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PRESS RELEASE
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| | CEDILLE MARKS THE ANNIVERSARY OF RUTH BADER GINSBURG’S BIRTH WITH THE DIGITAL SINGLE RELEASE OF PATRICE MICHAELS’ “ON THE JOYS OF RECORDED MUSIC” ON MARCH 6 | | Performed by soprano Alisa Jordheim and pianist Kuang-Hao Huang, the previously unreleased song was originally intended for Michaels’ cycle THE LONG VIEW, featured on the album Notorious RBG in Song | | |
CHICAGO, ILLINOIS (February 13, 2026) — Marking the anniversary of Ruth Bader Ginsburg’s birth on March 15, Cedille Records will release a digital single, “On the Joys of Recorded Music,” on March 6. Written by soprano and composer Patrice Michaels, the song is performed by the “luminous” (The New York Times) soprano Alisa Jordheim and Chicago collaborative pianist extraordinaire Kuang-Hao Huang. The piece adapts and sets the text of a letter from Justice David H. Souter to James Ginsburg, founder and President of Cedille Records and son of Justice Ginsburg, expressing Souter’s delight on hearing a then-recent Cedille recording. Originally composed as part of Michaels’ song cycle, THE LONG VIEW: A Portrait of Ruth Bader Ginsburg in Nine Songs, featured on the critically acclaimed 2018 release Notorious RBG in Song, the piece was withdrawn and not recorded or released at the time due to permission constraints.
As she conceived and created THE LONG VIEW, Michaels gathered stories, including some standouts from members of Justice Ginsburg’s family, and sought permission to incorporate them into the cycle. Among these was a 1999 letter Justice David H. Souter sent to James Ginsburg, praising Rachel Barton Pine’s Cedille debut recording, Handel: The Sonatas for Violin and Continuo. In the letter, Souter marvels at the emotional impact of the recording, writing that it moved him as deeply as a live performance, and expresses gratitude for both the music and the experience of hearing it. Charmed by his mix of humor and sincerity, Michaels composed a setting of the letter’s text as “On the Joys of Recorded Music.” After completing the song, she attempted to contact Justice Souter multiple times; she eventually learned that, as a matter of long-standing personal policy, he did not permit the publication of any of his writings that might result in financial gain during his lifetime.
“I had to shelve the song… There was nothing I could do except quietly chuckle at the notion that this music was likely to result in financial gain… so I put ‘On the Joys of Recorded Music’ in the drawer,” Michaels recounts.
After Souter’s passing in 2025, the rights to the letter transferred to Jim (as the recipient), reopening the opportunity for the song's release.
“The song pays homage to Handel, to Rachel Barton Pines’ artistry, to Jim Ginsburg’s vision to record and distribute performances of this brilliance, and to a very special mother’s pride at her son’s accomplishment. It was utterly delightful for me to weave Justice Souter’s words into a baroque-infected, jazz-meets-classical song style. Alisa and Kuang-Hao’s performances bring out every nuance.” - Patrice Michaels
The 2018 release of Notorious RBG in Song, proclaimed “an engrossing, episodic portrait” (WQXR) and “vivid and beautiful” (Classics Today), presented songs honoring U.S. Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg. In addition to Michael’s THE LONG VIEW, the album includes Lori Laitman’s “Wider than the Sky”; Vivian Fung’s “Pot Roast à la RBG”; Stacy Garrop’s “My Dearest Ruth”; and Derrick Wang’s “You Are Searching in Vain for a Bright-Line Solution.” All but two of the songs — “Anita’s Story” and “Wider than the Sky” — received world premiere recordings. As a collection, the album offers a meditation on and musical celebration for the longtime crusader for equal rights, who had, by then, become the pop culture icon known as the “Notorious RBG.”
Through its Ruth Bader Ginsburg Fund for Vocal Music, Cedille Records continues to honor the late Justice’s legacy by championing vocal music, RBG’s lifelong passion. Cedille thus fosters projects that reflect her love for the art form while supporting the artists who bring these works to life.
“On the Joys of Recorded Music” was produced by James Ginsburg and engineered by Bill Maylone. The single was recorded on August 28, 2025, at Northwestern University’s Mary B. Galvin Recital Hall.
