katharina Konradi and pianist Joseph Middleton, October 25, 2020.

    This cycle was commissioned for Katharina Konradi by the BBC and The Royal Philharmonic Society.

  • The Ocean of Eternity

    The Ocean of Eternity cycle sets the poetry of Anne Ranasinghe. This is a recording of the premiere at Scorca Hall in New York City on February 9, 2019. The work was commissioned by saxophonist Michael Couper, soprano Yungee Rhie, and pianist ChoEun Lee, who are the performers in this video.