Sarah Kirkland Snider

One of Snider's best known works is Penelope, an orchestral song cycle based on the faithful wife from Homer's Odyssey, with lyrics by playwright Ellen McLaughlin. The cycle originated as a music-theater piece commissioned by the J. Paul Getty Center. The piece was later expanded into an orchestral song cycle and released on New Amsterdam Records in 2010. The album contains vocals by Shara Nova and orchestral accompaniment by Ensemble Signal.

Penelope received widespread critical acclaim.[3][4][5][6] It was listed as Time Out New York's No. 1 Classical Album of 2010,[7] NPR'S Top 5 Genre-Defying Albums, WNYC New Sounds' Top 10 Albums of 2010,[8] Huffington Post's Top 10 Alternative-Art Songs of the decade, and many other year-end lists.[9] The album also received an 8.2/10 in Pitchfork.[1] The New York Times described the piece as a "hauntingly vivid psychological portrait".[1][10]

• Disquiet (2005, rev. 2012)
• Until I Become Human (2006) for mezzo-soprano, solo viola, and orchestra
• Hiraeth (2015)
• Something for the Dark (2015)
• Blue Hour (2017) for mezzo-soprano and string orchestra
• Embrace (2018)
• Forward Into Light (2020)

• Just Once (1997) for soprano and piano
• Mad Song (1998) for tenor and piano
• The Heart of the Woman (1998) for soprano and piano
• The Ecotone (1999) for two pianos
• Ave (2002) for string quartet
• Stanzas in Meditation (2004) for two sopranos and harp
• In Two Worlds (2005) for flute, oboe, bass clarinet, French horn, offstage trumpet, trumpet, vibraphone, violin, and cello
• Thread and Fray (2006) for bass clarinet, viola, and marimba
• Chrysalis (2006) for soprano and two violas
• Shiner (2006) for trombone, harp, viola, and marimba
• Passenger Seat (2006) for high voice (soprano, mezzo, or countertenor) and piano
• How Graceful Some Things Are, Falling Apart (2006) for mezzo-soprano and piano
• Daughter of the Waves (2011) for flute, clarinet, French horn, trumpet, electric guitar, violin, viola, and cello
• Pale as Centuries (2011) for flute, clarinet, bass clarinet, electric guitar, piano, and double bass
• Taking Turns in My Skin (2011) flute/piccolo, clarinet/bass clarinet, French horn, trumpet, electric guitar, violin, viola, cello, and soprano (optional finger cymbals, guiro, vibraslap)
• Penelope (2012) for fl/alto fl/picc, cl/bass cl — French horn, tmpt — drums/perc (glock, egg shaker, BD, gro, tri, 2 crot., fing cymb) — e. gtr./acoustic gtr. — mezzo-soprano — violin, viola, cello — laptop
• You Are Free (2015) for flute, clarinet, marimba, piano, violin, and cello
• Chrysalis (arr. 2015) for soprano, violin and cello
• Unremembered (2013, arr. 2016) for chamber orchestra, three voices, and electronics
• Five Songs from Unremembered (arr. 2017) for oboe, English horns, percussion, acoustic/electric guitar, harp, piano, violin, cello — Wide-Ranged Soprano (E3 to B5) — laptop (electronics)
• Parallel Play (2019) for flute and piano
• If you bring forth what is within you: Suite from Blue Hour (2019) for flute, clarinet, bassoon, French horn, piano, two violins, viola, cello, and double bass
• Penelope (arr. 2019) for mezzo-soprano — one drums/perc (vibr., glock., egg shaker, BD, gro, tri, 2 crot.) — two violins, viola, cello, double bass — laptop

• Here (2011) for SSAA chorus
• Psalm of the Soil (2013) for five tenors, two baritones, and two basses (optional piano accompaniment)
• Ouroboros (2015) for SSA chorus, string quartet, and two percussion
• Mass for the Endangered (2018) for SATB chorus, piano, string quintet, flute, oboe, clarinet, bassoon, harp and percussion
• You Must Feel with Certainty (2018) for SATB chorus and percussion

• Finisterre (1997) for solo piano
• Only Five (1997) for solo piano
• Uninvited Reason (1998) for solo piano
• Prelude (1999) for solo piano
• A Single Breath (1999) for solo viola
• Ballade (2001) for solo piano
• The Reserved, The Reticent (2004) for solo cello

• The Burning Out of ’82 (1997) for SATB quartet, piano, and cello