On the Joys of Recorded Music is made possible by support from the Ruth Bader Ginsburg Fund for Vocal Recordings at Cedille Records.
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PATRICE MICHAELS
Patrice Michaels writes music with words, favoring themes of social justice and American history. Her cycle, THE LONG VIEW: A Portrait of Ruth Bader Ginsburg in Nine Songs has received significant critical acclaim, anchoring the nationally touring dramatic concert “Notorious RBG in Song.” Michaels’ choral work, “Refuge,” premiered at the Kennedy Center in July 2019. Commissioned by The National Constitution Center, Lyric Fest of Philadelphia, and the Musicians Club of Women, RESOLVED: Songs of Women’s Suffrage and the 19th Amendment debuted in 2020 as an NBC/Peacock video featuring mezzo-soprano J’Nai Bridges. Other Michaels works include incidental music for Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream, a one-act opera on Euripides’ The Trojan Women, and the children’s show A Song for Harmonica. She is currently developing the opera JANE DOE: The Life and Times of Pauli Murray. Her bilingual song-set, Un viaje en la canción/A Journey in Song is scheduled for publication in spring 2026.
Michaels’ vocal virtuosity in both live and recorded performances rank her as “A formidable interpretative talent” (The New Yorker), possessing “a voice that is light, rich and flexible” (Opera News). Her many recordings (for Albany, Amadis, Cedille, Neos, and Decca) range from baroque chamber concerts, through the groundbreaking and much-lauded Divas of Mozart’s Day, to explorations of 20th century repertoire and new jazz-inflected classical works. Ms. Michaels’ appearances include singing with the Shanghai, Czech National, St. Louis, Atlanta, and Minnesota Orchestras; New York’s Concert Royal; and Chicago’s Music of the Baroque. She debuted with the Cleveland Opera in Fidelio, sang in Candide at Lyric Opera of Chicago, and performed in Menotti’s The Medium with Chicago Opera Theater (live and on Cedille Records). Recitals include appearances at the Festival of Contemporary Music in Havana, Music at the Supreme Court, Harvard University, and The Schubert Club (St. Paul, MN). She has been a guest clinician at such institutions as the University of Tel Aviv Buchman-Mehta School, Mexico City’s Escuela Superior de Musica, and ISA Havana.
Patrice teaches in the Voice/Opera program at Northwestern University’s Bienen School of Music. She is a graduate of Pomona College and the University of Minnesota Twin Cities, and a diplomate of the Banff Centre (Alberta, Canada). patricemichaels.com
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ALISA JORDHEIM
Described as “vocally resplendent, “powerful,” and possessing “impeccable coloratura” (San Francisco Chronicle), versatile soprano Alisa Jordheim is praised for her compelling and vocally assured performances in opera, concert, musical theatre, new music, early music, and recital.
On the opera stage, she has portrayed a variety of roles including Violetta (La traviata), Gilda (Rigoletto), Adina (L’elisir d’amore), Ninetta (La gazza ladra), Musetta (La bohème), Susanna (Le nozze di Figaro), Cunégonde (Candide), Venus (Venus and Adonis), Belinda (Dido and Aeneas), and Lola, a role she created and commercially recorded in the world premiere of Robert Aldridge’s Sister Carrie. Ms. Jordheim has appeared with companies including Opéra national de Paris, San Diego Opera, Central City Opera, Palm Beach Opera, Virginia Opera, Atlanta Opera, Cincinnati Opera, the Caramoor International Music Festival, George Enescu Festival, Florentine Opera, and Teatro Nuovo at Lincoln Center. She is a frequent soloist on the concert stage singing repertoire spanning from Händel’s Messiah to Mahler’s Symphony No. 4 to Torke’s Book of Proverbs to musical theatre with ensembles including the Grant Park Orchestra, Thailand Philharmonic, Ensemble Pygmalion, Bochumer Symphoniker, Baltimore Symphony, Milwaukee Symphony, Pacific Symphony, and New Philharmonic.
