Wendy Rowe, soprano Neara Russell, piano The performing duo of Wendy Rowe and Neara Russell was formed after Rowe, Russell's voice teacher at the time, heard Russell's first art song and suggested that Russell compose an entire program of art songs for the two to perform together. They have since premiered full concerts of Russell's art songs and choral works for enthusiastic audiences. Audiences have dubbed the program: “a wonderful evening of music,” “inventive and witty,” “beautifully evocative,” and “pure joy.” A truly enjoyable listening experience, this album treats the listener to all three ingredients of an art song: lyrical poetry, music that enhances the text, and expressive performance. Russell composed all of the art songs as well as most of the poetry for this album, demonstrating an unusually sophisticated flair for her age. Rowe lends her exquisite vocals and interpretations to Russell's creations, collaborating seamlessly with Russell on piano. Below is an excerpt from Russell's album notes, included with fully printed lyrics in this CD's insert: "The album and song cycle title "Food for the Gods" comes from the final line of "Cake in Heaven," in which a young woman imagines the "tangible rewards" of heaven: "food for the gods … and me." The initial motivation for this "divine desserts" concept was—I admit it—my predilection for food. However, we later noticed a parallel between the external concept—yummy food—and the underlying dessert for the mind—music." Soprano Wendy Rowe is well known to Wisconsin audiences for her expressive solo performances and operatic roles. With her strong belief that performers must be willing to give themselves to their audiences, Rowe opens herself up and invites the listener in whenever she appears onstage, or on recordings. Awarded a scholarship for her vocal abilities, Rowe earned numerous awards while attending the University of Wisconsin-Madison. After obtaining her bachelor’s and master’s degrees in vocal performance, she served on the faculty of Clarke College in Dubuque, Iowa as a voice teacher, opera coach and recitalist. Currently, Rowe divides her time between performing onstage and teaching private voice lessons in her studio in Madison, Wisconsin. She shares a home with her husband, Jim, and two delightful border collies. Neara Russell started composing for the best of reasons: she was inspired. Well-versed in piano, voice, and theory, she woke up one day with an art song ringing in her head and realized it was her own! She entered her first song in a statewide composition contest where it captured Best Vocal Solo, and she knew she had found her true passion. In January 2006, Russell was invited to perform her song "Lemonade Pie" on "From the Top," a national radio show featuring outstanding young classical performers and composers. The program was taped in New England Conservatory's Jordan Hall in front of a live audience, and included an on-air interview of Russell by host Christopher O'Riley. In addition, Russell was named an honoree of From the Top’s Young Composer Project, which paired her with Pulitzer Prize-winning composer John Corigliano as a mentor. Russell is one of five musicians chosen from a pool of 3,700 applicants in the United States to be awarded a 2006 Presidential Scholarship by Berklee College of Music in Boston, Massachusetts. As a first-year student at Berklee, Russell continues studying and pursuing a career in contemporary music.