Having already established an audience under her given name, New York-based pianist/composer Sophia Vastek is embarking on a new journey in her musical career with a record coming out next month under a different name that seeks both to honor her past while pointing toward a fresh creative direction.
While she says the name Sophia Subbayya Vastek , which she had been using professionally since college, remains very dear to her, the new moniker of Sova signals a pivot from primarily interpreting classical works to focusing on the development of her own personal “soul” music, a process which began with her 2022 release In Our Softening and really takes flight on the new record. Beyond being an abbreviation of her given name, Sova is also the word for owl in several Slavic languages including her father’s native tongue, a nod to both her heritage and its allure as a mythological symbol of wisdom.
Alight!, which comes out in September, is thus as much a culmination as a new beginning. The album brings many ideas and inspirations together to present a cohesive “world-building” approach to blending the piano with electronics and the distinctive voices of collaborating artists – namely Spencer Zahn (fretless bass guitar), Clarice Jensen (cello), Evan Chapman (drums & electronics), Max Yassky (drums), and Sam Torres (saxophone and more).
Drawing on influences such as Keith Jarret, Jan Garbarek, and more recently, Hania Rani, Vastek explores a variety of piano sounds and styles in a delightfully eclectic fusion of jazz and classical elements that traverses a variety of motifs while paying meticulous attention paid to layers, textures, and colors. Featured here in this video premiere is one of the record’s most contemplative tracks called “Hymn for Slowing”, a warm and meditative duet with her partner Sam Torres on saxophone that thoughtfully taps into the music she grew up and its power to resonate and connect.
I grew up in a family of working church musicians, and I grew up singing. I’ve been estranged from the idea of “church” for a long time, but the music follows me. Hymns are an incredible gathering force. Group singing unites through vibration. It’s palpable and powerful, and there’s nothing else like it. I didn’t set out to write a hymn tune, but when it came to me I knew I wanted it to be a duet with my life partner, Sam Torres. His saxophone winds around the hymn tune in a way that reminds us to find those vibrations with others. With this track, the hymn gathers us into slowness.
Sophia Vastek aka Sova
Alight! will be released September 4, 2026, by Hout Records on vinyl LP, CD and digital. The album was mastered by Sam Torres and mixed by Chuck Johnson.
Links: Bandcamp (LP/CD/digital) | Pre-Save Links | Sova
