2025 NYC songSLAM Competition
Photo by Steven Pisano.
CONGRATULATIONS to the winners of the 2025 NYC songSLAM!
Sparks & Wiry Cries is happy to announce the 2025 commission prize winner as Joshua Bornfield.
Joshua premiered "Shift" as part of Team 2 (with Michael Manganiello, baritone & Stephanie Baird, piano, on poetry by Tom Haviv). The Sparks Administrative team was excited by Team 2's moving and interesting use of poetic language, descriptive piano writing, and overall structure of the composition. We are looking forward to our future collaboration with Joshua Bornfield!
Photo by Steven Pisano.
We congratulate everyone who participated in this year's event. The extraordinary level of musical creativity was amplified by warm community interactions from the beginning of our recording process to the live event at National Sawdust.
We cannot wait for next year, our 10th Annual NYC songSLAM!
#livesongandprosper
Virtual Voting:
We raised a total of $3295.09!
The funds that each team raised during the virtual event will be split 50/50 with the respective team members and Sparks & Wiry Cries. We reinvest any funds we receive into future competitions, commissions, and new art song initiatives.
1st Prize - Team 12 • Mother of Earth and Sky from Mothers of Ragnarök
Erik Franklin, composer & poet
Claire Galloway, soprano
John Henderson, piano
2nd Prize - Team 10 • Horror Movie
Marcus DeLoach, baritone & composer
Grant Loehnig, piano
Text by Howard Moss
3rd Prize - Team 2 • Shift
Joshua Bornfield, composer
Michael Manganiello, baritone
Stephanie Baird, piano
Tom Haviv, poet
Live Voting:
1st Prize - Team 15 • Alone
Patrick Michael Wickham, composer & co-poet
Hilary Baboukis, mezzo-soprano
Mark Wagner, piano
Text by Edgar Allen Poe
2nd Prize - Team 14 • Poems of Catullus
Deborah Mason, composer
Paul Max Tipton, bass-baritone
Molly Morkoski, piano
Robert Scotto, poet & translator
TIE 3rd Prize - Team 9 • The Banned Booked Tango
Jordan Rutter-Covatto, composer
Sydney Anderson, soprano
Mila Henry, piano
Fred Sauter, poet
TIE 3rd Prize - Team 5 • Glass Delusion
Elizabeth Gartman, composer
Laura Whittenberger, soprano
Austin Philemon, piano
Susan Bywaters, poet
Team 1 • Corporate Life
Zachary Sloan, composer & poet
Victoria Popritkin, soprano
Neill Campbell, piano
Team 2 • Shift
Joshua Bornfield, composer
Michael Manganiello, baritone
Stephanie Baird, piano
Tom Haviv, poet
Team 3 • The First Bluebird
Braden Allison, composer & piano
Ann McDonald Weible, soprano
James Whitcomb Riley, poet
Team 4 • Laundry Day
Meg Huskin, composer & poet
Elisheva Pront, soprano
Jialiang Li, piano
Team 5 • Glass Delusion
Elizabeth Gartman, composer
Laura Whittenberger, soprano
Austin Philemon, piano
Susan Bywaters, poet
Team 6 • Sea Song
Leigha Amick, composer
Katie Trigg, mezzo soprano
Reese Revak, piano
Team 7 • Kitsune
Kristen Baum, composer
Alexandria McNeely, soprano
Chun-Hsin (Cynthia) Liu, piano
Sarah Ann Winn, poet
Team 8 • My Brick House
Laura Nevitt, composer
Juan Suarez, baritone & poet
Jacob LyteHaven, piano
Team 9 • The Banned-Book Tango
Jordan Rutter-Covatto, composer
Sydney Anderson, soprano
Mila Henry, piano
Fred Sauter, poet
Team 10 • Horror Movie
Marcus DeLoach, baritone & composer
Grant Loehnig, piano
Text by: H.D. (1886 –1961)
Team 11 • 遂光而飛* "Soaring into the light"
Justin (YukWing) Cheung, composer
Hana Yiu, contralto
Leona Cheung, piano
Olivia Lai, poet
Team 12 • Mother of Earth and Sky from Mothers of Ragnarök
Erik Franklin, composer & poet
Claire Galloway, soprano
John Henderson, piano
Team 13 • Changing is Existing
Anthony Gatto, composer
Gelsey Bell, voice
David Friend, piano
Gertrude Stein, poet
Team 14 • Poems of Catullus
Deborah Mason, composer
Paul Max Tipton, bass-baritone
Molly Morkoski, piano
Gaius Valerius Catullus, poet
Robert Scotto, poet & translator
2024 songSLAM Commission winner
World Premiere Performance
Songs of the Prince
by composer Jonathan Wyatt
World Premiere performance by
James Danner, tenor and poet, & Derrick Goff, piano
(Recording — Danny Zelibor, piano)
Jonathan Wyatt’s (composer) works often explore conceptualism and storytelling. He holds a Bachelor's in Music Composition from Shenandoah Conservatory and a Master’s in Music Composition from the Mannes School of Music. Jonathan has been a fellow at the Atlantic Music Festival, the Red Note New Music Festival, and the Lake George Composition Institute. Post-graduation, he worked as personal assistant to famed composer Philip Glass. Jonathan is now freelancing in New York City and documenting all composer-activities on his social media pages, which can be followed @ComposerJon.
Jonathan is the winner of the 2024 songSLAM Commission Prize.
