Meet the Artists: Laura Strickling and Daniel Schlosberg

Two-time Grammy nominee for Best Classical Vocal Solo Album, soprano Laura Strickling, and Notre Dame’s own critically acclaimed pianist Daniel Schlosberg invite audiences on an unforgettable journey through the rich landscape of American art song. From beloved 20th-century works to fresh 21st-century compositions—including premieres from Strickling’s 40@40 commissioning project—the duo seamlessly blends musical storytelling, humor, and emotional depth. Through their engaging remarks and inspired performance, Strickling and Schlosberg illuminate timeless narratives and introduce new voices that challenge, delight, and celebrate the evolving art form.

Read on to learn more about artists Laura Strickling and Daniel Schlosberg.

Your collaboration brings together two accomplished artists with unique perspectives. How did you first come together as a duo, and what inspired your partnership?

Laura: Daniel Schlosberg and I met through a mutual friend—Notre Dame professor of voice Stephen Lancaster. Daniel, Stephen, and I (and my other longtime collaborative partner, Joy Schreier) were participants in the same art song performance competition in 2012. We hit it off as friends over the course of the competition week. Daniel invited me to perform a recital with him, and through the process of preparing for that, we realized that we share repertoire and programming interests and communicate effectively and harmoniously as collaborators. Eleven years later, we still choose to make music together as often as possible. 

Daniel: I’d just like to point out that this fateful first meeting took place in Orlando, FL—not the first place you think of when you think “art song,” but we’re all about challenging preconceived notions!

Can you tell us more about the 40@40 Project? What was the inspiration behind this initiative, and how did you choose the composers for these new works?

Laura: I lived on the island of St. Thomas in the U.S. Virgin Islands from 2014 to 2023. As a singer who truly believes in the power and importance of words set to music, I wanted to make a lasting contribution to the community of artists working in contemporary classical song—and to the audiences who appreciate it—but I was not in the position to establish an art song presenting organization, as so many of my friends were doing. 

I also recognized that while I’d been asked to premiere dozens of songs, operas, oratorios, and vocal chamber works, I’d never actually been the instigator of a commission. So many composers have championed me in my career as a singer, and I feel a great debt owed to not only those specific composers, but also to the composer community in general. There is an inherent hopefulness in the act of becoming a composer. In a world that keeps warning us ominously that, “Classical music is dying!” they run headlong into the battle to ensure that the future of classical is vibrant. They are endlessly curious about the expressive possibilities of the human voice. They know we have more to say, and they choose to be the ones to write the music that gives me and my colleagues material to respond to and create our interpretations of. Composers and performers are in an important symbiotic relationship. 

40@40 allows me to celebrate that connection—to commission and collaborate with wild abandon. It’s been a joyful endeavor through which I’ve learned so much about myself, artistry, creativity, the business of music, PR, commissioning, communication, collaboration, endurance, patience, and all aspects of the recording and album release process. The songs themselves are a gift to the world. The knowledge and skills acquisition has been an added gift to me.

American art song has a rich tradition. For those who may be unfamiliar, could you briefly explain what defines this genre? How do you see your work contributing to its evolution in the 21st century?

Laura: “Art song” is the fancy moniker someone in history decided to bestow upon songs written in the classical tradition. More and more I prefer to just refer to them as “songs” because there is really no difference from what I sing to any other person who opens their mouth to vocalize around words. 

In every case, the person performing has something they want to say, and they are doing it through music because the audience will perceive the words differently through the lens of melody. Performers of all types are trying to make their audiences feel something. When I sing my daughter’s favorite lullaby, I am aiming for that audience of one to feel safe and comforted—and go to SLEEP already! When a comedian tells a joke, they are trying to make their audience laugh and feel joyful. When an actor delivers a monologue from a devastating emotional drama, perhaps they are trying to make their audience feel sympathetic sadness even unto tears. 

So, bringing it back around to my specific work, the songs I sing are simply “words of importance or stories set to music.” And I sing them to make people feel something. I hope to make audiences feel a great many things over the course of a concert evening. In an opera, we present one narrative (and usually the soprano dies at the end). In a song concert, I can present 20 short stories. I make a point of trying to bring the audience on a journey of a broad range of human experiences and emotional experiences. 

One of my goals through commissioning songs has been to bring songs into existence that cover topics that may not have been previously represented in classical song, so if you are someone who has been to many song concerts, you might find yourself hearing things you’ve never heard before—new composers, new ideas—both musical and topical. I also made a point of commissioning funny songs. I like to laugh. I like to make audiences laugh. Funny songs are surprisingly hard to write! I think my composer friends absolutely nailed the brief on my request for amazing new funny songs.

Daniel: I think one aspect that’s especially cool about art song is its blending of art forms. You have a text that, on its own, stands as a work of art, and then you have music that is just as intricately considered, and then the combination of the two. Oftentimes the music is making a comment on the text that sheds new light on its meaning, sometimes a meaning the author never even foresaw. It’s this wonderfully complex yet immediate and intimate art form.

What can audiences expect from your upcoming performance, especially surrounding the genre of American art song and any world premieres from your 40@40 Project?

Laura: We’ve chosen the title American Song (r)Evolution because we will be taking the audience on a journey from the 20th-century exemplars of American song through the new masters of the 21st century. We’ll even be presenting some premiere performances of songs that were completed just last month! I’m hoping that the audience will be able to perceive a continuity of purpose through many voices and compositional styles. I’m hoping we’ll make them think; consider something they’ve encountered before from another point of view. I’m hoping we’ll make them laugh! 

The audience will get to learn more about the songs and composers directly from Daniel and me during the concert through brief spoken program notes, which will hopefully increase their understanding and appreciation for what they are hearing.

