Q&A with Izzy Barbato ’26MM and James Taylor

This week, the Yale Voxtet presents Songs from the Imagination, a special concert at the Yale Center for British Art (YCBA) inspired by the poetry of William Blake. Featuring music by Benjamin Britten, John Tavener, and Ralph Vaughan Williams, the performance is presented in connection to the YCBA’s exhibition William Blake: Burning Bright.

In this Q&A, soprano Izzy Barbato ’26MM and Voxtet Director James Taylor discuss the concert, finding inspiration in the visual arts, and the importance of community engagement.

How do you prepare for a project like this? Is there a difference in how you prepare for this kind of interdisciplinary performance versus a more traditional concert?

Izzy Barbato: With a project that is as focused and intimate as Songs from the Imagination, I have found it important to inform myself of the nuances in the poetry we’re singing. I will be performing a piece by Thomas Kraines is a setting of William Blake’s poem “How sweet I roam'd from field to field.” It has been a unique process to try to honor the diction so that the audience may hear the text, while maintaining the depth of emotion that the poem deserves.

James Taylor:  I love the challenge of putting together an interesting program like this.  Jane Nowosadko, Head of Public Programs at the YCBA, is a long-time friend and we’ve collaborated many times over the years.  Last spring, she provided me with a catalogue of images and poems that would be included in the William Blake exhibition, and I set to work finding pieces.  When I was in college, I sang Vaughan Williams’s 10 Blake Songs for voice and oboe, and I knew I had to include those. Jane also came armed with a few suggestions of her own. In the end there was way too much music to sort through, but I think we made a nice selection of highly varied pieces.

What do you get out of working in interdisciplinary collaborations like this? Are there any particular challenges or new perspectives that come with performing alongside visual arts?

IB: This will be my first performance of this kind, and I am very excited to see if I will feel any differences compared to our typical performances. I am a big advocate for challenging the norms of how we enjoy “classical” music. I recently attended an outdoor concert, and I very much enjoyed the ability to take in both the music and the surroundings. I hope this concert will provide the audience with the opportunity to have a similar experience!

What do you hope the audience takes away from the experience?

JT: Many will already be familiar with Blake’s beautiful poetry, but I feel many people won’t realize that his poetry was intrinsically linked to his artwork. I’m also sure the audience won’t be aware of the sheer number of musical pieces that have been inspired by Blake’s texts.

Have you had the opportunity to perform in similar collaborations on campus before?

IB: I have had the honor to host two Buddhist chant events with the Yale Buddhist Student Community on campus. The Buddhist Shrine room, located in Harkness Tower, is a beautiful space to meditate and connect with one’s spirituality. I am so grateful to have been welcomed into the community and trusted to lead these events. We combine a program of traditional Sanskrit mantra and contemporary English chants with guitar.

Do you think it’s important for musicians to engage with the broader campus community, outside of their own departments?

IB: I think it’s absolutely essential for musicians to engage with the broader campus community, and the broader New Haven community as well. In a time of strife in our nation, I believe that, as artists, we have a responsibility to use our talent to gather folks in from every background imaginable. We have a special opportunity to create spaces of safety and acceptance, and to have fun while doing so.

JT: It’s very important, although it’s not always easy to do so. The obvious answer is, what are we as musicians doing if not trying to engage with the broader community? I recently sang a 40-minute program of lute songs by Thomas Campion for an undergraduate course about Medicine and the Humanities.  I had no idea that Thomas Campion — the poet and composer — was also a doctor! It’s wonderful and fulfilling to meet with people outside our own areas who are interested in the arts and history, and who can make ties between what they do and what we as musicians and artists do.

How does Jimmy help prepare you for these kinds of performances? How does he help you balance technique with artistic interpretation?

IB: Jimmy is a master of helping us approach diction in a way that coincides with our vocal technique. He has helped me realize that by preserving the intelligibility of each vowel and consonant, I am better able to support the breath in long phrases. Jimmy teaches us that emotion and interpretation are just as important as healthy vocal technique, and he does a great job of marrying those two aspects of singing together.

What do you enjoy most about performing in a group setting, and what skills do you think are essential for success in this kind of setting?

IB: The most special part of being in the Voxtet is how bonded the group becomes in a short time. When you’re singing with the same eight people day after day, it’s almost impossible not to grow into a sort of family, which is exactly how I feel with this year’s group.

One skill that each of us display which helps the group maintain a healthy dynamic is respect — a skill which Jimmy models for us constantly. When rehearsing, we each take turns leading different pieces, and we take time to listen to each other’s comments after we sing through a piece. We have each other’s backs in so many ways, and I feel very lucky to call them my colleagues and friends.

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The Yale Voxtet is group of eight singers specializing in early music, oratorio, and chamber ensemble. In addition to performing a variety of chamber music programs each year, the group sings, tours, and records as part of Yale Schola Cantorum at the Institute of Sacred Music. 

Songs from the Imagination is presented through the generosity of the Terry F. Green 1969 Fund for British Art and Culture.