Ms. Jordheim has a strong interest in Scandinavian vocal repertoire and frequently performs works by Norwegian, Swedish, and Danish composers in recital. An acclaimed interpreter of Lori Laitman's music, Ms. Jordheim recorded Five Lovers with pianist Andrew Rosenblum on the Naxos label and Fresh Patterns, a song cycle written for her, with soprano Patrice Michaels and pianist Andrew Rosenblum on the Acis label. Her recordings of Rami Levin’s Três Canções and Four English Songs can also be heard on Acis.
Ms. Jordheim is an alumna of San Francisco Opera’s Merola Opera Program, Central City Opera’s Young Artist Program, Florentine Opera Studio, and the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music. She is a grand prize winner of the Rose Bampton Award from The Sullivan Foundation, two-time winner of the Metropolitan Opera National Council district auditions, and the recipient of a Fulbright Foundation Scholarship and American Scandinavian Foundation Fellowship to study Scandinavian lyric diction and song in Norway. alisasuzannejordheim.com
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KUANG-HAO HUANG
Commended for his “perceptive pianism” (Audiophile) and “playing that is sensitive and wonderfully warm” (American Record Guide), Chicagoan Kuang-Hao Huang is a highly sought-after collaborative pianist whose performances have taken him throughout North America, Europe and Asia. He has performed in Weill Hall at Carnegie Hall, Lincoln Center, and Merkin Hall in New York City; in Washington, DC’s Kennedy Center and NPR Tiny Desk; and at every major venue in the Chicago area, including the Harris Theatre and Symphony Center. He is often heard live on WFMT and has also performed on WQXR and Medici.tv. Mr. Huang has recorded for Aucourant, Cedille, Innova and Naxos, including a CD of flute fantasies with flutist Mathieu Dufour, a premiere recording of early songs by Alban Berg with mezzo-soprano Julia Bentley, and a survey of songs by Chicago composers with baritone Thomas Hampson. Mr. Huang can also be heard with violinist Augustin Hadelich on the official recordings for Suzuki Violin Books 4–6.
A dedicated teacher, Mr. Huang serves on the faculties of the Chicago College of Performing Arts at Roosevelt University and Concordia University-Chicago.
From 2014–2021, Mr. Huang was the driving force behind Make Music Chicago, a citywide celebration of music every June 21st. He also founded the organization’s Pianos in the Parks program, which partners with the Chicago Park District to give all Chicagoans access to outdoor pianos as well as free lessons. Currently, Mr. Huang serves on the Advisory Council for the Make Music Alliance and on the Board of Directors of the Chicago Youth Symphony Orchestras. khpiano.net
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ABOUT CEDILLE RECORDS
Launched in November 1989 by James Ginsburg, Grammy Award-winning Cedille Records (pronounced say-DEE) is dedicated to showcasing and promoting the most noteworthy classical artists in and from the Chicago area. A nonprofit record label, Cedille’s mission is to produce and disseminate audiophile recordings presenting the finest classical music performers and composers in and from Chicago. The recordings further the careers and legacies of these Chicago artists as Cedille invests not only in the recordings but also in the artists represented on them. The label’s catalog of more than 200 front-line albums brims with attractive, off-the-beaten-path repertoire from the Baroque era to the present day, including world premieres of well over 400 classical compositions. Works from the classical canon, when they do appear, are usually heard in particularly imaginative programs. Cedille never removes albums from its catalog, and each recording is a permanent documentation of the artists’ work. With more than 180 Chicago artists and ensembles, over 80 making their professional recording debuts on the label, Cedille brings the area’s most significant classical music artists to a worldwide listening public. Cedille recordings are available on CD, as MP3 and hi-resolution FLAC downloads, and on all major streaming platforms. Learn more about Cedille Records and explore the label’s catalog at cedillerecords.org.
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“On The Joys Of Recorded Music” by Patrice Michaels
CEDILLE RECORDS — 3028
Alisa Jordheim, soprano
Kuang-Hao Huang, piano
TT: (3:31)
On the Joys of Recorded Music was produced by James Ginsburg and engineered by Bill Maylone. The single was recorded on August 28, 2025, at Northwestern University’s Mary B. Galvin Recital Hall.
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