BUZZ

McFarland releases Daron’s new book, Exploring Operafilm: Making the Bardo Trilogy, in April 2026.

  • November, 2025 — Barbara Grecki’s full-length play The Keeners is getting a NYC Reading. Coverage in Broadway World here and here.

  • Kuleana, a new documentary narrated by Woody Harrelson, with Tyler Ono as co-composer, has been released at the Hawaii International Film Festival.

  • Robert Frankenberry’s new opera The Blue Fairy, produced by our producing partner Aria 412, received its staged world premiere in Pittsburgh in June. Read more here.

  • October, 2025 — Daron screened Orson Rehearsed at Yaddo in August; I Hear America Singing’s marketing look has settled in with its migration to the aggregators; Daron’s waiting for proofs to come back for the book Exploring Operafilm.

  • Exploring Operafilm: Making the Bardo Trilogy is scheduled for April 2026 publication by McFarland and Company. Pre-order it here or  here or here or here.

  • 9/10: Love Before the Fall has been licensed by Amazon Prime Video, and is beginning to appear on other streaming services worldwide.

  • I Hear America Singing is doing well on the Festival Circuit. As of June 2025, three months in, it has garnered the following laurels: Nominee - Best Independent Film, Best Composer of the Season - Montreal Independent Film Festival; Nominee - Best Composer - New York Independent Cinema Awards; Official Selection in Best Ensemble Cast and Best American Film Categories - World Film Festival in Cannes; Los Angeles Film Awards Winner-Best Musical / Dance Film; Honorable Mention for Best Indie Film; Nominee - Best Feature Length Documentary, Best Director, Best Cinematography - Swedish International Film Festival; Winner — Diamond Awards for : Best Ensemble Cast, Best Director, Best Editing, Best Original Score; Gold Awards for: Best Actor (Robert Frankenberry) and Best Documentary Film — Mindfield Film Festival, Albuquerque; New York Film Awards - Winner - Best Original Score, Silver; Semi-Finalist - Best Musical Feature or Documentary - Kyoto International Film Festival; Winner — Best Experimental Feature Film - Alternative Film Festival, Toronto; Semi-Finalist — Best Performative or Character-Driven Documentary and Best Documentary Cinematography - Lonely Wolf International Film Festival, London

  • Daron screened Orson Rehearsed at the Bogliasco Foundation in Italy on February 17th for the fellows and staff. He is there writing his book on “opera film.”

  • Excellent article and interview called “Opera Meets Film: Multimodal Marriages in Daron Hagen’s ‘9/10: Love Before the Fall’“ in OperaWire here.

    OLD BUZZ HERE…

AMERICA SINGING INSTA FEED…

View fullsize Thank you, @malibufilmfestival for making our #operafilm an Official Selection. Hooray to the entire @orson_rehearsed @910_operafilm @daronhagencomposer @aria412pgh family!
View fullsize Thank you @mindfieldabq @siffnews @florencefilmawards @alternativefilmfestival @newyorkmovieawards @lafilmawards @parisfilmawards @vancouverindependentfilmfest @montrealindependentfilmfest @newyorkindependentcinemaawards @lonelywolffest @pageant_film
View fullsize Thrilled that the shooting script and essays about creating "I Hear America Singing" are included in this cool new book by director-composer-screenwriter-editor-bottle-washer @daronhagencomposer being published in February 2026. Pre-order n
View fullsize Post well worth skipping if you don't feel like going down the rabbit hole. I'm having a morning I never imagined having when I began composing fifty years ago: feeling gratitude for McFarland & Company, Inc., Publishers' patient editor as I upda
View fullsize Summer Roundup
View fullsize #Repost @daronhagencomposer ・・・ Thank you, @malibuwestfestival for laureling our #operafilm @americasinging with 2025 Orson Welles Platinum Festival Awards for BEST DIRECTOR, BEST MUSIC SCORE, BEST WRITER, and the Silver Festival Award for BEST PICTU
View fullsize Congratulations to the entire New Mercury Collective family: our #operafilm "I Hear America Singing" is an Official Selection for the International Sound & Film Music Festival for Best Score for a Documentary Feature and a Semi-Finalist
View fullsize Thrilled that my memoir "Duet with the Past" is now available on @audible unabridged, and narrated by the author. Thank you to @mcfpub for publishing it, and thank you @bogliascocenter for providing me the undisturbed environment where I co
View fullsize Thank you, @florencefilmawards for honoring our #operafilm with the July laurel for BEST DOCUMENTARY FEATURE. @peermusic_classical @daronhagencomposer
View fullsize Congratulations, @talaljabari on being awarded the laurel for BEST CINEMATOGRAPHER for your work on "I HEAR AMERICA SINGING" from the @swedish.international.filmfest Bravo, mate!
View fullsize Exhilarating, thrilling sweep at the prestigious Paris Film Awards for our #operafilm "I Hear America Singing!" Thank you for awarding laurels for BEST FEATURE FILM, BEST DIRECTOR, and BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY as well as Silver Awards for B
View fullsize Thank you, @parisfilmawards for making our #operafilm an Official Selection!
View fullsize Ah-oooooooo! We are thrilled and grateful. Thank you, @lonelywolffest for making our #operafilm a semi-finalist in the Best Performative or Character-Driven Documentary and Best Documentary Cinematography categories. And super kudos to @talaljabari &
View fullsize We're delighted to have been awarded the laurel for Best Experimental Film in the Features category by the @alternativefilmfestival in Toronto! Thank you! Bravi to the entire New Mercury Collective creative and performing teams.
View fullsize Thanks, @alternativefilmfestival for making our #operafilm "I Hear America Singing" a Category Award Nominee for Best Documentary Feature and Best Experimental Feature. We look forward to our final ranking and laurel on the 22nd! Excited an
View fullsize Thank you Kyoto Independent Film Festival, for making I HEAR AMERICA SINGING a semi-finalist for BEST MUSICAL FEATURE / DOCUMENTARY. Wish us good luck in the finals! @peermusic_classical @mcfpub @aria412pgh @daronhagencomposer @robertfrankenberr
View fullsize Momentum! We are so excited by the terrific reception “I Hear America Singing” is getting on the festival circuit. Bravi tutti! @robertfrankenberry @ariasinger201 @talaljabari @daronhagencomposer @swedish.international.filmfest @worldfilm
View fullsize Thank you @newyorkmovieawards for awarding our #operafilm the SILVER AWARD for BEST ORIGINAL SCORE. @peermusic_classical @ascap @aria412pgh @_the_scl @operawire @skylightmusictheatre @daronhagencomposer
View fullsize
View fullsize Thank you, @cine_sweden (Swedish International Film Festival, for making our #operafilm "I Hear America Singing" a Nominee in these three categories: BEST FEATURE LENGTH DOCUMENTARY FILM, BEST DIRECTOR, BEST CINEMATOGRAPHER.