Troy, New York based pianist and composer Sova (Sophia Vastek) has quietly established herself as an “exciting and refreshingly unpredictable” (PopMatters) artist. Born on an Air Force Base just outside Washington, DC to two professional pianists, Sova defied their hopes of her finding a different calling and began playing the piano as soon as she could sit upright. Since then, her intuitive playing style has evolved into a “deeply immersive and cinematic experience” (Expansion Radial) that blends neoclassical, ambient, and jazz sensibilities. Sova delights audiences with the added mystique of touring with her own upright piano, bringing piano music into unexpected settings.

Her newest LP, Alight!, is out now on Hout Records (NPR’s Best Albums, Qobuz Editor’s Pick). It has been described as a “study of contrasts, anchored by Sova’s exquisite keys” (A Closer Listen) and “a mesmerizing fusion of neoclassical composition and indie electronic sound design” (Last Day Deaf). The record marks an exciting evolution of her language, involving collaborators Clarice Jensen, Spencer Zahn, Max Yassky, Sam Torres, and Evan Chapman.

In a live setting, with her piano in tow, Sova is equally at home in a state-of-the-art performing arts center as she is in DIY venues or on a classical chamber music series. In that vein, she recently opened for Icelandic pop experimentalists múm. At the heart of her live sound is a long-standing collaboration with audio engineer Sam Torres who travels with Sova and provides the detailed sonic thread that links her performances.

Her last LP, In Our Softening (2022), produced by Sam Torres (Polymouth Music), features nine of her own beguiling piano compositions, each track a part of a thoughtfully woven tapestry. 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. Exploring the theme of finding softness within an increasingly hard world, the album has been 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). The record also made it onto Bandcamp’s All-Time Best Selling Solo Piano list.

Her music has been released on Hout Records, OPIA (the record label founded by Ólafur Arnalds), Innova Recordings, and more. Her debut album, Histories (2017), was produced by multiple Grammy-winning engineer Adam Abeshouse. She has also released an EP of the complete solo piano works by composer Lili Boulanger (1893-1918), entitled Lili (2020, reissued 2023).

Equally important to the music itself are the spaces in which Sova’s music exists. Whether she is performing or presenting, she is dedicated to creating musical experiences that are grounded in care and intentional gathering. In that spirit, she and her longtime partner founded S&S Presents, through which they curate the popular Lift Series at the Troy Savings Bank Music Hall, as well as concerts in their home — a converted church-space in South Troy called Troy Listening Room.

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.

Her music has been released on OPIA, the record label founded by Ólafur Arnalds, 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).

Equally important to the music itself are the spaces in which Sova’s music exists. Whether she is performing or presenting, she is dedicated to creating musical experiences that are grounded in care and intentional gathering. In that spirit, she and her longtime partner founded S&S Presents, through which they curate the popular Lift Series at the Troy Savings Bank Music Hall, as well as concerts in their home — a converted church-space in South Troy called Troy Listening Room.

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.