KINGSTON, R.I. – Nov. 10, 2026 – Music faculty, staff and students from the University of Rhode Island are raising their “voices,” both literally and instrumentally, in their new album that debuted on Oct. 28. 

“Voices from the Ocean State,” composed by Eliane Aberdam—URI’s professor of music composition and director of graduate studies—and recorded at the University accompanied by the URI Symphony Orchestra, features five musical pieces spanning orchestral, chamber vocal and operatic writing about ancient myth and social justice. The album, which took two years to complete, is also the first ever released by the URI Symphony Orchestra—under the direction of Luis Viquez, the University’s director of orchestral studies.

“This is a very special album because it is centered around what we do here in the Department of Music,” Viquez said. “We have faculty soloists, a faculty composer and faculty conductor. For us here at URI, this is our kind of research we want to share with the community.”

Excitement was emanating from students throughout every rehearsal and recording session for the album, Viquez said. Along with those pursuing music majors, University students studying different disciplines, such as oceanography, who perform with the Symphony Orchestra now also get to include a recorded album—soon to be heard on Spotify and Apple Music—on their respective resumes.

“Imagine being a non-music major who gets to say they were part of an album production. This is something that really justifies the impact the music program is having all across the campus community here at URI,” Viquez said.

The Rhode Island Sinfonietta, and the Sand and Sea Opera Ensemble, both featuring URI faculty and staff, also contributed to making “Voices from the Ocean State,” released by Mark Masters Records, based in New York. Ethan Hicks, the University’s senior information technologist, and Providence recording engineer Brad Kleyla oversaw the album’s recording.

Along with showcasing her diverse writing styles, Aberdam hopes the album will convey the spirit of collaboration and appreciation for living women composers—who are both rare and face a myriad of obstacles in producing their work. Making this album is a way to show the audience that women composers can overcome those challenges and bring their own unique sounds to life, she said.

“It’s important to let the younger generation know how important feminism is to the world of music and what we can achieve,” Aberdam said.

Two pieces on “Voices from the Ocean State” center around social justice. One is a selected tableaux from Aberdam’s opera “Frontiers of Sand and Sea (Frontières de sable et de mer),” which tells the story of a young mother forced to leave her village and family because of war, famine and violence. Vocals are sung by URI Professor of Music and Director of Choral Activities/Teacher in Voice Mark Conley (tenor), Artist/Teacher in Voice Devon Russo and Boston-based soprano Logan Trotter.

The album’s opening track, “In Memoriam, Concerto for Violin,” performed by Alexey Shabalin, URI’s artist/teacher in violin and viola and a Russia native, honors Ukraine’s fallen soldiers who were lost during the ongoing conflict with neighboring Russia. 

Aberdam’s pieces about ancient myth included in the album are “Otohime,” an award-winning, double-bass concerto—featuring URI Artist/Teacher in Classical String Bass Joseph Bentley—about a Japanese princess from “The Tale of Urashima Taro.” The folk tale is about a fisherman who is rewarded for saving a sea turtle, meets a princess (Otohime) in an undersea kingdom and later faces consequences of time.  “Les Bons Augures,” which follows “In Memoriam” on the album, draws on the language of ancient Roman augury.

One piece on the album is deeply personal to Aberdam. “Kaddishanta,” dedicated to Aberdam’s late father, combines the Jewish prayer from the dead with a Catholic requiem as its central movement. Aberdam’s father grew up Catholic before marrying into the Jewish culture.

“The diversity heard throughout the entire album is something we hope the community can both appreciate its beauty and learn from,” Aberdam said.

For more information and to purchase the album, contact Mark Masters Records at 716-759-2600 or info@markcustom.com.