Threads of Eternity unites the powerful voices of composers Lili Boulanger and Unsuk Chin, brought to life by the Rutgers Symphony Orchestra. The album is available from Albany Records starting July 25, 2025.
Boulanger's works—D’un matin de printemps, D’un soir triste, Psaume CXXIX, and Vieille prière bouddhique—capture both the emotional spectrum of human experience and a deep spiritual introspection. In contrast, Chin's subito con forza, inspired by Beethoven, bursts with inventive energy through brief quotations and bold reimaginings of his music. Together, these pieces form a striking dialogue between lyricism and innovation.
The album is conducted with artistic direction from Dr. Ching-Chun Lai, an accomplished conductor and educator known for her dynamic presence on both academic and professional stages. In addition to her role as Director of Orchestral Activities and Engagement and Associate Professor at Mason Gross School of the Arts, Rutgers University, Lai maintains an active conducting career, collaborating with leading professional orchestras across a wide range of projects.
Lai's work spans traditional symphonic and operatic repertoire as well as new music premieres. A protégé of Gunther Schuller, she has served as assistant conductor to several renowned maestros and has held conducting fellowships at prestigious festivals including the Gstaad Menuhin Festival. Her commitment to underrepresented music and interdisciplinary collaboration continues to shape and inspire the next generation of orchestral artists.
Threads of Eternity will be available by Albany Records on July 25, 2025. For more information or to purchase / stream the album, click here.
Threads of Eternity
Orchestral Visions by Lili Boulanger & Unsuk Chin
Lili Boulanger composer
Unsuk Chin composer
Rutgers Symphony Orchestra | Ching-Chun Lai conductor
Rutgers University Glee Club | Brandon Williams director
Rutgers University Kirkpatrick Choir | Brandon Williams director
Rutgers Voorhees Choir | Stephanie Tubiolo director
Conductor Ching-Chun Lai enjoys an international career in both professional and academic settings. As a professional conductor, in various capacities, she has worked with ensembles such as the Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra, Buffalo Chamber Players, Gstaad Festival Orchestra (Switzerland), Madison Bach Musicians, New Jersey Symphony Orchestra, New Symphony Orchestra (Bulgaria), Richmond Symphony Orchestra, Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra, Schenectady Symphony Orchestra, and the Syracuse Orchestra.
Rutgers Symphony Orchestra is the flagship ensemble of the Mason Gross instrumental program. Presenting an annual concert series of symphonic programs and a main-stage opera, RSO aims to prepare students for professional careers as orchestral musicians in various capacities. RSO has performed at Carnegie Hall, Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts, Symphony Space, and New Jersey Performing Arts Center with many of the world’s leading conductors and soloists. As an advanced and cutting-edge university orchestra, in recent years, RSO has expanded its mission to advocate for underrepresented music and interdisciplinary collaborations.
Brandon Williams is an Associate Professor and the Director of Choral Activities at Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, where he conducts the Rutgers Kirkpatrick Choir and the Rutgers Glee Club. Previously, he conducted the Rutgers Voorhees Choir, which was selected to perform at Carnegie Hall (2019) and Eastern ACDA (2020, 2024). Williams also appears internationally as a guest conductor, clinician, and presenter. He was the recipient of the 2020–2021 Rutgers Provost’s Award for Excellence in Teaching Innovations and the 2021–2022 Rutgers Presidential Fellowship for Teaching Excellence Award. Williams holds degrees from Western Illinois University, the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, and Michigan State University.
The Rutgers University Glee Club, established in 1872, is one of the oldest and most distinguished tenor-bass choirs in the United States that regularly performs internationally and commissions new works from major composers. In juried processes, the Glee Club was selected to perform at American Choral Directors Association National Conferences (2001, 2017, 2021) and Eastern Division Conferences (2006, 2010, 2014, 2020).
Rutgers University Kirkpatrick Choir is the most advanced-level choir at the Mason Gross School of the Arts at Rutgers University. The choir performs a significant repertory of major choral-orchestral works, Baroque music accompanied by period instruments, and important works of the 20th and 21st centuries. The New York Times listed the Kirkpatrick Choir’s performance of major works by Lou Harrison at Trinity Wall Street NYC as one of the “Best Classical Performances of 2017.” The Kirkpatrick Choir’s Naxos release of Samuel Adler’s Five Sephardic Songs is available online.
Stephanie Tubiolo teaches at Rutgers–New Brunswick, where she won the Irene Alm Memorial Prize for Excellence in Performance and Scholarly Research for her doctoral work. At Rutgers, she serves as conductor of the University Choir and Voorhees Choir and as chorus master of Rutgers Opera Theatre. From 2011-2023, concurrent with her work at the university level, Tubiolo taught New Haven Public Schools students in grades 2-12 with the Yale Music in Schools Initiative, where she founded the Morse Chorale. She holds a BA in music from Yale College and an MM in choral conducting from the Yale School of Music, where she sang professionally with the Yale Schola Cantorum.
The Rutgers Voorhees Choir is a soprano-alto ensemble that champions text and music composed by women and historically excluded poets and composers. They made their Carnegie Hall debut in April 2019 as part of the inaugural National Concerts performance series. In juried processes, the Voorhees Choir was also selected to perform at the 2024 ACDA Eastern Division Conference in Providence RI, and the 2020 ACDA Eastern Division Conference in Rochester NY.
Stephen Martin has enjoyed engagements spanning throughout Italy, China, Austria, and the United States singing leading roles in staged works such as La Traviata, La Bohème, The Tales of Hoffmann, Gianni Schicchi, The Grapes of Wrath, Les Misérables, and many more. He has performed with The Santa Fe Opera, The Glimmerglass Festival Opera, Sarasota Opera, Minnesota Opera, Opera in the Rock, Chicago Summer Opera Festival, Kenosha Opera, The Detroit Symphony Orchestra, Motor City Brass Band, Flint Symphony Orchestra, Saginaw Symphony, and others. Martin has twice won the East Tennessee District Metropolitan Opera Competition and is the recipient of an Encouragement Award at the Mid-South Regional Metropolitan Opera competition. He was a grand finalist in the Rochester International Voice Competition, a semi-finalist in the Mildred Miller International Voice Competition, Opera Index Competition, and Birmingham Opera competitions, was awarded the Mandelker/Harris Award for Outstanding Returning Studio Artist at Sarasota Opera, and won the Charlotte Ruppel Memorial Voice Competition. Martin holds a Doctorate in Voice Performance, Master’s degrees in Voice Performance and Music Theory Pedagogy, and a Bachelor’s degree in Voice Performance, all from Michigan State University.
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