Press & Media
So much goes on in the world of a composer. From concerts, to hosting events, and musical updates, you want to be the first to know what goes on in my life. Here you will find all of the news and press updates surrounding me and my work. Check out the press coverage I am receiving below.

Cozette’s Sometimes I Feel Like A Motherless Child Arrangement World Premiere
World Premiere of Cozette's Operatic Arrangement of Sometimes I Feel Like A Motherless Child
Sometimes I Feel Like A Motherless Child is an African American slave spiritual song arranged by international award-winning composer, Dr. Cynthia Cozette Lee, composed in 2020 for operatic voice and piano. Cozette’s spiritual song arrangement had its world premiere performance at the Philadelphia W. Russell Johnson Guild National Association of Negro Musicians – NANM meeting on December 14, 2024 at the Camphor Memorial United Methodist Church. The spiritual was successfully performed by international soprano, Jessie Nguenang.
Ms. Jessie Nguenang also performed Cynthia Cozette Lee’s moving art song The Wake at the December 14, 2024 NANM meeting. In 2023, the Lee sister’s art song The Wake was selected to be the required (imposée) song performed by the semi-finalists of Africa Lyric’s Opera second competition in Paris. Six semi-finalists performed the song with the string orchestra of the Orchestre Symphonique du Loire under the baton of conductor, Mehdi Lougraïda in Paris, France on April 15, 2023. https://bit.ly/4hB6fFb
The Wake was also selected to be performed on the Africa Lyric’s Opera 4-city tour in France during May, 2024. The 4-city tour began on May 21 at the L'Opéra Orchestre National Montpellier; on May 23 at the Le Tivoli in Montargis; on May 28 at the Opéra de Rouen in Normandie and ended on May 29 at the Palais de la Porte Dorée in Paris, France. The Montpellier program can be found at this URL: https://bit.ly/4cPP3tg

Cynthia Cozette Lee Has 2 Exciting Premiere Performances of Her Flute Music
World Premiere Performance of Cozette's Detroit River Promise Flute Trio
Two inspiring flute works by CYNTHIA COZETTE LEE, award-winning contemporary Black American classical composer, were performed this past summer. DETROIT RIVER PROMISE, a new flute trio work composed by Cozette, received a world premiere performance in Detroit, Michigan on June 22, 2022 at the Crescendo Detroit All Program Concert.
A special thank you to flute teacher, Shelly Rouse-Freitag and her three talented flute performers, Detroit high school students. The three flutists gave an exciting world premiere performance of Cozette’s trio music. The work was so well received that the flute trio ensemble was invited to repeat their performance of the DETROIT RIVER PROMISE at the Detroit Concert of Colors Festival which took place at the Detroit Institute of the Arts on July 23, 2022. Shelly Rouse-Freitag is a volunteer flute instructor with Crescendo Detroit, an after-school music program and a private flute instructor in the Detroit Metro Area. Shelly is a member of the Michigan Philharmonic, Oakland and the Warren Symphony Orchestras playing second flute and piccolo.
Cynthia Cozette Lee’s flute work RIVERS: AN AFRICAN TRIBUTE for Unaccompanied Flute was recently selected and performed by Dr. Paula Gudmundson, Associate Professor of Flute at the University of Minnesota Duluth on her YouTube channel. This performance is the premiere of the work on a YouTube channel. Dr. Gudmundson is a 2022- 2023 recipient of the Mcknight Fellowship for Performing Musicians. Dr. Gudmudson’s performance can be viewed on YouTube at the following URL https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1lsOyy5z1VU
CYNTHIA COZETTE LEE has composed 4 operas, and numerous chamber music, choral and symphonic works. This year, aria excerpts from her opera Adea were performed by the opera company, OperaCréole and the Washington National Opera Summer Institute.
Hats off to Shelly and her promising flute students for successfully performing Cozette’s moving new work, DETROIT RIVER PROMISE. Also a sincere thank you to Dr. Gudmundson for selecting and performing Cozette’s compelling flute music, RIVERS: AN AFRICAN TRIBUTE.

COZETTE’S OPERA ADEA EXCERPT PERFORMED BY OPERACRÉOLE IN NEW ORLEANS
OperaCréole Performs Morning Aria from Cozette's Opera Adea
OperaCréole celebrated Black Women Classical Musicians and Black Women Civil Rights Leaders in a Women’s History Month concert tribute on March 6, 2022, 3:00 pm at the Laurenia in New Orleans. Cynthia Cozette Lee, composer and librettist of the aria “Morning’ from her lyrical opera “Adea” was one of several distinguished Black women composers of opera whose music was performed. Cozette is very grateful for this honor. To hear more please visit: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NlIw48jTgyU Cynthia Cozette Lee’s “Adea” “Morning Duet” is an inspiring aria performed eloquently by OperaCréole talented opera singers.

Entrée to Black Paris
Paris, France Premiere of The Wake
Dr. Cynthia Cozette Lee was featured as a composer in an April 27, 2023 "Entrée to Black Paris" blog article after the notable premiere performance of her art song "The Wake” for voice and string orchestra in Paris, France by the Orchestre Symphonique du Loiret. https://bit.ly/4hB6fFb
Dr. Cynthia Cozette Lee appeared in The Philadelphia Sunday Sun Newspaper in April 28, 2023 in an article titled “Award-winning African American Classical Composer’s Art Song World Premiere” https://bit.ly/3RmWeAJ