BIOGRAPHY

Noa Ain (composer/lyricist/librettist) graduated from the Juilliard school and L'ecole Des Beaux Arts, Fontainebleau, France (piano with Jean Casadesus, master class Nadia Boulanger and Robert Casadesus). Noa studied piano in New York with Seymour Bernstein, composition with Hall Overton and analysis with Stefan Wolpe. Ms. Ain has received an Obie award (Metamorphosis in Miniature, Martha Clarke, director), the Stephen Sondheim Award and 14 Awards from ASCAP first for Best New Composer on Broadway music for Mourning Pictures by Honor Moore. 

Joan of Arc, NY Premiere (an inner opera for dramatic coloratura and surround sound) featuring Trudy Ellen Craney as Joan, premiered at the Angel Orensantz Foundation...Opera News called the work "a brilliantly conceived experience."

Angels' Voices with a text by Gary Race, an opera for young people, won first prize in a competition at The Kennedy Ceenter, and toured.

The Outcast (Directed by George Faison, Gail Hadani as Bruta) was produced by Opera Ebony and Aaron Cohen at Aaron Davis Hall and by Opera Ebony and Merkin Hall at Merkin Hall, by David Gockley at the Houston Grand Opera, and by 651 and Opera Ebony at Bam's Majestic Theatre (Tina Landau, Director.) Gail Hadani sang the role of Ruta. In his New York Times review of the Merkin hall performance, Allan Kozinn said "a timely examination of interracial tension and gradual acceptance...an almost seamless stream of lyricism...briskly paced eclectic score."

Trio had its first incarnation at the Lenox Arts Center, Lyn Austin and Margo Lion, producers. Revised, it premiered in a co-production of CarnegieHall Corp. (John Baskind, producer), AMTF (Marjorie Samoff, producer) and The Arts at St. Ann's (Susan Feldman, producer) and was performed at all three (Hilary Blecher, director, Maya Lin, set). In his review, Will Crutchfield called it "a haunting heartening gem" and gave it Critic's Choice.

Leaving home (Czas Na Uwiegi (for 5 actors and 5 musicians) ran for one year at Teatr Stu, Krakow, Poland, Krzysztof Jasinski, producer, Noa Ain, director, and won the award for Outstanding Work of the Year. In his review, M. Szybist said "Beautiful music: strange and disquieting, meditative and violent in some dangerous delicate way."

Through the Silence (for cello and survivor) is based on the life and words of Tana Ross, premiered at the festival "Culture and Barbarism.the Art of Theresienstadt" in Stockholm, Tana Ross, actor, Erik Friedlander, cello, Gail Hadani, voice. Silence, the animated film based on this work, silence (Orly Yadin, director, Halo Films) won 25 international awards, was bought by Save the Children, by every high school in Stockholm, Sweden, and now is in the permanent collection of MoMA. Link to silence film

Song of the Turtledove (based on The Biblical Song Of Songs), co-written with Gerard Edery for The Gerard Edery Ensemble, was developed at the O’Neill foundation (Paulette Haupt, producer) and had performances at the Clark Studio Theater at Lincoln Center. 

Song of Bilitis (freely based on the book by Pierre Louys), English lyrics and music by Ms. Ain, was given a semi-staged reading at the 92nd. St. Y. Gail Hadani sang the role of Bilitis with Andrew Seear played Pierre, Naomi Sorkin performed Mnasadika, and Nell Snaidas sang the role of the chorus and lover.

Emily Tepe performed The Perfect Chair, Noa's first collection of songs at The Cutting Room.

Noa had her first show combining her opera, Joan of Arc (in surround sound), and her 9 paintings inspired by this work, at the Holbrook Arts Center, Warner Gallery, Millbrook School.

This past year, Ain's Joan of Arc had three performances in Poland, produced by Teatr Stu, Krakow, (Krzysztof Jasinski, Artistic Director...Marzena Lubaszka sang the stage role of Joan. These Polish performances were enhanced by short films that moved in and out of the "live" performance, directed by Noa's daughter, the writer, Julia Ain-Krupa. Talullah Bradshaw made her debut as the cinematic Joan. Crikoteka, the museum and concert hall dedicated to the work of Tadeusz Kantor, intends to produce Ain's Joan of Arc again next fall.

This past year, 3 of my most beloved teachers have been the subject of films...

Seymour: An Introduction - Directed by Ethan Hawke  (Seymour Bernstein, extraordinary person, teacher and pianist)

The Jazz Loft according to W. Eugene Smith - Directed by Sara Fishko (Hall Overton, teacher of composition)

Remembering the Artist: Robert De Niro, Sr. - Film by HBO (Robert De Niro, Sr., teacher of painting)

SONG CYCLES

The following song cycles were written for and performed by the American soprano, Trudy Ellen Craney
Song cycles originally for soprano and piano but can be transposed

NEXT SPRING 
A song cycle about breast cancer

VITA NOVA...A NEW LIFE
From the book by DANTE

DREAM TRIP 

THIS CHRISTMAS NIGHT 

THE PERFECT CHAIR 
A book of theatre-songs to be acted and sung

EVERYTHING CAN CHANGE 
A jazz ballad

GEORGE 
An 11 min. "petite opera" meant to be performed as an encore...George Sand and Chopin...piano can add other instruments, 2 singers, Soprano (GEORGE) and alto (pop or classical) CHOPIN...can also be sung by the pianist...should be directed

MUSICAL THEATRE

VERSE OF FORTUNE

Book I Christian Holder
Music I Noa Ain
Additional Music I Theo Saunders

Collaboration with Christian Holder, a musical theatre work about Charles Baudelaire and his favorite mistress, Jeanne Duval. A two-act musical play based on the life and work of french symbolist poet, Charles Baudelaire. Book and Music are available for review.