How do you approach interpreting and performing works by contemporary composers compared to those by established masters of the 20th century?

Laura: I approach all works in the exact same way: I start with the text. The thing that sets singers apart from the other instruments is that we have WORDS. It’s of utmost importance that the audience understand them, and that goes beyond good diction. The way I choose to interpret any phrase through my singing and physical presentation will change the way it is received. If I’m doing my job very well, the interpretation will never be the exact same twice. The words and music will live in the moment, feeling urgent and vital every time. Sometimes even appearing improvised in their authenticity. Every composer, regardless of era, is owed that attention to detail in the way they have chosen to set their musical response to words they found important. 

Daniel: I agree with Laura and would like to add that, with works from the past, there is a rich tradition of recording that is a valuable resource; however, when I’m in the throes of learning such a piece, I make an effort *not* to listen to recordings. I like to come to terms with these artworks on my own, not through someone else’s lens. Of course, after a while, I return to these recordings with a lot of anticipation…and opinions of my own.

What are some of the challenges and rewards of bringing new music to life, especially in a genre as nuanced as art song?

Laura: One of the most rewarding aspects of working in song is the vital collaborative connection and bond that develops between singer and pianist. When you find the collaborative partner that elevates your ideas and artistry, and you do the same for them in return, it is life changing. Exploring the nuances of every song is not every musician’s joy, but it IS mine. And it is Daniel’s. That shared interest in minutiae is one of the reasons we have become such great friends. 

One of the challenges my love for song has brought into my life is the sheer impossibility of learning as much repertoire as I wish to. There are only so many hours in the day, and the well of songs is unfathomably deep. I am a wife and mother. A daughter to aging parents with care needs. I have a great many non-song singing engagements for which I must learn repertoire. But there are countless Wishlist song programs constructed on my computer for which I long to have the time and opportunity to learn and perform SOMEDAY. Not to mention the almost daily emails I receive from hopeful composers with wonderful new songs they’d like me to perform. Oh, for 28 hours in each day and nine days in each week!

Strickling, as a two–time Grammy nominee, how do you approach each new project or performance? What drives your artistic vision?

Laura: My father was a pastor, and by the time I turned 18, we’d lived in 5 different places. As an adult, I’ve lived in Chicago, Baltimore, DC, New York, Fez (Morocco), Kabul (Afghanistan), St. Thomas (U.S. Virgin Islands), and presently, Racine, Wisconsin. My nomadic life has made me comfortable with discomfort, helped me see the world with a very wide lens, care deeply about hearing and sharing stories, and has instilled in me a great appreciation for community—the communities we find ourselves a part of and the communities we choose to be a part of—and our responsibilities to them. 

My impulsive curiosity and, shall we say, “outside of the norm” life experiences drive my artistic journey. I am very aware that there are more things to learn and accomplish than I will ever hope to be able to in this one lifetime, and I don’t want to waste a moment. Usually, I am hit with an idea in a moment, and I mull on it until the vague outline of a plan to enact it becomes inescapable and I figure out a way to take the first step. Not the LAST step. If I had to know how to do everything before I started, I’d never have the courage to try anything. But I trust that I am capable and resourceful, and if I want to do whatever it is I have decided to do badly enough, I will continue to problem-solve at every obstacle until I reach my goal. 

So, in summary, my artistic approach and vision are driven by a mystic brew of inspiration, hope, work, care, and stubbornness.

Schlosberg, as a Grammy–nominated, critically acclaimed pianist and faculty member at Notre Dame, how do you balance your roles as a performer, educator, and collaborator in projects like this?

Daniel: My time at Notre Dame is inextricably linked to my love of art song. Professor Emerita Susan Youens, one of the world’s leading experts on the songs of Schubert, Schumann, and Wolf, was crucial in my art song journey and remains a mentor. I have also learned so much from working with students, as well as performing with Prof. Stephen Lancaster, and observing the many wonderful guest artists that have come through our campus. 

I have also focused a lot of my performing over the years on contemporary music. The collaboration with Laura on this project is like a blending of many of my favorite interests—and I’m thrilled we are taking it to Notre Dame, my musical home in so many ways.

What do you hope audiences will take away from your performance, particularly regarding any new compositions you’re premiering from the 40@40 Project?

Laura: I always say that there’s a 40@40 song for everyone. You may not fall in love with ALL of them, as I have, but the range of emotion and experience on offer makes it a near guarantee that at least one of them will have you running for Spotify to listen and experience it for a second time. And, as for the songs we haven’t recorded yet…you’ll just have to stay tuned!

Looking ahead, what are your future goals in the realm of American art song?

Laura: My hope for American art song is that there BE a bright future for American art song. I would love to see song-presenting organizations popping up in every major and minor city in the United States in the next 10 years. Or existing arts organizations expanding their mission to include song. 

Song is an art form that fosters community and requires very few financial or physical plant resources to be accomplished at a very high level. There are so many stories to tell and so many songs through which to tell them! It is because I care about the future of the art form that I actively support and promote the composers who are bringing them to life in the present day through the 40@40 Project. And work to educate the students who will continue to fall in love with songs. As I did, once upon a time.

American Song (r)Evolution promises to be more than a concert—it’s a testament to the power of collaboration, creativity, and connection. With Strickling’s deep commitment to amplifying new voices and Schlosberg’s artistry and dedication to the tradition of art song, this performance showcases music’s ability to tell stories that resonate across generations. 

Audiences will leave with a newfound appreciation for the genre. As Strickling and Schlosberg prove, the future of American art song is not just alive—it’s thriving.