Sova (USA)

Jazz / Neo-Classical

For Sova — the moniker of New York-based pianist/composer Sophia Vastek — the piano has always been home. A second generation pianist, she holds a deep reverence for her history, coupled with an exploratory ear, and moves quietly between musical worlds. Described as performing with "passion and profound tenderness” (Second Inversion) and “serene strokes and lyrical beauty” (Brooklyn Rail), her intuitive playing style has evolved into a dynamic, cinematic sound that blends neoclassical, ambient, and jazz sensibilities. 

Her last LP, In Our Softening (2022), produced by Sam Torres (Polymouth Music), made it onto Bandcamp’s “All-Time Best Selling Solo Piano” list and features nine of her own beguiling piano compositions. Recorded entirely on an upright built in 1902 — complete with a giant crack in the soundboard — the album draws listeners in with its vulnerable and vibrant intimacy. The album was called “a tender and revelatory balm" by editors at I Care If You Listen, “heaven on earth” (Sun 13), and “one of the very best things I've heard all year” by longtime music journalist Steve Smith (Night After Night). 

Her new LP, Alight!, is due out September 4 on Hout Records. The record marks a significant evolution of her language, involving collaborators Clarice Jensen, Spencer Zahn, Max Yassky, and Evan Chapman. It also sees her deepening her collaborative relationship with producer Sam Torres.

Her music has been released on OPIA, Innova Recordings, and more. Her debut album, Histories (2017), was produced by Grammy-winning engineer Adam Abeshouse, and described as “a beautiful mosaic of the larger cultural intersections of our world” (Second Inversion). She has also released an EP of the complete solo piano works by composer Lili Boulanger (1893-1918), entitled Lili (2020, reissued 2023).

In 2022, Sova was recognized as a composer by the New York State Council on the Arts and New York Foundation for the Arts (NYSCA/NYFA) as a Music/Sound Fellow, a statewide program focused on the evolution of contemporary art. Her music has been featured on NPR, BBC, and KEXP, and she has performed across three continents.

"Ghostly, delicate, elegant..." (Independent Clauses)

"... feels like heaven on earth." -Sun13

“Vastek’s fingers fly...with passion and profound tenderness” -Second Inversion

“....a skillful, sensitive pianist worth watching” -Steve Smith, Night after Night

“serene strokes and lyrical beauty” -Brooklyn Rail

“Vastek’s delicate, yet powerful playing softly lifted audience members up and gently eased them back down to Earth” -Metroland Now