LISTEN! is not only the title of this concert—it is an invitation and an insistence. We are charged to listen to this rich collection of songs with more than ears: to listen with empathy, memory, and presence. A diverse group of composers and poets is united by a central idea: song as a conduit for the unspeakable, the personal, the painful, and the transcendent. Here, to listen is not passive reception, but an active moral and emotional task. In this program, Mirror Visions Ensemble premieres their latest commission, Randall Eng’s Song with poetry by Brigit Peegan Kelly. The program also includes two “mirror visions” (the same text set by different composers): Elizabeth Bishop’s evocative poem “I Am in Need of Music” in settings by Lori Laitman, Ben Moore, and Tobias Picker, as well as Siegfried Sassoon’s exultant “Everyone Sang” in settings by Paul Moravec and Deborah Pritchard.