{"id":18595,"date":"2026-07-16T13:07:25","date_gmt":"2026-07-16T17:07:25","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.opus3artists.com\/?p=18595"},"modified":"2026-07-16T13:07:25","modified_gmt":"2026-07-16T17:07:25","slug":"holiday-debut-album-pentatone","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.opus3artists.com\/holiday-debut-album-pentatone\/","title":{"rendered":"Countertenor John Holiday Releases Debut Album “Over My Head” on Pentatone"},"content":{"rendered":"

A striking and deeply personal debut uniting spirituals, contemporary works, and art song, including world premiere recordings by Theo Morrison and Carlos Simon. Out now on our partner label Pentatone.<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"\"On Friday, July 17, 2026, PENTATONE releases Over My Head<\/em>, the stunning debut album from acclaimed countertenor John Holiday<\/a>. A striking and deeply personal statement of artistic identity, the album brings together spirituals, contemporary works, and art song in a program shaped by faith, love, and expressive individuality.<\/p>\n

Joined by pianist and close collaborator Kevin Miller, Holiday traverses a rich and stirring musical landscape, featuring works by Hall Johnson, Robert L. Morris, and H. Leslie Adams, alongside world premiere recordings by Theo Morrison and Carlos Simon, as well as arrangements by Holiday himself.<\/p>\n

Rooted in what Holiday calls \u201cLove in the Key of Resilience,\u201d Over My Head<\/em> is both an album long in the making and a presentation of his most authentic self. The repertoire was chosen for its powerful messages of hope and resilience, and for its ability to reach listeners with openness, intimacy, and conviction.<\/p>\n

The title reflects the album\u2019s emotional center\u2014evoking both surrender and transcendence\u2014and finds its fullest expression in the closing arrangement of the spirituals Over My Head<\/em> and Amazing Grace<\/em>.<\/p>\n

Holiday writes in the album booklet:<\/em><\/p>\n

\u201cIf you are in search of love, beauty, peace, or comfort in the midst of heartache, my sincerest hope is that this album serves as a beacon of light, guiding you toward those experiences. I find my truest happiness on stage, pouring my heart out to my audience, and with Over My Head<\/em>, I aimed to recreate that connection.\u201d<\/p>\n

Heard as a whole, the program unfolds as a personal journey through devotion, longing, memory, grief, and consolation, culminating in a final gesture of grace.<\/p>\n

The album opens with Hall Johnson\u2019s I\u2019m Gonter Tell God All O\u2019 My Troubles<\/em> and continues through a wide-ranging program including Theo Morrison\u2019s James Joyce settings; three world premieres by Carlos Simon in a freeform \u201cvocalise\u201d style; Robert L. Morris\u2019s Lyric Suite<\/em>; Holiday\u2019s own arrangements of Fly Me to the Moon, Summertime, Strange Fruit, <\/em>and Over My Head<\/em> \/ Amazing Grace<\/em>; and four songs by H. Leslie Adams: Prayer, The Heart of a Woman, Night Song, <\/em>and Sence You Went Away<\/em>. Together, these works honor a rich musical lineage while illuminating Holiday\u2019s singular voice as both interpreter and curator. Reflecting the breadth of an artist equally at home in opera, recital, American song, and contemporary repertoire, Over My Head<\/em> offers both a deeply personal statement and a distinctive contribution to the recorded vocal canon.<\/p>\n

The album was recorded November 20\u201323, 2024, at WGBH Studios in Boston, Massachusetts.<\/p>\n

Listen and learn more<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Watch<\/a> John Holiday perform Over My Head \/ Amazing Grace \u2013 Live at WGBH
\nWatch<\/a> John Holiday perform Strange Fruit<\/em>
\nRead<\/a> John Holiday\u2019s November 2025 feature in The New York Times<\/p>\n

\u201cArrestingly powerful, secure and dramatically high\u201d \u2013 The Wall Street Journal<\/em>
\n\u201cOne of the finest countertenors of his generation\u201d \u2013 Los Angeles Times<\/em>
\n\u201cA thing of astonishing beauty\u201d \u2013 The New Yorker<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

A striking and deeply personal debut uniting spirituals, contemporary works, and art song, including world premiere recordings by Theo Morrison and Carlos Simon. Out now on our partner label Pentatone. On Friday, July 17, 2026, PENTATONE releases Over My Head, the stunning debut album from acclaimed countertenor John Holiday. A striking and deeply personal statement … Continued<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":18599,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-18595","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.opus3artists.com\/api\/wp\/v2\/posts\/18595","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.opus3artists.com\/api\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.opus3artists.com\/api\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.opus3artists.com\/api\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.opus3artists.com\/api\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=18595"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/www.opus3artists.com\/api\/wp\/v2\/posts\/18595\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":18602,"href":"https:\/\/www.opus3artists.com\/api\/wp\/v2\/posts\/18595\/revisions\/18602"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.opus3artists.com\/api\/wp\/v2\/media\/18599"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.opus3artists.com\/api\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=18595"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.opus3artists.com\/api\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=18595"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.opus3artists.com\/api\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=18595"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}